Regulations coming into force in 2009

Making New Year resolutions is an annual ritual for many. In addition, here is a reminder of several laws and regulations which come into force w.e.f 1/1/2009.

1. Compulsory use of rear seat belts.
2. Pension of not less than RM720.00
3. Malaysian Anti corruption Commission(MACC)
4. Discounted toll rates on PLUS and Elite highways
5. e-stamping by Inland Revenue Board
6. Compulsory pre-marital screening for HIV

RTM launches disaster unit

Radio Televisyen Malaysia(RTM yesterday launxhed a Disaster Unit to channel the latest reports on disasters to TV and radio stations.
The unit would disseminate information on the weather, earthquakes, landslides, floods, storms, river levels, sea conditions and other disasters.
Information Minister Datuk Ahmad Shabery Cheek said it would also issue brief safety guides.-Bernama.

80 'Jerit' cyclists hand memo to Selangor MB

Some 80 "Jerit"(Oppressed People Network) cyclistsfrom the north and south handed a memorandum to Selangor Menteri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim yesterday.
"We all have have to work together in trying to bring about change for the better of the country and state," he said after receiving the memorandum in the state government office.
Jerit is ending its "Cycling For Change" campaign by trying to hand over a similar memorandum to Prime Minister datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi in Parlimen today.
Jerit's southern coordinator S. Arutchelvan told reporters Parliment's security personnel are aware of their plans and have no problem allowing 120 people in.
"We are only concerned about the journey to Parliment. We are planning to discuss the route with the police in Kuala Lumpur to help them facilitate their journey," he said.

INTIPATI RANG UNDANG-UNDANG PERLINDUNGAN SAKSI 2008

1. Program Perlindungan Saksi akan disenggarakan oleh ketua Pengarah serta dibantu timbalannya yang terdiri daripada anggota perkhidmatan awam
2. Saksi yang mahu menyertai program boleh memohon kepada ketua Pengarah atau mengemukakannya melalui sesebuah agensi penguatkuasaan undang-undang.
3. Pemohon perlu mendedahkan kepada Ketua Pengarah butir-butir mengenai semua obligasi undang-undang yang belum selesai termasuk rekod jenayah, tunggakan cukai dan hutang serta prosiding sivil terhadapnya.
4. Saksi ke jenayah berat dilindungi daripaa diancam dan diugut termasuk dengan mewujudkan identiti baru
5. Identiti asal saksi yang diberikan identiti baru tidak akan didedahkan dalam apa cara sekalipun
6. Saksi akan disediakan tempat tinggal, pengangkutan bagi urusan pemindahan, bayaran yang setara dengan pendapatan dan jika tidak bekerja, diberi bayaran sara hidup, bantuan mendapatkan pekerjaan dan pendidikan.
7. Tiada seorang pun boleh mempunyai akses kepada daftar dan dokumen yang disimpan oleh Pendaftar kecuali Menteri,Peguam Negara, Ketua Pengarah dan orang lain yang dibenarkan secara bertulis oleh Peguam Negara.
8. Hanya Peguam Negara mempunyai kuasa muktamad untuk memutuskan sama ada seseorang saksi itu hemdak dimasukkan ke dalam program atau sebalikny, berdasarkan syor Ketua Pengarah
9. Jika didapati memberikan maklumat palsu semasa memohon, seseorang itu boleh didenda sehinga RM10,000 atau penjara tidak lebih lima tahun atau kedua-duanya sekali.

PPSMI: Tujuh opsyen dihalusi

Tujuh opsyen mengenai masa depan pengajaran Sains dan Matematik dalam bahasa Inggeris (PPSMI) akan diperhalusi oleh Menteri Pelajaran, Datuk Seri Hishammudin Tun Hussein sebelum dibawa ke peringkat Jemaah Menteri.
Semua opsyen tersebut adalah hasil lima siri persidangan meja bulat PPSMI yang disertai oleh wakil parti politik, tokoh akedemik dan pertubuhan bukan kerajaan(NGO).
Timbalan Menteri Pelajaran, Datuk Dr. Wee Ka Siong berkata opsyen-opsyen yang dimaksudkan ialah:
1.Meneruskan PPSMI seperti sedia ada, menggunakan Bahasa Melayu atau Bahasa Ibunda di peringkat sekolah rendah tetapi meneruskan PPSMI di sekolah menengah selain memulakan PPSMI dari tahun empat hingga sekolah menengah.
2. Menggunakan bahasa melayu atau bahasa ibunda di sekolah rendah dan digunakan sepenuhnya di sekoalh menengah selain penggunaan bahasa pengantar untuk Sains dan Matematik di tentukan oleh sekolah.
3. Penggunaan bahasa Melayu atau bahasa ibunda di tahun satu hingga tiga, penggunaan dwi bahasa pada tahun empat hingga enam dan penggunaan bahasa Inggeris sepenuhnya di sekoalh menengah dan memansuhkan mata pelajaran Sains di peringkat tahun satu hingga tiga tetapi mengajar ilmu sains dalam mata pelajaran lain.

The wrangle ober teaching of mathematic an Science in English contyinued with seven proposals put before the final roundtable meeting yesterday.
The proposals are:

• Stick to Mathematics and Science in English
• Revert to Bahasa Malaysia
• Let Primary schools teach both subjects in the mother tongue and secondary schools use English
• Let Primary schools decide for themselves
• mathematics and Science be taught in Bahasa Malaysia and mother tongue for Years One to Three and in English from Year Four onwards
• A combination of mother tongue in the first three years and a choice of mother tongue or English after that;
• The two subjects will not be taught in Years One to Three and instead be integrated into other subjects.

Pembangkang sokong SPRM

ketua Pembangkang, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim menyambut baik usaha kerajaan memerangi rasuah dengan membentangkan Rang Undang-undang Suruhanjaya Pencegahan Rasuah Malaysia(SPRM) 2008 pada Sidang Dewan Rakyat di Kuala Lumpur hari ini.
bagaimanapun, beliau berkata , penubuhan SPRM masih mempunyai kelemahan ketara kerana masih terikat dengan eksekutif terutamanya Perdana Menteri.
"Pakatan Pembangkang akan menyokong usul yang dibawa oleh Perdana Menteri itu dengan syarat pindaan dilakukan bagi memberi suruhanjaya lebih kebebasan termasuk kuasa pendakwaan," katanya ketika membahaskan Rang Undang-undang SPRM 2008 pada sidang Dewan Rakyat hari ini.
Menurut beliau, berdasarkan Seksyen 5(1) dan Seksyen 5(3), perlantikan Ketua Suruhanjaya dan Lembaga Penasihat Pencegahan Rasuah(LPPR) yang berasaskan Seksyen 13(2)(a) masih di atas nasihat Perdana Menteri.
Jelasnya, peruntukan itu membuktikan suruhanjaya yang dimaksudkan masih belumbebas sepenuhnya dan dikhuatiri terdedah pada sebarang manipulasi eksekutif.
Anwar turut memberi perhatian terhadap kes-kes rasuah terdahulu, berprofil tinggi dan membabitkan orang ternama yang masih belum diambil tindakan.
"Kita masih menunggu sebarang tindakan tegas diambil bagi kes-kes melibatkan wang Perwaja dan Sistem Penerbangan Malaysia(MAS)," ujarnya.
Beliau turut menyarankan, dalam memastikan suruhanjaya tersebut benar-benar bebas, ahli-ahlinya mesti dilantik oleh J/Kuasa Khas Parlimen agar calon yang paling layak sahaja dilantik, bukan sahaja segi teknikal tetapi juga bersih daripada tuduhan dan celaan.

Perak, Kedah tidak patriotik

Kerajaan campuran Perak dan Kedah dibidas kerana tidak mempercayai kereta keluaran tempatan iaitu Proton Perdana V6 Executive yang digenakan sebagai kenderaan rasmi, sebaliknya lebih senang dengan kereta import.
Ahli majlis Tertinggi(MT UMNO, datuk Seri Dr. Ahmad zahid Hamidi berkata, kedua-dua kerajaan pakatan pembangkang itu sepatutnya berbangga dengan produk tempatan kerana mereka adalah sebahagian daripada rakyat negara ini.
Menurutnya, kerajaan pakatan pembangkang mempunyai alasan tersendiri untuk menolak penggunaan kereta Proton Perdana V6 Executive sebagai kenderaan rasmi tetapi hakikatnya mereka tidak mahu menyokong projek kerajaan Persekutuan.
"jangan jadikan kos penyelenggaraan yang tinggi sebagai alasan kerana sudah jelas mereka bukan di kalangan pemimpin yang mempunyai semangat patriotik yang tinggi. Sebaliknya, lebih mempercayai kereta keluaran asing berbanding sendiri," katanya selepas merasmikan Kursus Pembangunan dan Pengurusan Zakat Antarabangsa 2008 di bangi.
Beliau mengulas mengenai keputusan kerajaan negeri Perak menggunakan kereta Toyota Camry 2.4 bagi menggantikan Proton Perdana V6 Executive sebagai kenderaan rasmi Exco dan pegawai kanan kerajaan.
Kedah juga dilaporkan akan mengikut langkah kerajaan campuran Perak menggantikan kereta Proton Perdana V6 Executive dengna jenama lain sekiranya keadaan kewangan mengizinkan.
Ahmad zahid memberitahu, apa yang dilakukan parti pembangkang itu hanya untuk mencari kelainan bagi membezakan mereka dengan kerajaan Persekutuan.
"Buat apa nak beza-beza. Rakyat sudah tahu bahawa keputusan mereka untuk membeli kereta import adalah bersifat membazir terutama semasa negara berdepan dengan krisis ekonomi global," ujarnya.

Tajuddin apologises for second time

Controversial Member of Parliment for Pasir salak datuk Tajuddin Abdul rahman apologised for the second time in the House for certain statements made in the past.
The stetement, came out of the blue, when tajuddin was debating on the Malaysian Anti Corruption Commission Bill in which he tried to link corruption with the recent trip to South Korea by the Opposition-controlled Penang state government.
"Let's forget about what was said in the past. Let's avoid provocation. Sometimes, I regret the things I say. I hate myself."
tajuddin then said he was a good Muslim and would apologise if he had wronged someone.
"We say sorry to those we have wronged. It 's no big fuss. I repent," he said.
tajuddin has constantl;y been in the news for making sexist, racist and unparlimentary statements in the Dewan rakyat.
He first made the apology in the House on Dec 1.

Three held for handing out flyers

Three women from an unregistered organisation, Jaringan Rakyat Tertindas(Jerit) ,were arrested for handing out flyers in Beranang, Kajang, yesterday.
The three, in their 30s, were allegedly handing out anti-ISA flyers at a morning market at about 11 am.
Selangor police chief Deputy Commissioner datuk Khalid Abu Bakar confirmed the incident, adding the three women were taken to Kajang police headquarters.
The three, including a lawyer, had their statements taken before they were released on bail.
"They are free to conduct their activities but do not go against the law," he said.
On Saturday, Deputy Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Ismail Omar said police were looking into the activities of the group active in recent months and had organised activities that allegedly flouted the law.

Fishermen in Perak extend strike

Fishermen in Perak will continue their strike for another week despite the government agreeing to reduce the price of subsidised diesel and petrol to RM1.30 per litre.
Pantai Remis assemblyman Nga Kor Ming said the strike would continue following the fishermen's unhappiness at not getting the RM1.00 per litre that had wanted.
The strike, which started last Friday and planned for three days, reportedly involved some 45,000 fishermen from seven states.
On Saturday, Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Minister Datuk Mustapa Mohamed said with the new price, the Government would bear and additional susidy of about RM197 mil annually.
Nga, who is also state education, local government committee chairman, claimed that the market price for fish had gone up by 30% since the strike.
"I call on the federal Government to reduce the price immediately before further damage is done," he said in a statement yesterday.
Of the 4,000 vessels in Perak, about 2,500 use diesel.
Boats of about 40 tonnes and above use betwen 6,000 litres and 8,000 litres of petrol for a week-long trip.

Judges' ethics committee to be set up

The Judges' Ethics Committee Bill was tabled for first reading by Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz yesterday, meant to establish a committee to deal with any judge who has breached the judges' Code of Ethics 2008.
It was provided that the Chief Justice of the Federal Court was of the opinion that such breach did not warrant the judge being reffered to a tribunal appointed under Clause (4) of the Federal Constitution.
According to the explanatory statement of the bill, the committee was envisaged by Clause(3A) of Article 125 of the Constitution.
The bill seeks to deal with matters relating to the conduct and discipline of all judges other than the removal of a judge from office.
It also deals with the membership of the committee and the appointment of substitude members.
It imposes a duty on the committee to abide by the principles and procedures set out in the proposed bill and the code of the ethics and requires the proceedings of the committee to be conducted in camera.
The bill requires a member of the committe to disclose his interest in any disciplinary proceedings conducted and in such a case, the members is prohibited from taking part in the deliberation or decision-making process.
It also provides that where a unanimous decision could not be achieved, the decision of the majority will be followed and the decision of the committee shall be final and conclusive and not to be challenged in any court.

Judges' ethics committee to be set up

10 sen drop in fuel prices

Petrol and diesel prices have been further reduced by 10 sen a litre from today.
In announcing the reduction yesterday, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said the RON 97 petrol will be sold at RM1.80 a litre from RM1.90 and RON 92 petrol at RM1.70 from RM1.80.
Diesel will be sold at RM1.70 a litre, he said in a statement. This is the seventh time the government has lowered fuel prices since August. The last revision was om 3 Dec 2008.
Alsi effective today, the price of subsidised petrol and diesel for fishermen has been slashed by 13 sen a litre to RM1.30 from RM1.43 -Bernama

Perak blames federal govt for costly Toyota Camry

Senior state executive councillor Datuk Ngeh Koo Ham has blamed the federal government for the high cost of the state's purchase of 16 units of Toyota Camry 2.4 for the stste exco members and senior officers.
He said the refusal of the federal government to give tax exemption resulted in the stste government5 having to pay RM167,000 for each Toyota Camry compared with the actual price of only RM97,000.
The cars will replace the Proton Perdana V6 Executive as the official cars for the state.
Pointing out that the allocation for the purchase was approved by the previous Basrisan nasional(BN) state government, Ngeh said the decision was to avoid wastage of public funds in terms of the high maintenance cost for the existing official cars.
It is more cost-effective to maintain Toyota Camry cars than the present fleet of Proton Perdana V6. Wewant to save more by buying new cars as the maintenance cost will not be that high," he told reporters after the Perak DAP convention, in Ipoh testerday.
On Friday, Perak Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddn said the state would fork out RM2.7 million to acquire the new cars, saying it was costly to maintain the Perdana fleet.
Pangkor assemblyman datuk Dr. Zambry Abd Kadir described the state government as not fulfilling its promose to spend prudently.

Poor English on NRD website corrected

The poor use of English on the National Registration Department's website has been rectified following public complaints.
The department's public relations officer janisah Mohd Noor said the mistakes were an oversight and the public relations department which manages the website together with the NRD's web team was baffled as to how they were allowed through.
"We are checking on this and assume that someone has taken the initiative to upload the content without going through the necessary procedures first," she said.
Janisah said the department usually sends all materials that are to be posted on its website to the national Translation Institute for the terms and reponses to be standardised before they are uploaded.
"But we do not have any records of this particular page which carried about eoght questions and answers," she said, reffering to a section on grequently asked questions on identity cards.
"the rectifcation was done immediately to avoid confusion among public."
Earlier this month, a reader forwarded a copy of the atrocious content in English on the website to the Sun, expressing concern that it would taint the country's image.
The questyions and answers [posted pertained to the application, cost and waioting period for identity cards, in addition to those on locations at which renewals and applications could be made.

Perak lulus beli Toyota Camry ganti Protom Perdana V6

Kerajaan Perak hari ini meluluskan pembelian sebanyak 16 buah kereta Toyota Camry 2.4 bagi menggantikan Proton Perdana V6 Executive sebagai kenderaan rasmi Ahli Majlis Mesyuarat Kerajaan Negeri(Exco) dan Pegawai Kanan Kerajaan negeri itu.
Menteri Besar Perak, Datuk Seri Ir. Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin ketika mengimumkan perkara berkenaan berkata, keputusan itu dibuat selepas mengambil kira kos membaiki serta menyelenggara Proton Perdana yang begitu tinggi dan sering mengalami kerosakan.
"Dalam mesyuarat Exco hari ini, kerajaan negeri memutuskan untuk menukar kereta rasmi yang dinu pakai Exco dan pegawai kanan daripada Proton Perdana kepada Camry 2.4.
"Kita terpaksa bayar cukai kepada kerajaan, jadi sebuah kereta ini akan menelan belanja sebanyak RM167,000 dan kos keseluruhan pembelian ini melibatkan perbelanjaan melebihi RM2 juta,"katanya kepada pemberita selepas mempengerusikan mesyuarat bulanan Exco Perak di sini hari ini.
Semasa Pesidangan Dewan Undangan Negeri(DUN) Perak pada 13 November lepas, kerajaan negeri mendakwa kerajaan negeri Barisan Nasional sebelum ini membelanjakan kira-kira RM1.3 juta bagi kos penyelenggaraan dan baik pulih kenderaan rasmi Menteri Nesar serta Exco Perak dari tahun 2004 hingga Mac 2008.

PM on why defence spending must continue

Prime Minister Datuk Ser Abdullah Ahmad Badawi yesterday said defence spending must continue despite the gloomy economic outlook as the nation's security cannot be compromised.
Speaking at the launch of the Langkawi International Matritime and Aerospace Exhibition(LIMA'09),Abdullah, who is also defence minister, said the recent incident in the Gulf of Aden where two Malaysian tankers were seized and their crews taken hostage showed that governments cannot afford to relax when it concerns national security and the lives of their citizens.
"We need to be vigilant and continue to improve the overall defence and security, especially along the Straits of Malacca and in East Malaysia," he said.
He said despite the gloomy economic outlook, analysts believe Asean's defence and security spending will exceed US$350million in years leading to 2020.
Abdullah said Asia's defence market poses many opportunities in the medium and long term for suppliers over the next 15 years as regional governments seek to modernise their navies, airforces and security agencies.
LIMA '09 is scheduled to be held in Langkawi from Dec 1-5 next year.

Residents plan to sue for compensation

Residents in Bukit Antarabangsa affected by Saturday's landslide plan to sue the authorities and claim compensation.
The chairman of the Bukit Antarabangsa Action Committee, Datuk N.Muneandy, said yesterday the committee will seek legal advice because they are confident of having strong evidence to pursue their claims.
"We have the evidence like photographs taken before the landlide and complaints lodged with the local authority," he told reporters.
Without stating the amount of compensation to be claimed, Muneandy said some residents had notified the local authority about the possibility of landslides happening.
"they had reported fallen trees, which indicated that something undesirable could happen but the local authority only sent people to cut the trees and there were no other preventive measures taken," he said.
Muneandy also urged the government to immediately form a special committee, including representatives of the residents, sothat they could be kept informed of any development in Bukit Antarabangsa.
"This is important as the problem involves our safety and our homes and, therefore, we want the government to act fast," he said.
Ealier, representatives of the Bukit Antarabangsa residents held a discussion with the landslide search and rescure operations chief, Datuk Khalid Abu Bakar, to get the details of the operations.
Khalid promised to intensify the security surveilance in the landslide area to prevent looting. He also urged residents to lodge police reports.
"We did get requests from residents who wanted to come in to get their belongings, including their cars stuck in the rubble , but we cannot allow them to do it now as the ground is still unstable and could endanger their ives," he said.

Siasatan tiga kes salah urus dana awam selesai

Bdan Pencegah Rasuah(BPR) sudah selesai menjalankan siasatan terhadap sekurang-kurangnya tiga kes salah pengurusan dana awam yang didedahkan Laporan Ketua Audit Negara 2007.
Pengarah Siasatan BPR, Datuk Shukri Abdull, berkata kertas siasatan semua kes membabitkan laporan berkenaan dapat dilengkapkan selepas pihaknya mengumpul keteranan serta dokumen berkaitan yang diperlukan baru-baru ini.
"Ketika ini, Bahagian Pendakwaan BPR sedang meneliti laporan hasil siasatan yang dijalankan sebelum memutuskan tindakan lanjut yang perlu diambil, sama ada iteruskan dengan proses pendakwaan di mahkamah atau mendapatkan maklumat tambahan untuk mengukuhkan lagi kertas siasatan," katanya ketika dihubungi semalam.
Laporan Ketua Audit Negara 2007 yang dibentangkan di Parlimen pada 29 Ogos lalu mendedakan wujud banyak kelemahan di beberapa kementerian dan agensi kerajaan.
Antaranya kehilangan peralatan Program Pengajaran dan Pembelajaran Sains dan Matematik dalam bahasa Inggeris(PPSMI) bernilai RM9.56 juta dan kelemahan pengurusan sistem kompaun Jabatan Alam Sekitar(JAS) di bebera negeri.
Isu lain dilaporkan sebelum ini ialah penggunaan tanah milik Polis Diraja Malaysia(PDRM) dan tungakan saman trafik, pelaboran RM537.04 juta(Composite Technology Research Malaysia Sdn.Bhd.(CTRM) yang dimiliki anak syarikat berpangkalan di Amerikat, tetapi mencatatkan kerugian serta pembelian mesin pengimejan oleh Kementerian Kesihatan bernilai RM33 juta .
Turut idedahkan laporan audit itu ialah kelemahan pengurusan berhubung program Latihan KhidmatNegara(PLKN) dan Projek pangkalan Tentera laut Diraja Malaysia(TLDM) Markas Wlayah Laut 11, Teluk Sepanggar, Sabah.

'Haramkan serta-merta pembangunan lereng bukit'

Kerajaan harus mengharamkan erta-merta semua pembangunan di kawasan cerun dan lereng bukit sehingga diperakui selamat untuk diteruskan dan undang-undang lebih ketat digubal bagi kawasan tanah tinggi, bukit serta cerun.
Presiden Majlis Peguam Malaysia(Majlis Peguam),Datuk Ambiga Sreenivasan, berkata kerajaan wajar mengambil keputusan tegas bagi mengelakkan berulangnya tragedi seperti di Bukit Antarabangsa, aal pagi Sabtu lalu, yang mengorbankan empat mangsa.
"buat masa sekarang, orang ramai yang khuatir kediaman mungkin diancam tanah runtuh akibat projek pembangunan boleh memohon perintah penyekatan bagi menghalang pemaju meneruskan kerja.
"Kerajaan perlu mengkaji sama ada kejaian tanah runtuh yang berlaku setakat ini adalah bencana alam atau akibat perbuatan manusia dan mengemas kini undang-undang berkaitan selain meningkatkan usaha menguatkuasa syarat terbabit," katana ketika dihubungi di Kuala Lumpur, semalam.
Sementara itu, Ketua Menteri Melaka, Datuk eri Mohd. Ali Rustam, berkaa beliau secara peribadi berpendapat, sekiranya kawasan perumahan sekitar Bukit Antarabangsa, Hulu Kelang dekat Kuala Lumpur masih berisiko tinggi u tuk diduduki adalah wajar untuk penduduk mengosongkan kediaman mereka demi keselamatan.
Katanya, kejadian tanah runtuh kelmarin yang meragut empat nyawa adalah insiden keempat menimpa kawasan sekitar Bukit Antarabangsa."Saya tengok kawasam ini sudah tiga kali berlaku kejadian tanah runtuh, kalau sya...saya akan mengarahkan semua penduduk keluar kerana nyawa lebih penting," katanya ketika mengadakan lawatan ke lokasi tanah runtuh semalam.

Umno, RTM lancar tabung

Umno Bahagian Ampang dengan kerjasama Radio Telivisyen Malaysia(RTM) semalam melancarkan Tabung Bencana Alam Bukit Antarabangsa bagi membantu mangsa kejadian tanah runtuh di Taman Bukit Mewah,Kuala Lumpur.
Ketua Umno Bahagian Ampang, Datuk Ismail Kijo, berkata jawatankuasa akan dibentuk bagi menyelaraskan tabung itu, selain mengenalpasti mangsa.
"Kami membuka akaun bank hari ini bagi memudahkan orang ramai salur sumbangan.
"RTM juga menyiarkan nombor akaun ini dariada sema ke semasa,"katanya di Kuala Lumpur, semalam.

Don't interfere, politicians told

Don't interfere, politicians told

Politicians should not interfere while police personnel are carrying out their duties, said Inspector-General of Police tan Sri Musa hassan
"One politician recently sent 100 traffic sommonses and told me to cancel them. He claimed the offenders were his constittuents and did not have money to settle the summonses.
"There are also policians whp tell my OCPDs not to summon those ridding their motorcycles in thr kampung areas without helmets. How can we do that?" he asked.
Musa, who was speaking at a national forum on crime and policing, said the police would not be able to carry out their duties effectively if these politicians continued to interfere.
Earlier, he admitted that the country's crime rate was on the rise but was not as bad as reported in the media and blods.
"last year's crime rate per 100,000 population was only 772 cases caopared to Hong Kong (1,166), Japan(1,569) and Australia(4,270). The rising crime rate is actually a global problem but iat is still at a manageable level.
"I have already taken steps to counter the rise in crime rate like improving the response time to a crime scene, building police stations in new housing estates and installing CCTV cameras in crime-prone arreas."
On the small number of chinese joining the police force, Musa said most wanted to be officers and not constables.
"There is still a shortage of policemen despite recruiting over 7000 people a few months ago.
The force now has over 97,000 personnel and needs at least 40,000 more.
"I have asked for another 60,000 to be recruited over the next five years but this still will not be enough as there are hundreds of retirements annually," he added.
Musa said he also wanted the national crime solving rate to be at least 40%.
"From today, the public can lodge reports at the various marine police bases nationawide. I have also directed the marine police personnel to be involved in crime prevention on land instead in crime prevention on land instead of just the high seas.
"The General OperationsForce, whose duties ised used to be only in the jungles, now have awider scope of work. They are responsible for security in airports and certain islands in the country,"he said.
On the police force being biased against yhe participants of illegal gatherings in Kuala LUMPUR, HE SAID THE POLICE ONTRY ACTED BECAUSE it was getting a bit out of hand.

Team of Bloggers to explain Perak govt policies

The Pakatan Rakyat state government will soon have its own team of bloggers to help it disseminate information.
Menteri Besar Datuk seri Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin said the state government was setting up u a "bloggers' secretariat" to ensure accurate information was being channelled to the rakyat.
It will help the state counter accusations and inform the public about government policies.
The secretariat will be headed by Nizar's press secretary Anuar Hashim.
Nizar said the move to set up the secretariat was made after a meeting on Wednesday with 26 bloggers who agreed to assist the state disseminate information on policy matters and programmes.
"This is also to counter and defend the state's stand on certain issues and policies which have been played up by the opposition," he said in his speech at a dinner organised by the state Parti Keadilan Rakyat Youth(Angkatan Muda Keadilan ) on Wednesday.
Also present were DAP national Youth chief Nga Kor Ming, PKR national youth chief Shamsul Iskandar, Perak PKR Youth head Anuar Zakaria and Perak PKR chairman Ismail Yusoff.
Nga said he was disappointed with RTM as it had not not invited the menteri besar to go on air and explain state policies to the people.
"It has been nine months since Pakatan Rakyat took over the administration of the state but RTM has yet to invite the menteri besar and has only been criticising the state government."

Lodge Report on vandalised signs, CM tells MPPP

The Penang Island Municipal Council(MPPP) has been instructed to lodge police reports on the vandalisation of two bilingual road signs, both in Malay and Arabic.
Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said this was necessary to prevent further sabotage of bilingual road signs meant to help tourists.
In a statement yesterday, he noted that other signs with Mandarin and Tamil were not affected.
The vandalised road sign were found sprayed with red paint on Sunday morning and have since been cleaned up.
An MPPP wprker who spotted the defaced road signs lodged a report at the Campbell Street police station yesterday afternoon.
In a separate statement, state executive councillor Chow Kon Yeow said the worker had taken photographs of the road signs with his mobile phone before he helped to clean them.

Why second federal officers to states

Why are so many top state government posts - state secretaries, state financial officers, datuk bandars, local authority presidents-still held by federal government officers?
Are not these posts to be filled by officers from the state civil service? I remember some such posts being held by federal government officers temporarily seconded to the state at one time. This was due to lack of experienced officers at state level with regards to specific skills. Now it appears that almost all the top state government posts are given to officers appointed by the federal government.
Why is this so? Are there not enough competent staff from the state civil service to occupy these chairs?
Of late there have been reported cases of disgruntlement by some of the heads of state governments about state public officers, some of them federal government appointees, not having carried out instructions. Is this because these officers refuse to follow the state head's directives and are waiting for "orders from above"?
It looks like the rakyat who have elected the people they want to head the state government,and for whom the public servant should be serving, are being short-changed thus hampering the afforts of those heads of state and thereby frustrating the rate payers,
I believe that there still exist state public services commissions responsible for the recruitment and appointmnt of state civil servants. With so many unemployed gradutes around why is it so difficult to recruit people people into the state civil service? What is the necessity for civil servants from the central government to occupy state officers' posts?
And one more things that does not seem to be right, why should government officers be seconded to private entities on a permanent basis just because the government has an interest in the establishment? cannot such such seconded appointments be rotated among officers in order that no government servant becomes too comfortable serving in the private sector, so much so that he or she starts taking too much personal interest, like acquring shares of the the company thereby creating a conflict interest? Instead of playing the role of a watchdog, officers have turned to be big, "successful" businessmen.

Why second federal officers to states?

ACA probing 82 cases of money politics

The Anti-Corruption Agency involving money politics with charges of bribery taken against some of the culprits and others referred to yhe respective partive party,s disciplinary boards.
Its director-general Datuk Ahmad said Hamdan confirmed that the agency had received som 280 reports of which 82 cases had basis for the ACA to conduct investigation.
"If there is sufficient evidence then we will take action by either bringing them to court or referring them to their respective disciplinary boards," he told reporters in Alor gajah after closing the agency's training course for 87 investigatig officers yesterday.
Ahmad Said did not name the political affiliation of those under investigations and stressed that the agency didi not label such cases as one of money politics but simply as bribery.
For the ACA, there is no such thing as money politics as anything to do with a bribe is considered corruption,he added.
Meanwhile, Ahmad said that the agency had received 14,817 reports as of Nov 19 compared to the estimated 13,900 reports for the whole of last year.
He noted that the increase in the number of reports is a good indication that the public supports the ACA's efforts to combat corruption and abuse of power.
He added that the agency is beefing up its manpower capabilities fromthe current 1800 officers to 2700 next year.
He said the agency hopes to increase ists strenth to 5,000 officers with plans to open up branches in Kuala Kubu Baru, Limbang and Gua Musang.
Ahamd Said also said the agency would be cracking down on syndicates involved with bribery and corruption, in partivular those with regard to illegal logging and enviromental degradation.

Reminder to civil servants

I refer to the report" Little Napoleon education officer to be sacked."(NST, Nov 16) I applaud the Education Ministry for its fim action against a supervisor who had gone against the ministry's efforts to provide sufficient teachers for vernacular schools.
The deputy education minister was quoted as saying,"sad to say, these people at the lower level discregard our efforts, and act on their own."
This may not be an isolated case; there may be other "little Napoleon" with a misguided sense of duty disregarding directives from the top and acting on their own. In this respect the deputy miaqnister was also quoted as saying:"Our drastic action against the sipevisor is to serve as adeterrent to others."
It should be impressed upon gopvernment servants that, as government servants, they are to faithfully carry out the directives of the government of the day without fear or favour.
The meaning of the phrase,"Saya yang menurut perintah"(I, who obey directives) in government corespondences appears to have lost its meaning to these littlt Napoleons.
All government servants, whatever their rank or position, are servants of the government and should faothfully carry out the policies and directives of the government to the best of their ability. That is what they are paid for.
There was atime, during the colonial era, when civil servants signed official letters below the phrase, "I beg to remain Sir, your obedient servant," to remind them not to act on their own as independent agents.

Perak to seek views on new name

The Perak Pakatan rakyat government wants to hear the people's views about the proposal to rename Jalan Silibin after the late DAP stalwart P. Patto
State executive councillor A Sivanesan said he would hold a forum soon after several residents, business owners and the Ipoh Ratepayers and Taxpayers Association protested against the name change.
"Let people come and give their views. We do not want the DAP to be seen as arrogant and bulldozing like Barisan Nasional," he said yesterday.
"If the majority feel that the the name change is not ok, then we will not change the name," he said.
On a petition signed by 37 business owners who expressed concern about the name change, Sivanesan felt he could not see how their businesses could be affected.
He pointed outthat business owners, for instance, could still retain the word"silibin" on signboards and their stationery, and so dis not have to risk losing their customers.
"In Kuala Lumpur, for instance, one road is known as 'Jalan Tun sambanthan'(Jalan Brickfields)," Sivanesan said.
Sivanesan also hoped someone could shed light into the historical background of how the road to be named "Silibin," as its origin remained a mysteryu.
Earlier, another group comprising 20 owners of factories operating in the Silibin area called for the state's intervention against renaming Jalan Silibin.
Inta Industrial Estate Factory Owners Association chairman Ching Chye Huat said the name change would cause a lot of inconvenience for suppliers who shipped materials to their businesses.

Stop Obsession with cabinet Posts: Tee Keat

MCA members should stop their obsession with holding cabinet posts and focus instead on resolving the woes of the grassroots , party president Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat said yesterday.
"Having the people's aspirations in mind would be something more positive than being obsessed with personal political gains, particularly in relation to ministership," he said.
Ong praised his deputy, Datuk Dr Shua Soi Lek, for his willingness to head the party's government policy monitoring bureau, which will keep tabs on the ministries headed by MCA ministers.
"This is in line with what I said earlier because when I said that we needed to form such a bureau to handle the people's feedback, we must keep the people's aspirations in mind," h e said.
"I am glad he shares my view."
Ong said Chua, a former health minister, was "perhaps the best person" to advise new ministers appointed after the March 8 general election.
"As a former minister, he would be in a very good position to tell us about some of the issues currently confronting us. Issues do not come into place suddenly or abruptly," he said.
Ong , who is the transport minister, told a press conference his ministry is re-examining the e-Kesihatan Programme, which it cancelled earlier.
"For now, the concessionaire has been informed of the government's decision to discontinue with the agreement," he said.
"The project has been reffered back to the Road Transport Department(RTD) to re-look at the format as well as the details of the agreement. We need to look at it again, to look at the limitations and at the same time, we need to come up with something that will serve the public's purpose.
"We need to ensure medical certification of the fitness of public transport drivers, that is a must.
But we do not want to make it burdensome. So we have to strike the right balance between both."
Respondinh to calls to use the Emergency Ordinance to curb the mat rempai menace, Ong said:" In my opinion, the nations is not short of laws. If we,as a nation, were able to defeat a militant insurgency, we should be able to handle a social ill like this."
Asked about the mobes by PAS to open up to chinese supportes, Ong said such overtures were not new.
"Any party, including PAS, has a right to reach out to any segment of the populace. We shouldn't have qualms about it." he said.
"The current outreach proposal is not something new.... if we were to trace back 2 years, 10 1986, when the Chinese Consultative Council(CCC) was mooted and formed by PAS. The CCC has been defunct for years, without an explanation. It would be good for PAS to explain why the CCC was defunct before they came to a new iniative."
Ong had earlier launched Jalan Multimedia in i-City and and welcome the initial batch of tenants to i-City at Concierge@i-City here.

Toll Discount

1. Toll discount of 10% will be given to owners of private cars and light vehicles who used the North-South Expressway Central Link(Elite) Highway during low traffic hours from Jan 1 to end of 2010, with additional discount during festive seasons.

More incentives are expected from other highway concessionaires soon.
Yesterday, the country's biggest highway concessionaire, Plus Expressway Bhd. announced incentives for travel on the two highways, the result of negitiations in recent months with the government which had been pushing for toll reductions.
"Plus's initiative is in line with the government's call to give added value to highway users, especially during the current economic situation," said Works Minister Datuk Mohd Zin Mohamad at the launch of the Plus Travel Incentive Programme yesterday.
The icng on the incentive cake is that all Class 1(private cars and light vehicles) highways between midnight and 7.00 am will get a 10 % toll discount. This could mean a saving of about Rm4 for the journey from Kuala Lumpur to Penang. Together with the other incentives(see table), the savings would amount to more than 20%.
Mohd. Zin said the incentives went through an indepth study and evaluation by a Malaysian Highway Authority(L.L.M) committee from May."This iniative is part of Plus's corporate social responsibility(CSR) and does not require the government paying compensation," he said, adding that previously the government paid huge compensation to the concessionaires to maintain or reduce toll rates.
He said although the companies made good profit, the terms of the concession agreement called for compensation to redice toll rates or to maintain them although they were to be increased.
On the other 20 highways , Mohd. Zin said eight of them could not reduce their toll rates for various reasons: going through financial problems. debt restructuring, newly operating, concession period ending next year and some were under receiver and manager. He did not name the eight.
Mohd. Zin hoped the rest will come up with toll reductions soon.
He also announced in a stetement that all toll highway operators, except one, had agreed to make public their consession agreements, confirming a report in the Sun on Monday that the government had diclassified the agreements.
LLM directir-general Datuk Mohamad Razali Othman urged other concessionaires to make toll reduction their CSR iniative.He also said that since 1988 compensation paid to highway operators was aboutRM 2 billion.

Wanita chief told to meet with Perak Umno Officials

wanita Gerakan Chief Datuk Tan Lian Hoe has been instructed by her party to meet state Umno and division officials soon to clarify parts of her speech, deemed offensive and seditious by a large segment of Umno members.

Gerakan deputy president Datuk Chang Ko Youn said Tan, who is Gerik member of parliment and deputy information minister, had been told to meet Umno members in the state to explain her " controversial" statements attered at the 21st Wanita delegates ' congerence in Kuala Lumpur.

Asked if any specific instructions were given to Tan on how she was expected to explain the issue to Umno members, Chang said:"I don't want reveal what the central committee had told her. All I can say is that she has been given the duty to answer.
On whether he was prepared to answer on behalf of Tan in his capacity as Perak Gerakan chairman, Chang said he did not want to the the responsility now.
"To ursurp her duty would be wrong . I don't want to get involved. If she doesn't explain, then I will talk. I don't want to stoke the issue at the moment. Let her do the explaining. She has been entrusted
"All I can say is that she will make some statements. If you want more information, ask her. She will be coming to close the workshop."
Tan, however, did not attend the worksop yesterday evening as she has been hospitalised with suspected dengue.
In her speech at the Gerakan wanita conference, Tan had said some leaders in the ruling barisan Nasional had chosen to forget that "everyone is a malaysian irrespective of race."
She was quoted as saying: "We are not squatters. Our origins are the same-the malays come from the Malay islands in Nusantara, the Chinese from China and the Indians from Indin.
"So, if you don't know our history, don't talk about it. The Orang Asli are the true people of this land, but unfortunately, they continue to be sideline."
It was reported that she had called on leader not to abuse or twist historical facts and stoke racial sentiment to gain popularity and win votes, adding that the country did not need "third-class leaders who divide and rule."
Her speech did not go down well with Umno grassroots members, including those in Perak's Bukit Gantang and Gerik divisions whose members, Umno leaders said, had campaigned to get her elected as MP in 2004 and the recent general election.

Perak govt issues cost-saving guidlines

The Perak government has issued a State Financial Circular guidelines to all state departments to be prudent in their expenditure and to check wastage of public funds.

Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Mohammad Nizar Jamaludin said the guideline was aimed at reducing the continuous deficit budgets in the past four years.

The belt-tightening measures include no overtime allowances, savings on electricity charges for fans, lights and air-conditioners by shutting them during tea and lunch breaks.

They must also be prudent in their use of office supplies like stationery and paper and reduce the purchase of newspapers.

The renovation of state offices or renting new office buildings is out of question; working visits and overseas trips by state civil servants have to first get the approval of the State Financial Officer.Nizar said this in his reply to a written question by Hutan Melintang asemblyman S.Kesavan in the state assembly sitting which ended last Thursday.
Kesan wanted to know what cost-effective measures were being taken by the Pakatan Rakyat(PR) government to reduce wastage of public funds and the amount that can be saved by such wastage compared with the previous BN government.
Nizar said:" We spent only RM1.1 million for this year's Merdeka celebrationsss compared wityh RM2.6 million by the BN in 2007. We are also taking other measures to cut down on expenditure which will bear fruit this year."
Later, Opposition Leader and BN whip Datuk Seri MOhammad Tajol Rosli Ghazali, in his denate on the 2009 state budget, took to task the PR executive councillors fpr abandong the Proton Perdana state official cars to be replaced with new Toyota Camry.
Tajol said the Proton is located in Perak and if the Perak PR state governmant did not support the national car, then it might set off a chain reaction whereby other states might also follow Perak and opt.

Govt won't close Kamunting detention camp

The federal government will not close the ISA detention camp in kamunting, Perak, Nanyang Siang Siang Pau reported yesterday.
Home Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar urged the Pakatan Rakyat state government to respect the law and not to turn the detention centre in Taiping into a political issue..
He reiterated that the land on which the Kamunting detention centre is located has been gazetted and the state government cannot "touch" it.
"This is the federal government's property, and the centre was built with the approval of the federal government, iy is clearly stated in the law," said Syed Hamid.
He told the daily that "they cannot do as they please, the state government has to respect the law."
He said if the state government still wants to challenge the federal government,"it is up to them."
The stete government has lately passed a motion to request the federal government to abolish the internal Security Act, to free all ISA detainees and close the Kamunting detention Centre.
Meanwhile, Perak Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Mohammad Nizhar Jamaluddin said the state government will not seek other means including legal recourse to get the the federal government to shut down the detention centre.
He said if it is verified that the Kamunting land has been gazetted, the state government will leave it to the ministry to handle the problem of the detention centre.
"I have heard that the Kamunting land has been gazetted.
"It is up to the home ministry to decide whether it wants to close down the centre." he said.
Nizhar said the main aim of the motion that was passed in trhe state assembly recently is to seek the ablition of the ISA and to free all those detained without trial.
Closing down the centre is secondary, he said.
In Ipoh, Taiping MP cum state exco member Nga Kor Ming said the state government does not discount the possibility of a multifolf increase in the quit rent on the Kamunting kand.
He said it has come to his knowthat the centre still owes five years' quit rent arrears and if it is trus, the state government will resort to legal means to get the federal government to pay up the arrears.

Amaran Mahathir kepada Melayu

Naib Presiden UMNO, Tan Sri Muhyiddin yassin berkata, kenyataan Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad bahawa sesiapa sahaja boleh menjadi Perdana Menteri merupakan amaran tegas kepada orang Melayu supaya tidak mengambil mudah sesuatu perkara.
"Kalau berlaku pergeseran yang mana melayu tidak bersatu atau tidak bercakap dalam satu nada, kita akan lihat orang lain menerajui kerajaan.
"Ia adalah amaran tegas, khususnya kepada orang Melayu supaya mereka sentiasa bersatu padu untuk menerahui kepimpinan negara sudah 52 tahun ahli daripada UMNOmenjadi Perdana Menteri dan ii tidak salah,"katanya.
Beliau berkata demikian kepada pemberita selepas mewakili Perdana Menteri, datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad badawi merasmikan Pameran Perdagangan(INtrade) malaysia dan Forum Perdagangan Antarabangsa(KLITF) 2008 di Kuala Lumour.
Beliau mengulas kenyataan Mahathir yang membidas pihak tertentu yang cuba membangkitkan persoalan tentang keperluan mempunyai seorang Perdana Menteri dari kalangan bukan Melayu atas alasan agar negara tidak dilihat mengamalkan perkauman.
Menurutnya, parti yang mewakili kaum Melayu, sebagai contoh UMNO yang mengetuai parti-parti komponen Barisan Nasional (BN) yang mewakili Cina,India,penduduk Sabah atau Sarawak perlu terus kukuh dan bersatu bagi memastikan orang Melayu terus menjadi Perdana Menteri sama ada secara tradisi atau konvensyen.
"Apa yang dikatakan oleh Tun tidak harus mewujudkan polemik kerana ia(keyataan) yang berasaskan kepada apa yang terkandung dalam perlembagaan yang tidak menyatakan perdana Menteri mesti berasaskan kaum.
"Bagaimanapun, saya tidak mengatakan sama ada saya bersetuju atau tidak mengenainya." katanya.
Beliau berkata perkara itu bergantung kepada arakyat dan senario politik negara pada masa hadapan

Don't twist and turn, Tee Keat tells Soi Lek

MCA president Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat yesterday told his deputy, datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek, not to twist facts when making statements.
Asked to comment on Chua's remark that he was not given any significant oortfolio in the party, the transport minister said that as head of the Government Affairs Monitoring Bureau, Chua did hold a significant portfolio.
"Don't twist and turn. That is my advice. Whoever wants to make public statements, don't twist and turn,"Ong told reporters after the ministry's Aidilfitri and Deepavali celebration di Putrajaya.
He said Chua's portfolio was on the list when he announced the key office bearers on Tuesday, even elaborating on the significance of the bureau.
After the announcement, Chua was reported to have said that he had been sidelined, and told grassroots members he wanted to apologise in advance, should he fail to perform cecause of the limited space given.
Asked whether the replacement of a minister and two deputy ministers who had lost in the MCA elections last month would be discussed at the Cabinet meeting tommorrow, Ong said it was unlikely.

Perak govt tables RM700m'budget for all'

The Pakatan rakyat-led state government tabled a Rm700 million budget yesterday geared towards social justice and the welfare of all the residents in the state, irrespective of race, religion and political leaning.
Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin, who tabled the budget said:"The previous state government had a continuous defocit budget of an average of RM35 million for the past four years but we have managed to reduce the 2009 deficit budget to RM25 million.
"By god's grace , we hope to bring the state's deficit budget toa healthy surplus budget in four years time if we are re-elected for another term of office."
Mohammad Nizar said the state government will be taking proactive measures to boost the state coffers.
One source of income is forest land revenue, which has only generated RM17 million in 2008. The government hopes to generate income of RM40 million from such revenue next year.
The second source of income will be from the royalty in the mineral mining activities.
The third source is from land revenue. The state has identified 10 pieces of land, which will be made available through open tender.
The fourth measure is to prevent wastage of public funds through prudent management at all levels of the state administration,whereby there will be no form of corruption or cronyism, he said.
Mohammad Nizar said the state government is ready to work with NGOs to uplift the social economic status of the people.
He said the budget is lailored undaer the five principles of social justuce, trust, transparency, welfare and accountability.
It is balanced with no elements of discrimination of race or religion, especially in welfare services.
"We are returning the state's generated revenue back to the rakyat through education, religions and other activities. In fact, the people are going to enjoy the benefits of the budget even better than last year when the atate was under Barisan nasional," he said.
The state government has also allocated RM300,000 for the state information deoartment to highlight the Pakatan Rakyat 's activities in the state since the main media is not giving enough coverage to such acyivities.

Tidak logik banding kemenangan Obama

Sebarang percubaan untuk membandingkan atau menyamakan kemenangan Presiden kulit hitam pertama Amerika Syarikat(AS), Barack Obama dengan sentimen politik Malaysia bukan sesuatu yang logik dan ia di luar realiti.
Menteri Luar, Datuk Seri Dr. rais Yatim berkata, beliau hairan dengan tindak tanduk pihak terbabit yang cuba'tumpang semangkok' kemenangan Obama agar dapat dikaitkan dengan senario politik negara.
Tegas beliau, hakikatnya banyak peruntukan yang berkait dengan pelbagai kaum. Politik dan masyarakat kita berbeza dengan negara itu walaupun nilai demokrasi serba sedikit boleh dikaitkan.
"Malah AS sudah menjadi negara bebas sejak tahun 1777 sedangkan kita 1957," katanya kepada Utusan Malaysia di Putrajaya hari ini.
Beliau mengulas kolum Bisik-Bisik Awang Selamat Utusan Malaysia analisis tertentu mengaitkan pemilihan Obama yang juga warna kulit hitam pertama sebagai presiden AS dengan politik Malaysia.
Menurut kolum itu, sudah kedengaran suara pemimpin bukan Melayu yang mahukan bukan Melayu diberi peluang menjadi Perdana Menteri.
Semalam, Presiden MCA, datuk Ong Tee Keat berkata, sudak sampai masanya bagi rakyat malaysia membebaskan diri merea dari belenggu isu perkauman. Dengan mengambil Obama sebagai contoh , Tee Keat berkata:"Sedihnya do Malaysia, kita masih berbalah dalam soal remeh berhubung pelantikan seorang wanita Cina sebagai Pemangku Pengurus Besar Perbadanan Kemajuan Negeri Selangor(PKNS)."
Tindakan kerajaan negeri Selangor yang diterahui Pakatan rakyat melantik Low Siew Moi sebagai Pemangku Pengurus Besar PKNS dipersoalkan banyak pihak kerana dikatakan tidak memenuhi aspirasi penubuhan PKNS bagi membantu meningkatkan soal sosial dan ekonomi bumiputra.

Govt to appeal Raja Petra's release

The Home Ministry will appeal against the Shah Alam High Court decision to release Raja Petra Kamarudin from detention under the Internal Security Act, the prime minister said.

Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said the government respected the court's decision but would nevertheless mount an appeal.

Asked if the government would be more carefulbefore making future ISA arrests, Abdullah said:

"The Home Ministry is always careful. The power of ISA detention is not to be used carelessly.

"Tere is a reason for all the arrests made under the ISA."

Raja Petra, 58 who was detained under the ISA on Sept. 12, was released on Thursday by the Shah Alam High Court.

Judge Datuk Syed Ahmad Helmy Syed Ahnad accepted the habeas corpus application filed by the blogger. He ruled that the grounds given by Home Minister datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar for Raja Pettra's detention did not fall within the scope of Section 8(1) of the ISA.

raja Petra was arrested as he was deemed a security threat.

Penang Gerakan has urged the government not to filed an appeal.

State Gerakan chairman Datuk doktor Teng Hock Nan said rhe party was happy with the court's decision, which had shown the jidicial system was tansparent.

"We should respect the High Court's decision that Raja Petra is not a direct threat to the nation."

Dr. Teng said Gerakan also wanted the government toreview the ISA to review the ISA and replace it with an anti-terrorism act.

Shorsighted to turn BN multiracial

calls to turn Barisan nasional into a multiracial party are shorsighted as raced-based parties are crucial to the development of every community, Umno supreme council member Datuk Ahmad Husni Hanadzlah said.
He said Gerakan and the People's Progressive Party were not right to make the proposal in view of the composition of Malaysian society.
"Our country is race-based with Malays, Chinese and Indians living in their own areas. How can we reach these people if we are not seen as one of them or don't know their mother tongue?" asked the Tambun MO after presenting uniforms to 285 Federal Village Security and Development Committe members for Manjoi and Ulu Kinta in Ipoh. Husni said, the presidents of every BN race-based party had more power to effect change by reaching out to their own communities."If a person is just a committee member in a single race-based party, he would not be able to raise the interests for a community which he may or may not belong to, said Husni, who is seeking re-election to the supreme council.
The Tambun Umno chief pointed out that Parti Keadilan Rakyat, DAP and Pas were dominated by an ethnic group.

Institusi raja tidak semestinya perkenan nasihat ahli politik

Raja Muda Perak, raja Dr Nazrin Shah bertitah, institusi raja tidak semestinya memberi perkenan kepada nasihat yang diberi kepemimpinan pilihan rakyat sekiranya ia bercanggah dengan semangat Perlembagaan, bertentangan dengan keluhuran Perlembagaan dan melanggar keadilan sejagat.
Baginda bertitah, setiap pandangan dan teguran raja membabitkan urus tadbir negara yang menyentuh soal integriti, perundangan, kehakiman,penyelewengan, penyalahgunaan kuasa, rasuah dan agihan kemakmuran adalah bagi menghasilkan kerajaan yang stabil serta mendapat kepercayaan rakyat.
"Demi memastikan integriti raja tidak dipersoalkan, raja harus bijaksana, menguasai pengetahuan dan memahami persekitaran yang berlaku bagi membolehkan keputusan berintegriti yang tepat serta adil dilaksanakan. Integriti akan pupus bukan disebabkan raja atau pemimpin atasan tetapi disebabkan mereka yang bertanggunjawab memagari pemimpin yang tidak memiliki kekuatan gagal memperbetulkan yang salah." titahnya ketika berucap pada Majlis Makan Malam Eksekutif sempena Sambutan Hari Integriti dan Konvensyen Integriti Nasional di Kuching, semalam. Majlis turut dihadiri Ketua Menteri sarak, Tan Sri Abdul taib mahmud; Timbalan Ketua Menteri, tan Sri Alfred Jabu Numpang dan Ketua Hakim Negara, tan Sri zaki Azmi. raja Nazrin bertitah, integriti bukan teori atau konsep baru tetapi ia adalah prasyarat dalam membentuk tadbir urus bersih, cekap dan amanah dalam mendukung budaya pentadbiran nagi membina tamadun agung. Titahnya, keruntuhan empayar, kemusnahan tahtah, kehancuran negar dan kehancuran pemimpin sering disebabkan amalan serta perbuatan mengenepikan integriti.
"Krisis melanda kerajaan, institusi kewangan dan organisasi perniagaan berpunca daripada kegagalan memberi perhatian serta kegagalan mengamalkan budaya berlandaskan integriti.
Titahnya, integriti menjadi lebih relecan apabila raja memeluk Islam dan diberi pengiktirafan sebagai ketua agama.

Senarai Harga Barang terpilih di laman Web

Kerajaan akan menyenaraikan harga barang setiap pasar raya terbabit dalam Kempen Penurunan Harga Barang di seluruh negara bagi membolehkan orang ramai membuat perbandingan harga ketika berbelanja.
Menteri Perdagangan dalam negeri dan Hal Ehwal Pengguna, Datuk Shahrir Samad, berkata penyenaraian harga barang terpilih itu dilakukan di laman web kementeriannya(www.kpdnhep.gov.my) dan dikemaskini setiap minggu.
Katanya, Majlis Harga Barang Negara(MHBN) akan melaksanakan pemantauan harga barang di semua pasar raya dengan hasil kajiannya akan dipamerkan di laman web kementerian sebagai panduan orang ramai. Barang dijual di semua pasar raya menerusi Kempen Penurunan Harga Barang ini cukup muruh dan tidak membebankan rakyat, walaupun ada perbandingan harga dibuat.

Sekatan Politik Wang

Lembaga Disiplin UMNO dan Badan Pencegah Rasuah(BPR) sudah menemui mekanisme yang akan digunakan untuk menyiasat dakwaan rasuah,politik wang dan salah guna kuasa sepanjang persidangan perwakilan Umno serta pencalonan pemilihan parti itu,Mac depan.
Dua mesyuarat antara Lembaga Disiplin dan BPR di sini turut bersetuju untuk mengambil beberapa langkah khusus dalam usaha membendung gejala politik wang daripada berleluasa.
Pengerusi Lembaga Disiplin Umno, tan Sri Tengku Ahmad Rithaudden Tengku Ismail, Mengsahkan pihaknya sudah dua kali bermesyuarat dengan BPR sejak 3 hari lalu berhubung isu rasuah, politik wang dan salah guna kuasa menjelang pemilihan parti itu.
salam mesyuarat itu,mereka berbincang secara khusus mengenai baagaiman gejala politik wang dan Lembaga Disiplin serta BPR bersetuju untuk terus bekerjasama dalam perkara itu.
Dalam mesyuarat itu, BPR diwakili Timbalan Ketua Pengarah ,Datuk Abu Kassim Mohamed dan Pengarah Siasatan, Datuk Shukri Abdull.

Reaksi Pemimpin Dunia Terhadap Kejayaan Barack Obama

• "Tuan Presiden yang baru dipilih, tahniah," - George W Bush, Presiden A. Syarikat
• "Tahniah, kejayaan yang pintar" - Nicolas Sarkozk, Presiden Perancis
• "Presiden Mahmuh Abbas berharap Obama menyegerakan usaha mencapai keamanan" Nabil Abu Rudeina-Jurucakap Presiden palestin
• "Harap Obama mempromosi keamanan dan kestabilan" Yousuf raza Gilani-Perdana Menteri Pakistan
• "Saya harap dapat menjalin kerjasama dengan Obama" Taro Aso- Perdana Menteri Jepun
• "Era Bersejarah" -Hu Jintao Presiden China

Gerakan Sokong Papan Tanda Pelbagai Bahasa

Gerakan Negeri Pulau Pinang menyokong keputusan Kerajaan Pulau Pinang berhubung pemasangan papan tanda pelbagai bahasa di Tapak Warisan Dunia di bandar ini.
Pengerusi Gerakan Pulau Pinang, datuk Dr. Teng Hock nan, berkata cadangan itu sesuai dengan penduduk daripada pelbagai kaum di negeri tersebut.
"Papan tanda itu dapat memperkenalkan budaya negara ini kepada pelancong sekaligus meningkatkan ekonomi terutama industri perhotelan," katanya dalam kenyataan di George Town semalam.
Teng berkata, isu papan tanda pelbagai bahasa sudah banyak kali dibangkitkan sejak Pulau Pinang di bawah pentadbiran kerajaan Barisan Nasional.

Perak bars KL-appointed village chairman from district meetings

Village Development and Security Committe(JKKP) chairmen appointed by the Federal Government are barred from attending district action committees,says Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Mohammad Nizar jamaluddin.
The JKKP is not an entity recognised by the state government.
The JKKP was formed by the Rural and Regional Development Ministry in states ruled by Pakatan rakyat after the March 8 general election. Each JKKP chairman receives a monthly allowance of RM400.
"The only legal entity the stste government recognised is the village development and security committee, or JKKK, whose chairmenwere chosen by the people," Mohammad Nizar told reporters yesterday after presenting ahe annual dividend of RM650 to 51 participants of a"Ladang Rakyat." The project is an oil palm estate managed by the state Agriculture Development Corporation in Batu Kurau.
The Menteri Besar said the ban was effective Aug 1 when the state-sanctioned JKKK chairmen officially assumed office.
To a question, Mohammad Nizar said the ban was imposed because the state government felt that the formation of the JKKP would cause disunity.
"The people are bound to be divided as most of the JKKP chairmen comprised former JKKK chairmen(appointed by the previous Barisan Nasional-led state government),"he said.

Civil servants can change cars faster

The domestic industry received a shot in the arm when the government increased the loan amount for certain cetegories of civil servants to buy cars.
The amount of government loans for several categories of civil servants has been raised by RM10,000 each.
This was part of the broad measures announced by Deputy Prim Minister yesterday to help Malaysians cope with the sluggish economy.
Civil servants in the top Management Group,or JUSA grade, can now apply for a car loan of up to RM70,000 from RM60,000 previously.
Staff in grades 41 to 54 are entitled to a maximum amount of RM65,000 up from RM55,000 previously.
Support staff, meanwhile, can now apply for a loan of up to RM55,000 from the previous RM45,000.
Proton Edar Dealers' Association president Wan Ahmad Sepwan said the incentive was timely under the current situation.

New US Government must respect smaller nations

Malaysia has expressed hope that the new Barack Onama-led United States administration will be more respectful of the sovereignty of smaller nations, and not focus on power and force as tools to solve the problems of the world.
Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim said this in a press statement yesterday to congratulate Obama on his historic victory, adding the victory is not only meaningful for the Americans but for the human race as a whole."Obama's victory also brings hope for change in the world. We hope he becomes the new torch for the pursuit of democracy."
Rais said Obama's victory showed that Americans can select their leader without taking into consideration the colour of one's skin or religion. There is high hope that Obama can bring about many positive changes in international relations, especiallyto the bilateral relationship between Malaysia and US.
Malaysia will continue to work on fostering bilateral ties with the new administration and we hope Obama will give his due attention to developing countries in the context of humanity, development and bilateral ties.
Opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim said in a statement that Obama 's call for unity and his promise to forge a new direction in the relationship between US and the rest of the world is welcomed by Malaysians."The support that President-elect Obama draws from across racial, religious and generational lines parallels the sentiments felt by Malaysians from all walks of life who earlier this year cast votes in vehement opposition to the failed policies of an incumbent regime.
Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said:" Obama's win is wonderful news as it showed that the president-elect was judged on his character and not the colour of his skin."

Stop excessive politiking: Sultan Azlan

The Sultan of Perak, Sultan Azlan Shah, has called on the people to stop excessive politiking over the status and eminence of the Malay Rulers, Islam, the Malay language, the special position of the Malays and legitimate interests of other communities as enshrine in the Federal Constitution.
He said the interest of the people who elected the government should be given priority, and the country's peace and harmony should not be sacrificed in the name of power struggle among certain leaders and groups.
"if there are mistakes and derailment in the implementation of certain policies, what needs rectification is the implimentation mechanism. The core policies, which form the fountation of this independent country, should not be touched, tested or challenged at all. It is is feared that such actions, if not stopped, will hurt the feelings and emotions of the Malays," he said at the handing over of a memorandum by Gabungan Melayu Perak(GMP) at the Istana Iskandariah yesterday. Also present were the raja Muda of Perak, Raja Dr. Nazrin Shah and Raja di-Hilir Perak Raja Jaafar Raja Muda Musa.
Sultan Azlan said any amendment to the constitution pertaining to Malay Rulers and their jurisdiction over Islam, the national language, the position of the Malays, and bumiputra in Sabah and Sarawak should be consented to first by the Rulers.
He said the Malay Rulers understood that the Federal Constitution also recognised and safeguarged the interests of the various races, religions, languages and cultures.
About 2000 representatives of Malays non-governmental organisations, silat and arts associations throughout the state , headed by GMP chairman Datuk Seri Mohd Hilmi Ismail, participated in a peaceful march from the Ubudiah Mosque to the palace to hand over the memorandum.
Mohd Hilmi said the memorandum ,among other things, expressed gratitude for the special statement issued by the Malay Rulers last month which touched on issues related to the privileges of the Malays and the interests of other communities.

RM7 billion to stimulate the economy

Finance Minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razal yesterday announced in the Dewan Rakyat a stimulus package worth RM7 bilion, the result of savings in the government's fuel subsidy brought on by plummeting world crude prices.
He said the RM7 billion saved will be channelled into 15 projects.

This is how the money will be spent:

1. RM1.2 billion to build 25,000 units of low and medium cost houses;
2. RM500 million to upgrade, repair and maintain police stations, living quaters, army camps and quarters;
3. RM600 million on minor projects under the public and basic infrastructure project maintenance programmee. These include maintaining village roads, building community halls and small bridges. This would help small-time contractors address the problem of shortage of construction projects;
4. RM500 million to repair and maintain public facilities such as road, schools and hospitals ;
5. RM500 millionto build and upgrade roads in rural areas, villages and agriculture roads, including in Sabah and Sarawak;
6. RM200 million to government-aided religious schools, mission schools, Chinese and Tamil schools(shared equal);
7. RM300 million to start a fund to run skills training programmes, with focus on tourism, health, construction and business process outsourcing sectors;
8. RM500 million to bolster the public transport system(LRT,Komuter and city bus systems)
9. RM1.5 bilion to set up an Investment Fund to attract more private sector investment in strategic sectotrs, like solar panels, aerospace industry, and aeroplane components;
10. RM400 million to move the High Speed Broadband Project;
11. RM200 million to fund programmes by private training institutions, with participation of all races;
12. RM100 million for youth programmes at various levels and involving all races;
13. RM200 million to revive abandoned housing projects in stragic areas;
14. RM100 million to increase number of business premises in selected small towns;
15. RM200 million on early educational programmes for children aged one to six years. A project management unit will be set up to monitor the implementation of these projects, he said.

Other measures and iniatives announced by Najid were:

• Employees can reduce EPF contributions by 3 % on a voluntary basis for up to two years from 1 Jan. This measure can place RM4.8 billion in the hand of consumers if all EPF contributors opt for it;
• Abolishing the 5 % import duties on seven types of fertilisers. The fertiliser manufacturing industry has also agreed to cut down fertiliser prices by at least 15% immediately;
• Abolishing import duties on cement and long iron and steel products, and the scrapping of Approved Permits for the latter;
• Allowing hypermarkets to close late(weekdays 11 pm; weekends 1 am);
• Beginning February, biodiesel will be used as huel, starting with government vehicles, followed by the industrial and transport sectors. It is estimated that 500,000 tonnes of palm oil a year is nected when it is fully implemented in early 2010, he said.
• Plan to generate extra revenue and kickstart local economic activities by making full use of government land in strategic locations like the Lembaga Getah malayia land at Sungai Buluh and government land in jalan Cochrance and in Jalan Ampang Hilir, Kuala Lumpur.
• To widen the Social Security Net to improve spending power of the poor and low income earners, the income eligibility for monthly welfare aid raised from RM400 to RM720 in Peninsula, RM830 in Sarawak and RM960 in sabah. This will widen to cover 110,000 people from 55,000 now.
• Higher car loan ceiling for government servants in several categories, and the permission for government servants to buy houses on a secondary market where strata titles not given yet;
• All civil servants can opt tp extend housing mortgate repayment period to 30 years instead of 25. Earlier, the government only allowed new borrowers to do so.

Motion on multilinqual roadsigns rejected

The Dewan Rakyat rejected a motion by Datuk Ibrahim Ali(Ind-Pasir Mas) to discuss the Penang government's move to put up names of roads in various languages.
Speaker Tan Sri pandikar Amin Mulia rejected the motion , sumitted on Friday, on the ground hat it was not urgent.
In his motion, Ibrahim said the move clearly insulted the position of the Malay language as the national language, and insulted the foundation of the Federal Constitution.
"According to Article 152 of the Federal Constitution, the national language must be used for official purposes, as such road names are considered official business based on the National Language Act 1963/1967.
"The use of various languages can also cause much confusion."

Law Portal holds competition on popular topics

A local legal community portal,eLawyer, is organising a blog writing competition for lawyers, law students and bloggers.
The competition features the following"hot" topics:

• Towards an independent judiciary in Malaysia
• Common Bar Exams: The creation of anew problem or asolution for an old one?
• Welcome CheDet.com: the impact of Tun Mahathir's blog;
• Anti -party Hopping Law-agree or disagree?

Participants can choose any one of the above topics and submit their features in not more than 1000 words.

The grand prize is RM500, while prizes for first and second runners up are RM200 and RM100 respectively. Ten consolation prize winners will also receive an eLawyer merchandise.

The event is sponsored by the Law Society, University Malaya; UK Malaysian Law Student Union; law Student Union; International Islamic University Malaysia; Law & Commerce Society; Management & Science University and Law Society; and Univerti Kebangsaan Malaysia.

The panel of jidges comprises the following:

• Dr.Azmi Sharom, an associate professor at the Faculty of Law, Universiti Malaya, who is known for his bold and critical view on various issues regarding the democracy and constitutional law in Malaysia.
• Lee Shih-a practising lawyer and a member of the KL Bar Committe.
• Fahri Azzat- a practising lawyer who is member of the IT Committee under KL Bar committee. Fahri is a blogger and is also the founder of an online email forum -The Rostrum" for legal professionals to discuss issues concerning the legal industry
• Entries should be submitted via email to contest@elawyer.com.my by noon on or before Nov 30. Late entries will be disqualified.
  

Crisis in our schools

Shocking and appalling things are happening in our education system and teaching profession these days. Gone are the days when teaching was a noble and revered profession. Today, it seems that the profession is blended with the doers and riffraff. What a sad state of affairs. And gangsterism seems to have infiltrated into schools.
Some of the transgressions that have happened included:

• A Form 5 girl stabbed several times by another student;
• A Form 3 student was raped by a bogus policeman in a rubber estate;
• During a psysical education lession,a Form 5 student punched the teacher; and
• A 41-year-old teacher molested 10 boys, and many of his colleagues knew of the paedophile acts of this teacher.

We were told that in some schools in KL and Petaling Jaya, ther are 22 classes which have no teachers. And nobody seems to care. We have tabled various cabinet committe reports on ways to improve the country's education syatem, but what has happened to these reports?

prof Khoo Kay Kim was recently quoted as saying that our education system has not nurtured educated students. We have to subscribe to his views. Many teachers and headmasters today are responsible for the pathetic state of affairs in school. Teaching these days is no longer a dedicated profession but just a means to learn a living.

Our MPs should call for a Royal Commission of Inquiry abd conduct an in-depth study and make recommendations to surmount this crisis besseting our education system.

Govt.cleared of abuse of power in Eurocopter deal

The Public Accounts Committe has cleared the government of any abuse of power in the RM1.604 billion Eurocopter helicopter deal.
It will howevwer, continue to monitor the deal, even though the purchase of the 12 helicopters had been deffered by the government.
PAC chairman Datuk Seri Azmi Khalid said the committe did not find any prosedural abuse in the financial and technical aspects of the tender.
They were satisfied that the deal was done in accordance with procedures. The tender process was done properly and according to international standards.In their evaluation, they find that there was no abuse of power.
Azmi said members of the committe has suggested that the deal be monitored in the future as it was a high-profile matter.
He did not not discount the possibility of looking into the deal until the helicopters were handed over to the government, if the deal went through.
He said the only aspect of the deal that the committe was unhappy with was that there was no physical evaluation before the purchase.
As a result, it ecommended that an independent review panel be set up to look into all large government procurrements in the future. This would promote transparency and avoid wasting publis funds, he added.
Another matter that the committe failed to achieve was determining the correct price of the helicopters. Azmi said the quantum of each bid was fixed, with the committee only evaluating what was stated in the bids.
" We are not in a position to say whether the purchase was more expensive(than it should have been) as each country's miitary requirements are different."
He said of the seven bidders, three were shortlisted with bids of RM1.262 billion, RM1.604 billion and RM 2.442 billion respectively.
He said the RM1.604 bid by Eurocopter was selected as it fulfilled the requirements set by the Defence Ministry.
He said the lowest bid was not selected as it did not meet the requirements.
On a statement bu Lim Kit Siang(DAP-Ipoh Timur) that the Nuri helicopters could be used for another 20 years, Azmi said the Nuris had disadvantages compared with the newer Eurocopters.
The Nuris cannot be used for night flights besides being unable to remain airborne on a autopilot mode during rescure operations. These shortages can be overcome by using newer helicopters. It will cost more for the Nuris to be upgraded.
Lim said he had received an email from a former Nuri pilot who stated the Nuris could b used for another 20 years.

Switch and still keep your mobile number

Mobile phone users can now switch to another provider without changing their number.
This means a customer whose number is 01x-3456789 can retain it when he or she switches to a rival firm. This applies to postpaid or prepaid users.
This is possible after the government launched the Mobile Number Potability(MNP) recently.
"the government is committed to ensuring all mobile users can experience world-class services," said Energy, Water and Communications Minister Datuk Shaziman Abu Mansor after the launch in Kuala Lumpur.
Previously, consumers were unwilling to change operators as they did not want to go through the hassle of informing their contacts of the change in phone number.
About 87.9 per cent of Malaysians or more than 25 million people own a mobile phone.
" We believe this the best time to launch MNP as the telecommunication market is moving into a mature phase. Initiatives like MNP will help boost competitiveness within the sector.' Shzziman said. Present were Malaysian Communicatios and Multimedia Commission chairman datuk Dr. halim Shafie, Maxis Communications Bhd chief executive officer sandip das, Celcom(M) Bhd. CEO Datuk Seri Shazalli Ramly and DIGI Com Bhd. CEO Johan Dennnelind, Mobile operators were exited about the MNP.
"Competition can only be good for consumers. MNP will force all operators to be more efficient," said Sandip.

Rulers' statement welcomed

Relying on the constitution and having genuine respect for all races will ensure all members of the rakyat have a place in Malaysia.
"We respect the wise words from the Rulers. That should be our struggle- to defend the rights of all races as stated in the Federal Constitution," MCA secretary-general Datuk Seri Ong Ka Chuan.
He was commenting on the statement by the Conference of Rulers that defended the country's social contract, as well as stressing the need for Malays to be united while assuring the non-Malays of their rights under the Federal Constitution.
"The ultimate target of MCA is to have a just society. It is the party's objective to have brotherly relationship with other communities, maintaining the country's freedom and fairness to all communities," he said.
Meanwhile, the Keeper of the Rulers' Seal , Engku Tan Sri Ibrahim Engku Ngah, clarified that the special press statement issued by the Malay rulers on Thursday was the result of their deliberations prior to attending the meeting of the Conference of Rulers in Kuala Terengganu.
He said some quarters had reported that the special press statement was the result of discussions and decisions made at the meeting of the Conference of rulers.

Tujuh rintihan masyarakat Cina

Presiden MCA hari ini meluahkan tujuh rintihan rakyat khususnya di kalangan masyarakat Cina yang turut mengakibatkan barisan Nasional(BN kehilangan undi pada Pilihan raya Umum ke-12 pada 8 Mac lalu.
dalam ucapan terakhirnya sebagai Presiden MCA, Datuk Seri Ong Ka Ting berkata, para pemimpin BN dan semua parti komponennya perlu memandang berat terhadap keluhan rakyat tersebut dan bertindak secara berkesan untuk membawa perubahan dan memulihan keyakinan rakyat terhadap parti itu.
Tujuh isu tersebut ialah masalah penyalahgunaan kuasa oleh ahli politik dan pegawai kerajaan seperti dalam pemberian kontrak kerajaan serta segelintir ahli politik dalam BN yang angkuh dan ghairah membuat kenyataan atau ucapan yang berbau perkauman atau mengugut kaum-kaum lain.
Orang ramai juga mengeluh berhubung dengan peningkatan ke jenayah, harga barang dan kos kehidupan yang tinggi akibat kenaikan harga minyak serta cara pengendalian isu-isu keagamaan oleh pihak berkuasa.
Keempat, mereka juga merintih kerana pihak berkuasa tertentu dianggap suka menggunakan alasan dasar ekonomi negara mengikut interpretasi yang prejudis dan pemikiran yang sempit.
Ramai peniaga, pengusaha, pemaju atau pelabur bukan bumiputera sentiasa berasa kecewa kerana berasa disekat dan tidak dilayan oleh sesetengah kementerian, jabatan atau agensi kerajaan dengan adil dalam soal pemberian lesen, permit, pinjaman atau peluang penyertaan tender.
Menurutnya lagi, kekurangan peruntukan daripada kerajaan dalam pembangunan sekolah jenis kebangsaan(SJK) Cina dan Tamil serta sekolah-sekolah mubaligh turut menjadi isu di kalangan masyarakat Cina dan India.
Beliau berharap kerajaan dapat menangani perkara-perkara tersebut dengan segera supaya keyakinan orang ramai terhadap kerajaan dapat dipulihkan.

Public debate not for quarrelling: Khairy

UMNO Youth vice-chief Khairy Jamaluddin said yesterday the public debate he proposed to those who had qualified to contest for the movement's chief post was to provide an avenue for them to explain their vision.
Stressing that the debate was not for quarelling, Khairy, the second candidate to have qualified to contest the post, said it would be conducted in a responsible and orderly manner.
"The debate will be gentlemanly conducted" he told reporters at the MIC Deepavali open house at the Putra World Trade Centre.
He thanked former Selangor menteri besar Datuk Seri Dr Mohamad Khir Toyo for agreeing to the debate.
Khairy,however,declined to comment on the refusal of another candidate, Datuk Mukhriz Mahathir, to be drawn into the debate.
Mukhriz is the first candidate to have qualified to contest for the post and currently has the most nominations.
When asked of his chances at the party polls, Khairy said he believed his chances remain bright.
In Jeli, Umno supreme council member Datuk Mustapa Mohamed said the time had not arrived to hold an open debate as a way to elect party leaders.
He said the party currently needed to consider various aspects, including the risk, when holding an open debate as suggested by several Umno leaders. He added, speaking up is already there but to him , Umno has not gully matured. . Mustapha, who retained the post of Jeli Umno head uncontested, told reporters this after opening the division's delegates conference in Bukit Bunga Umno Complex in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.
He said if an open debate was to be held, his concern was that the grassroots members would only elect good orators rather than really credible cabdidadtes who can work for the party.
"It is important for us to make the correct choice, not because he is a good orator."
"If debates were held,our concern is members, charmed by his eloquence, will elect the candidate even though he cannot do work," the agriculture and agro-based industry ministry minister said.

Interfaith classes 'a good idea'

The suggestion by Perlis Mufti Dr Mohd Asli Zainul Abidi for primary schools to hold inter-faith classes is a"good suggestion", said Deputy Education Minister Datuk Dr Wee Ka Siong.
He said"it is a good suggestion, which the ministry can consider, but it will need an in-depth study."
"To what extent do you want that subject to be taught? When you say interfaith, what are the contents of the subject," he said, responding to last Friday's statement by Moh Asli, calling for inter-faith classes, specifically for Muslim students.
He said the subject would expose them to islamic principles, culture and jurisprudence for better interaction with non-Muslims.
"With a wide understanding of islam and free from narrow and obsolete thinking, interaction between Muslims and non-Muslim could be an avenue for promoting the beaty of islam," said Mohd Asli, adding that such classes were needed in Malaysian schools.

Penduduk Terkejut MBI naikkan Cukai Pintu

Penduduk di bandar Baru Sri Klebang, Chemor, Ipoh terkejut apabila menerima notis Majlis bandaraya Ipoh(MBI) yang bercadang menaikkan cukai pintu hartanah di kawasan itu sebanyak 500 pearatus bermula November ini.
Penduduk terbabit melahirkan rasa marah dan kesal membertahu, cadangan kenaikan cukai taksiran MBI itu tidak munasabah dan tidak masuk akal.
Seorang penduduk berkata, pihaknya yang baru dua tahun mendiami rumah banglo yang dibelinya di Jalan Sri Klebang 3, Bandar Baru Sri Klebang selama ini hanya dikenakan cukai pintu sebanyak RM108.80 setahun semasa kerajaan Nasional(BN) berkuasa di Perak
Menurut beliau, kadar cukai tersebut naik mendadk pada tahun ini selepas MBI mengeluarkan notis mencadangkannya sebanyak RM691.20 setahun.
Pada 15 September lalu, MBI telah menghantar notis kepadanya memaklumkan bahawa mereka akan meminda nilai tahunan tahunan harta atau cukai pintu ke atas rumah saya yang beralamat di Lot PT 186990,13 Jalan Sri Klebang 3, Bandar Baru Sri Klebang 31200, Chemor. Dalam notis tersebut, MBI memaklumkan bahawa mereka akan meminda senarai nilaian hartanya itu daripada RM680.00 kepada RM4320 setahun, manakala cukai yang sebelum ini dibayar RM108.80 sahaja dinaikkan kepada RM691.20 Kadar kenaikan itu ialah kira-kira 535.29 peratus etahun.
Penduduk berkenaan, seorang ahli perniagaan berkata, MBI ada memaklumkan bahawa sesiapa yang rasa musykil dengan pindaan nilai tahunan tersebut atas mana-mana alasan yang ditetapkan di dalam Seksyen 142, Akta Kerajaan Tempatan 1972 boleh membuat bantahan secara bertulis kepada Datuk Bandar Ipoh.
Sekiranya tiada bantahan, beliau berkata, nilai tahunan harta dan cukai tahunan yang dicadangkan itu akan dipinda senarai nilaiannya pada 25 Oktober dan cukai taksiran baru dikuatkuasakan mulai 1 November depan.
Pihaknya memang menjangkakan cukai pintu akan dinaikkan, tetapi tidaklah terlampau tinggi sehingga mencecah lebih 500 % atau hampir lima kali ganda berbanding cukai tahun sebelum ini.
Seorang lagi penduduk berkata beliau terpaksa membayar cukai pintu berjumlah RM691.20 sebelum ini jika MBI menguatkuasakan cukai baru yang dicadangkan itu.
Beliau turut berpendapat adalah tidak wajar MBI menaikkan cukai pintu yang terlampau tinggi tanpa sebarang alasan yang memunasabah.
Pihaknya telah menghantar surat rasmi untuk membantah cadangan kenaikan cukai itu kepada Datuk Bandar Ipoh, Menteri Besar Perak dan Pengerusi Badan Perhubungan UMNO Perak yang juga bekas Menteri Besar Perak.

Keep cronies, family at bay

Tun Dr mahathir Mohamad, while addressing a Malaysian youth seminar at the Universty of Melbourne yesterday, expressed hope that Datuk Seri Najib razak would not be influnced by cronies and family members when he becomes prime minister.
There are several former members of parliment and experts whose advice he should seek to run the country. There is a lot of work to be done to restore the confidence of the people in the government. But Najib must not try to do everything himself. He must get proper advice from the right people. He should not be surrounded by cronies and family members as this will not be good for the country.
He said Najib, his deputy, UMNO and Barisan nasional component parties must work hard as a team to win back public support for the government, which sufered a setback at the last election. "The votes we lost were protest votes. Malaysians were not happy and this was reflected at the ballot box, " he said.
Dr. Mahathir said sections of the public felt that the government had become too arrogabt and out of touch with their needs.
"Some MPs felt that once elected and given a ministerial post, there was no need for them to go back to their electorate to talk to the people, to discuss the issues and find out what needs to be done, and to explain government policies.".
Dr. Mahathir said he hoped that the situation would change under the leadership of Najib.

Ong calls to set up blogs

MCA vice-president Datuk Ong Tee Keat has advised those standing for party elections to set up blogs to make themselves better known.
He said having blogs is not something new, it will make a difference.
Ong, who is the transport minister, was in Kangar for the state MCA annual conference and the swearing-in of the Padang Besar MCA division's office bearers.
He said he was overwhelmed by the maturity of party members.
He noted that members were campaigning in groups rather than individually as they had been doing in the past. This, he added, would foster better relations among them even if they were contesting for the same post.
Ong said the members also showed more creativity in promoting themselves.
Hesaid pamphlets with biodata, vision,mission and track records of the individuals were given to the public.
Ong said he had discussions with the grassroots here on what they wanted in the party.
Many wanted a paradigm shift. They want leaders who could care for their needs and not someone with a personal agenda, or someone wanting to be a minister.

Jadikan BN parti pelbagai kaum ibarat bubarkan UMNO

Sebarang cadangan menjadikan Barisan Nasional (BN) satu parti pelbagai kaum ibarat membubarkan UMNO yang selama ini menjadi tunjang kepada kekuatan kerajaan memerintah.
Menteri Penerangan, Datuk Ahmad Shabery Cheek berkata, sebagai anggota UMNO, beliau melihat cadangan tersebut merupakan satu tamparan hebat,seolah-olah UMNO sudah tidak lagi relevan dalam konteks politik tanah air sekarang.Shabery yang juga anggota Parlimen Kemaman berkata, berdasarkan prestasi pada pilihan Raya Umum ke-12 Mac lepas, walaupun jumlah kerusi yang dimenangi UMNO kurang iaitu 79 kerusi, angka tetrsebut masih lagi besar berbanding parti komponen BN lain dan ia tidak banyak bezanya dengan pencapaian keseluruhan Pakatan Rakyat iaitu 82 kerusi.
Kata Shabery lagi UMNO masih kuat dan relevan dalam membangunkan negara dan rakyat malah dalam rantau ini Malaysia adalah antara yang terbaik hasil daripada kejayaan kerajaan BN yang diterajui UMNO.Menguluas lanjut, Shbery berkata, bentuk kerjasama yang ada sekarang antara parti-parti komponen BN adalag terbaik dalam membangunkan negara dan rakyat. Kalau ada kelemahan dalam BN, perlu diperbaiki, tidak perlu mengubah struktur yang ada sekarang. Apa yang penting sekarang ialah memperkukuhkan BN dan mencari jalan untuk mendapatkan kembali sikongan rakyat terhadap parti berkenaan. Dalamsejarah, ada turun naik, kali ini kita lihat prestasi BN turun. Tetapi itu tidak bermakna BN perlu mengubah segala-galanya. Ini kerana tiap kali ada masalah ekonomi boleh menyebabkan masalah politik dabn sebagainya. Beliau berkata, dalam keadaan politik sekarang, biarlah mereka yang menawarkan duru untuk bertanding jawatan-jawatan tertinggio [parti diberi keutamaan untuk dipilih.

Abdullah Tidak Bertanding Presiden UMNO

Perdana Menteri YAB Dato' Seri Abdullah Badawi tidak akan bertanding jawatan Presiden UMNO pada bulan Mac 2009. Sehubungan itu beliau ingin menyerahkan kepimpinan negara kepada bakal penggantinya, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak. Beliau tidak mahu melihat UMNO dan Barisan nasional(BN) berpecah belah. UMNO dan BN perlu bersatu dan kukuh bagi menangani cabaran-cabaran global. Di samping itu kita perlu mempercepatkan evolusi dan proses pematangan. Dalam menghadapi perubahan dan tranformasi ini rakyat perlu berdiri teguh dan bersatu hati. Beliau menambah, ini bukan masanya untuk kita berbalah sesama sendiri atau untuk kita berpolitik secara sempit. Sebaliknya ini adalah masa memperkukuhkan perpaduan

Raja Petra In Kamunting Detention Camp

Home Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar yesterday confirmed that blogger and Malaysia-Today website operator,Raja Petra Kamaruddin, has been detained under the Internal Security Act(ISA) at the Kamunting Detention Camp, Taiping for 2 years.
Syed hamid said he signed the detention order on Raja Petra on Monday after he was satisfied with the reasons given for his detention.
"The detention is due to raja Petra's articles that ridiculed Islam which could arouse anger among Muslims.
"The police had recommended his detention and after going through the papers, we are satisfied that there are strong grounds for him to be further detained for 2 years(in Kamunting)."
Raja Petra was arrested under the ISA on 12 September 12 as he was deemed to be a threat to public order and national security . Besides him, two others arrested under yhe ISA were Seputeh member of parliment Teresa Kok and Sin Chew daily Reporter Tan Hoon Cheng, but the two were later released.
Syed Hamid, however, said that after the first 3 months, the authorities would review Raja Petra's attit while in detention.
The second review will be later be after six months, we will see whe he can be released or not.ther

Akta Hubungan Kaum Malaysia elak sejarah hitam berulang

Persoalan sama ada perlu atau tidak Akta Hubungan Kaum diwujudkan di negara kita adalah sangat subjektif dan memerlukan kajian lanjut yang komprehensif serta tidak mempunyai agenda politik tertentu. Ini adalah kerana penggubalan akta ini bukanlah satu ancaman atau ugutan perkauaman di negara kita tetapi hanya akan digunakan sekiranya terdapat pelanggaran dalam hubungan antara kaumyang boleh menjejaskan perpaduan rakyat.
Pada dasarnya akta berkenaan penting bagi memastikan negara sentiasa berada dalam keadaan aman tenteram dan rakyat pelbagai kaum dapat hidup dengan harmoni dan tolaransi.
Di samping itu, akata ini boleh bertindak sebagai mekanisme merapatkan perpaduan dan kesepakatan antara etnik di negara kita.
Kewujudan akta ini juga adalah salah satu bentuk usaha penguatkuasaan kerajaan bagi memastikan keselamatan dan kesejahteraan negara terkawal dan dipelihara sebaik mungkin.
Akta ini kelak diharapkan dapat menjadi landasan pembentukan sebuah masyarakat berbilang kaum yang bersatu hati dengan mengambilkira keadilan dan kesamarataan serta mengelak berlakunya konflik dan perselisehan kaum.
Memalui akta ini juga diharapkan hasrat kerajaan merealisasikan sebuah masyarakat Malaysia ang teguh persefahaman, penuh semangat perpaduan, bersaing secara sihat ke arah melahirkan suasana integrasi kaum yang bersatupadu dan realistik di negara kita dapat dicapai.
Dalam soal perpaduan kaum ini, ramai tokoh pemimpin dan pemikir negara menyambut pemimpin dan pemikir negara menyambut baik cadangan penggubalan akta berkenaan.