Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News
Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News |
- Comparing Bersih to UK riots shallow, says Umno leader
- Malaysia vowed to improve refugee lot
- Labor MP breaks ranks on Malaysia deal
- Frog and snake now political pawns
- What’s Firefly’s role after tie-up?
- Anwar to enter defense on Aug 22
- ‘Only three states for BN-Umno’
- ‘Evil’ BN injected voters into Sibu
- Ambiga tells of her ‘lawyerly revolt’
- EC insincere in cleaning up electoral rolls, says PAS
- MAS, TR deals price of Dr M’s failed privatisation plans, says PAS
- MACC probe uncovers 6P scammers
- AirAsia boss poised to take over QPR today
- DAP wants SC action over Tajuddin suits
- After two years as PM, Najib losing middle ground
| Comparing Bersih to UK riots shallow, says Umno leader Posted: 14 Aug 2011 07:43 PM PDT By Boo Su-Lyn, The Malaysian Insider Deputy Higher Education Minister Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah contradicted his Umno colleagues today and said it was "shallow" to liken the July 9 Bersih rally to the last week's UK riots. The outspoken Umno supreme council member added that such an argument reflected badly on Barisan Nasional (BN). "You can't give shallow excuses because the new social consciousness will be asking you, 'What? Bersih is equal to riots in UK?" Saifuddin told The Malaysian Insider today. "Why they do it is different, the people who join are different, the way they do it is different," he said when comparing the differences between the Bersih rally and the recent riots in the United Kingdom. Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak reportedly said last Friday that the riots in the UK justified the clampdown on the massive July 9 rally for electoral reforms. Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein told Malaysians last Thursday to be thankful that the Bersih rally did not end up becoming violent like the riots in London and other major English cities. Today, Saifuddin also pointed out that the students who demonstrated in the UK last November were not looters, drawing further distinctions between demonstrations and riots."The demonstration... is against the (university) fee hike. They're not looters; they're not hooligans," said the Temerloh MP. Saifuddin had previously criticised the government for failing to discuss terms with Bersih 2.0 electoral reforms movement before the July 9 rally here, warning that Najib would suffer a political backlash from the rally. The recent London riots had spread across Britain with reports of youths looting shops and torching cars and buildings. Community leaders there said the violence in London, the worst for decades in the multi-ethnic capital of 7.8 million people, was rooted in growing disparities in wealth and opportunity. |
| Malaysia vowed to improve refugee lot Posted: 14 Aug 2011 07:36 PM PDT By Michelle Draper, Sydney Morning Herald Immigration Minister Chris Bowen says assurances Malaysia would improve its treatment of asylum seekers was a crucial factor behind the government's controversial people-swap deal, legal documents show. In an affidavit filed but not yet read in the High Court, Mr Bowen said he took into account a range of advice from Malaysian officials, his department and the United Nations refugee agency UNHCR before deciding to send asylum seekers to Malaysia. The full bench of the High Court will next Monday hear a legal challenge brought by refugee lawyers against the federal government's proposal to send asylum seekers to Malaysia in exchange for processed refugees. In his affidavit, Mr Bowen said after eight months of discussions with Malaysian officials he formed a view the country had made a "significant conceptual shift" about its treatment of asylum seekers. He said Malaysia had begun to improve the protections offered to refugees and asylum seekers and was also considering granting asylum seekers work rights. "The understanding that I formed from my conversations with the Minister of Home Affairs and other Malaysian officials was that the Malaysian government was keen to improve its treatment of refugees and asylum seekers," he said in the affidavit. Mr Bowen also said he had met with United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees officials and understood the refugee agency considered the arrangement had benefits and would be workable. He had taken advice from his department which "reassured me that Malaysia did provide basic support and protection to asylum seekers," the affidavit said. Refugee lawyer David Manne, who is representing 42 asylum seekers facing deportation, said the affidavit's contents were contentious. "At the heart of it is the process by which the minister ... declared under Australian law that Malaysia is a place that is suitable to send asylum seekers to because it has adequate procedures, protections and human rights standards in place," Mr Manne told reporters outside the High Court in Melbourne, following a directions hearing for the matter. "That is a matter of considerable controversy in the case, it is one of the key questions in this case," he said. Mr Manne said it remained to be seen whether the new evidence in the affidavit was consistent with previous commonwealth evidence provided in the case. It also emerged in Monday's hearing that the Australian Human Rights Commission will intervene in the case on behalf of a 16-year-old unaccompanied boy facing deportation to Malaysia. The government's controversial people-swap deal was put on hold last week after refugee lawyers convinced the High Court to order an injunction against the first deportations of 16 asylum seekers. The full bench of the High Court will hear the case next week before making a ruling as to whether the government's proposal is lawful. Under the Gillard government's people swap deal, Australia will send 800 asylum seekers to Malaysia in exchange for 4000 processed refugees. |
| Labor MP breaks ranks on Malaysia deal Posted: 14 Aug 2011 07:28 PM PDT By ABC News A Labor MP has broken ranks with the party over the Federal Government's Malaysia solution for the first time since the deal was signed, saying it cannot guarantee the safety of asylum seekers. Anna Burke, the member for Chisholm in Victoria, told the ABC's Lyndal Curtis on News 24 she has concerns about Australia's asylum seeker swap deal with Malaysia on a personal level. Her comments come as the full bench of the High Court prepares to hear a legal case next week challenging the Malaysian swap deal. The Christmas Island centre is now holding more than 200 asylum seekers slated for transfer to Malaysia, but a High Court injunction on behalf of a group of asylum seekers has put the process in limbo. Ms Burke says she has been to Christmas Island and there needs to be a proper debate about the issue. "I am concerned that we can't really guarantee the safety of the 800 people [being sent to Malaysia]," she said. "That is my personal concern and I have expressed that in caucus. "I think we have to have a more rational debate about this asylum seeker crisis. I personally think Manus Island is basically going back to something we said we wouldn't do, which is the Pacific Solution." Ms Burke first expressed her concerns in June and is not the only Labor MP to speak out against the deal. Melissa Parke, the Federal MP for Fremantle, also said in June that she could not support a deal that was not backed by the United Nation's refugee agency. High Court challengeThe legal stoush challenging the swap deal with Malaysia will go before the full bench of the High Court next Monday. Lawyers are challenging the arrangement on behalf of 42 asylum seekers, who formed the first group that was to be sent to Malaysia. The High Court injunction has prevented their transfer for the past two weeks. Federal Immigration Minister Chris Bowen has given an affidavit to the court setting out how he came to the conclusion that he could legally send asylum seekers to Malaysia. |
| Frog and snake now political pawns Posted: 14 Aug 2011 05:34 PM PDT By G Vinod, FMT PETALING JAYA: The slanging match between Malays rights group Perkesa and other political parties is putting the frog and the snake in a bad light. The apolitical frog and snake have now being held up as a symbols of hatred by both Perkasa and the MIC. Bukit Bintang MIC division chief S Ananthan brought a frog to the MIC annual general meeting last month, claiming that it represents Perkasa chief, Ibrahim Ali. Yesterday, Perkasa members torched several copies of The Star for offending Muslims by including non-halal delicacies in its "Ramadan Delights" column. And for good measure, they also burned rubber snakes in retaliation against Ananthan's frog stunt. "He brought a frog, so we brought snakes to represent the community," Perkasa Youth chief Irwan Fahmi Ideris said in an online news portal. But today Ananthan thanked Irwan for relating the snake with the community. "The Chinese and Indians believe snakes are divine creatures. So thank you, Irwan, for calling us divine," he said.
Blatantly racist Ananthan is angry because no action has been taken against Ibrahim for being so blatantly racist and inciting racial tension. He told FMT that since the authorities are keeping silent, the movement obviously enjoyed immunity from criminal charges. "With many reports lodged against it, the police are reluctant to clamp down on Perkasa. This shows Umno is behind the movement," said Ananthan. He warned the Umno leadership that its indifference towards Perkasa's tirades would only alienate the Chinese and Indians further from the ruling coalition. "The Malay votes are already split among Umno, PAS and PKR. You need the Chinese and Indians," said Ananthan. DAP Selangor legal bureau chief V Ganabatirao echoed Ananthan's sentiments, saying that BN would pay a high price in the polls for its tacit support of Perkasa. 'Uncivilised behaviour' "While the six PSM members were detained for no reason, the home ministry and the police seem to be powerless against a small group like Perkasa," said Ganabatirao. |
| What’s Firefly’s role after tie-up? Posted: 14 Aug 2011 05:26 PM PDT By Kang Siew Li, The Sun PETALING JAYA (Aug 14, 2011): The unprecedented tie-up between Malaysia Airlines (MAS) and rivals AirAsia and AirAsia X last week has thrust the future of Firefly – the budget carrier of the national airline – into the limelight. Even Firefly's top executives are in the dark over the role the budget carrier will play in this tie-up although there is talk of the airline exiting the low-cost segment. Senior executives from MAS and AirAsia have so far only said MAS will focus on premium travel, AirAsia on the short-haul low-cost segment and AirAsia X the medium- and long-haul budget segment under the comprehensive collaboration framework (CCF). "Firefly's resources would be refocused to launch a new regional full service airline operation," MAS chairman Tan Sri Md Nor Yusof had said at the press conference, but did not elaborate. "What does regional mean? Will it (Firefly) cover countries in Asean, Asia or Asia-Pacific? Will it continue to operate a mix of turboprops and jets or only turboprops? Will it be like Silk Air, the full service regional airline wing of Singapore Airlines?" asked an industry observer. When contacted by SunBiz, Firefly managing director Datuk Eddy Leong said he doesn't know. "I don't know yet. Until we are asked to do something else by MAS's new executive committee (set up to oversee the management of the airline until a new managing director is appointed), our operations must proceed as normal," he said. Firefly began its operations in 2007, initially operating turboprops from Subang before expanding into jet aircraft operation out of the KL International Airport (KLIA) early this year. It currently operates a fleet of 10 ATR 72-500 turboprops, four Boeing 737-800s and one 737-400. The rise of Firefly has intensified the competition and rivalry between MAS and AirAsia, and has hurt yields for AirAsia, especially on routes from KLIA to Kuching and Kota Kinabalu. Maybank Investment Bank believes that Firefly's jet operation days are numbered and that its turbo-prop operations will be rebranded as a full service regional service. "There will only be one full service carrier (MAS) and one low-cost carrier (AirAsia) in Malaysia, while AirAsia X will focus on being a medium-to-long haul low-cost carrier," the research firm said in a report. "There will be a clear demarcation of clientele and the business overlap will be reduced to benign. MAS's short-haul full service carrier business may be undertaken through a new subsidiary by the name of Sapphire, and MAS has the flexibility to re-designate capacity, assets and resources from Firefly to Sapphire," it added. Some analysts believe that Firefly will exit the low-cost segment by the first quarter of next year, thereby reducing the overall competitive pricing pressures and be positive for yields. However, Standard & Poor's aviation analyst Shukor Yusof said it would not make sense for MAS's new management to hive off its budget business into a new subsidiary. "Why? I can't think of a reason why you would want to remove a unit that is showing promise and actually making profits. The Firefly brand is doing quite well. I would seriously question the rationale behind completely removing Firefly from the present operations," he told SunBiz. Shukor believes that Firefly would still do well with its fleet of turboprops, offering premium travel in the Asean region. "After all, it was created in the first place to fly domestically and to Singapore. It should not be a problem," he said. "There's still a lot of uncertainties as a result of the (MAS-AirAsia) partnership. There are many questions that have yet to be answered, but in due course they will have to explain how they are going to rationalise not just the fleet and the operations, but the staff," he added. |
| Anwar to enter defense on Aug 22 Posted: 14 Aug 2011 05:21 PM PDT
(Malaysian Digest) - The High Court today has set next Monday for Opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to enter his defense on a sodomy charge. The court also allowed his legal team a chance to interview six more witnesses. Justice Mohd Zabidin Mohd Diah said Anwar will have to enter defense next Monday no matter what the outcome of the interview.
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| ‘Only three states for BN-Umno’ Posted: 14 Aug 2011 04:39 PM PDT
Barisan Nasional has lost 80% of the younger generation voters. (Free Malaysia Today) - Former Finance Minister Daim Zainuddin is pessimistic about the future of Barisan Nasional. He believes that BN can say its comfortable but only in Johore, Malacca and Pahang. But even in Pahang, a few parliamentary seats will slip out of BN's grasps as with a few more state seats. But overall, Daim believes Pahang will remain under BN, according to his alter ego The Oracle of Syed Putra, with whom I recently conversed. And if I am at liberty to translate the body language of The Oracle, Daim is also pessimistic about the political fortunes of Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak. I am sure that I've heard the same disconcerting vibrations from former premier Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad himself. The Oracle said Daim's exhortations to the two top leaders (Najib and deputy prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin) to go down and meet up with the cawangan (division) people is unheeded. "Meeting with Ketua Bahagians can be a misleading source of information, they will tell of everything good and what they have done with a view of getting re-elected. "But you need to go down to the basics – listen to the views in the raw (yourself). If possible exclude the ketua bahagians. "But they (Najib and Muhyiddin) haven't done this. "The PM is busy with his overseas trip. The DPM will not move lest whatever actions he takes will be misconstrued as upstaging the boss. "And that can cause some internal upheavals in Umno," said the Oracle. Losing battle Speaking further the Orcale said Umno and BN have lost their influence over the younger generation. Eighty percent of the younger voters are not going to vote for the BN. I asked the Oracle if he thought Umno could win the battles in cyberspace? And this is what he said: "Just look at the articles being spewed by the Umno cyber troopers. "Some of them are stuck with the idea that the PM of Malaysia is still Dr Mahathir and so their articles will be tailored to suit the positions taken by Dr Mahathir. "You watch – Dr Mahathir hasn't spoken his true mind (yet) about the Najib administration. "Once he does that all hell will break loose," he said adding that one reason for Mahathir's 'silence' is the restraint counselled by Daim. The majority of the Umno cybertroopers are spewing hate articles all the time with the expletives and vitriol. Will these engage the fence-sitters; those independent minded thinking would-be voters?
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| ‘Evil’ BN injected voters into Sibu Posted: 14 Aug 2011 03:59 PM PDT By Joseph Tawie, FMT KUCHING: Sarawak DAP has accused the Barisan Nasional (BN) of resorting to "evil means" in order to recapture the parliamentary seat of Sibu, which the opposition won in last year's by-election. It alleged that the BN had employed dirty tactics such "injecting" or increasing normal and postal votes and registering non-citizens as voters in an attempt to take back Sibu in the by-election last May. In the polls, DAP chairman Wong Ho Leng snatched the seat from BN-Sarawak United People's Party (SUPP) by a small margin of 398 votes. "We have managed to find out in Sibu that there was an unexplained and sudden increase of voters in certain areas as well as the registration of non-citizens as voters. "We found that there were many voters who were registered in the electoral rolls, but their names did not appear in the database of National Registration Department (NRD). "For the record, Dudong has 27 individuals registered in the electoral rolls, but their names were not found in the NRD head office. "In Pelawan, the number was 21 and Nangka had 36. For other areas we are going to check the national registration database and match it with the electoral rolls," Wong said after chairing the Sate DAP committee meeting yesterday. He said the Election Commission (EC) must explain the discrepancy. "The EC must explain why these individuals were being registered in the electoral rolls. Did it mean that the non-citizens have been registered as voters? "We also want to know the unexplained increase of voters in Nangka which saw an increase of 497 voters… "This is disproportionate to the increase in other constituencies like Bukit Assek where we saw a decrease of 50 voters, Dudong with an increase of 291, Bawan Assan 121 and Palawan 345," said Wong who is the State assemblyman for Bukit Assek.
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| Ambiga tells of her ‘lawyerly revolt’ Posted: 14 Aug 2011 03:46 PM PDT
By Clare Rewcastle Brown, FMT Over the weekend, Bersih 2.0 chairman Ambiga Sreenivasan drew a big draw in London, bringing enthusiastic audiences to a fund-raising dinner and to listen to speeches. The Bersih 2.0 rally had produced an excellent sympathy turnout over here in July, with several hundred marchers clad in yellow making the walk from the Malaysian High Commission over to Trafalgar Square. The time difference between the two regions made the London event especially poignant, because by the time it got going news had already come through about what had happened to friends back home. This weekend was the first chance for many to receive a first-hand account of what took place and from the leader of the event herself. Ambiga manages a rare combination. She is a highly formidable female, but also warm and engaging. She laid out with clarity and objectivity why she had led her lawyerly revolt. For us who had been so far away it was a welcome analysis. Bersih's concerns had been sparked off by their observation of the Sarawak state election, she explained. To their horror they witnessed "the dirtiest election ever" with "out and out vote buying", "intimidation", "phantom votes" and all the paraphernalia of rigged elections. The fact that modern technology meant there was solid, recorded evidence of plenty of cheating meant that, in Ambiga's view, the Election Commission had a constitutional duty to investigate and take action. However, to her dismay the Election Commission did nothing. EC's wilful ignorance As a former leader of the Malaysian Bar Council, Ambiga couches her arguments in the language of the law and not politics. Throughout (her speech), she made clear that her core concerns are about the abuse of legality and of Malaysia's constitution. She explained how Bersih had appealed to all political parties on the issue, but that support had come only from the opposition. Yet, her most withering criticism was directed towards officials of the Election Commission for their persistent attacks on the opposition and their refusal to investigate fraud. "The Election Commissioners just don't understand that under the constitution they are supposed to be independent of the government," she sighed. There can be nothing more frustrating for a lawyer than such wilful ignorance by those who have responsibility for upholding the rule of law.
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| EC insincere in cleaning up electoral rolls, says PAS Posted: 14 Aug 2011 03:43 PM PDT By Lisa J Ariffin, The Malaysian Insider KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 15 — The Election Commission (EC) has no intention of cleaning the existing electoral roll with its statement that there are no clean voter lists across the world, PAS information chief Datuk Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man said today. He added that EC chairman Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Mohd Yusof's remark "there is no clean electoral roll in the world" is similar to the Malay folklore figure Pak Pandir who said "not only our children will pass away, other people's children will also pass away". "This statement reflects the real attitude of the EC, which has no direct intention to favour the people and vigorously clean the existing electoral roll," Tuan Ibrahim said in a statement. He noted that the EC had been obstinate about denying its weaknesses over the years but pressure from the opposition has led it to acknowledge there are deficiencies in the electoral roll. But Tuan Ibrahim said the confession is far from sincere with Abdul Aziz blaming "technical errors that occurred during the process of the National Registration Department (JPN) profiling". "The electoral roll has about 12.3 million voters and there would be mistakes here and there, the whole world will have the same problem ... there is no perfect electoral list in the world," Abdul Aziz had said. "All that's happened was not planned by the EC. The EC will not simply allow voters to vote twice. Sometimes, it goes wrong during the profiling (by JPN). We will check if it's in the wrong place, if so, we will throw it out," Abdul Aziz said amid a backlash from evidence presented by the opposition such as registered foreign voters, overlapping names, phantom voters and names of voters not present on the JPN list. "EC's confession is clear why Bersih 2.0 was held, and now people are seeing its results," said Tuan Ibrahim, who is also Pahang PAS commissioner. He added that although the EC and Umno continue to portray the Bersih 2.0 rally negatively, people have started to open their eyes and see how dirty the election system is with thousands of foreigners given voting rights so easily.
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| MAS, TR deals price of Dr M’s failed privatisation plans, says PAS Posted: 14 Aug 2011 03:40 PM PDT
By Yow Hong Chieh, The Malaysian Insider PAS has called the MAS-AirAsia share swap and the Cabinet's "off-site" settlement of lawsuits against the national carrier's former executive chairman Tan Sri Tajuddin Ramli the "manifestation" of Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad's failed privatisation programmes. PAS vice-president Datuk Mahfuz Omar said the two recent headline-grabbing stories linked to Malaysia Airlines System Bhd (MAS) were the "two greatest symbols" of the former prime minister's alleged policy of privatising state-owned companies for the benefit of cronies. "These two are greatest symbols of cronyism and corruption along the lines of 'who do you know' and 'you help me I help you'," he told reporters here. Mahfuz pointed out even though Dr Mahathir has been in retirement for seven years now, the loss of competition in the airline industry resulting from the share swap and the potential out-of-court settlement with Tajuddin meant the people were still paying the price of the Umno strongman's 22 years in power. He said MAS had once been an airline "owned by the people" whose service was on par with Singapore Airlines and Cathay Pacific before it was allegedly bled by Tajuddin after the latter took control of the ailing state carrier in 1994. "Ownership was transferred from the people to an individual, Tajuddin, who lost RM8 billion with no accountability even though there was an effort to charge him," he said. The government regained control of MAS in 2001, but not before the airline allegedly incurred losses in excess of RM8 billion as a result of Tajuddin's dealings. According to a report to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), a major contributor to the record losses under Tajuddin was the relocation of MAS's cargo operation in Amsterdam and Frankfurt to a single hub in Hahn, Germany, where the airline was forced to enter into a disadvantageous aircraft lease contract with a company which was later linked to Tajuddin's family. The Malaysian Insider had reported that Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz issued a letter earlier this month telling all GLCs that the government was settling their claims with Tajuddin out of court. Tajuddin is facing billions in legal claims against him, following accusations by MAS in 2002 that he had caused the carrier to suffer losses in excess of RM8 billion. Nazri's letter had called for "all civil claims against Tajuddin and others to be withdrawn immediately in view of the fact that the government and the Finance Ministry have agreed that the said cases will be settled out of court."
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| MACC probe uncovers 6P scammers Posted: 14 Aug 2011 01:38 PM PDT
By Tim Leonard & Azril Annuar, The Sun The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) probe into the 6P amnesty programme has uncovered a syndicate headed by a 'Datuk' which is believed to have raked in millions of ringgit from unsuspecting foreigners. A senior MACC investigations officer disclosed that the probe found that thousands of foreigners had each paid the syndicate members between RM300 and RM2,000 purportedly to ensure they are granted amnesty and legalisation. "To convince the foreigners, the syndicate members showed photographs of those who had purportedly received amnesty after paying the specified amount," said the official. It is believed that more than 10,000 foreign workers all over the country have fallen prey to the syndicate, whose members go around claiming to be officials appointed by the authorities and wear 'government' accreditation tags. The MACC official revealed that the syndicate members had also collected money from foreign women involved in the flesh trade, and had offered them 'amnesty' for between RM300 and RM2,000. "We have found several leads on how the 6P programme is being manipulated and abused by unscrupulous individuals misusing the government's name," the official said. MACC director of investigations Datuk Mustafar Ali was unavailable for immediate comment but is expected to issue a statement later this week on the developments of the 6P amnesty probe. The Immigration Department is currently conducting the 6P programme to register and identify all legal and illegal foreign workers in the country. The first phase – the registration of foreign workers – is ongoing until Aug 31 and the second phase which is legalisation and amnesty, will kick off next month. Illegal foreign workers registering with any one of the 336 appointed agencies are required to pay RM 35 for registration in the first phase, and RM 300 for legalisation in the second phase. Last week, Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein had welcomed the probe by MACC and urged the anti-graft body to take stern action on those abusing the 6P amnesty exercise. Hishammuddin said an investigation was important to eradicate corrupt practices and cripple syndicates who are out to exploit the situation at the expense of the illegal foreign workers despite the government's directive to charge not more than RM35 per head, for registration purposes. Meanwhile, Home Ministry secretary-general Tan Sri Mahmood Adam said today that agencies appointed to facilitate biometric registration of illegal foreign workers who have already charged them the legalisation fee of RM300 per worker, will be required to refund the money should a worker's legalisation process fail. He said as the legalisation process will only start in September, only the RM35 registration fee is applicable for now. "These unscrupulous agents should not have started charging the workers the legalisation fee yet," he told theSun. "Legalisation has not started yet, why are they already charging these poor people? What happens if these (illegal foreign) workers fail in applying for the legalisation process? These agents must return the money to them." "What guarantee do these agents have that these workers can secure a job and be legalised in the first place? They might be sent back to their country of origin," said Mahmood, who reiterated that registration and legalisation process at immigration offices are free of charge. Asked to comment on the 600 biometric registration machines reportedly found to have been tampered with by a number of agencies last week, Mahmood said he had no update yet on the investigation as it was the weekend. |
| AirAsia boss poised to take over QPR today Posted: 14 Aug 2011 12:36 PM PDT
By Boo Su-Lyn, The Malaysian Insider AirAsia chief Tan Sri Tony Fernandes is close to taking majority control of English Premiership football club Queens Park Rangers (QPR) today. UK newspapers The Financial Times and the Guardian reported today that the owner of Asia's largest low-cost airline hopes to conclude a deal to buy a 51 per cent stake in the West London club from Formula One motor racing chief Bernie Ecclestone.The Financial Times said Indian steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal, who already owns a 33 per cent stake in QPR, will acquire the rest of Ecclestone's 62 per cent share. The Guardian also reported former Brazil coach and captain Dunga claiming that the Premier League club owed him £750,000 (RM3.75 million). AirAsia recently finalised a share swap with MAS, where the former's main shareholder Tune Air Sdn Bhd will swap 10 per cent stake in the budget carrier for 20.5 per cent share of the ailing flag carrier.
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| DAP wants SC action over Tajuddin suits Posted: 14 Aug 2011 12:25 PM PDT By Shannon Teoh, The Malaysian Insider The DAP has called on the Securities Commission (SC) to act against GLCs which have been ordered to drop billion-ringgit civil suits against Tan Sri Tajuddin Ramli for failing to reveal all material developments in their claims against the former Malaysia Airlines (MAS) chairman. Party publicity chief Tony Pua said in a statement today that Putrajaya's directive to withdraw their claims should have been immediately disclosed on Bursa Malaysia as "the litigations involved billions of ringgit in claims and counter-claims which are surely material to the finances of these companies." "The board of directors of these companies must also immediately state their immediate position vis-à-vis the letter from Nazri to allow investors, particularly the minority shareholders, to weigh their investment options," the Petaling Jaya Utara MP said. The Malaysian Insider had reported that Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz issued a letter earlier this month telling all GLCs that the government was settling their claims with Tajuddin out of court. Tajuddin is presently facing billions in legal claims against him, following accusations by MAS in 2002 that he had caused the carrier to suffer losses in excess of RM8 billion. Nazri's letter had called for "all civil claims against Tan Sri Dato Tajuddin Ramli and others to be withdrawn immediately in view of the fact that the government and the Finance Ministry have agreed that the said cases will be settled out of court." "For your information the government has given me the mandate to act for the government in this matter," it added, directing these companies to hand over their cases to Datuk Hafarizam Harun, who has handled other high-profile cases for Umno such as the constitutional crisis over its takeover of Perak in 2009. But after his letter surfaced, Nazri defended the administration's move, saying it would not spell a debt bailout for Tajuddin but was merely a suggestion to the GLCs to work out an out-of-court settlement with the former MAS chairman.
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| After two years as PM, Najib losing middle ground Posted: 14 Aug 2011 12:20 PM PDT
By Shazwan Mustafa Kamal, The Malaysian Insider Datuk Seri Najib Razak risks drifting further away from the centre if he does not deliver on his reform initiatives and continues to "pacify" right-wingers, analysts have warned. Pundits have charged that Najib has been moving away from a centrist position since taking office as prime minister in 2009, saying his indecisiveness in carrying out policies mirrored that of his predecessor Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi. Delayed economic reforms, the New Economic Model's (NEM) watered-down emphasis on competitiveness in its final version, coupled with Najib's (picture) poor handling of the July 9 Bersih are instances where the PM has been accused of placating the demands of right-wing groups as well as members within Umno. "In the long run Najib is moving to the right, and is running a big risk. Not everyone supports right-wing sentiments. "There is credence to the arguments that Najib is drifting away from the centre. Despite his proposals for reform and overtures to the non-Malay community, these are still in traction," said Merdeka Center director Ibrahim Suffian. Ibrahim believes that not much has changed since Najib introduced his government transformation programmes, pointing out that the results have not "trickled down" to the public. The polls expert stated that economy was the ultimate determining factor as to future voter support, and that turbulent economic times would not bode well for the PM. "It is in part driven by necessity, Najib is trying to protect his current support, he can't push for reforms at the expense of Malay support base within Umno," Ibrahim added. Using the recent Bersih 2.0 rally as an example, Ibrahim said Najib should have taken a more moderate position and allowed space for dissent by listening to the election watchdog. "He has to be seen as a prime minister for all Malaysians," said Ibrahim. The Malaysian Insider understands that Najib has fallen out with several key advisers over the government's security crackdown during the rally. A few liberal advisers have been sidelined while those with right-wing sentiments feel the prime minister should take a harder line. Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (Unimas) academic Dr Faizal Hazis concurred with Ibrahim's views, saying that although Najib had promised a "moderate, centrist" government administration, there was a lack of will on the part of Najib to carry through his plans. "In trying to placate all parties, Najib is drifting away from the centre. "There is no strong will to see the initiatives through, especially on the part of Umno," Faizal told The Malaysian Insider. The simplest example, said the academic was Najib's refusal recently to state whether he was a proponent of his own two-year-old 1 Malaysia policy that espouses being "Malaysian first" — for fear of contradicting his deputy Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.
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