Monday, November 24, 2008

Malaysian leaders Karaoke Contest 2008

Malaysian KARAOKE Contest 2008

Final Results!

9 Mahathir -- My Way
8 Pak Lah --Dream, Dream, Dream
7 Najib -- Your Cheating Heart
6 Tengku Razaleigh -- I Believe I Can Fly
5 Khairy -- Money, Money, Money
4 IGP -- I'll Be Watching You
3 Anwar -- Winds Of Change
2 Saiful -- I Swear

And the winner is Syed Hamid - Oh Carol, I'm But A Fool









~ If you like this informative post, please subscribe to my full RSS Feed

Sunday, November 23, 2008

The RAHMAN prophecy - MalaysiaKini

The anointing of the Deputy Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak as the nation's next leader has been hailed as the culmination of a curious prophecy which has "predicted" all its premiers.

That prophecy has been coined as the "Rahman prophecy". Some called it the "Rahman factor".


The RAHMAN prophecy or Rahman Factor is the initial of Malaysia Prime Minister's name and taken from the first prime minister of Malaysia, Tunku Abdul Rahman.

Rahman (Tunku Abdul Rahman), 1st PM of Malaysia
Abdul Razak Hussein, 2nd PM of Malaysia
Hussein Onn, 3rd PM of Malaysia
Mahathir Mohamad, 4th PM of Malaysia
Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, 5th PM of Malaysia
Najib Razak ??????????

Prophecy, generally, describes the disclosing of information that is not known to the prophet by any ordinary means. In religion, this is thought to be a divinely inspired revelation or interpretation. Although the concept is found throughout the religions of the world, the term has found popular acceptance through the work and influence of the Hebrew prophets.

Skeptics believe many apparently fulfilled prophecies can be explained as coincidences (possibly aided by the prophecy's own vagueness), or that some prophecies were actually invented after the fact to match the circumstances of a past event ("postdiction").





The RAHMAN Factor

Tunku Abdul Rahman
Sir Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj ibni Almarhum Sultan Abdul Hamid Halim Shah, CH (February 8, 1903 – December 6, 1990) usually known as "the Tunku" (a princely title in Malaysia), and also called Bapa Kemerdekaan (Father of Independence) or Bapa Malaysia (Father of Malaysia), was Chief Minister of the Federation of Malaya from 1955, and the country's first Prime Minister from independence in 1957. He remained Prime Minister after Sabah, Sarawak, and Singapore joined in 1963 to form Malaysia.

Tun Abdul Razak bin Haji Dato' Hussein
Tun Abdul Razak bin Haji Dato' Hussein Al-Haj (March 11, 1922-January 14, 1976) was the second Prime Minister of Malaysia, ruling from 1970 to 1976. Tun Razak was the Prime Minister responsible in setting up Barisan Nasional, which is the ruling coalition of political parties that have held power in Malaysia till today, taking over from its predecessor, the Alliance. He is also renowned for launching the Malaysian New Economic Policy (MNEP).

Hussein bin Dato' Onn
Hussein bin Dato' Onn (February 12, 1922—May 29, 1990) who is of 3/4 Malay and 1/4 Circassian ancestry was the third Prime Minister of Malaysia, ruling from 1976 to 1981. He was granted the soubriquet Bapa Perpaduan (Father of Unity). He was born in Johor Bahru, Johor on February 12, 1922 to Dato Onn Jaafar and Datin Halimah Hussein.

Mahathir bin Mohamad
Tun Dr. Mahathir bin Mohamad (recorded as born on 20 December 1925) was the fourth Prime Minister of Malaysia. He held the post for 22 years from 1981 to 2003, making him Malaysia's longest-serving Prime Minister, and one of the longest-serving leaders in Asia. During his term in office, he was credited for engineering Malaysia's rapid modernization and promoting non-individualistic "Asian values". Mahathir is also known for his criticisms of western and developed countries.

Abdullah Hj. Ahmad Badawi
Dato' Seri Abdullah Hj. Ahmad Badawi (born 26 November 1939) is a Malaysian politician who has served as Prime Minister since 2003. He is also the President of the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), the largest political party in Malaysia, and leads the governing Barisan Nasional parliamentary coalition. He is informally known as Pak Lah, 'Pak' meaning 'Uncle' while 'Lah' is taken from his name 'Abdullah'.

~ If you like this informative post, please subscribe to my full RSS Feed

A committee set up by the Science, Technology and Innovation Ministry will start investigating allegations that Angkasawan Datuk Dr Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor Sheikh Mustapha has received payment for giving talks.

Deputy Minister Fadillah Yusof said the probe would start tomorrow.

It was earlier reported that Dr Sheikh Muszaphar had become RM1.2mil richer from charging RM8,000 per hour to share his experience (as a space flight participant) on the International Space Station.

Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor has since denied the allegations.

Related post:
* Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor Sheikh Mustapha money talks
* Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor's blog






From TheStar

Panel to investigate payments to Angkasawan for giving talks
By LESTER KONG

PETALING JAYA: A committee set up by the Science, Technology and Innovation Ministry will start investigating allegations that Angkasawan Datuk Dr Sheikh Musza-phar Shukor Sheikh Mustapha has received payment for giving talks.

Deputy Minister Fadillah Yusof said the probe would start tomorrow.

It was earlier reported that Dr Sheikh Muszaphar had become RM1.2mil richer from charging RM8,000 per hour to share his experience on the International Space Station.

He has since denied the allegations. Fadillah, when contacted, said the results of the probe would be submitted to the minister by the first week of next month.

He said the ministry had received complaints and reports from the public that alleged that Dr Sheikh Muszaphar had been charging for his talks.

On whether it was proper for the astronaut to charge RM8,000 per hour for talks, Fadillah said the committee had to look into the terms of his contract and the Public Service Department rules as he was still a civil servant.

“There are rules and regulations pertaining to the funds he has charged as well as token payments he received. They are two different things.”

Fadillah urged the public to substantiate their complaints with evidence.

These included receipts, invoices or any documents or correspondence related to any event attended by Dr Sheikh Mus­zaphar.

He said the committee would dismiss the complaints in the absence of proof.
---------------------------------------------------------
From Bernama

Dr. Sheikh Muszaphar's Family Sad Over "RM1.2 Million" Newspaper Report

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 10 (Bernama) -- The family of astronaut Datuk Dr Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor Sheikh Mustapha is sad and disappointed over a newspaper report that he has amassed RM1.2 million from giving talks since last year.

His brother Sheikh Taufik Shukor Al Masrie said the family regretted that Dr Sheikh Muszaphar's untiring efforts to share his aerospace experience with the young generation was manipulated by certain people.

"We did not ask for any credit be given to him, just sad that he had been treated this way," he told Bernama in an exclusive interview here Monday.

Sheikh Taufik described the report as a "grave tragedy" as it was reported by a newspaper belonging to an opposition party that claimed to uphold Islam.

"They do not give a hoot to our aerospace venture, unlike other Muslim countries that were proud of his (Dr Sheikh Muszaphar) achievement. I do not understand why they want to destroy our future."

Sheikh Taufik said the claim that his brother received RM8,000 per hour for giving talks was not true at all.

He did not deny that many people had acted as middlemen or third parties to arrange for the astronaut to deliver talks or just to motivate people.

"Schools normally come directly to me or my brother and no money is involved. However, for non-governmental organisations and the private sector, there are many middlemen who manipulate the situation.

"This can give rise to things that may lead to such claims," he said when commenting when a report by an opposition newspaper that Dr Sheikh Muszaphar charged RM8,000 per hour for talks.

The report said the astronaut had amassed RM1.2 million from 150 corporations since his return from the International Space Station (ISS) in Oct last year.

Dr Sheikh Muszaphar on Sunday denied that he had had asked for specific amounts to deliver talks on his aerospace experience.

Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Datuk Dr Maximus Ongkili had said Dr Sheikh Muszaphar and Major Dr Faiz Khaleed were contracted to the ministry until Dec 31 and thus could not charge for giving talks.

His deputy Fadillah Yusof was reported as saying the ministry would investigate the report.

Sheikh Taufik said he had wanted to reply to the report but was advised against it as it would be a waste of time.

"Their job is to pit one person against another and to rundown the government," he added.

On Dr Sheikh Muszaphar's reaction, he said although the astronaut was disappointed, it was nothing compared to what he had to go through before becoming an astronaut.

"My brother was calm and said the truth will prevail."

He said Dr Sheikh Muszaphar received many invitations but were careful as he did not want to be seen as a celebrity but an educator.

Meanwhile, his father Datuk Sheikh Mustapha Sheikh Shukor denied those who attended his talks were forced to buy the book "My Journey To Space" that related his experience during training and when at the ISS.

"I hope the Science, Technology and Innovation Ministry will defend my son now that he can be considered a son of the state," he added.

-- BERNAMA


~ If you like this informative post, please subscribe to my full RSS Feed

Thursday, November 20, 2008

EPF employee deduction 11% and 8%

For those income earning that are subjected to tax, check out the EPF deduction against the taxable income below (example).

If salary = RM4,000,
- choose EPF 11% is RM440, taxable income is RM3,560, so tax is RM77

- choose EPF 8% is RM320, taxable income is RM3,680, so tax is RM109


Is this possible? Is the government trying to ripoff the rakyat. 8% EPF deduction may result the salary earner getting more take-home amount but he or she is also paying more tax !








~ If you like this informative post, please subscribe to my full RSS Feed

Dr Chua Soi Lek, MCA deputy president suggested that the Health Ministry should accept tests done by Singapore laboratories for melamine content on locally manufactured biscuits as the results are faster.

Stating that the five laboratories in the country could not cope with the needs of the industry and it took weeks to obtain the test results but only two days in Singapore.

Read also Melamine Testings Too Slow

Local biscuit manufacturers here have to wait for the results before getting clearance to export their biscuits. Before the melamine scare in China, the industry exported RM600mil worth of biscuits per year while the domestic market was about one to two times more.

Due to the melamine scare, the export market dropped by 50% while domestic consumption is also down by 30% to 40%.

A tiny island of Singapore can produced the test results in two days so why it takes at least two weeks in Malaysia ? This proved again that Malaysia have first world facilities but third world workers. Read: too many laboratories staff shaking their legs or too many of them doesn't know how to operate the melamine testing equipments.





From TheStar
Soi Lek: Accept Singapore melamine tests

By NG SI HOOI

KUALA LUMPUR: The Health Ministry should accept tests done by Singapore laboratories for melamine content on locally manufactured biscuits as the results are faster, said MCA deputy president Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek.

Stating that the five laboratories in the country could not cope with the needs of the industry, he added that it took two weeks to obtain the test results but only two days in Singapore.

“The manufacturers here have to wait for the results before getting clearance to export their biscuits,” he told reporters at Wisma MCA here yesterday.

Dr Chua, the party government policy monitoring bureau chief, said the industry players met him last week to discuss their problems.

Before the melamine scare in China, he said the industry exported RM600mil worth of biscuits per year while the domestic market was about one to two times more.

“The export market dropped by 50% while domestic consumption is also down by 30% to 40%,” he said, adding that if this continued manufacturers wouldn’t be able to service their bank loans.

Dr Chua added that he discussed the issue with Health Minister Datuk Liow Tiong Lai last Tuesday.

He said if tested biscuits had high content of melamine, they should be recalled and the ministry should announce the manufacturers’ names to protect the safety of consumers.

Liow said the ministry would accept melamine-content tests conducted by Singapore laboratories provided it was through the liquid chromatography double mass (LCMSMS) method that measures content by parts per million.

The laboratories should also be recognised by the Singapore government, he said, adding that the ministry would also consider laboratories using the GCMS (gas chromatography-mass spectrometry) method.

“Most of the laboratories in the country have the equipment for the GCMS method,” he said, adding that the ministry had sought the Higher Education Ministry’s help to speed up tests by using laboratories at universities.

~ If you like this informative post, please subscribe to my full RSS Feed

Monday, November 17, 2008

New fuel price | 15sen off

Petrol and diesel retail prices will be reduced by 15sen per litre effective Tuesday, Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak announced.

The new retail price for RON97 is RM2 per litre from RM2.15; RON92 at RM1.90 from RM2.05 and diesel at RM1.90 from RM2.05.

Fuel prices were last reduced on Nov 1.

The latest prices reduction for fuel may make motorists happy, but consumers still pay old prices for goods and services (which most have not be reduced since a few months ago) and farmers still pay dearer for fertilizers and other basic stuffs.

Related posts:
* Petrol price lowered but no change in other goods
* Oil price down, everything else still up






~ If you like this informative post, please subscribe to my full RSS Feed

A contradicting revelation from a famous figure (personality), Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor Sheikh Mustapha the Malaysian Angkasawan (NASA called it space participant) who admit accepting contributions (may include money) but denied allegation on accepting payment during his talk to corporate companies.

Bottom line is that money contributions and money payment is still money.

Related posts:
* Sending another space flight participant for vacation
* Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor report going to the Cabinet






From TheStar

Angkasawan admits accepting contributions, denies demanding payment

KUALA LUMPUR: Angkasawan Datuk Dr Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor Sheikh Mustapha has admitted to accepting contributions when giving talks.

However, he denied that he had received, among others, RM8,000 an hour for giving talks.

He said it was the norm for him to give talks in schools for free.

A news portal recently alleged that Dr Sheikh Muszaphar could have earned up to RM1.2mil, as he had charged RM8,000 for one-hour talks to 150 corporate companies.

“I hope we can resolve this unfortunate incident (allegations) because its negative impact would affect my ability to continue giving talks to schools in the country,” he said.

“I have spoken to Science, Technology and Innovation Deputy Minister Fadilah Yusof and given a detailed explanation, and he was happy and satisfied with my explanation,” he told reporters after flagging off and taking part in the Sixth Batik Fun Walk 2008 here yesterday.

Meanwhile, Penyayang chairman Nori Abdullah, who organised the walk, was satisfied with the number of participants, especially since some of the proceeds would be donated to the Penyayang Pesakit Kanser charity.

“I am happy with the number of participants taking part this year, which is about 1,200. This is double the number we had last year.

“It is also heartening to know that these participants will help make life a little easier for cancer patients,” she said.

Her husband, Rembau MP Khairy Jamaluddin, was also a participant in the event. — Bernama

~ If you like this informative post, please subscribe to my full RSS Feed

Chong Chieng Jen, the boyish-looking parliamentarian from Kuching did not mince his words. He couldn’t have put it more bluntly.

The departure of Sarawak Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud is long overdue, he declared on Mkini.tv’s ‘Uncensored’ talk show this week.

Chong Chieng Jen, 37, the two-term MP for Bandar Kuching, reasoned that after 27 years as chief minister, Taib should have completed whatever he hoped to achieve for the state “if he has any plans at all”.

Stressing that 27 years is “too long a time” to be chief minister, Chong states the obvious - it’s time for Taib to pack his bags and go.





“Things that have not materialised (and) we should leave it to another person to implement,” he told ‘Uncensored’ host Francis Paul Siah on the talk show recorded on Thursday.

In fact, Chong is not the first DAP elected representative in Sarawak to openly call for Taib’s departure. His DAP colleague, Ting Tze Hui (Meradong), made a similar request in the state legislative assembly some time ago.

“As expected, she was heckled by BN backbenchers who rose to speak in support of the chief minister,” said Chong who is also the state assemblyperson for Kota Sentosa.

Although the MP acknowledged that Taib has done “some good” for the state, he was also quick to add that “Taib has done more harm than good”.

Issues relating to the distribution of wealth are worsening under the current administration as the people of Sarawak are facing great difficulties in earning a decent living.

Improper dealings

Asked if Taib’s lengthy administration was the cause of the perpetration of corruption in the state, Chong said legally speaking it may not be corruption but improper dealings.

“He has been in power for 27 years and the family has gained astronomical wealth … something like that in my view is improper.”

Citing the example of shares owned by Taib’s family members in one of Sarawak’s largest cement manufacturing and construction companies, Cahya Mata Sarawak (CMS), Chong said it evidently shows improper activities.

“(Besides that) a lot of state contracts are awarded to CMS … I would not call it corruption as defined in the Anti-Corruption Act but it is highly improper with him (Taib) being the head of the state administration,” he pointed out.

“There seems to be a concentration of government contracts given to CMS, for example the RM300 million awarded to CMS and Naim Chandera for the construction of the state assembly building and many other road and building contracts are also given to them (CMS) without proper open tenders,” said Chong.

Asked why the opposition has been unable to nail such blatant abuse of power, Chong said as a politician, his powers were limited although he had brought the issues up in Parliament for the attention of the Anti-corruption Agency.

DAP leaders, he said, were doing all they could to “create awareness” among the populace on the inappropriate activities of the current administration, adding that people are now more aware of what’s going on in the state.

Chong also revealed that he was not in the chief minister’s good books as he had often spoke in retaliation against Taib’s policies.

“During the June sitting, I spoke (in the state assembly) about the chief minister and the dealings of his family members but the speaker said it is sub-judice. If I cannot talk bad about the chief minister, then the BN representatives should not be allowed to sing his praises too” said Chong.

He said Taib was angered after he had cited a Confucius proverb which states that: “When the leader is rich and the people are rich, the leader is a good leader. But if the leader is rich and people are poor, then the leader ought to be ashamed of himself”.

Chong also mentioned an incident when the chief minister lost his cool and pointed his finger at him (Chong) in anger inside the august House.

Alfred Jabu is incompetent

Asked for his opinion on Iban Deputy Chief Minister Alfred Jabu, Chong described him as incompetent as he (Jabu) was not doing much to uplift the well-being of his community.

Many Dayaks are still being deprived of educational opportunities and economic resources, he said, adding that education is the key to improve the well-being of the people.

Chong also said he suspected a conspiracy as to why the people, especially the indigenous communities, were deprived of opportunities and resources to better themselves.

He joked that the BN government is probably afraid of losing ground if the people become smarter.

“They want to block access to the community for fear that they will get smarter and become more knowledgeable and can see that the Barisan Nasional government is horrible. So the more educated the people are, the less control they (BN) have,” he quipped.

Abang Johari a suitable candidate

Asked for his choice to fill Taib Mahmud’s shoes, Chong opined that among the present state cabinet members, Housing Minister Abang Johari Tun Openg would be a suitable candidate to become the next chief minister.

“When he answers questions in the state assembly, he shows that he knows his stuff,” he remarked.

On his choice of a potential chief minister aong the Dayak community, Chong was hesitant in revealing a name but was also quick to add, “not Alfred Jabu”.

On the competition between DAP and Sarawak United People’s Party (Supp), Chong said that DAP was confident of doing better in Supp areas in the coming elections.

“But we are not only going to contest in Supp areas alone, we are also starting to lay our ground work in PBB (Parti Pesaka Bumiputra Bersatu) areas as well”.

Lastly, Chong said he would like to see less misery among Sarawakians and that they should be leading more comfortable lives unlike what they are exposed to today.

Ending the show, Siah credited Chong’s father, former Repok state assemblyperson Chong Siew Chiang as the man responsible for bringing the DAP to Sarawak in 1978. Chong Sr was also the first Sarawak DAP chairperson - malaysiakini.com

About Chong Chieng Jen


Chong Chieng Jen, 张健仁, a Malaysian lawyer by profession and elected Democratic Action Party (DAP) Member of Parliament (MP) for Bandar Kuching in 2004 and 2008, and DAPSY Deputy Chief. In 2006 Chong Chien Jen was elected to the Sarawak State Assembly as the member for the newly-created seat of Kota Sentosa. Chong is also DAP Sarawak's State Secretary.

Chong Chieng Jen was born in 1971 and is married with 3 children.
Contact: 017-2288221
Email: dapkuching@yahoo.com

Go to Chong Chieng Jen's Blog




~ If you like this informative post, please subscribe to my full RSS Feed

Abdul Taib Mahmud, a Melanau was born in 21 May 1936 in Miri, Sarawak. Abdul Taib Mahmud is the president of Parti Bersatu Bumiputra (a Sarawak BN component party) and is currently Chief Minister of Sarawak.

He undertook his early schooling at the St. Joseph's Schools in Miri and Kuching, before receiving a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Adelaide in South Australia in 1960.

Returning to Sarawak, he worked in the judiciary until 1963 when he joined the State Legislative Council of Sarawak, where he held various ministries in Sarawak and the Malaysian Parliament, before succeeding his uncle, Abdul Rahman Ya'kub, as the Chief Minister of Sarawak in 1981.

He is the father of Sulaiman Abdul Rahman Taib. He is better known as "Bai Mao"(白毛)in Chinese (or Pak Mo in Hokkien) which means "White Hair". Among Malay speaking communities, he is known as "Pak Uban", which translates as "Old Man with White Hair".

Taib Mahmud lengthy administration was the cause of the perpetration of corruption in the state. Legally speaking it may not be corruption but improper dealings.

Being the Chief Minister of Sarawak for almost 27 years, he instrumental behind the following (accomplishments and scandals):
* turning Samarahan district into a medical and institution of higher learning zones. The result, most land in Samarahan has been converted into commercial areas and housing areas.
* approving the Bakum Hydro dam that changes hand in managements and contractors and still not completed.
* over developing Mukah district because it's a Melanau area.
* mercurial rise of Cahaya Mata Sarawak (CMS) in which his family members have vast interest.
* ACA has no gut to investigate him or his family members.
* allegations that he and his family were linked to a timber kickbacks scandal. More unfolding stories from MalaysiaKini.
* disintegration of Dayak parites such as the dis-registration of SNAP and PBDS.
* the total monopoly of PBB in Sarawak politics.
* massive plundering of timber logs from Sarawak jungles.
* the only leader in Sarawak having the title "Pehin" (or pay him). Taib Mahmud claimed he have link to the Brunei royalty as such he deserved the title.








Photos of Abdul Taib Mahmud





~ If you like this informative post, please subscribe to my full RSS Feed

The prices of palm oil has been spiraling downward for the past months since March. And more bad news is that palm oil prices could fall by 46 percent next year due to oversupply and waning demand for biofuels, despite measures to cut production in Southeast Asia, a brokerage group has said.

Some economists suggested that the palm oil prices can be improved if demand for biofuels is up. That is easy said than done. The only supporter of biofuels especially in Malaysia is the government. However, their consumption is marginal and would not effect the demand and supply of palm oil.

The biggest consumers are the industries and private companies operating fleets of equipments and vehicles. Only if these parties including their counter-parts in the rest of the world, increase their usage of biofuels, then we will see the recovery of palm oil prices.

So, in the meanwhile, palm oil shareholders associated with FELDA or SALCRA may not see bonus for next year. What else can the government do to cushion the effect of falling palm oil prices to the low-income earners?







From StraitsTimes

Palm oil prices to plunge

KUALA LUMPUR - PALM oil prices could fall by 46 per cent next year due to oversupply and waning demand for biofuels, despite measures to cut production in Southeast Asia, a brokerage group has said.

CLSA Asia-Pacific Markets has slashed its forecast for palm oil prices by 46 per cent in 2009 and 32 per cent in 2010, from current levels of about 1,455 ringgit (S$612) per tonne.

In a report released last week, the brokerage said it expects the commodity to trade at 1,000 ringgit per tonne next year and 1,250 ringgit in 2010.

Prices of palm oil have plummeted by 68 per cent since a March high of 4,486 ringgit per tonne due to the financial crisis and the falling price of crude oil - which reduces demand for palm oil to supply the biodiesel industry.

Malaysia's palm oil inventory in October hit a record 2.1 million tonnes - a 14 per cent increase from the previous year - due to a production surge and a slowdown in exports to China and the Netherlands.

CLSA said that the inventory build-up is much worse in Indonesia.

'The biofuels story is waning, providing less demand support. We are also sceptical about effectiveness of government initiatives to boost CPO (crude palm oil) prices,' it said.

Malaysia and Indonesia, which account for 85 per cent of global palm oil output, plan to replant old trees and mandate biodiesel use to cut supply and bolster prices.

However, Buddhika Piyasena from Fitch Ratings was less gloomy, saying that prices had 'pretty much bottomed out' at current levels and that the risk of further losses was limited.

'We might see these levels continue in the 450 dollars per tonne range for a while,' Mr Piyasena told AFP, noting that both the world's top producers, Indonesia and Malaysia, are implementing measures to push up prices.

Deputy commodities minister Kohilan Pillay said Malaysia aims to fell some 200,000 hectares of old palm oil trees and all government vehicles will start using biofuel in the next few months.

The replanting scheme will involve trees of more than 25 years old as the yield from these trees is low at about 17 tonnes per hectare annually.

Smallholders will be given a 1,000 ringgit incentive by the government for each hectare replanted.

'A good price for CPO is at the 2,000 ringgit range and this is what we are aiming for,' he told AFP.

Fitch's Piyasena said that if the measures to mandate the use of biofuel in both countries are fully implemented, it could absorb up to 1.0 million tonnes of palm oil. -- AFP

---------------------------------

Business Times: Why palm oil price is falling

The plunge in palm oil futures prices is directly linked to falling soyabean prices, says Cargill Asia Pacific regional director

THE fall in the price of palm oil boils down to a question of supply and demand, futures traders and industry executives said.

They disagreed that the decline should be directly linked to the drop in crude oil prices, widely blamed for sparking a sell-down in commodity prices globally.

The price of palm oil traded in the futures market has been falling due to an oversupply of vegetable oils worldwide.

---------------------------------
Mongabay: Falling palm oil price makes palm biodiesel viable, may offer target for NGOs

Plunging palm oil prices are increasing its attractiveness as a biofuel feedstock and thereby helping buoy demand for the oilseed, reports Reuters.

With the feedstock accounting for as much as 80 percent of the cost of producing biodiesel, surging palm oil prices due to rising demand as an ingredient in food, consumer, and industrial products have undermined the economics of biodiesel production using the oilseed. Now that prices have fallen by about half since peaking in March at 4,486 Malaysian ringgit per metric ton, it is again profitable to produce biodiesel from palm oil.

~ If you like this informative post, please subscribe to my full RSS Feed

Saturday, November 15, 2008

Hospitals slow post-mortem service

A revelation by T. Murugiah, a Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department about the slow service by Hospital Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia in conducting a post-mortem is just a tip of an iceberg.

T. Murugiah said “It takes about two hours to conduct a post-mortem. Why was there a delay when the hospital is well-equipped,”, adding that he was scolded by the deceased’s family when he went to the hospital. It's a no surprise because Malaysia have a first world facility but third world mentality.

In hospitals in East Malaysia, the next of kin have to wait for days for the body of the beloved one to be autopsied because the hospital have to wait for the doctor from another town to fly. In other cases, the doctor is attending course or on leave, thus delaying the autopsy. At times, it look like there is only one autopsy doctor in East Malaysia.

Is there is a shortage in autopsy doctor or their manpower planning was not organized properly ? This slow post-mortem service not only delay police investigation but also give undue stress to the family of the victim.

Related posts:
* Why Malaysian seeking medical help overseas
* Insufficient dialysis treatment in Malaysia

* Shortage of nurses in Malaysia hospitals






From TheStar

Hospitals rapped for slow service
By JANE RITIKOS

KUALA LUMPUR: Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Senator T. Murugiah has taken to task hospitals that take too long to conduct post-mortems.

This had brought distress to the families, he said.

Murugiah, who oversees the Public Complaints Bureau, said he received a complaint on Friday and decided to check it out personally.

He said the police had sent the body of a murder victim, believed to have been killed on Wednesday, to Hospital Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia at 4pm on Thursday.

“The family complained to me at 9.30am on Friday that the body has not been released because the post-mortem has not been conducted.

“I called the hospital and sent a letter to them (asking them) to explain. They promised to conduct a post-mortem that morning and the body was released at 12.30pm.

“It takes about two hours to conduct a post-mortem. Why was there a delay when the hospital is well-equipped,” he said, adding that he was scolded by the deceased’s family when he went to the hospital.

Murugiah said public service providers in the government or private sector should be efficient and not make people unhappy because in the end the Govern­ment would bear the brunt of the public’s anger.

“A trivial matter, if not brought under control, will become a big issue. That is how the Government loses public support,” he said after attending a Deeparaya event organised by the Kelab Golongan Kurang Upaya.

Murugiah said the Government could also reprimand private hospitals for offering poor services.

“We cannot wash our hands off (the matter) when there are problems,” he said.

On another issue, Murugiah said many handicapped people did not know that they were entitled to a RM300 monthly allowance while caregivers of those totally dependent were entitled to a RM200 allowance.

They can approach his bureau for help to apply for the allowance or go straight to the department, he said.

“As long they have their disabled person card they are eligible. The officer will verify their status and they can receive their allowance quite fast. A good idea is to get their associations to assist them to apply for the allowance,” he said.

~ If you like this informative post, please subscribe to my full RSS Feed

PAS has agreed in principle to set up a non-Muslim wing comprising members from the party’s supporters club set up in 2005. The decision was reached at a PAS retreat in Langkawi last weekend attended by all party leaders.

The formation of a non-Muslim wing is a serious indication that PAS wants to distance itself from the premise of Malay and Muslim unity, said a senior PAS leader, speaking on condition of anonymity.

However, PAS has endorsed to accept non-Muslim supports (or fans) and not granting full membership to their party for non-Muslim.





From TheStar

Supporters cheer PAS move to form non-Muslim wing
By IAN MCINTYRE

KOTA BARU: PAS has agreed in principle to set up a non-Muslim wing comprising members from the party’s supporters club set up in 2005.

The decision was reached at a PAS retreat in Langkawi last weekend attended by all party leaders.

The formation of a non-Muslim wing is a serious indication that PAS wants to distance itself from the premise of Malay and Muslim unity, said a senior PAS leader, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Sources said the formation of the non-Muslim wing was also a victory for the moderates and technocrats in the Islamist party.

PAS supporters club president Hu Phang Chiau confirmed the setting up of the wing, saying it was a breakthrough for club members which he claimed numbered around 18,000.

He said they were formulating the structure of the wing, such as the office bearers, to synergise with the other wings like the Muslimat (Women), Youth and Ulama Dewan.

“The party needs to make a constitutional amendment expected to be tabled at next year’s muktamar where the non-Muslim wing should be formalised,” he said.

It remains to be seen if the non-Muslims would be granted direct membership or be regarded as associate members only.

PAS is riding high following its success in the March general election. It wrested Kedah from Barisan Nasional while retaining Kelantan with a landslide majority.

PAS’ Datuk Seri Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin is the Perak Mentri Besar while in Selangor, PAS has several members as state executive councillors.

However, since June when news broke about a series of clandestine meetings between certain PAS leaders with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, the party fell under the shadow of the “Malay and Muslim unity” premise.

This created unease among certain sections of Pakatan Rakyat, made up of PKR, DAP and PAS.


~ If you like this informative post, please subscribe to my full RSS Feed

The Swiss-based Bruno Manser Fund (BMF) clarified on Saturday via an email to Bernama that it had not been contacted by the police to assist in the investigations into the alleged sexual abuse of Penan women and girls by logging workers in Baram, Miri division.

In the email, BMF stated that it is willing to come forward and make a statement to the police in Bukit Aman in order to bring about justice and help improve the victims's situation.

In recent weeks, the police has hit the brick wall in their investigation when they failed to trace the alleged victims.

BMF is an environmental non-governmental organisation headquartered in Basel.

Deputy Chief Minister Tan Sri Alfred Jabu, who is also state Rural Development Minister, had said early this week that investigations had hit a brick wall when BMF, which made the allegations, refused to cooperate with the police.






From TheStar

Bruno Manser Fund willing to help police probe Penan rape claim

KUCHING: The Swiss-based Bruno Manser Fund (BMF) clarified on Saturday that it had not been contacted by the police to assist in the investigations into the alleged sexual abuse of Penan women and girls by logging workers in Baram, Miri division.

In a statement emailed to Bernama in Kuching, BMF said it formally rejected allegations that it had refused to cooperate with the police to facilitate investigations.

"BMF is willing to come forward and make a statement to the police in Bukit Aman in order to bring about justice and help improve the victims' situation," said the environmental non-governmental organisation headquartered in Basel.

Deputy Chief Minister Tan Sri Alfred Jabu, who is also state Rural Development Minister, had said early this week that investigations had hit a brick wall when BMF, which made the allegations, refused to cooperate with the police.

During his visit here last week, Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Musa Hassan was also annoyed over the matter given that the police task force which recorded more than 20 statements, including from families of the alleged victims at the village in Ulu Baram, had so far, failed to trace the key witnesses.

"BMF is concerned about the lack of a political climate that can restore the trust of the sexual abuse victims in the Malaysian legal system," said the statement.

"According to Penan sources, several victims and key witnesses are currently hiding in the forest because they feel intimidated by the way the investigations are being conducted," it added.

It claimed that in earlier instances, reports of sexual abuse such as a case reported by a Penan victim at the Kuching central police station on 30 Sept, 1994 and at the Miri central police station on 22 March, 1995 had failed to result in legal action against the alleged perpetrators.

Meanwhile, at the federal level, the action committee, headed by Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Dr Ng Yen Yen has begun investigations into the alleged sexual abuse of the Penan women and girls.

Expert trekkers, the gentle Penans are among the last of the nomadic hunter-gatherers in the world and live in the ancient jungles of Borneo - Bernama

~ If you like this informative post, please subscribe to my full RSS Feed

Nordin bin Montong from Kampung Sambir, Kuching, Sarawak who succumbed to his injuries due to mauling by three white tigers at the Singapore Zoo was alleged to have an erratic behavior before the incident.

Could it be his erratic behavior (sign of suicide) is caused by his poor living conditions in Singapore or was he short-changed by his employer? There are reported cases of contract workers from Sarawak who were cheated by recruitment companies who bring them to Singapore with a promise of high pay but end up not getting their pay, improper living condition and so on ?





From Bernama

VICTIM OF TIGER ATTACK SAVING MONEY FOR WEDDING

KUCHING, Nov 15 (Bernama) -- Contract worker Nordin Montong, who was killed after being mauled by three white tigers at the Singapore zoo on Thursday, had telephoned his family in Sarawak a day earlier to ask about his parents' condition.
ADVERTISEMENT

His eldest sister, Nora, 34, said her brother last contacted the family on Wednesday, during which he also mentioned about wanting to return home in February next year after saving enough money to marry his girl friend.

She said Nordin, 32, the second of six siblings, went to Singapore to work as a contract worker in June after reading a job advertisement in the newspapers.

"There was nothing unusual with him when he called, except to ask about our parent's condition," she said when met at her house at Kampung Tabuan here today.

Nordin's body arrived at the MasKargo terminal of the Kuching International Airport at about 3pm.

His father, Monton Sahom, 54, and mother, Baduyah Ahad, 50, as well as close relatives were at the airport to receive the body, which would be buried at the Muslim cemetery at Kampung Sambir here later today.

Nordin was attacked by the tigers after he allegedly jumped into the moat at the white tiger exhibit at the zoo at about 12.15pm.

--------------------------------
From TheStar

Zoo cleaner behaved erratically

SINGAPORE: Nordin Montong, a 32-year-old cleaner from Sarawak, had behaved erratically shortly before the tiger attack on Thursday afternoon which killed him.

He was seen shouting and flinging items about. He later vaulted a low wall and landed in a moat in the enclosure, four metres below.

Carrying a yellow pail and a broom, he then crossed the 1.75 metres-deep moat, walked up a rocky ledge near where three white tigers were and began provoking them by swinging the broom.

One of the tigers then swiped at Nordin, to the horror of the gawking and frightened crowd at the enclosure. Some even assumed it was part of the zoo show, until the huge cat started sinking its teeth into the back of the cleaner’s neck and tossed him around repeatedly like a ragdoll.

They mauled him with their huge paws for about two minutes, as the crowd screamed and cringed in horror.

Blood could be seen oozing from Nordin’s back. The cleaner struggled and thrashed his legs about and became still about five minutes later.

More than a dozen zookeepers went to Nordin’s rescue. They managed to distract the big cats and shooed them back into their den.

The Singapore Zoo had stepped up patrols on its grounds.

It had also asked its zookeepers, staff and visitors to be alert about erratic and abnormal behaviour in the animals, and to report this immediately.

The three white tigers also appeared to be “stressed out” by the incident, said Mr Biswajit Guha, assistant director of the Zoo.

“Their ears are perked up and their breathing are quicker than normal. We are trying to keep their routine as normal as possible to help calm them.

“The tigers are being kept inside their den, behind the enclosure and away from public view,” he told The Straits Times. As a precautionary measure, the zoo has temporarily closed the White Tiger exhibit.

Meanwhile, the contractor who employed the cleaner said yesterday it would pay for the cleaner’s embalming and transportation to send his body back to his family in Kuching. Undertaker Roland Tay told The Straits Times, he would donate the payment from the contractor to Nordin’s family.

He said the body would be flown to Sarawak today.

Zookeepers interviewed by The Straits Times yesterday said Nordin looked troubled on Thursday morning and was not his “normal friendly” self.

A fellow cleaner, Clement Ijau, 27, also from Sarawak, who lived in the same workers’ quarters as Nordin in Serangoon, said he looked upset early on Thursday and ignored the other workers in the quarters. — The Straits Times / Asia News Network

---------------------------------

From Bernama

AGENCIES RECRUITING SARAWAK WORKERS TO BE PUT INDER THE MICROSCOPE

MIRI, Nov 15 (Bernama) -- Employment agencies recruiting workers from Sarawak to work in Singapore will be monitored more closely following a spate of complaints that they are shortchanging recruits.

Deputy Human Resource Minister Datuk Noraini Ahmad said from September to December last year the ministry received 170 complaints while from January to September this year the number of complaints stood at 374.

Speaking to reporters after opening the Sarawak-level Job Fair 2008 here today, she said these were genuine complaints.

The complaints mostly involved salaries paid were not as promised, terms of employment differing from what was stipulated in their contracts and poor living conditions, she said, adding that the close monitoring would also be extended the ministry's Electronic Labour Exchange (ELX) at www.jobsmalaysia.gov.my. to prevent abuse.

-- BERNAMA
~ If you like this informative post, please subscribe to my full RSS Feed

Thursday, November 13, 2008

Nordin bin Montong mauled by tigers

Nordin bin Montong aged 32 died from his neck and body injuries as a result of mauling by three white tigers at the Singapore Zoo yesterday. Authority from the Singapore Zoo has notified his family in Sarawak.

Nordin had been working at the zoo for about 4 1/2 months, had been behaving strangely minutes before the incident.
He might not be himself and police are ruling out fouled-play and short of confirming that it was a suicide act either.

UPDATES:
* Nov 19, 2008:
Singapore Zoo White Tigers mauling video
* Nov 17, 2008: Of Nordin Montong, Singapore Zoo and killer white tigers
* Nov 15, 2008:
Nordin bin Montong erratic behavior due to stress?

Related posts:
* Killer white tigers at Singapore Zoo








Photo of Nordin being surrounded by the white tigers before being attacked.

~ If you like this informative post, please subscribe to my full RSS Feed

The number of pupils who ans­wered in English for the Science and Mathe­matics papers in the Ujian Pencapaian Sekolah Rendah (UPSR) 2008 exam has increased tremendously. And the overall UPSR results this year are better as compared to five years ago, with an increase in the number of students scoring all A's.

This proved that teaching English in Science and Mathe­matics subjects show better result. It also proved that the Malaysian students (including the Malay students) are receptive to English as a teaching medium for Science and Mathematics.

The thorny issue that cropped since the policy of introducing English for Science and Maths subjects in 2003, is that some quarters want to revert the teaching of Science and Maths to Bahasa Malaysia. Those quarters are worry that their mother tongue BM will be gone from the education system. Those quarters are mostly Malay teachers who are in self-denial, who are so engrossed with BM that they are not willing to change nor do they even want to try it.

When English was reintroduced as a teaching medium for the two subjects, a lot of Malay teachers (especially those from West Malaysia) want to boycott the programme. Most of them are reluctant to improve their English teaching skills. Education Minister Da­­­­­tuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein must tackle this issue. All teachers who are weak in English must be given proper training but if they refuse it, by all means, sacks those uncooperative teachers.

The bottom point here is that, those Malay teachers (by denying English) and opting not to improve their own English is in fact going against the government policy. The government has given a mandate to improve our education system and also spend billion of Rinngit to reintroduce English in our education system so that our future Malaysian (including the Malays) can compete globally. Yet, those jerks are not supportive of our national objectives. Prof Emeritus Tan Sri Ismail Hussein is one of them.

Related posts:
* Malaysia Education System Going Backward - Part 2
* Malaysia Education System Going Backward- Part 1 (people who oppose Tan Sri Ismail)
* Mastering second language does not make Malay less Malay






From TheStar

Many more opt for English
By KAREN CHAPMAN and IAN MCINTYRE

PUTRAJAYA: The number of pupils who ans­wered in English for the Science and Mathe­matics papers in the Ujian Pencapaian Sekolah Rendah (UPSR) exam has increased tremendously.

Compared to last year, the figures this time was up by more 200 times (Mathematics) and 100 times (Science).

Pupils had the option of answering the subjects entirely in English, Bahasa Malaysia, Chinese or Tamil or a combination of all three.

Education director-general Datuk Alimuddin Mohd Dom said 159,234 pupils (31%) answered the Science paper in English while for Mathematics, the figure was 238,153 (46%).

Last year, the number of pupils who an­­swered the Science and Mathematics papers in English were 1,324 and 1,075 respectively.

“The 518,616 pupils who sat for the UPSR this year are the first group to have started studying the two subjects in English since the policy was introduced in 2003,” he told a press conference yesterday after providing an analysis of the UPSR 2008 results at the ministry.

Alimuddin said this year’s UPSR results would be discussed by stakeholders before a final decision was made on whether to continue teaching Science and Mathematics in English or revert to Bahasa Malaysia.

Ministry officers would also compile data on the issue, including newspaper articles and memoranda received by Education Minister Da­­­­­tuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein who would then bring it to Cabinet.

Alimuddin said the ministry had introduced two new indicators to gauge pupils’ performance in the UPSR, which were the Candidates’ Over­all Achievement reflecting the pupils’ achievement in school, and the Subject Per­formance score which is based on the percentage of pupils’ grades in subjects scored.

In Kota Baru, Hishammuddin said this year’s UPSR would not be the benchmark to decide whether the ministry would continue teaching Science and Maths in English.

He said the results were part of a bigger study being conducted before a consensus could be reached.

He also said that he wanted the decision to be one that was not politicised or criticised by race-dominated educationists as all stakeholders were invited to present their views.
-------------------------------------
From Bernama

2008 UPSR Results Better Than Five Years Ago - Ed D/G

PUTRAJAYA, Nov 13 (Bernama) -- The overall Ujian Penilaian Sekolah Rendah (UPSR) results this year are better as compared to five years ago, with an increase in the number of students scoring all A's.

Education director-general Datuk Alimuddin Mohd Dom said, of the 518,616 UPSR candidates, 46,641 or 9.2 per cent scored all A's, as compared to only 7.8 per cent five years ago.

He said there was also an obvious improvement in the number of candidates answering Science and Mathematics questions in English, whereby 159,234 students answered their Science paper in English as compared to 1,324, the previous year.

Alimuddin was speaking at a news conference to announce the results of the 2008 UPSR, Thursday.

He said 238,153 candidates answered their Mathematics paper fully in English. Last year, only 1,075 tackled the paper in English.

"All candidates are allowed to answer fully in English or Bahasa Melayu or their mother tongue, or a combination of the three," he said.

Alimuddin said improvement was also seen in five subjects, including in vernacular schools (SJK), which are Malay Comprehension, Malay Writing, English, Chinese Writing, Tamil Writing and Science.

"These subjects have shown a significant improvement, with 4.1 per cent scoring A's for Malay Writing in national schools (SK) and Malay Comprehension for vernacular schools.

"National schools recorded an improvement of 4.4 per cent for English, while Chinese Writing had an improvement of 3.9 per cent," he said, adding that the highest improvement was 4.8 per cent for Tamil Writing.

He said the level of increase or decrease in subject performance was measured by the Subject Grade Point Average, which is 0.03.

"The six subjects showing significant improvement are Malay Comprehension SK at 0.07, Malay Writing SK (0.06), Malay Writing SJK (0.11), Chinese Writing (0.07) and Tamil Writing at 0.04, while the highest improvement was recorded for English SK at 0.24," he said.

Meanwhile in KUALA LUMPUR, education department director Mohd Radzi Jabar said Sekolah Kebangsaan Bukit Damansara emerged with the best UPSR results for the second year running, with 50.31 per cent scoring 5A's.

Sekolah Jenis Kebangsaan Cina Kuen Cheng (2) ranked as the best Chinese vernacular school with 14.76 per cent and Sekolah Jenis Kebangsaan Tamil Sungai Besi was the best Tamil vernacular school with 9.8 per cent, scoring 5A's.

Of the 25,671 students in Kuala Lumpur who sat for the UPSR, 98.14 per cent were candidates from schools under the Education Ministry while the rest were candidates from private schools.

In SEREMBAN, state education department assessment and examination sector head Hamzah Abu said the number of excellent students had decreased with only 2,225 candidates or 11.4 per cent of the total 19,531 candidates scoring 5A's or 7A's.

Last year, 2,269 candidates or 11.9 per cent of the 18,993 obtained excellent marks.

In SARAWAK, the number of top scorers increased to 2,044 candidates receiving 5A's this year as compared to 1,991 last year.

Among factors said to contribute to the success include using mind maps, surfing the Internet, eating raisins and drinking chicken essence each morning.

A top scorer, Kimberly Chian, 12, said she used mind maps to speed up the process of understanding a subject.

"My mother taught me how to make mind maps. I used this tip because it helps me to remember important facts," the SK Green Road student told Bernama here today.

The youngest of two siblings said she spent two hours a day, from Monday to Friday, to revise various subjects.

For Muhammad Iqmal Hijaz Ibrahim, he made a point to revise his short notes, as well as have essence of chicken and raisins in his diet to sharpen the mind.

"They provide nutrients needed to keep me alert and fit while learning," said the 12-year-old who was one of 43 students from SK Green Road to score 5A's.

In SABAH, 955 students scored all A's as compared to only 60 last year, said state education department deputy director Muhiddin Yussin.

In KEDAH, 3,482 students or 8.69 per cent of 40,062 UPSR candidates scored all A's this year.

State education director Shahidan Abdul Rahman said 24,775 candidates or 61.84 per cent passed in all subjects.

In PAHANG, five Orang Asli students were among 3,140 candidates who scored 5A's in their examinations, said state education department deputy director Abdul Hamid Abu Bakar.

He said 25 schools in the state achieved 100 per cent results this year, as compared to 15 schools last year.

In JOHOR, 5,987 students or 9.64 per cent of 62,401 UPSR candidates scored all A's, said state education director Sufaat Tumin.

He said Johor ranked as the third best state in the 2008 UPSR examination, achieving a 2.22 School Grade Point Average.

Sufaat said Sekolah Jenis Kebangsaan Cina (SJKC) Foon Yew 1, Johor Baharu saw the highest number of high achievers with 115 students, followed by Sekolah Kebangsaan Bandar Uda 2, Johor Baharu with 87 students and Sekolah Kebangsaan Infant Jesus Convent, Johor Baharu with 85 students.

"Five blind students from Sekolah Kebangsaan Pendidikan Khas Princess Elizabeth, Johor Baharu, were listed as blind excellent students, five students from several special education schools in the state were listed as physically-impaired excellent students and five Orang Asli students were named as excellent students in the Orang Asli category," he said.

-- BERNAMA
~ If you like this informative post, please subscribe to my full RSS Feed

The release of Raja Petra Kamaruddin from ISA detention is a victory for the people of Malaysia. In its ruling against the Home Ministry, the High Court of Shah Alam has exposed yet another crack in the steadily eroding wall of justification surrounding the ISA.

The above was an excerpt from a press statement from Anwar Ibrahim The Voice of Democracy in Malaysia.

What Anwar meant was that Malaysia judicial system is still in flip-flop situation but glad that RPK has been released from ISA detention.






Anwar Ibrahim The Voice of Democracy in Malaysia
---PRESS STATEMENT FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE –-

KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA; 7 NOVEMBER 2008

The release of Raja Petra Kamaruddin from ISA detention is a victory for the people of Malaysia. In its ruling against the Home Ministry, the High Court of Shah Alam has exposed yet another crack in the steadily eroding wall of justification surrounding the ISA.

I commend the courts which have come to the rescue, as they must do, when citizens are rendered helpless before arbitrary authority and its inclination to the abuse of power. It is through the judge’s commitment to justice that Raja Petra will once again experience the freedom that is the birthright of all Malaysians.

This episode underscores the fact that the government of the day is unfit to lead. By the sheer arrogance of its perceived grip on power, it has failed to recognise and respond to the Malaysian people’s desire for democracy, freedom and adherence to the rule of law.

Those BN leaders and particularly cabinet members who expressed staunch support of the ISA should feel remorse
over the hardship that has been foisted upon Raja Petra, his family and the many others still detained without hopes of trial.

To those members of Parliament who have been silent in response to Pakatan Rakyat’s efforts to initiate a debate on abolishing the ISA, I urge you to reconsider your position. The Court's decision today offers a new opportunity to work together to rid Malaysia of this unjust law once and for all.

Many others still languish in prison under the draconian ISA, including members of Hindraf and individuals allegedly involved with radical groups such as Jemaa Islamiyah. They all deserve the right of judicial review.
I reiterate my call for their immediate release and that any credible charges against them should be made in a court of law.

ANWAR IBRAHIM

~ If you like this informative post, please subscribe to my full RSS Feed

The Lundu Police (at west of Sarawak) nabbed a lone lorry carrying tonnes of timber logs cut down illegally from the jungles of Lundu. One down many to go.

Illegal logging in Lundu is very serious and the local Police need to make a stand to protect the environment as well as to uphold the law. If not, Lundu mountains and jungles will be bare of precious trees. The lorry driver caught by the police is not unlucky, he is blatantly dare the authority to act because he dare to carry those illegal logs across Lundu town in daylight in front of the public.

The police has no choice but to detain the driver and confiscated the logs. Baring this circumstances, the police also ought to go to the villages and illegal timber camps to catch the culprits. Yes, there are still illegal loggers in Lundu.

More pictorial posting at Selako Bato: Illegal Logs Confiscated: Bravo Lundu Police!

For the time being, bravo to the police at Lundu. But my advice to the Lundu police, don't let your guard down, there are bloggers in Lundu keeping eyes on things.

Related post:
*
Lundu-Biawak road ignored for 36 years.








Image from Selako Bato: Trapped, no where to run

~ If you like this informative post, please subscribe to my full RSS Feed

Thursday, November 6, 2008

Raja Petra Kamaruddin FREED - MalaysiaKini

The Shah Alam High Court this morning ruled that the detention of well-known blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin under the ISA was illegal and ordered his immediate release by today.

On September 22, 2008, the police sent Raja Petra Kamarudin to Kamunting to serve his ISA detention with trial.

Home Minister Syed Hamid 0, RPK 1

So despite the gloomy economic outlook, RPK supporters can now enjoyed his release.







From The Star

Court frees Raja Petra

SHAH ALAM: Malaysia Today editor Raja Petra Kamaruddin is to be freed Friday.

He succeeded Friday in his bid to obtain a release order from detention under the Internal Security Act (ISA) via his habeas corpus application.

The judge ruled that the Home Minister had acted outside his jurisdiction when he issued the two-year detention order under Section 8(1) of the ISA.

The High Court here also allowed Raja Petra to be brought to court to be released today.

He was detained for a second time under the ISA on Sept 12.

On April 11, 2001, Raja Petra along with 10 other activists were detained under the ISA for allegedly plotting to overthrow former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad. Raja Petra was released 52 days later.


~ If you like this informative post, please subscribe to my full RSS Feed

Minister in PM's Department Mohd Nazri Aziz revealed today that RM10.5 million was paid out by the government as ex-gratia payment (excluding pension) to six ex-top judges, including sacked Lord President Salleh Abas. The six ex-judges were sacked (dismissed) by a tribunal in 1988.

How much they received:
* RM5 million to former Lord President Tun Salleh Abas.
* RM2 million for the late Tan Sri Wan Suleiman Pawan Teh.
* RM2 million for George Edward Seah Kim Seng.
* Tan Sri Wan Hamzah Mohd Salleh, Tan Sri Azmi Kamaruddin and the late Tan Sri Eusoffe Abdolcadeer were paid RM500,000

The BN government insisted that the ex-gratia was valid because the former judges were asked to retire early instead of being fired. Only in Malaysia that you payback the judges that you sacked. Yet, the are piles of courts cases (maybe as tall as the Petronas twin towers) not being processed or closed for years. Talk about court efficiency and the screwed judicial system.









From Sun2Surf

Former Judges got RM10.5m ex-gratia
Husna Yusop

KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 6, 2008) : The government paid out a total RM10.5 million in ex-gratia to six former judges who were "sacked" in the 1988 judicial crisis, including RM5 million to former Lord President Tun Salleh Abas.

Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Nazri Abdul Aziz, who revealed the quantum of ex-gratia payout, said Supreme Court judges the late Tan Sri Wan Suleiman Pawan Teh and George Edward Seah Kim Seng were paid RM2 million each.

Tan Sri Wan Hamzah Mohd Salleh, Tan Sri Azmi Kamaruddin and the late Tan Sri Eusoffe Abdolcadeer were paid RM500,000 each, Nazri told the Dewan Rakyat in his winding-up speech on Budget 2009 today.

At the same time, he said they were also paid pension and gratuity for the past 20 years with Salleh receiving RM5,102.16 monthly, Wan Hamzah RM6,508.59, Seah and Azmi RM5,916.90 each and Wan Suleiman and Eusoffe RM4,815 each.

Datuk Ibrahim Ali (Ind-Pasir Mas) then asked for the reason for their compensation as it has created a perception that the government under the previous Prime Minister has been wrong in making its decision.

N.Gobalakrishnan (PKR-Padang Serai) also interjected, asking whether the RM5 million was adequate for someone in a very high position like Salleh, who has suffered a lot from the decision, while the government could spend much more for other projects.

Nazri said the payment was not an admission of guilt on the part of the government, quoting a statement by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi in April when announcing the decision to pay ex-gratia to the former judges.

He said the case involved the question of one’s honour and dignity, therefore no one could actually put a price to it.

Mahfuz Omar (PAS-Pokok Sena) then asked why were the judges granted with both pension and ex-gratia since they have been sacked from their service, adding to clear their honour and dignity the government should have set up another tribunal to clear them from the actions taken against them.

Nazri said they were found guilty by a panel of tribunal and they were asked to take early retirement , "not sacked".

"They were not sacked. They were asked to retire early. It’s like optional. At 66, you can (receive) pension. Since they chose to retire, the pension was paid. The Pension Department would not pay (pension) if they had broken any laws.

"They did not break any laws. So, the pension was paid. They took early retirement, so the pension was on," he explained.

Wee Choo Keong (PKR-Wangsa Maju) said: "All this while, I thought the six were sacked because all the newspapers had reported it as such. I don’t understand what the minister is saying.

"They were not sacked but asked to retire early? That’s not correct. They were in fact dismissed by the tribunal. The tribunal cannot ask them to retire early.

"The setting up of the tribunal was to sack them, not to ask them to take early retirement. Please don’t fool us. Since they also received pension, the RM5 million is considered too high."

Nazri said the panel was not set up to sack them but to look at the case and decide on a judgment.

"To sack is a judgment. To recommend early retirement is a judgment," he said, adding newspaper reports cannot be quoted as reliable sources for valid information.


~ If you like this informative post, please subscribe to my full RSS Feed

On October 16, Syed Hamid chicken out at Chow Kit when he said that the Chow Kit police beat was closed because of too many thugs and samseng in that area. After almost a month, he gave another excuse saying that the Chow Kit police beat was not close for fear of thugs BUT because the owner took back the building.

Of course the owner took the building back after the police run away like coward. And it takes Syed Hamid a few weeks to cook up another excuse. For a man who throw people into ISA detention centre at his wimp, that is the best excuse he has.






From Bernama

Lorong Haji Taib Beat Base Not Closed On Security Reasons - Syed Hamid

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 6 (Bernama) -- Home Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar said today that the police beat base along Lorong Haji Taib here was not closed due to security reasons.

It was closed after the building owner decided to take back the land, he said.

"I would like to stress here that the written reply I made in Parliament on Oct 16 on the closure of the beat base was not accurate and clear.

"Actually the landowner wants to construct a new building, so the beat base has to be closed. But this area still has the Chow Kit Police Station with a strength of 10 personnel and four patrol cars and conducts 24-hour patrols," he told reporters after visiting the Chow Kit Police Station and surrounding areas.

On Oct 16, Syed Hamid said in his written reply to Titiwangsa Member of Parliament Dr Lo' Lo' Mohamad Ghazali that the Lorong Haji Taib beat base had to be closed because the police found the location no longer suitable or safe for the police personnel on duty.

The dirty surroundings, possibly exposed to infectious diseases as well as criminal threats endanger the security of personnnel, he had said.

Syed Hamid said the Kuala Lumpur City Hall had agreed to allocate land on which a new beat base would be built and the discussion on the matter was ongoing.

He said the Chow Kit Police Station was able to reduce the crime rate in the surrounding areas and strategically located.

"Surveillances and patrols are conducted constantly from time to time and the public have to cooperate with the police. Chow Kit is not a black area as portrayed," he said.

On the illegal ownership of firearms, he said the ministry was working together with the neighbouring countries to check arms smuggling.

-- BERNAMA

~ If you like this informative post, please subscribe to my full RSS Feed

Related Posts with Thumbnails