Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News
Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News |
- Wee: PAS in favour of the dark ages
- Pakatan must endorse Johor Demand
- Poll registration law to go
- Chua: I agree PAS condones raping of non-Muslim women
- Kong: DAP is sinful for helping PAS' hudud
- HK dropped Musa’s case after MACC probe, says Nazri
- Nasha likely to go on baiting PAS
- MCA’s death knell gets louder
- Discontent in KL: ‘People First’ debunked?
- Umno forms panel to act on errant members
- Nazri: I did not interfere with probe
- Siva, Xavier accused of betraying the poor
- Anwar: Straight fights in Penang for 13th GE
- Senators keen on contesting in polls
- EC: Bersih ‘backstabbed’ us
- ‘Sarawak’s paper millionaires’
- Nazri Aziz: Opposition receives political donations too, not just Sabah Umno
- Penang PKR will not reveal findings
- Nazri tells Pakatan to ask HK about Sabah Umno’s RM40m
- MRT Corp to award remaining 38 contracts worth RM2b by year-end
- Keeping news free, fair and fun
- This is my country, I’ll not balik Tong San
- Nazri’s son cleared over assault, murder
- Perkasa wants boycott of Jaclyn Victor
- LGBT a Jewish agenda, says Perkasa
- Education, economic equity main draw for Chinese community, says Saifuddin
- Umno explains Pakatan’s Rapid backtrack
- Tee Keat slams Soi Lek for mocking audit report, ignoring mismanagement
- Speak Malay, PM tells Chinese community
- Penang men no longer need first wife's permission to take on second wife
- Problem-plagued Proton ‘in trouble’
- Azmin-Khalid feud enters a new level
| Wee: PAS in favour of the dark ages Posted: 20 Oct 2012 05:54 AM PDT The MCA Youth chief says that it was only after the separation of politics and religion that the European countries prospered. Leven Woon, FMT MCA Youth chief Wee Ka Siong attacked PAS for trying to return the country to the dark ages by implementing a theocratic state, which he said was a feudal political system. In his opening address at the 48th MCA Youth Annual General Assembly meeting today, Wee said that the European countries have spent thousands of years to do away with a political system that combines with religion. "It was only after the separation of politics and religion that saw the birth of the Renaissance and eventually the Industrial Revolution" he said Wee told some 600 delegates that it would be mockery should PAS strive to reintroduce a system that had been abandoned by the world. "We must remember that the democracy and human rights which we have today is the result of the separation of politics and religion. "We must not allow PAS to return us to an age that has long past us. This ideology must be rejected by the people of this country," he said. He also took a jab at DAP's inconsistency on the hudud issue, saying that the party chairman Karpal Singah and advisor Lim Kit Siang once made a strong stance against hudud law, but not the current leadership. "The new generation of leadership in DAP has changed their stand by saying that there is no need to fear an Islamic state as long as you don't steal or rob," he said. Later at a press conference, Wee was asked if MCA's constant harping on hudud issues would translate to Chinese support to BN. Sarawak's SUPP also highlighted the hudud issue but they did not do well in the state election last year. Wee said the opposition's reaction would not have been so great if the Chinese were not concerned by the hudud issue. MCA deputy president Liow Tiong Lai, who was also at the press conference, believed in the Chinese's wisdom to differentiate between a national election and a state election. "(In a national election), you elect the federal government, where the Federal Constitution is of utmost importance to the nation. You can't allow PAS to become the government to implement such a policy in this country," he said.
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| Pakatan must endorse Johor Demand Posted: 20 Oct 2012 05:51 AM PDT The Johor Friends of Suaram and Hindraf Makkal Sakti said only then will Pakatan get their electoral support. Athi Shankar, FMT The Johor Friends of Suaram and Hindraf Makkal Sakti have come up with a Johor Demand and wants Pakatan Rakyat to endorse it. They say Pakatan must endorse it, if they want their electoral support in Johore In a joint-statement here today, Friends of Suram coordinator, Ang Pei Shan and Hindraf's Y Mohan said Johore Demand constituted three major demands: racism, "nationalisation" of alien workers and Pengerang. Mohan said the NGOs would want pre-election commitment from Pakatan to implement their demands if the coalition took over power in Johor or Putrajaya. Yesterday, he said, the Johore Demand was submitted to the state branches of DAP, PKR and PAS. "Our support for next general election must be on a win-win strategic alliance," Mohan said. The NGOs' main demands were:
They said the unequal provision in Article 153 had given a legal basis for UMNO-dominated Barisan Nasional ruling elites to practise institutionalised racism, create two classes of citizens of Malays and non-Malays. The NGOs said the NEP and bumiputera quota system allowed BN ruling clique and cronies to enrich themselves while the Malays at large remained poor and live in abject poverty. In this era of China and India emerging as big powers, they said any attempt to eliminate Chinese and Tamil education for the 6.96 million ethnic Chinese and 2.07 million ethnic Indians is wrong. The NGOs want the authorities to establish more Chinese primary schools in Chinese dominated areas and Tamil primary schools in Bukit Indah, Mount Austin, Kota Tinggi and other areas in Johore. The NGOs also want authorities to approve the application to revive the Segamat Chinese independent secondary school and give due recognition to United Examination Certificate (UEC) and degree of Southern College University. The groups called on the state government to allocate land for Masai Hindu cemetery, which has now been hit by land shortage. They said this would prevent poor Indian families from falling prey to loan sharks, who collect exorbitant interest on loans taken for cremation. The groups resolutely opposed Project Mahathir because it was highly prejudicial to Malaysian citizenry rights. Through Project M, the groups claimed that Umno elites has legalised illegal immigrants in Sabah and now in Peninsular. According to conservative official statistics, they said three million aliens have been legalised and, issued long-term work permits and identity cards.
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| Posted: 20 Oct 2012 05:47 AM PDT The EC will see that the regulation will be abolished and reviewed after the next general election. Patrick Lee, FMT After the next general election is over, the Election Commission (EC) will do away with a law that governs the registering of voters in Malaysia. Deputy EC chairman Wan Ahmad Wan Omar said that the Registration of Electors Regulations 2002 was littered with problems, causing many public complaints. "Next year, after we're done with the election, we're going to abolish the present law… The EC has decided that there will be a big working committee to go on every point of the law and to improve it," he said. Wan Ahmad said that the law would then be reviewed in full, with help from the Attorney-General's Chambers. He said this while speaking at a National Institute for Electoral Integrity (NIEI) forum today. Wan Ahmad said that Malaysia had the misfortune of having a very complex electoral roll, which he said had been "rolling" ever since the EC was formed in 1958. He added that at least 50% of the names present on today's electoral roll had been registered before 2002. Before then, he said, voter registration was extremely loose. "…forms could be filled up without proper checking. There was no online registration checking. It was completely dependent on the declaration by the person who came to register," he said. Wan Ahmad suggested that this was a reason why the electoral roll was so convoluted; a point of contention by various election watchdog groups in recent months. On top of that, he said that the EC had sacked 250 assistant registrars for not meeting with those they registered before putting them on the rolls. He added that there were 10.7 million registered voters in the 2004 general election, compared with 13.05 million now. As a result, Wan Ahmad hinted at a mountainous workload for the EC. He was also present at the NIEI event to hear the findings of a study that surveyed the accuracy of the current electoral roll. Study results NIEI acting chairman K Shan said that the study showed that 92% of the addresses surveyed were identified as valid. From this chunk, a further 74% were identified as recognisable voters. From this final group, the study determined that only 31% of the voters stayed in the addresses that they were registered under. The survey covered 2,400 respondents across 240 polling districts from 60 parliamentary constituencies. This, Shan said, had resulted in a false representation of the constituency, and would lead to a dilution of "voting wishes". He added that the EC appeared to have a lack of auditing and verification exercises to deal with these matters.
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| Chua: I agree PAS condones raping of non-Muslim women Posted: 20 Oct 2012 05:40 AM PDT The MCA president said there was nothing wrong with Wanita vice-chairman Heng Seai Kie's interpretation of Nik Aziz's statement. Leven Woon, FMT MCA president Dr Chua Soi Lek agrees with Wanita vice-chairman Heng Seai Kie for saying that PAS condones the raping of non-Muslim women who do not conform with the Islamic dress code. Earlier today, Heng produced a video showing PAS spiritual leader Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat giving a speech four years ago in which he said that women who do not protect their modesty deserved to be raped. She said that Nik Aziz was instigating the Muslims to rape non-Muslim women. When asked to comment on Heng's statement, Chua said there is nothing wrong for Heng to interpret Nik Aziz's statement that way because rapists do not choose their victims. "When a Muslim rapist wants to rape, it doesn't mean he must rape a Muslim. He can choose anybody. "You cannot say I am not a Muslim, please don't rape me," he said at a press conference after chairing a delegates' briefing session this afternoon. Earlier today, Heng urged MCA Wanita members at the party's AGM to go all out to stop Pakatan from taking power, or risk seeing the implementation of hudud law. MCA Wanita chairman Yu Chok Tow also raised the possibility that all Muslim MPs, including those from Umno, would support PAS' hudud proposal should Pakatan win the next general election. "Due to religious concerns, Umno and PKR Muslim parliamentarians will have no choice but support a [hudud] bill…" she said. On a separate issue, Chua said that Pakatan Rakyat's proposed floor wage of RM1,100 would incur RM10 billion to RM12 billion extra costs to employers a year. He said the proposal would put 1.2 million people out of job and cause unemployment rate to increase.
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| Kong: DAP is sinful for helping PAS' hudud Posted: 19 Oct 2012 06:01 PM PDT  Delegates welcoming Kong as he arrives at the AGM (The Star) - KUALA LUMPUR: The DAP will become a sinner to the Chinese for helping PAS turn Malaysia into an Islamic state, said MCA secretary-general Datuk Seri Kong Cho Ha. He said the PAS leadership at all levels had repeatedly spoken that they would not give up on hudud, the party's main agenda. The DAP was opposed it initially, but it had slowed down on its criticisms over time, Kong said in his speech at Wanita MCA's 37th annual general meeting here on Saturday. Kong added that the DAP was also told to leave the Pakatan Rakyat pact if it could not accept PAS' agenda. "Why has PAS never stopped emphasising Hudud law, is it part of the common agreement?" said Kong. He said the DAP has been misleading the public by saying that they do not have to be afraid of hudud. Indeed, he said, Islamic state and Hudud law would affect daily life, deprive women of their rights and bring negative impact to the economic. |
| HK dropped Musa’s case after MACC probe, says Nazri Posted: 19 Oct 2012 11:49 AM PDT
(The Malaysian Insider) - Putrajaya has confirmed that Datuk Musa Aman was only cleared of corruption after Malaysian graftbusters told Hong Kong authorities that a RM40-million cash contribution allegedly meant for the Sabah chief minister was a "political donation" to Umno. De facto law minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Aziz told The Malaysian Insider that the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission's (MACC) probe on Musa was initiated after Hong Kong's Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) requested for information on the issue. He said the ICAC had asked for MACC's co-operation after Sabah timber trader Michael Chia was arrested and charged with money laundering in 2008 for attempting to smuggle S$16 million (RM40 million) out of Hong Kong. According to media reports, Chia had at the time told Hong Kong authorities that the money belonged to Musa. "MACC agreed to co-operate with its Hong Kong counterparts and found that the money in question was not for Musa's personal use. "The agency then reported back to ICAC with the information and the Hong Kong authority decided to drop the matter and pull its complaint from the Swiss court," Nazri told The Malaysian Insider yesterday. The minister was asked to respond to DAP advisor Lim Kit Siang's accusation that he had been giving conflicting reports to Parliament on which anti-graft authority ― Malaysia's or Hong Kong's ― had first cleared Musa of graft. Read more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/hk-dropped-musas-case-after-macc-probe-says-nazri/ |
| Nasha likely to go on baiting PAS Posted: 19 Oct 2012 11:46 AM PDT
(Free Malaysia Today) - The sooner he is sacked, the better it may be for the party. PAS is playing a dangerous game in its refusal to sack the maverick Nasharuddin Mat Isa over his latest and perhaps most energetic round of Pakatan Rakyat bashing. Even novice political observers can guess the rationale behind the apparent leniency. Having learnt a lesson from PKR's sacking of Zahrain Mohd Hashim and Zulkifli Noordin and its own sacking of Hasan Ali, PAS does not want to play Nasharuddin's game. Like those three other Umno lackeys, Nasharuddin wants to be sacked rather than tender his resignation because the second option will expose him to accusations that he has been bought by Umno to cheat those who voted him to public office. Nevertheless, according to insiders, Nasharuddin's case is slightly different from those of Zahrain, Zulkifli and Hasan. As former deputy president of the party, he is said to enjoy some support from the rank and file, including some members of the Syura Council. PAS does not want to alienate these people. But insiders who are losing patience with Nasharuddin fear that he will escalate his attacks as the general election gets closer in order to help Umno score points with conservative Malays. They note that his audacity has grown following the slap on the wrist that he received for criticising PAS' decision to replace its Islamic state agenda with a welfare state programme. It was for a similar offence that Hasan was sacked. Nasharuddin was merely told to stop making public statements against the change of agenda. He has largely obeyed that order by the letter, but not by the spirit. Indeed, he has grown more vicious in openly questioning the moral validity of PAS' continued cooperation with DAP in the Pakatan pact and, more recently, creating doubts about PKR leader Anwar Ibrahim's Islamist credentials. And he has not been shy of being seen cavorting with Umno president and Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak. When the Syura Council met last month, it was widely anticipated that it would announce some form of action against Nasharuddin. At the very least, some thought, he would be kicked out of that powerful consultative unit of the party. However, party president Abdul Hadi Awang emerged from the meeting only to say that the council did not discuss any action against him. Risk worth taking The council's stance shocked quite a number of members, including some in leadership positions. But a source had in fact told FMT prior to the council session that Nasharuddin was safe because too many of the councillors were "Nasha's men" – that is, leaders who support the proposal for PAS and Umno to form a "unity government". In the last party elections, the so called pro-Erdogan team won most of the central committee positions. But the failure to act against Nasharuddin clearly indicates that the unity-government camp still has control over the PAS leadership, especially through the Syura Council and, some say, the Ulama Council. But then again, as some would argue, the PAS leadership is perhaps merely fearful of a backfire. For sure, if Nasharuddin were to be sacked, there would be no end to Umno's spinning of the issue through its newspapers and the public-owned electronic media. However, if one were to take the long view, it is a risk worth taking. Read more at: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/opinion/2012/10/20/nasha-likely-to-go-on-baiting-pas/
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| Posted: 19 Oct 2012 11:44 AM PDT
(Free Malaysia Today) - The party goes into a crucial annual assembly amidst doubts over its chances of recovery. Chinese voters are no longer asking whether MCA will remain credible as part of the ruling coalition, but whether it will survive even as an opposition party. The general belief is that it will do worse in the 13th general election than the bruising it got in 2008, and most of the blame is placed on Dr Chua Soi Lek's leadership, or rather the lack of it. At the party's 59th annual general assembly this weekend, Chua will no doubt try to boost party morale in preparation for the impending election. Sources familiar with his style predict that he will use emotional rhetoric aimed at imbuing the rank and file with the fighting spirit necessary to pull off the miraculous feat of winning more seats than the party did in 2008. He is also expected to emphasise that he has brought unity and stability to the party, as he has done on many occasions. His detractors in the party say the claim sounds more hollow and frivolous with each repetition. Chua, 65, limped into the MCA presidency in April 2010, carrying a tremendous amount of moral baggage. Since then the party has plunged ever more deeply into the political abyss, with no convincing sign that it will recover any time before the election. Such is the pessimism within a sizeable section of the membership. But many prefer to whisper to each other about their grievances and frustrations rather than discuss them openly, mostly for fear of being accused of disloyalty in the face of a seemingly formidable Pakatan Rakyat, specifically DAP. When Chua took over as the MCA's ninth president, many party insiders regretted, saying the event was an ugly stain on the legacy of the third largest Chinese organisation in the world. They were not referring only to the confession two years earlier that he was the protagonist in a widely distributed pornographic video, but also to his alleged plotting against rivals as he worked his way to the top. Some have said that his political machinations were even sleazier than his sexual indiscretion. Details of the alleged plotting against former presidents Ong Ka Ting and Ong Tee Keat might one day emerge. For now, however, insiders claiming to be in the know would only speak in general terms, perhaps out of love for the party and in the hope that it will somehow tide over these trying times and one day regain its lost glory. Recalling Chua's assertion that he was not interested in any executive position in MCA, they say he was in fact all the while manoeuvring his way to the top, getting himself appointed as Barisan Nasional's chief coordinator, and then contesting and winning the deputy presidency of MCA and eventually the presidency. They accuse him of being behind the "Save MCA Campaign" that forced an open inquiry into a so-called "snoop squad", which in turn undermined the credibility of then president Ong Ka Ting. Glaring favouritism They note that many of the party activists who lobbied for the March 2010 EGM that installed him as party president have been rewarded with ministerial and senatorial posts and top jobs in the party and agencies linked to the party. Others are potential candidates in the coming general election. Such glaring favouritism makes nonsense of his claims of success in uniting the party. Detractors say he had better leave out any talk of unity in his speech this Saturday (today) unless he is not concerned about being called a liar. Like Umno, MCA is facing the grim possibility of losing votes from even its traditional base of supporters. Analyses of figures from the 2008 election show that sizeable numbers of card-carrying members rejected both parties. The question now is not whether those members will return to the fold this time around, but how many more will join them in giving votes to the opposition. What about Chinese voters not affiliated with either MCA or any of the opposition parties – the so-called fence sitters? Since they are not involved in any factional animosity, is there any chance that they are impressed enough by Chua's leadership to give their votes to MCA? "Me and my friends are not supportive of MCA as a party and consider its role as no longer relevant," Gary Lim, a 32-year-old insurance executive, told FMT. Lim, like many voters in his age group, said he resented being treated like a fool by MCA's propaganda machine. Referring to what he described as "distortions and lies" about PAS, he said: "It's as if we're all so ignorant, or we don't have other sources of information. Read more at: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/opinion/2012/10/20/mca%E2%80%99s-death-knell-gets-louder/
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| Discontent in KL: ‘People First’ debunked? Posted: 19 Oct 2012 11:35 AM PDT
(Free Malaysia Today) - From temple demolition to traders, KTM employees to taxi drivers, BN must take note of the growing discontent on the ground. Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak's slogan of "People First" is nothing but a myth and this is proven true by five groups of people in five instances highlighted below which serve to show that there are quite a number of discontented people in Kuala Lumpur. Therefore this means that all is not 100% well in the Najib administration. The first issue, as above all else, concerns the divine and it pertains to the demolition of the Sri Muneswaran Kaliyaman Temple located in Jalan P Ramlee near Bukit Nanas in KL. On Sept 25, Dewan Bandaraya Kuala Lumpur (DBKL) had issued a notice that the temple is to be vacated within 30 days so that it can be demolished. According to PKR vice-president N Surendran, Federal Territories and Urban Well-Being Minister Raja Nong Chik Zainal Abidin has promised that no temples will be demolished. "Why are Indians being treated in this manner?" asked Surendran. DAP's M Manogaran, the Teluk Intan MP, is of the view that "it is very strange that this happens close to the general election and that this sort of incident is not the first time". Indian voters have to take note of this issue. The second issue concerns the privatisation of Keretapi Tanah Melayu Bhd (KTMB) to MMC Corporation Bhd (MMC). The president of KTMB's workers union, Abdul Razak Md Hassan, has informed PKR's Kuala Langat MP, Abdullah Sani, that MMC could not guarantee that no one would be laid off. KTMB has about 5,600 employees. Abdullah Sani has stated that KTMB chairman, who is also the Selangor BN co-ordinator, Mohd Zin Mohamed, would be replaced if Pakatan Rakyat were to form the federal government as the latter was only a politically-appointed person tasked with furthering the interests of Umno, which included advertising the prime minister's picture and message on the commuter train coaches and placing BN flags at the premises of the Shah Alam commuter station. Again, the rakyat's interests have been relegated. Traders in a spot As for the issue involving traders, the night market traders in Kampung Kerinchi have been instructed to move to a spot near the Universiti LRT station. This new trading spot, however, could only accommodate 30 traders whereas the old spot in Kampung Kerinchi could accommodate up to 60 traders. In addition to the above problem, 56 traders have been asked to move out of Kompleks Niaga Utama Bandar Utama Bangsar as this building will be demolished. These traders have turned to PKR's Lembah Pantai MP, Nurul Izzah Anwar, for help in highlighting their plight. So fair, Raja Nong Chik has not been helpful and attempts to meet the Datuk Bandar have failed. A representative of the traders, Fizan Mohd Nor Ar-Jamli, has forwarded a memorandum to the prime minister on this issue. As shown in the above instance, the slogan of "People First" is plain empty rhetoric. Another burgeoning issue concerns taxi drivers. They have a few grouses but one of the major ones concerns the issuance of too many taxi permits and the monopoly of taxi permits by certain quarters. Then there is also the MRT-Jalan Sultan issue where tunnelling works are to be done below the properties in Jalan Sultan, but the property owners prefer the MRT line to be moved to the main road of Jalan Tun Tan Cheng Lock nearby. Where is MCA's voice in this issue? If "People First" is the philosophy, why are the property owners being inconvenienced? They may even need to move out when the tunnelling works are being carried out. Read more at: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/opinion/2012/10/20/discontent-in-kl-people-first-debunked/
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| Umno forms panel to act on errant members Posted: 19 Oct 2012 11:33 AM PDT
(fz.com) - Umno will form a special committee to act against errant party members to curtail acts of sabotage and treachery in the run-up to the general election, said party president Datuk Seri Najib Razak. "We have decided to take up a proposal mooted by the (party) management committee to empower a special committee to monitor and take immediate action against any party member who commits an act of treachery, sabotages the party or Barisan Nasional candidates," he said after chairing Umno's supreme council meeting on Friday. The prime minister said that the committee will be made up of supreme council members who do not hold other positions in the party as well as members of the disciplinary council. The committee will be overseen by the disciplinary committee chairman, Tan Sri Tengku Ahmad Rithauddeen Tengku Ismaill. The move will enable the committee to suspend or sack any party member who jeopardises the party's interest, he said. According to Najib, appointments will be made at every division to keep track of the members and update the special committee. "Complaints can also be made online or sent directly to party headquarters," he said Asked on the necessity for a special committee when there is already an existing disciplinary council, the Umno president said: "We want to speed things up. We want to be proactive." |
| Nazri: I did not interfere with probe Posted: 18 Oct 2012 07:00 PM PDT With public criticism coming hard and fast after the Home Ministry confirmed that his son was in the clear, Nazri Aziz today clarified that he did not interfere with police investigations. Teoh El Sen, FMT Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Nazri Abdul Aziz has denied accusations that he misused his position to influence the outcome of the criminal investigation involving his son. "I did not interfere at all in the investigations," the de facto law minister told FMT today. However, Nazri declined to comment on the cases itself, pointing out that it would be a conflict of interest to do so given his ministerial position. "I can't comment because that is my son… I cannot be using my government post to say something that may be favourable to my son," he explained. He also said that since the parliamentary reply had come from the home minister himself, and not something from his ministry, he was not in a position to clarify. "The answer [regarding his son] came from the home minster. I'm not the home minister. I wouldn't know anything about it," he added. On a similar note, Nazri also said that he did not blame the public for being interested in the case. "There is nothing I can do. I am a very important person. I am very influential. My children know this and we all [my family] know that their lives will always be affected. We have to face such public scrutiny. This is something we have to accept," he added. The minister said that he did not feel that it was unfair that people questioned the cases. "I don't think it's unfair. When it came out in the papers today, and I just found out, I realised that public scrutiny will always be there. If I cannot take it, I leave politics," he said. Nazri said that neutral parties, such as the police investigators, should clarify the facts of the case. Asked if the media could interview his son, Nazri said: "He would (most likely) be bias, and defend himself. I think there is no need. Go to the neutral authorities. Talk to the police, don't talk to me." On Wednesday, the Home Ministry confirmed that Nazri's son, Mohamed Nedim, was not involved in an assault case in March this year and a murder in 2004. The parliamentary written reply to a question posed by Kelana Jaya MP Loh Gwo-Burne stated that Mohamed Nedim's bodyguard, and not him, was the one involved in the alleged assault of a security supervisor at a luxury condominium in March 2012.
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| Siva, Xavier accused of betraying the poor Posted: 18 Oct 2012 06:57 PM PDT Former Bukit Raja estate workers tell Pakatan to sideline them. B Nantha Kumar, FMT Former employees of Bukit Raja Estate today accused Subang MP R Sivarasa and Seri Andalas Assemblyman Xavier Jayakumar of betraying them and demanded that they resign their offices. Their spokesman P Mathialakan said the two had made false statements to the media about the allocation of land on which Sime Darby, their former employer, would build houses for them. The long simmering issue made the news again yesterday when the Star quoted a Sime Darby Property (SDP) official as saying that his company had identified an 15-acre plot for houses costing RM77,000 each for 75 families. Mathialakan recalled that both Sivarasa and Xavier had stated that Sime Darby did not allocate 15 acres, but a much smaller plot for the houses. Sivarasa, who has been representing the former workers as their lawyer in the tussle with Sime Darby, was reported to have said that there was never any promise of a 15-acre plot. Xavier, who heads the Selangor executive committee responsible for the welfare of plantation workers, has made a similar statement. "After SDP's statement, we now know who is trying to cheat the poor of their land," Mathialakan told FMT. The former workers have faced a long and bitter struggle to get their houses. In 2007, the Barisan Nasional government in Selangor allocated 15 acres for the houses. However, according to the former workers, after Pakatan Rakyat took over Selangor, it diverted eight of the 15 acres for a project to build luxury homes. "We have a letter from Sivarasa himself that Sime Darby had given 15 acres for low cost houses, Mathialakan said. "But now to the media he says we were not given 15 acres." Claiming that he was not against Pakatan Rakyat, he called on the opposition front's leadership to sideline leaders who were not truthful to the poor. "They have not only betrayed us, but the entire Indian community, which supported Pakatan in 2008," he said. Both Sivarasa and Xavier are PKR members.
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| Anwar: Straight fights in Penang for 13th GE Posted: 18 Oct 2012 06:53 PM PDT
(The Malay Mail) - PAKATAN RAKYAT (PR) leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim confirms that Penang will see straight fights between the coalition and Barisan Nasional (BN) in the 13th general election. Speaking to journalists after making a courtesy call on Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng at the state administration centre in Komtar today, Anwar said the seat PR allocation was almost complete with just one or two seats still being deliberated between PAS and PKR. "Our seat allocation among the three parties here is ninety per cent complete and the status quo of the 2008 election remains. However, there is still dispute over one extra seat. That seat is contentious because it is being coveted by PAS and PKR. "But in the spirit of PR normally all three parties would be involved in the sense that DAP would have to be made aware of the issue, although in the end the issue would have to be resolved between PAS and PKR. "Umno is praying that there would be a split (between the three parties) but we will prove them wrong. So, I can say there would not be a two party contest within PR here," said Anwar who is defacto PKR head. Anwar's statement seemed to have quelled speculations stemming from leaked meeting minutes between Penang PKR chief Datuk Mansor Othman and PKR leaders. In the meeting held in March, Mansor was alleged to have asked his state vice chair Law Choo Kiang to draw up an extra list of candidates for several seats in the off-chance DAP or PAS was adamant at fielding its people on present PKR seats. Since 2008, PAS has been making strong efforts to reclaim the Sungai Acheh state seat on the mainland which the party traditionally contests in but loses to BN in every general election. However, after sacrificing that seat to PKR, who again lost, in the last election, PAS has become more determined to wrest back that seat whilst retaining its present Permatang Pasir state seat, also on the mainland. Anwar also welcomed the idea of DAP fielding Malay candidates in Penang although he saw no reason to prove to BN that the party was indeed multiracial. "DAP has never considered itself to be a non-Malay party and if it wants to field Malay candidates here, I welcome that. They have done in the past. It is not something new. For instance, (the late) Ahmad Nor contested Bayan Baru in 1990. "Perhaps there would be a slight increase of Malay seat allocations by DAP here, Johor, Pahang, Negeri Sembilan. In fact, PKR has also fielded Chinese, Indian, Dayak or Kadazan candidates. "The issue of candidates is decided by the respective parties but we keep each other informed. For instance, Mansor would have to brief Lim as leader of PR in the state about PKR candidates. "Similarly, (DAP national adviser) Lim Kit Siang would signal to me about one or two candidates in other states and to firm up the candidature. That is the spirit of comradeship there. I may lobby for someone but I won't influence the party," Anwar said.
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| Senators keen on contesting in polls Posted: 18 Oct 2012 03:33 PM PDT
(The Star) - Several prominent senators who are ministers and deputy ministers are expected to stand as candidates in the 13th general election. Among those tipped to contest are Federal Territories and Urban Wellbeing Minister Datuk Raja Nong Chik Raja Zainal Abidin, MICpresident Datuk G. Palanivel, Deputy Youth and Sports Minister Gan Ping Sieu and Deputy Foreign Minister A. Kohilan Pillay. DAP's S. Ramakrishnan is also touted to contest in Johor. It is an open secret that Raja Nong Chik is expected to be fielded in Lembah Pantai, which is currently held by PKR's Nurul Izzah Anwar, who beat incumbent Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil by 2,895 votes in the 2008 general election. "I have indicated to the Prime Minister many times that I wish to contest in Lembah Pantai," he said, unfazed by talk that he would be facing a tough fight there. Gan, who is also MCA vice-president, is touted as a potential candidate for Kluang as he has been seen there attending to people's needs weekly. Gan, 48, said: "Given my age, party positions in national and divisional levels and my desire to continue my political career, it is only natural that I contest,'' he said. According to MIC sources, Palanivel is slotted to be fielded in Cameron Highlands, where he has been making frequent trips. However, the Minister in the Prime Minister's Department did not confirm where he would contest.
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| Posted: 18 Oct 2012 02:01 PM PDT
Sean Augustin. FZ.com The Election Commission (EC) and Bersih were not always at loggerheads - initially, the commission considered the electoral reform group a partner in striving for better polling process. However, the relationship soured after the Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections allowed opposition politicians to shape their agenda, said EC deputy chairman Datuk Wan Ahmad Wan Omar. In a frank interview with fz.com, Wan Ahmad said he was 'happy and excited' when Bersih was formed in 2006. This, he said, was because he was looking forward to input from civil society when it came to elections, traditionally retrieved from the media, politicians and their officers. But the moment Bersih allowed opposition politicians to take part in its activities, which included street rallies, its objective as a civil society flew out of the window, said Wan Ahmad. The group, he claimed, had evolved into a political party. "Pity, because I admired what she set out to do," he said, referring to Bersih 2.0's co-chairman Datuk S Ambiga, who took up the mantle in July 2011. (The coalition was relaunched in April 2010 as an entirely civil society movement known as Bersih 2.0, unaffiliated to any political party.) Wan Ahmad's aversion to Bersih was also spurred by the allegations against the EC made by the group. "I felt backstabbed," he said, claiming that the allegations hurt more than those made by political parties. Wan Ahmad said Bersih's allegations, including that the EC was pro-government and that it had not implemented recommendations by the Parliamentary Select Committee on electoral reforms, damaged the commission's reputation. Naturally,the allegations made the EC review its "relationship" with Bersih, he said. The commission "would not want to deal with them anymore", especially after the street rallies and also because Bersih had turned down invitations to discuss matters raised. "There is no point of talking to people who won't work with us," he said. When contacted, Ambiga said Bersih had initially postponed its meeting with the EC ahead of the Sarawak state election last year. But as the system was "so flawed", she added, talking to the EC was a "waste of time". Bersih, however, is not trying to avoid the EC. "We are still prepared to debate them publicly," insists Ambiga. As for opposition politicians taking part in Bersih's activities, the former president of the Malaysian Bar said that from the outset, the group had also invited those from Barisan Nasional. There was nothing Bersih could do, she said, if politicians from the ruling coalition did not want to take part. "It doesn't mean we support the (opposition) political parties," she added. Bersih has so far held three rallies, the first in November 2007 which attracted an estimated 50,000 people,which is credited with helping to shift the political landscape in the country.
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| ‘Sarawak’s paper millionaires’ Posted: 18 Oct 2012 01:20 PM PDT
(Free Malaysia Today) - The state government claims that they have created 2,000 millionaires through the Native Customary Rights JV concept, but others claim they are only paper millionaires. The Sarawak government claims that they have created 2,000 millionaires through the new Native Customary Rights concept but detractors say they are "paper millionaires" Sarawak PKR chairman Baru Bian says that they are only paper millionaires. He was refuting claims by assistant minister in the Chief Minister's Office (Bumiputera Entrepreneur Development) Mohd Naroden Majais' statement that 2,000 participant in the NCR exercise were now millionaires. Naroden had said that through the NCR land development and new concept through JV, about 2,000 landowners who have 50 acres and above now are holding assets worth a million ringgit. "Therefore, we can say that the scheme has created not less than 2,000 rural Bumiputera millionaires," the assistant minister had said. Bian who is also the Ba'Kelalan assemblyman.said: "His statement is misleading. In terms of acreage you may say they are 'paper millionaires'. "The truth is that they are 'bankrupt millionaires', because they have not been paid their dues by the investors and government agency's agent like Pelita or LCDA (Land Custody Development Authority). Read more at: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2012/10/19/sarawaks-paper-millionaires/
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| Nazri Aziz: Opposition receives political donations too, not just Sabah Umno Posted: 17 Oct 2012 06:42 PM PDT (Bernama) - The Opposition should not question Sabah Umno's RM40 million political donation from unknown sources because DAP had also received RM3.5 million from supporters to build a new building in Penang said Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz. Nazri said it was not an offence for any party, including the Opposition, to receive donations for their political activities. "There is no problem. Any party can receive donations. We understand DAP had also received. But Umno received more because there are more Umno supporters. "Political donations are not an offence. But if it is to become an offence, we are ready to enact such laws," he told Tan Kok Wai (DAP-Cheras) during a question and answer session in Dewan Rakyat here today. The Attorney-General's Chambers had decided that there was no element of corruption in the case against Sabah Umno receiving donations. He clarified that the donation to Sabah Umno was investigated by Hong Kong's Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) and not the Malaysian Anti Corruption Commission (MACC). "It was ICAC that investigated and later closed the case. The money was banked into the Sabah Umno account and not to any individual," he said. Nazri who was also asked how many leaders were being investigated by the MACC said a former Menteri Besar, two Members of Parliament, two exco members and two state assemblymen were being investigated. "We cannot reveal the identity of the individuals because it will jeopardise investigations," he said.
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| Penang PKR will not reveal findings Posted: 17 Oct 2012 04:19 PM PDT (NST) - Penang Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) has decided not to make public the findings of its investigations into the leaked minutes of a meeting where its chief, Datuk Mansor Othman, was caught on tape calling Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng a "cocky, arrogant tokong (deity)". Asked if the party would ever make an announcement about the investigations or whether actions had been taken against the person who leaked the minutes, state deputy PKR vice-chairman Datuk Abdul Halim Hussain said: "There is an internal inquiry. We are not going to comment about this matter further. "Comments can be blown out of proportion," he said yesterday. Halim was quoted in news reports late last month that the outcome of the investigation had been passed to the head of the party's disciplinary board, Datuk Dr Tan Kee Kwong. It has been almost two months since Mansor made headlines for calling Lim names and alleging the party planned to rule Penang on its own after the next general election. Although PKR's disciplinary board had reportedly reached an outcome in its investigations, nothing had been revealed to the press. It was reported in late August that a blog called "Gelagat Anwar" had published the leaked minutes of a meeting chaired by Mansor. The meeting was to discuss seat allocations for PKR's Chinese candidates in Penang for the next general election. Mansor had denied calling Lim arrogant when the news came out, explaining that he meant well when labeling him a "tokong" but late last month, TV3 aired an audio clip of what Mansor had said during the meeting. He had then admitted to saying those words but claimed that he was responding to "leading" questions by those present at the meeting. |
| Nazri tells Pakatan to ask HK about Sabah Umno’s RM40m Posted: 17 Oct 2012 03:59 PM PDT
Clara Chooi, The Malaysian Insider The Barisan Nasional (BN) government continued today to defend Sabah Umno's RM40 million political donation from an unknown source, with an Umno minister telling opposition lawmakers to refer to Hong Kong's anti-graft agency if they opposed the contribution. Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Aziz (picture), in deflecting criticisms against Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Musa Aman in the Dewan Rakyat, told the House that it is not an offence for a political party to receive donations from any individual. "Political donations are not any offence. If we wanted to say it is an offence, we would have enacted laws against it," he said to uproar from the opposition bench. "If people want to contribute, let them contribute. What is the problem there? "In any case, whether you agree or not... you should ask Hong Kong's Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC)... they were the ones that investigated and closed this case," added the Padang Rengas MP. Parliament was told earlier this month that the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) had cleared Musa of graft and money-laundering allegations after finding that the over S$16 million (RM40 million) that timber trader Michael Chia was caught trying to smuggle into Malaysia from Hong Kong was not meant for the chief minister but for Sabah Umno. In a parliamentary reply, Nazri had said that the Attorney-General's Chambers had shelved the matter after finding no element of corruption in the case, which was first raised by whistleblower site Sarawak Report earlier this year. In April this year, Sarawak Report had revealed documents allegedly from Hong Kong's anti-graft agency, the ICAC, showing that a Sabah lawyer was holding some US$30 million (RM93 million) in a Swiss bank account for Musa. READ MORE HERE |
| MRT Corp to award remaining 38 contracts worth RM2b by year-end Posted: 17 Oct 2012 03:45 PM PDT (Bernama)— Mass Rapid Transit Corp Sdn Bhd (MRT Corp) expects to award the remaining 38 contracts worth approximately RM2 billion by year-end. Its director of Strategic Communications and Public Relations, Amir Mahmood Razak said 47 of the 85 packages worth over RM20 billion had been awarded, with 47 per cent of the projects going to Bumiputera contractors. "The balance of the projects is so big, including some system packages," he told a media briefing on the V2 MRT Viaduct Works from Kota Damansara to Dataran Sunway today. Asked about the MRT Lines Two and Three, Amir said the group had yet to be informed of their progress by the government. "They are still undertaking the feasibility study. I think the plan is to announce the lines at least by the first half of next year. "If the new lines are to be announced by then, we will be able to award some of the new contracts by end-2013. That would be a fair estimate," he added.
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| Keeping news free, fair and fun Posted: 17 Oct 2012 03:30 PM PDT
(FZ.com) - The best life is one that is led with balance; where the heavyweights of politics and the economy stand on even ground with their lifestyle and entertainment counterparts. And that is the essence of fz.com Malaysia's newest online portal makes its official debut today with promises of a wide spectrum of offerings for both the younger and mature audience. fz.com takes a thoughtful and incisive approach to reporting on issues of national and international importance. Yet it will also take walks on the lighter side of life where food, entertainment, sports and features are concerned. But whichever end of the spectrum it traverses, fz.com is determined to uphold its mantra of fair and credible reporting. "Credibility makes for sustainability and on this score, our editorial team is guided by the principles of fair and balanced reporting," says fz.com editor-in-chief Yeap Boo Yam. "We want to present both sides of the story to readers and let them be the judge. We are in this business for the long haul." fz.com's vibrancy also lies in its focus on telling stories through images via its photo gallery and video clippings, generated by the portal's own webcast team and strategic partners. From Oct 18-21, fz.com will hit the road with various launch activities that include free tickets to Jennifer Lopez's "Dance Again" World Tour concert.
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| This is my country, I’ll not balik Tong San Posted: 17 Oct 2012 03:21 PM PDT By right, Malaysia should today be a rich, progressive and prosperous nation. But why is it not so? By Chua Jui Meng, FMT After 55 years of greed, plundering and emptying the national coffer, the Barisan Nasional (BN)-Umno government is now living off borrowings. According to Deputy International Trade and Industry Minister Mukhriz Mahathir, the federal debt is at about RM800 billion. That is why our economy is in tatters with the value of the ringgit shrinking fast (now at RM2.50 to S$1), cost of essentials and living rising and the people living in misery having to struggle to make ends meet daily. That is why the rakyat (people) is at a political crossroad and have no choice but to change the corrupt BN-Umno before economic disaster befalls us as a bankrupt country. Sabah's RM40 million Musagate involving the state's timber revenue and Sarawak's multi-billionaire Taib Mahmud are two clear cases of super rich BN-Umno chief ministers who need not be accountable to their current wealth. Malaysia is a blessed country with rich natural resources, including oil and gas, and the 26 million citizens should be reasonably comfortable financially. But they are not, especially the rural and urban poor. In 1992, when I was in China, there were no cars on the roads, only bicycles and motorcycles. Not even Proton cars, don't talk about Mercedes Benz. After two decades, China has overtaken Japan as the biggest economy in the world. BN-Umno leaders and their cronies can continue to tell us, the Chinese, to Balik Tong San (Go back to China), but I will not. I was born in Malaysia, I reside in Malaysia and Malaysia is my country. The Chinese in Johor must rise to give solid support to Pakatan Rakyat in the next general election for a more secure future. We cannot rely on MCA anymore as it has proven to be only a "Yes Man" party to Umno. They only know how to continue to kiss the hands of Umno leaders for crumbs. The Chinese must replace MCA with Pakatan parties whose New Development Policy will see restructures in both Small Medium Industries (SMIs) and Small Medium Enterprise (SMEs). Chua Jui Meng is a PKR vice-president and Johor PKR chief. He is also a former MCA vice-president and an ex-Cabinet member.
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| Nazri’s son cleared over assault, murder Posted: 17 Oct 2012 03:10 PM PDT The Home Ministry has confirmed that the son of de facto law minister Nazri Abdul Aziz was not involved in an assault case in March this year and a murder in 2004. Teoh El Sen, FMT The Home Ministry has cleared a minister's son over his alleged involvement in two criminal cases. This was stated in a parliamentary written reply to a question posed by Kelana Jaya MP Loh Gwo-Burne. The PKR MP had asked for the results of the investigations against Mohamed Nedim, the son of Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Nazri Abdul Aziz, over the alleged assault of a security supervisor at a luxury condominium in March 2012. Loh had also asked about the murder of one Darren Kang at the Uncle Don restaurant in Sri Hartamas around 2004. On the first case, the Home Ministry said that the assault, classified under Section 160 of the Penal Code, was actually perpetuated by the former private bodyguard of Mohamed Nedim. "The case has been settled amicably by both parties," it added. On the case of Kang, the Home Ministry said investigations by the police had found that Mohamed Nedim was not involved. "In that case, five Thai nationals were found guilty after being charged and convicted for five years by the court," it said. On March 20, it was claimed that Mohamed Nedim assaulted a security supervisor at the condominium in Mont Kiara following a "minor altercation". It was alleged that Mohamed Nedim's actions, where he had choked the supervisor's neck before landing a punch on his head, were captured on CCTV cameras. However, the police later said that the footages showed that the minister's son was not involved.
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| Perkasa wants boycott of Jaclyn Victor Posted: 17 Oct 2012 02:48 PM PDT
Stephanie Sta Maria, FZ.com Perkasa has called for a blanket boycott of local singer, Jaclyn Victor by Muslims nationwide over her song which it claims is an insult to Islam. The song Harapan Bangsa was uploaded on YouTube on Jan 3, 2012 and contains religious connotations pertaining to the Christian faith. It isn't clear however when the song was recorded. None of her five albums released since 2004 includes Harapan Bangsa and the song isn't listed as a single either. The YouTube video was created by a Kathryn Barry and features images of Christianity, Malaysia and its various races with Harapan Bangsa as background accompaniment. There were no images, however, of Jaclyn performing or recording the song in a studio. In an accompanying write-up, Barry said that she had created the video to "share this beautiful and meaningful song about Malaysia and Jesus". In a statement today, the right-wing Malay NGO said it condemned both Jaclyn and the songwriter for their "insensitivity and disrespect" to non-Christians in the country. Perkasa secretary-general Syed Hassan Syed Ali referred to a particular line in the song that reads: "Bapa, engkau lah harapan negara ini" (Father you are the hope of the nation) and said that it was a clear insult to Islam as the country's official religion. "There is also another line that says "Kau lah satu-satunya harapan di bumi Malaysia" (You are the only hope on Malaysian soil) and this is insulting to all non-Christians since she refers to Malaysian soil," he said. "Do all Malaysians believe in and place their hope in Jesus? The songwriter should have been more aware of the fact that Malaysia is made up of more than just Christians and has a Muslim majority." Syed pointed out that yet another line says "Yesus engkau lah harapan segala bangsa" (Jesus, you are the hope of all races) and questioned why the lyrics were written as such since Muslims have never worshipped Jesus.
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| LGBT a Jewish agenda, says Perkasa Posted: 17 Oct 2012 01:08 PM PDT
The LGBT is a Jewish agenda being pursued by NGOs in Malaysia in an attempt to attack Muslims'. (fz.com) - Malay rights group Perkasa says LGBT is a Jewish agenda being pursued through NGOs in Malaysia that have received support and funds from international Jewish-run NGOs in an attempt to attack Muslims in countries with a Muslim majority. "This is being done by championing what is forbidden under Islamic law. The enemies of the Jews are Muslims," said Syed Hassan Syed Ali, the secretary-general of the Malay rights group. Their strategy, according to Syed Hassan, is to weaken Muslims by influencing some of them to accept the LGBT culture and thus creating conflict among the Muslims. "Then they will be able to take over an Islamic country because its Muslim community is splintered. "In addition, there are a few political parties from the Malay Muslim community that I am certain, want support for their party," he told fz.com. Therefore, said Syed Hassan, some of the Muslim leaders in this country do not view the legalising of LGBT as a serious enough threat to Islam. "It appears that the Jewish representative in this country has had an early victory when the Muslims in the country are unable to see eye to eye in fighting this social ill," he added. Meanwhile, Barisan Nasional (BN) MPs approached by fz.com voiced their concern over the threat LGBT makes to the family institution. Although Pakatan Rakyat (PR) lawmakers were slightly hesitant to comment on the matter, they argued that there needs to be a more humane approach to issues concerning the community. Lenggong MP Datuk Shamsul Anuar Nasarah has been consistent in toeing party lines against the LGBT issue in various heated exchanges in Parliament over the matter. He acknowledged that individuals have their rights and freedom to express themselves. But he was against LGBT rights as, according to him, they clearly go against the norms of not only Islam but other religious teachings as well. To him, there is also the question of producing a competitive nation in the future. "It will ruin the institution of family. If we want to build a good nation, it has to be made up of good individuals and a perfect family system, He said that opposition to LGBT always existed but the recent increase in attention to the matter by BN lawmakers stemmed from statements made by PR leaders allegedly in support of the movement. "We had to react because certain leaders were lending their support to this small community. Even if they are comparatively small in number, when supported by political leaders, we are afraid that they will grow," he said. He added: "If we don't tackle it now, it will become something normal in society." Minister for Agriculture and Agro-based Industries Datuk Seri Noh Omar echoed similar sentiments, saying human rights must be observed "within the limits of religion". When asked why the government is focusing on such a small community, the Tanjong Karang MP said that the LGBT issue is just another social ill which can harm the current socio-economic make-up of the nation, and thus must be tackled adequately. "They may be small in number but a culture is like fire. When it is small, they are friendly. When it is big it will fight back," he said, adding that the issue has to be curbed before it gets out of hand. |
| Education, economic equity main draw for Chinese community, says Saifuddin Posted: 17 Oct 2012 12:43 PM PDT
(The Malaysian Insider) - Education and economic equity are the main issues that will attract the Chinese community, who appear to have swung their support in favour of Pakatan Rakyat (PR), says Deputy Higher Education Minister Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah. The Umno supreme council member speculated that it will be highly possible to win the Chinese votes back if those issues are resolved by the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition. "To court Chinese voters, we have to really, deeply consider the issues that are most dear to them, like education." "Personally, I feel that we need to show a road map when we plan to recognise the certificates issued by 60 of the Chinese private schools," Saifuddin (picture) told The Malaysian Insider in an interview recently. "Maybe there will be some matters that need to be rectified, with respect to standards of quality, if we don't recognise them now, we would still have to one day," he said. The Temerloh MP also agreed with the government's step in recognising certificates issued by Tunku Abdul Rahman (TAR) College which, according to him, is a "step forward towards the road map". "We need to show the road map, since the steps towards it are already there, like the recognition of TAR College," he said. He didn't deny the possibility that issues like economic equity will be hard to tackle, but according to him, the government needs to convince the Chinese community that it is up to it. "Other issues might seem difficult ... but we need to solve them, for example, we need to convince them on issues of equality, equal economic treatment, assisting the poor and so on, without regards of race ... if we succeed we can at least get the support of the Chinese. "But the government has actually given a lot, there are only one or two things that need to be tackled since they are impossible to accomplish, even if PR governs there will be no assurance that they can tackle them," he added. However, he observed that the current BN government's policies are problematic in their implementation, and made difficult by time constraints. "Government policies are already lovely; it's just that the implementation takes a little time, along with some weaknesses. "But problems can be found anywhere, we just have to do that little bit more, and we need to convince them that we can give equality in economy to all races," he explained. Education is an important point for the Chinese community in Malaysia, as evident by pressure group Dong Zong (the United Chinese School Committees Association), which has demanded several changes in the national education policy in order to strengthen Chinese education in the nation. Read more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/education-economic-equity-main-draw-for-chinese-community-says-saifuddin ther Asian nations as part of its commitment to forge solidarity with nations in the continent. |
| Umno explains Pakatan’s Rapid backtrack Posted: 16 Oct 2012 06:03 PM PDT 'It can't get enough support from Pengerang residents.' Natasha Lai, FMT A lack of popular support has forced Pakatan Rakyat to backtrack from opposing Petronas' Refinery and Petrochemical Integrated Development (Rapid) project in Pengerang, according to Johor Umno secretary Ghazali Abbas. The opposition bloc had failed to win over local residents in its campaign against Rapid. He was commenting on Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim's statement yesterday that Pakatan was opposed not to the project per se, but to the way it was being implemented. Ghazali claimed that most Pengerang residents were now in favour of the project. According to him, the government carried out a survey among the residents, asking them to indicate whether they approved of the project, would accept the project if they received compensation, or were totally opposed to the project. He did not reveal the detailed findings, saying only that "most of the residents accepted the project" and that the majority of those who demanded compensation had received their dues. He said Pakatan "had to backtrack simply because they have failed to win over the residents". According to Hasnul Ahmad, who leads an anti-Rapid movement called Pengerang NGOs, the survey results went in favour of the government largely because many of the residents could not afford to go to trial. "So they chose Option 2 and took the compensation." They were told during the survey that they would each have to fork out a deposit of RM3,000 if they were to go to court, Hasnul added. "Most of them are fishermen," he said. "These people are poor and they can't imagine where they could get that much money." About 40% of the residents were still against the project, he added. Hasnul also said his movement would support Rapid if it were not located in a residential area and not detrimental to the environment. "Pakatan's stand is our stand," he said, "because it's Pakatan that has shown concern for us Pengerang residents. "We're not against development. The government can proceed with any development project as long as it does not intrude into our community and tradition, displace us and disturb our graveyards."
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| Tee Keat slams Soi Lek for mocking audit report, ignoring mismanagement Posted: 16 Oct 2012 03:11 PM PDT
(The Malaysian Insider) - Former MCA president Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat attacked his successor Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek today for "mocking" the Auditor-General's Report by claiming that negative reports would not affect Barisan Nasional's (BN) support in the next general election. Taking to microblogging service Twitter to attack his political foe, Ong said: "Why must Auditor's report b mocked as cloutless in affecting GE outcome? "50 yrs ago it might hv no impact doesn't mean it's d same now." Yesterday, Dr Chua sought to play down the Auditor-General's Report released this week, saying the BN government would fall every year were the report to have any effect. The MCA president said Pakatan Rakyat (PR) would certainly exploit reports of mismanagement, but argued that the BN federal government would not be judged solely on the issue of poor management. Ong, however, had a different take on the issue "Wasteful public spending w/ dishonest mark-up & w/out maintenance must b addressed with severe punishment b4 recurrence can b curbed," he said without naming Dr Chua. The annual Auditor-General's Report has revealed several projects that were directly negotiated, plagued with issues, and may affect the level of trust in government, analysts have said. The most glaring example was the directly-negotiated RM12.49 billion Ipoh-Padang Besar double-tracking project that was delayed twice and has incurred an additional RM3.6 billion in costs. Other examples include 1,000 brochure racks worth RM1.95 million for Visit Malaysia Year 2007 bought through direct negotiation by the Malaysian Tourism Promotion Board without the Finance Ministry's approval, resulting in a probe by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), and the five billboards worth RM3.64 million that it put up in Indonesia via direct negotiation that are also being investigated by anti-graft officials. Military family quarters built by the Defence Ministry saw costs nearly double to RM3.2 billion amid a litany of defects including collapsed ceilings and leaking sewer pipes, according to revelations in the Auditor-General's Report 2011. Among others, the report found that the majority of the military quarters projects audited were awarded by direct negotiation and that the government waived penalties worth RM87.12 million for failure to meet contractual obligations. Transparency-International Malaysia president Datuk Paul Low said the direct negotiation way of awarding contracts could potentially give rise to problems such as corruption and lack of competition. Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak has pledged his commitment to open tenders, saying at the launch of the Economic Transformation Programme (ETP) in 2010 that competitive tenders for big projects would be the "default" option. Despite efforts to boost transparency including making corruption one of the National Key Result Areas in the Government Transformation Programme, Malaysia slipped four spots to 60th in Transparency International's Corruption Perception Index last year.
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| Speak Malay, PM tells Chinese community Posted: 16 Oct 2012 02:42 PM PDT
Zurairi AR, The Malaysian Insider The Chinese community should embrace Bahasa Malaysia as it is the country's national language, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said this morning. Speaking on Mandarin radio channel Melody FM, Najib also reassured listeners that Chinese education will be part of the exercise to improve quality of education under the National Education Blueprint. Responding to demands by pressure group Dong Zong, the United Chinese School Committees Association, the premier reminded listeners that Malaysia has always recognised Chinese schools. "We are the only country outside China which has got Chinese education as part of the national system," he remarked. "The people have taken this for granted." He also revealed that the Cabinet is looking into implementing an eight-point plan to address the shortage of teachers for Chinese vernacular schools, drawn from roundtable meetings involving various stakeholders including Dong Zong. The implementation will be overseen by one of the two deputy ministers from the Education Ministry. In March, Deputy Education Minister Dr Puad Zarkashi had branded Chinese educationists "racist" for demanding that only qualified Mandarin-speaking teachers be allowed to teach in Chinese vernacular schools. The group accused the Education Ministry earlier this year of "deliberately" creating a dearth of trained Mandarin-speaking teachers as part of a larger conspiracy to re-engineer the identities of vernacular schools. Dong Zong had last month submitted a memorandum on the matter to the prime minister.
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| Penang men no longer need first wife's permission to take on second wife Posted: 16 Oct 2012 02:10 PM PDT
(Malaysian Digest) - Penang men no longer need to seek permission from their first wife in order to take on another bride. Instead, they now only need to get permission from the Syariah court to do so. This was announced by Penang Islamic Religious Department director Datuk Sazali Hussein, who said the move can help curb the problem of unmarried women. "For those who wish to practice polygamy, they only need to get approval from the syariah court to waive the need to present the first wife's approval to take on another wife." "However, they need to provide solid reasons before it can be considered." "Maybe if the reason given is solid and can bring benefits, the judge will grant the request," he was quoted as saying in Utusan Malaysia today. Sazali was asked to comment on a suggestion by a reader in the newspaper's Forum column. The reader, identified as Syed Abdullah Syed Osman Jamalulail from Ampangan, Seremban, had suggested that polygamy conditions be eased to help women of an advanced age who are still unmarried. Syed Abdullah had suggested that the authorities loosen the condition which stipulates that men who wish to marry women over 30-years-old need to obtain the consent of their first wife. He had also suggested that another condition which should be relaxed was the requirement for the man to produce his salary slip or confirmation of wages from employers, as per normal procedure. He believed that it was sufficient that the prospective newlyweds come to a mutual agreement on their union.
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| Problem-plagued Proton ‘in trouble’ Posted: 16 Oct 2012 01:43 PM PDT DRB-Hicom working out plan to remedy the national carmaker's problems. by Azli Jamil, FMT DRB-Hicom Bhd will announce a working plan to remedy problems faced by national carmaker Perusahaan Otomobil Nasional Bhd (Proton) next month, said its chief operating officer Che Khalib Mohamad Noh. The plan is paramount and if not implemented could bring serious negative consequences to DRB, a major investor in Proton, said Che Khalib. "Proton is in trouble and if we don't solve Proton's problem, not only Proton would go down but the whole DRB will go down," Che Khalib said after his presentation at the Malaysian Institute of Certified Public Accountant-Bursa Malaysia Business Forum in Kuala Lumpur yesterday. He, however, did not elaborate on the details of the problems faced by Proton. The problems, if not resolved, would affect its 11,000-plus employees and the whole automotive ecosystem surrounding Proton, he said. Meanwhile, a newswire reported yesterday that DRB's group managing director Mohd Kamil Jamil said Proton's performance would have an impact on DRB as the acquisition of Proton was a major financial investment for the former. The report quoted Mohd Khamil as saying that DRB's management can add value to Proton and realise its potential as the national carmaker before finalising a turnaround plan. It was reported in September that Mohd Khamil said DRB planned to introduce a yet-to-be announced foreign partner to Proton. In the same report, it said Proton has raised the domestic sales target to 200,000 units for the current financial year ending March 31, 2013, up from 167,000 previously. Furthermore, Proton has been given an additional RM120 million funding for development of hybrid vehicles.
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| Azmin-Khalid feud enters a new level Posted: 16 Oct 2012 01:28 PM PDT The PKR deputy president, according to Raja Petra, is on a 'whispering campaign' to court support against the MB. Syed Jaymal Zahiid, FMT Raja Petra Kamarudin claimed today that the Azmin Ali-Khalid Ibrahim fight is being raised to a new level with the latter planning to exploit a land tussle issue to incriminate the Selangor menteri besar. The firebrand blogger said that Azmin, who is PKR's No 2, is now on a "whispering campaign" to court support against Khalid who was said to have abused his power in the land deal. The 18.51 acre of land in the middle of Klang town near the Goldcoast Hotel and the new Klang Mosque is allegedly owned by Yayasan Selangor, a state statutory body. Raja Petra, who runs the popular website Malaysia Today, said Khalid had used his power to give the land to his "blue-eyed girl" executive councillor Elizabeth Wong who had wanted it for a Chinese cultural centre project. Yayasan Selangor was said to have objected to the idea but was forced to concede when the Selangor MB allegedly interfered in the matter. The body purportedly had an initial joint-venture plan with Persada Sdn Bhd to develop the land. It later sent a letter of appeal dated July 12, 2011, to Khalid against surrendering the land. Secret war "Azmin is suggesting that there is something not too kosher about this land transaction, which he says Khalid approved. "Azmin's boys say Elizabeth Wong abused her authority with the backing of Khalid and they want to use this as the leverage to oust Khalid," wrote Raja Petra. The self-exiled blogger added that while Azmin exposes what he claims to be Khalid and Khalid's people's wrongdoings, "Umno is consolidating in their attempt to grab back Selangor from Pakatan Rakyat". Raja Petra had said in the past that the rivalry between Azmin and Khalid's faction provided a glimpse into the former's ambition to strengthen his position as Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim's successor. Anwar, who is also PKR's de facto leader, is seen as the only factor that keeps the secularist DAP and Islamist PAS together. His moderate image and politics are seen as a key appeal to Malaysia's mutiracial electorate. Azmin's "secret war" against Khalid and his ambitions for the party may rattle the fragile unity between the three major component parties in Pakatan, said the Malaysia Today webmaster.
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