Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News
Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News |
- Talam under MACC probe
- Zahid: AG confirms legitimacy of Scorpene purchase
- Putrajaya tightens screws on SUARAM, probing alleged civil service snitch
- 6 NGOs lodge reports against Anwar, 3 MPs
- It’s a threesome now as Faekah Husin joins in feud!
- Malaysia Week kicks off in London
- Faekah comes under fire from PKR
- Pakatan’s floor wage may cause RM7.2b outflow
- Son's wedding was 'cheap to organise'
- Seeking the Right to Be Female in Malaysia
| Posted: 06 Oct 2012 02:46 AM PDT
(Bernama) - The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) has conducted preliminary investigations into allegations of questionable deals worth over RM1 billion between the Selangor government and Talam Corp, MACC deputy chief commissioner (operation) Mohd Shukri Abdull said today. "We investigate without fear or favour all information that we receive. If there is a sufficient basis that offences have been committed under the MACC Act, we will proceed with further investigations," he told Bernama here today. Shukri, however, refused to eloborate. He was commenting on a statement by MCA Young Professionals Bureau chief Chua Tee Yong that the Selangor government had bailed out financially distressed Talam and had acquired the company's assets in a debt restructuring exercise at a much higher price than officially valued. Chua had challenged the state government to explain how its exercise to recover a RM382 million debt from Talam ended in questionsble deals worth over RM1 billion.
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| Zahid: AG confirms legitimacy of Scorpene purchase Posted: 06 Oct 2012 02:40 AM PDT
(Bernama) - Defence Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said the Auditor-General has already explained that the purchase of Scorpene submarines was made according to legal procedures and his official report must be accepted by all quarters. In response to the opposition's plan to bring in a French lawyer, William Bourdon, to brief the Malaysian lawmakers on court proceedings in France on the purchase of the submarines, Ahmad Zahid (picture) hopes no quarters would twist the existing facts on the matter. He was also of the opinion that the lawyer was invited to Malaysia by the opposition merely with political motive and not so much for legal business. Ahmad Zahid said this to reporters after opening the Sekolah Agama Rakyat Al-Ulum Al Tarbiah's Sports Day in Kampung Tanah Lalang here today. The purchase of the submarines should be seen from the aspects of an offset programme, training, and performance assurance for certain period of time, he said, adding that it was really an old issue brought up to create public anger and confusion. On the request for the government to pay a monthly allowance of RM500 to army veteran who served during the emergency era, Ahmad Zahid said it was up to the prime minister to decide according to the government's financial ability. "It is quite difficult for the government to meet the request, but we have to be grateful that during the tabling of the 2013 budget the government had announced the one-off payment of RM1,000 for the army veterans as a token of appreciation for their contribution during the emergency era," he added.
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| Putrajaya tightens screws on SUARAM, probing alleged civil service snitch Posted: 05 Oct 2012 03:50 PM PDT
(The Malaysian Insider) — Putrajaya will investigate claims that a civil servant has received bribes from Suara Rakyat Malaysia (SUARAM) in return for national secrets, the latest move against the human rights group, which is already under probe for having "misleading accounts". SUARAM has been at the forefront of exposing alleged corruption in the multibillion ringgit Scorpene submarine deal this past year but has in turn been the subject of investigation into its funding, along with several other non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and news portal Malaysiakini. "I cannot confirm or deny the allegations but we will monitor sensitive matters pertaining to national interest be it information, funds or outsiders," Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein told reporters after launching a Women's Safety Campaign at a school here yesterday. The minister was commenting on Thursday's newspaper statement by Jaringan Melayu Malaysia (JMM) president Azwanddin Hamzah, who claimed that RM100 million in foreign funds were believed to have been brought into the country since the human rights group was set up. Azwanddin had claimed several government servants were also believed to have been bribed with the funds to make decisions in favour of SUARAM associates and for government information and secrets. SUARAM has denied the statement that it bribed government officials to cover up information on its foreign funding and to gather information related to national security and government secrets from the Prime Minister's Department, Finance Ministry and the Companies Commission of Malaysia (CCM). It has also asked JMM to substantiate its allegations, and demanded an immediate apology and retraction of the allegations. Several groups and Putrajaya have focused on SUARAM after it revealed that former political aide Abdul Razak Baginda had sold Malaysian naval secrets to France. In April this year, the Tribunal de Grand Instance in Paris began its inquiry into SUARAM's claim that French naval firm DCNS had paid some RM452 million as a bribe to Malaysian officials to obtain a contract for two submarines. SUARAM had filed the complaint with the French courts in 2009. In a May 30 press conference in Bangkok, French lawyer Joseph Breham had revealed that a classified government document on the Malaysian navy's evaluation of the Scorpene submarines it was then planning to buy had been sold by Terasasi (Hong Kong) Ltd to DCNS for RM142 million. Abdul Razak, a former think-tank head who was at the centre of the 2006 investigation into the murder of former Mongolian model and translator Altantuya Shaariibuu, is listed as a director of Terasasi with his father, Abdul Malim Baginda. Weeks after the revelation, SUARAM came under close scrutiny of the CCM over its foreign funding sources, and the government agency said last week that it plans to charge the activist group for its "misleading accounts". Yesterday, the Young Journalists Club lodged a police report against Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and Pakatan Rakyat (PR) lawmakers Chua Tian Chang, Datuk Mahfuz Omar and R. Sivarasa for bringing three foreign lawyers to Parliament to discuss the Scorpene submarine issue, and demanded to know SUARAM's link to the case. Club president Dzulkarnain Taib said the organisation did not want foreign interference in the country's affairs. "What is the opposition's right to bring foreign lawyers to give a briefing in Parliament? "What is SUARAM's locus standi in the case?" Dzulkarnain said after lodging a report at the Dang Wangi police station here. The former Suara Keadilan editor identified the three lawyers as William Bourdon, the French lawyer who was deported from Malaysia earlier this year, Breham and Oliver Netzer. The journalist also asked about the ties between the opposition and SUARAM as well as the funds to bring the three lawyers here.
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| 6 NGOs lodge reports against Anwar, 3 MPs Posted: 05 Oct 2012 03:38 PM PDT
(Clockwise, from top left) Datuk Mahfuz Omar, Tian Chua, William Bourdon and R. Sivarasa (NST) - Six organisations, including five non-governmental organisations (NGOs), lodged police reports against opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and three members of parliament at the Dang Wangi police headquarters yesterday urging the home minister to investigate Anwar, Pokok Sena MP Datuk Mahfuz Omar, Subang MP R. Sivarasa and Batu MP Tian Chua for planning to bring three lawyers, including two from France, to represent Suara Rakyat Malaysia (Suaram) in briefing the Parliament on the Scorpene issue. The group's representative, Young Malaysian Journalists Club (YMJC) president Dzulkarnain Taib, said the three MPs had announced this during a press conference at the Parliament lobby on Wednesday. They said Anwar had given a written invitation to the lawyers to talk about the judicial inquiry on the purchase of Scorpene submarines. "The Scorpene issue is an internal matter. What is the opposition's plan in bringing in foreigners to talk about our country's matter?" One of the lawyers invited was Frenchman William Bourdon, who was arrested and deported in July last year for a visa violation. "We believe the opposition leaders attention was an attempt to mock and ridicule our Federal Constitution and our King." He said Anwar and the three MPs should also be questioned by the Parliament's disciplinary board. "This is a matter of principle. Outsiders should not interfere in our country's internal matter. Let the government handle it." He said YMJC and five other NGOs -- Jaringan Melayu Malaysia, Pertubuhan Pribumi Perkasa, Lembaga Kesedaran Pencegah Jenayah, Lembaga Pelindung Kebajikan Pengguna Malaysia and Muslim Consumer Association -- believed the move by the opposition leader could also disrupt harmony in the country. |
| It’s a threesome now as Faekah Husin joins in feud! Posted: 05 Oct 2012 03:32 PM PDT
(mynewshub) - The Azmin Ali-Khalid Ibrahim fued has grown more exciting! The plot has thicken! The Mentri Besar's ever so loyal political secretary Faekah Husin has joined in the fray by hammering the PKR number two, describing him as not so politically smart. "Politically, that is not a smart move. That alone can cause instability in the state administration," she was reported as saying. Instability in the state administration – these are powerful words. That's insubordination for sure. Actually, Faekah is telling Azmin to go and fly kite. But we know what emotions can do. Azmin was simply speaking up his mind. He wanted Khalid out of Selangor. It is an open secret he wants to replace Khalid. Well, good for Faekah. She better speaks up and defends her boss because if Azmin takes over as MB, she will be kicked out of Shah Alam too. She shouldn't be traveling so much in a private jet with Tian Chua and the other PR leaders. Better worry about your own seat in Shah Alam, stop jet setting to Sabah and Sarawak. The fight for the MB has started because Pakatan Rakyat seems cock sure of retaining Selangor. The jockeying for positions have started and knives have been sharpened as the various factions ensure only their men gets in. It's the same old story like how the warlords in Umno tries to sabotage their enemies during the polls. We can expect to see more of the same in PKR. Watch this space for more updates on the bitter feud in PKR.
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| Malaysia Week kicks off in London Posted: 05 Oct 2012 03:28 PM PDT
(Bernama) - LONDON: Malaysia Week 2012 in London kicked off with Malaysia Night, an event to showcase the vibrant culture and traditions of Malaysia to Britons, especially tourists visiting London, yesterday. Hosted by Malaysia Kitchen, it was held for the third time at Trafalgar Square, the prestigious landmark in London, from 12pm to 10pm and was opened by Chief Executive Officer of Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (Matrade) Dr Wong Lai Sum. The event was held in collaboration with the five-day Malaysia Week celebration beginning today at South Bank, here. Also present was Information, Communications and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim. Others present were Malaysian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom Datuk Seri Zakaria Sulong, famous Malaysian shoe designer Datuk Dr Jimmy Choo, Member of London Assembly, Greater London Authority, James Cleverly and United Kingdom Member of the European Parliament, Dr Syed Kamall. Besides providing Malaysian delicacies by 17 of London's leading Malaysian restaurants, visitors were also entertained to cultural performances, fashion shows and had the opportunity to buy textiles, crafts and art works. Dr Wong in her speech said organising such an event was to share the best of Malaysia, from its enchanting cuisine and quality products, to its mesmerising culture and tourism attractions. "For the past two years, the Malaysia Kitchen programme that has been run in London and various other parts of the United Kingdom has made a great leap and been a huge success in promoting and creating greater awareness about Malaysia," she said. She said the government had taken the opportunity to showcase Malaysia further and invite people to visit the country. "We want to introduce you the enchantment of Malaysia so that you can see for yourself and to get firsthand experience of this multi-ethnic and diverse culture and even while doing business in Malaysia," she said. She said Malaysia was a great place to do business in as well as a great place to do business with. "By the end of tonight, I hope you will have a better perspective of our country and you would want to visit Malaysia," she said. |
| Faekah comes under fire from PKR Posted: 05 Oct 2012 03:16 PM PDT
Selangor PKR says that the Menteri Besar Khalid Ibrahim's political secretary should not have commented on PKR deputy president Azmin Ali's statement recently. K Pragalath, FMT Selangor Menteri Besar Khalid Ibrahim's political secretary, Faekah Husin, has come under fire for defending her boss recently. "Selangor PKR leadership council is very disappointed with the unnecessary comments from Khalid 's political secretary which could have been made much more positively if she had taken the trouble to communicate with Azmin [Ali, the PKR deputy president] over the matter. "As far as Azmin is concerned, he has openly shown his full support in favour of Khalid," Selangor PKR deputy president Zuraida Kamaruddin said in a statement today. She was reacting to a statement by Faekah earlier this week that Azmin should not be deciding on the political fate of Khalid after the next general election. Azmin, PKR deputy president, had previously announced that Khalid would be offered a federal minister's post if Pakatan Rakyat were to form the next federal government after the 13th general election.
Zuraida, who is also Ampang MP and national PKR women's wing chief, said Faekah had "misunderstood" Azmin's statement. "Khalid's role at the federal level was unwisely misinterpreted by Faekah. If only Faekah held her breath for a second and finished reading the news report in good faith, she would understand the message that Khalid is a valuable asset to Pakatan," Zuraida added. She also advised Faekah to communicate with the state PKR leadership more frequently to avoid frictions within the party. "As an effective political secretary to the menteri besar, Faekah should concentrate on improving the political relationship between menteri besar and party leaders and not cause instability by unnecessarily jumping the gun," said Zuraida.
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| Pakatan’s floor wage may cause RM7.2b outflow Posted: 05 Oct 2012 03:10 PM PDT
Chua Tee Yong says the floor wage would benefit some three million foreign workers here, who send the money back to their countries of origin. Leven Woon, FMT MCA Young Professional Bureau chairman Chua Tee Yong has joined the fray over Pakatan Rakyat's RM1,100 floor wage proposal, claiming that it would cause RM7.2 billion capital outflow every year. Commenting on Pakatan's shadow budget 2013 in a statement today, Chua said the move to increase minimum wage from the current RM900 to RM1,100 would further add to the national debt burden. He pointed out that there are three million foreign workers in Malaysia, and a RM200 increase in salary would cost the market an extra RM600 million per month. "In one year, RM7.2 billion will be spent on these foreign workers. "The RM7.2 billion will be an outflow, as the money will be transferred out from the country to the respective countries of where the foreign workers reside," he said. Chua, who is also Deputy Agriculture and Agro-based Industries Minister, said the rakyat would eventually bear the consequences of this outflow. "The business owners will definitely pass all the incurred cost from the increase in the minimum wage to the rakyat and the rakyat will be the one to suffer from it. "The so-called facilitation fund from Pakatan [to help the employers], is only sufficient to last for less than two months. After that, the people will have to bear all the sufferings," he said. He noted that RM7.2 billion is equivalent to twice of the Barisan Nasional government's Bantuan Rakyat 1 Malaysia (BR1M) programmes, which only cost RM3 billion under the Budget 2013. Meanwhile, Chua also pointed out Pakatan's failure to include a mechanism to reduce oil price and highway tolls in its shadow budget. "How would they be able to reduce the petrol price? Where's the calculation?" he asked. Earlier this week, Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin also criticised Pakatan's proposed minimum wage of RM1,100, saying it would bankrupt the small and medium industries (SMIs) and destroy the economy. However, Pakatan MPs insisted that this was not true as their floor wage comes hand-in-hand with financial assistance to the employers and a policy to stop dependence on foreign, unskilled labour.
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| Son's wedding was 'cheap to organise' Posted: 05 Oct 2012 12:12 PM PDT
(Asia One) - A leaked document from the Malacca State Development Corporation (PKNM) allegedly shows that state agencies had sponsored the wedding ceremony. Did the catering for the wedding cost RM1.3 million (S$524,000), RM13 million or a mere RM600,000? Whatever the cost, the grandiose scale of the wedding of the eldest son of Malacca's chief minister has grabbed headlines in Malaysia. About 130,000 people are believed to have attended the wedding banquet of Mr Mohd Ridhwan and his wife Nur Azieha Mohd Ali, both 26. And the wedding entered the Malaysia Book of Records for the huge turnout, The Star reported. Opposition lawmakers have demanded that the chief minister, Mr Mohd Ali Rustam, reveal how much he spent on Sunday's wedding and where the funding came from. But Mr Mohd Ali, who is on a working trip to Indonesia, dismissed the talk about extravagance. "It was cheap to organise. The wedding just looked grand because of the number of people who attended," he said. The chief minister, who is also a Umno vice-president, told Malay Mail that he had hired 30 chefs who could whip up the wedding reception's nasi briyani campur dishes for 60,000 people, at RM10 per head. Each serving could feed three people, he said. It comes to RM600,000 for a wedding feast that could be served to about 180,000 guests, he said. He dismissed allegations that the reception, which lasted eight hours, cost millions of ringgit. Meanwhile, a leaked document from the Malacca State Development Corporation (PKNM) allegedly shows that state agencies had sponsored the wedding ceremony. Debating the federal budget in Parliament yesterday, Parti Islam Se-Malaysia lawmaker Mahfuz Omar said the document showed that a meeting hosted by PKNM was especially called to discuss the "logistics of the ceremony" on Sunday. "The CM's special officer admitted that the event was sponsored to the tune of RM10 per guest and the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission must look into this (as) this is a personal event. "The meeting minutes mention the government departments involved and state that no bills should be claimed from the chief minister, everything is free." The minutes also allegedly stated that 100 tents were sponsored by four local councils and the armed forces could be approached for more tents. Read more at: http://news.asiaone.com/News/AsiaOne%2BNews/Malaysia/Story/A1Story20121005-375724/2.html |
| Seeking the Right to Be Female in Malaysia Posted: 05 Oct 2012 12:04 PM PDT
(The New York Times) - Nisha Ayub was jailed for three months after her first arrest for dressing as a woman 14 years ago. Ms. Nisha, who was 20 at the time, said prison wardens forced her to walk naked in front of the male inmates. "It's something I can't forget until today," she said. The feminine figure dressed in jeans and a T-shirt, makeup carefully applied, drew little attention from other customers at the fast-food restaurant in Seremban, a city about an hour's drive south of Kuala Lumpur. The 26-year-old began wearing women's clothing at age 13. Thanks to plastic surgery in neighboring Thailand, a daily dose of hormones and a feminine nickname, she is able to present herself as female to the outside world. But her official identification card — which Malaysians must produce in dealings like job interviews — declares that her name is Adam Shazrul Bin Mohammad Yusoff and that she is male. The discrepancy between her appearance and her officially recognized gender presents much more than just awkward moments in Malaysia, where Shariah, or Islamic law, bans Muslim men from dressing or posing as women. Penalties differ in individual states, but in Negri Sembilan, where the 26-year-old lives, convicted offenders may be sentenced to up to six months in prison, fined as much as 1,000 ringgit, about $325, or both. Tired of living in fear of prosecution, the 26-year-old — who has been arrested twice and was once fined 900 ringgit — and three other transgender people are challenging the law in the secular courts, arguing that it violates the Malaysian Constitution, which bans discrimination based on gender and protects freedom of expression. A verdict in their case — the first time anyone has sought to overturn the law — is expected next Thursday. "It's for freedom — to be like everybody else, to wear what we like," said the 26-year-old, explaining why she is taking part in the case. "This shouldn't happen. It's an unjust law. We are just human beings. We are not doing anything wrong." Read more at: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/06/world/asia/seeking-the-right-to-be-female-in-malaysia.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&_r=0 |
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