Our ministers are good at talking but not acting.

The Star Online > Nation

Thursday May 3, 2007

Azmi: Catch those who discharge waste into rivers

KEMAMAN: State governments must catch the culprits who discharge waste indiscriminately, particularly into rivers. 

Towards this end, they must enact bylaws to monitor and carry out enforcement work, said Natural Resources and Environment Minister Datuk Seri Azmi Khalid. 

He admitted that enforcement would be difficult if there were no bylaws to act against culprits who discharged waste, including at islands off the coast of the respective states. 

Implementing such bylaws was crucial to addressing the issue, which was largely due to human factors, such as building illegal settlements or squatter areas along riverbanks.  

“The pollution of our rivers could be controlled with the appropriate enforcement from the state governments,” Azmi told reporters after opening a seminar jointly organised by Universiti Malaysia Terengganu and the Aquatic Ecosystem Management Association of Canada here yesterday.  

Azmi said that currently 70% of rivers are under the purview of local authorities. The other remaining areas are outside their control. 

“I admit that the factors leading to polluted rivers, such as the discharging of waste materials and factors due to development, are beyond the jurisdiction of local governments,” he said. 

Azmi commended the Terengganu government, which had set a yardstick for the conservation of rivers and had reduced pollution better than some other states. 

He said the state government’s proactive measures to reduce pollution should be emulated by other states. 

The Star Online > Nation

Thursday May 3, 2007

Arabs complain of fleecing by cabbies and dirty beaches

By MARC LOURDES

DUBAI: Overcharging by taxi drivers and traders, stinking cabs and poor knowledge by unsmiling frontliners have marred Malaysia’s image among Arab tourists. 

This feedback from Arab travel agents has left Tourism Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor red in the face. 

“We need their business. They spend three times more than visitors from other countries,” he said, at the end of an 18-day tour of West Asian countries to promote Visit Malaysia 2007. 

“When I get back, I will forward these complaints to the relevant agencies and ministries so that the appropriate action can be taken,” he told Malaysian newsmen. 

He lamented that taxi drivers, sometimes, could not answer basic questions, like what the weather was like and queries on exchange rates.  

“Sometimes, the taxis even stink!” he said, adding that he also received complaints from tour agencies here that the beaches in Penang and Kota Kinabalu were polluted with rubbish and sewage. 

He hoped that the Kota Kinabalu and Penang councils would view this matter seriously and take action to redeem Malaysia’s image in the eyes of these tourists. 

“I felt quite ashamed when people told me that they had picked up rubbish on the beach to throw it away ... only to find more and more garbage on the beach,” he said. 

Complaints by tour agencies here on such matters were very embarrassing for the country, he said. 

Yesterday, Tengku Adnan met representatives of three airlines – Etihad Airways, Emirates Airlines and Qatar Airways – and invited them to increase flights to Malaysia during the summer holiday period. 

“Malaysia is one of their top destinations and they are looking to invest in the country.” 

It is learnt that Arab tourists – who make up the largest arrivals after those from Asia and Europe – spend an average of seven days in Malaysia. Each family spends about RM1,000 a day during their stay. 

Meanwhile, Bernama reported that Malaysia has won an award as this year’s top choice summer holiday destination for United Arab Emirates (UAE) residents.  

Tengku Adnan received the award on behalf of the country at the Arabian Travel Market Fair here on Tuesday from renowned tourism magazine Asfaar. 

The magazine’s 3,000 UAE residents picked Malaysia as their worldwide favourite because of the reasonable cost and the respect given to Arab and Islamic tradition and culture.  

Only Malays can do the halal business ? What about the muslim Chinese and Indians, Melanao etc. An Oxford graduate speaks with no brain. It is a shame to the prestige university.

The Star Online > Nation

Sunday March 11, 2007

Malays urged to take control of halal food industry

KUALA LUMPUR: Some 80% of the halal food industry in the country is controlled by non-Muslims, said Umno Youth deputy chief Khairy Jamaluddin. 

This was because they were already in control of food-based industries and, hence, it was easy to get the halal certification for their products. 

Pointing out that even non-Malay banks had ventured into Islamic banking, he said the Malays could not take for granted that the halal domain was theirs for the taking. 

“Just because you are a Malay it does not necessarily mean that you will succeed in industries synonymous with the Malays and Muslims,” he said, urging them to go back to the basics and take control of the food industry. 

Khairy was speaking at the Kongress Jihad Ekonomi (Economic Struggle Congress) organised by Gagasan Badan Ekonomi Melayu, Umno Youth and Yayasan Dakwah Islamiyah Malaysia. 

He also criticised Bank Pertanian over its Fund-for-Food scheme, where borrowers had to put 60% of the loan obtained in fixed deposit as collateral. 

“This does not make sense. This means 60% will be inaccessible if you have to put it in fixed deposits. 

“Why borrow in the first place?” he asked. 

“You might as well borrow 40% of the money elsewhere,” he said. 

He added that he had heard of and came across many such cases, citing an entrepreneur who wanted to borrow RM1mil from the bank to start a dragon fruit farm in Johor. 

He said under the bank’s condition, RM600,000 of that RM1mil would have to remain in fixed deposits. 

“So the entrepreneur decided against the bank loan and borrowed the money from friends instead.” 

On the proposed Free Trade Agreement with the United States, Khairy said Umno Youth opposed it in the current form, assuming that the agreement follows those the United States had signed with other countries, like Singapore and Jordan. 

He said Umno Youth believed the United States would not sign anything that was different from what they had already signed with others.  

“Our worry is the local economy. If the United States has a non-negotiable list, we must also have a non-negotiable list on government procurement, the New Economic Policy and agriculture. 

“Otherwise there shouldn’t be an agreement,” he said.  

 In Malaysia, dams for the boys
By Anil Netto

KUALA LUMPUR - Even before the problem-ridden Bakun Dam in eastern Sarawak state is completed, Malaysian officials are tabling plans to build two more hydroelectric dams in the area, one of which would make Bakun look puny by comparison.

Questions about the necessity for such dams, how the surplus electricity will be used, the resettlement of indigenous people, and the development of controversial catchment areas seem low on 

the list of the government's concerns.

The 2,400-megawatt turbines powered by the Bakun Dam on the
Balui River could start churning by 2009, but planners are still mulling over what to do with all that excess electricity. Should they approve a power-guzzling - and extremely polluting - aluminum smelter plant in Sarawak? Or should they channel the excess power to the more industrialized peninsular (West) Malaysia via submarine cables laid under the South China Sea?

The former option would require the participation of major transnational corporations, with questionable benefits for the rural economy of Sarawak. The option to lay cables, on the other hand, would be expensive and is fraught with technical uncertainties.

"Transmission loss and maintenance in the future will continue to pose technical and financial challenges to the project proponents," said S M Mohamed Idris, president of the environmental group Friends of the Earth Malaysia (SAM, for Sahabat Alam Malaysia) in a statement. He added that project delays or technical problems during the cabling process would also result in budget overruns.

Moreover, the past couple of years have shown the volatile nature of tectonic-plate movements, which have caused undersea and overland earthquakes in the region, resulting in enormous losses. "This shows the vulnerability of the underwater ecosystem surrounding the Indonesian and Malaysian waters," the activist warned.

Even as officials pore over their feasibility papers, the Sarawak Enterprise Corp Bhd said in July that it would build a 1,000MW dam in Murum in the Upper Rejang Basin of central Sarawak, once it can confirm buyers for the power and determine the pricing. Officials are also conceptualizing an enormous 20,000MW hydroelectric dam along the Rejang River.

They want the power from this dam transmitted via submarine cables to the more densely populated Malay Peninsula. The cost of the cables alone for this mammoth dam would be staggering. "It would cost RM3.5 billion [US$900 million] per cable that can carry 800MW. But this [laying of the cables] is over the next 15-20 years," Energy Minister Lim Keng Yaik was quoted as saying.

Sarawak consumes only 750MW now and currently obtains its electricity from the Batang Ai Dam, built in 1975, in the Sri Aman division as well as from diesel, natural gas and coal. Both Sarawak and neighboring Sabah state in north Borneo now have comfortable reserve margins.

Across the South China Sea, the more industrialized peninsular Malaysia has an even bigger reserve margin, and its electricity-generation capacity has been rising as well. To justify the need for another huge dam when the reserve margin is now more than 40%, Lim said that margin would be used up completely in 10 years.

The Bakun Dam, now three-quarters complete, has been jinxed from the start. Twice shelved, plagued by cost overruns, delays and contract disputes, the project has seen companies such as Ekran Bhd and Asea Brown Boveri come and go, submerged under a pile of debt, losses and cost overruns. Some of these companies were compensated with taxpayers' money when the project was shelved during the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis.

Relocated indigenous people have been disgruntled about the relocation site and the land allotted to them in Sungai Asap in the Belaga district, Kapit. Mostly subsistence farmers, many of them would have preferred to maintain their autonomy as shifting cultivators rather than expose themselves to the vagaries of the market economy through the planting of cash crops, much less toil as wage laborers in plantations.

"It's a disaster," a researcher based in the Sarawak state capital, Kuching, said of the resettlement. "Some of the houses are already rotting because the people don't want to live there. They couldn't afford to pay for the electricity, so it was cut off."

Moreover, the allotted land - 1.2 hectares each - was neither sufficient nor fertile enough for cultivating rice. Some of the resettled people, comprising ethnic groups such as the Kenyah, Kayan, Lahanan, Ukit and Penan, have gone back to living near their old villages, higher up from the dam site, he said.

Last month, a delegation from the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia visited Sungai Asap and found shoddy housing, poor drainage and roads, delays and disputes in the compensation payment, an inadequate number of health personnel, and loss of access to surrounding forest areas.

Others are concerned about the safety of the dam. The dam's lead contractor, Sime Engineering Services Bhd, claims that Bakun, which will stand 205 meters high, will be the "second-highest rock-fill dam in the world next to the Shibuya Dam in China". It will submerge an area the size of Singapore, including large areas of virgin rainforest and fertile agricultural land.

Yet in August, the Xinhua News Agency published a report on its website revealing that four Chinese state-owned enterprises, including China Sinohydro Corp, had been "downgraded" because of "safety or environmental pollution accidents". Sinohydro is one of seven firms in the Malaysia-China Hydro Joint Venture consortium working on Bakun.

But the big story isn't about the dam and the power coming from it, but what's happening with the catchment area, claims another Sarawak-based researcher familiar with the interior of the state. "Basically, they are allowing all kinds of development in the catchment, including plantation development, and have done next to nothing to protect, conserve, rehabilitate the catchment."

The Murum River joins the Balui River a short distance above Bakun; yet, he said, "the Murum catchment - including the Belepeh/Seping, Plieran and Danum river catchment - has been licensed out for plantation 'forest' - a mix of oil palm and Acacia mangium, involving clear felling of the logged-over forest, and 'reforestation' - in an area which was primary forest a dozen years ago". Similarly, in Ulu Balui, the logged Bahau-Balui area has been licensed for plantation forest.

Thus while the public is bearing the costs of the dam construction, the catchment areas are being stripped by others, he said.

With all these uncertainties, why are there more dams in the pipeline?

"They want these projects because they are all construction projects; they will not do the work themselves but subcontract them to some other company," said political scientist Andrew Aeria, who has studied the political economy of Sarawak. "They want easy money without doing any work; this is the character of politically connected businesses in Malaysia.

"You can rest assured there is no [thorough] examination of the cost-efficiency of the projects vis-a-vis alternative sources of power, especially renewable sources," he said.

The Star Online > Nation

Friday October 13, 2006

A RM1 per 100gm charge for leftovers

SEREMBAN: Restoran Ori along the Seremban-Jelebu road here has a unique way of discouraging wastage at its Ramadan buffet – those who fail to finish their food are charged RM1 per 100gm of leftovers. 

Owner Maskan Katan said the restaurant had no problem with clients going for second or third helpings as long as they finished the food. 

“We do not like people to waste, as such behaviour is prohibited by Islam. If they do not finish their food, we will charge RM1 for every 100gm of leftovers,” he said. 

Maskan said the restaurant’s Ramadan buffet at RM7.50 per customer was an extension of its lunch buffet served during the non-fasting months. 

PACKED TO CAPACITY: Maskan hanging up a 慒ull House?sign at his packed restaurant along the Seremban-Jelebu road on Wednesday. ?Bernamapic

Maskan, a former soldier, said the menu was changed every day but the asam pedas dish was a must. – Bernama  

If you read the caption and you can read 'police presence is needed'.

If the crime rate be reduced with the presence of  police, then install all the pictures of police robot. This will remind the mischief ones that the police is watching them. We can save milions of ringgit.

RM260m Boost:
More cars, cops to keep criminals at bay

© Copyright 2006 The New Straits Times Press (M) Berhad. All rights reserved.

Are you sure ?

The Star Online > Nation

Thursday August 10, 2006

Kuala Lumpur is cheapest city in the world says report

ZURICH: Kuala Lumpur is the cheapest city in the world to live in says a report compiled by Swiss bank UBS. 

Oslo and London are the world's most expensive cities, while Zurich and Geneva residents have the highest buying power, according to the report released on Wednesday.  

Europe dominates the list of 71 cities compiled by Swiss bank UBS, while Asian cities - including Kuala Lumpur, followed by Mumbai - are among the cheapest places to live, based on the cost of a basket of 122 goods and services. 

Oslo maintained its top position from 2005, while London rose three places to second.  

Copenhagen, Zurich and Tokyo round out the top five, with New York in seventh place globally.  

But London and New York are the most expensive cities when housing costs are included, said the 52-page report.  

"It's no wonder that their residents often tolerate extreme commutes in order to find affordable housing," it said.  

North American workers earn the highest wages, closely followed by Western Europe. 

But European net earnings are significantly lower because of higher taxes and social security contributions.  

Total pay packets were biggest in Copenhagen, Oslo and Zurich - but residents of the Nordic cities lose out when tax is taken into account.  

"After statutory deductions, people living in the Swiss cities, Dublin and Los Angeles have the most left over from their wages," said the report.  

London rose from 15th place to sixth in the gross wages ranking, but was only 20th in domestic purchasing power.  

Kuala Lumpur was the cheapest city, followed by Mumbai, Buenos Aires and Delhi. Delhi was also among the bottom five cities in both the wages and purchasing power rankings.  

Cities in eastern Europe and China were among the least expensive, while Asian cities have the longest working hours, with Seoul workers averaging 50.2 hours a week.  

Workers in Asia also have the fewest vacation days, on average 12 per year, compared to a global 20 days.  

"Western Europe, by contrast, is very attractive for employees who value their leisure time," the report added. - Reuters 

Latest from AP-Wire 

The Star Online > Nation

Monday July 31, 2006

1,500 illegals nabbed

By MERGAWATI ZULFAKAR

SEPANG: Selangor Rela yesterday nabbed more than 1,500 illegal immigrants working at a factory here in their largest Ops Tegas swoop this year. 

The 3am operation, involving 1,250 Rela members from Selangor and Negri Sembilan, was led by director Khairy Mohd Alwee and took place at the workers' hostel.  

IN THE NET: Some of the 1,500 illegal immigrants waiting at the Sepang District Council compound to have their particulars checked during Ops Tegas yesterday.

“We are compiling their particulars. Most of them do not have proper travel documents. After this, we will send them to immigration depots all over the country because the ones in Selangor are already overcrowded with illegal immigrants.”  

Ops Tegas was launched more than a year ago to flush out illegal immigrants, then estimated to be some 800,000 people. 

With the large number of illegals, the government amended the Emergency (Essential Powers) Act 1964 Essential Rules (Amended) in February last year, authorising Rela officers to search, without a warrant, houses or premises believed to be the hideouts of illegal immigrants. 

Khairy estimated that some 138,000 illegals were still in Selangor, adding that the state Rela would intensify its operations. 

“Our problem is that not many people are aware that Rela now has the power to detain illegals. Investigation and prosecution would still done by the Immigration Department,” he said.  

“We have shown that through our own operations in the last one year, we have been successful in nabbing quite a number of illegals.”  

Khairy said those who have information on illegal immigrants in their area could contact 03-88886308.  

The Star Online > Nation

Monday July 31, 2006

Teen parents grateful for NS

Story and pictures by CHRISTINA TAN

MALACCA: He is 18 and actively pursues all the training in the national service programme. Goh Min Kuan is also a father of an eight-month-old girl. 

Despite being away from his family and missing the comfort of home, the young technician has not regretted a single day of joining the NS training.  

YOUNG FAMILY: Norhaniza holding her 17-month-old son Mohd Haris Rizual with her husband Mohd Nizam Hanafi beside her in Malacca yesterday.

Present were his parents as well as his wife, Su Min, 17, and their child, who were all visiting Goh at the camp. 

For many years he had been dependent on his mother and, after getting married, he relied on his wife to do the household chores. 

Goh, from Batu Pahat in Johor, said the NS training made him realise that housework was hard. 

“I’m learning to be more independent now. 

“It is different from home. I’ve to handle daily tasks, like washing and cleaning,” added the youngster who was among the third batch of trainees this year who reported to NS camps nationwide on June 26 for the three-month programme.  

PROUD DAD: Goh lifting up eight-month-old Qian Hui with Su Min beside him yesterday.

“The NS training teaches me to be diligent and motivates me to work hard for the future of my baby and family,” said Goh, adding that he would return to his technician job at a car workshop in his hometown after the training.  

Su Min chipped in: “We are happy that the training had benefited him a lot. 

“The three months of separation – after just one year of marriage – was difficult to accept at first. But it would be worth it.” 

Norhaniza Sidek said that when she received a letter to report for NS duty, she was terrified about having to leave her children, aged 17 months and six months. 

However, at the encouragement of her father, who promised to take care of the children while she was away, Norhaniza reported at the camp. 

“Now, I should thank my father for encouraging me to join the camp. I’ll probably miss a vital lifetime experience if I did not listen to him,” she said, adding that her husband was also very supportive of her joining the programme. 

She said the most precious experience she had had from the training was being part of a group of good friends who always motivated one another.  

Related Stories:
Very few guardians against weapons training
 

Ok, Pak Lah, you can compare so much but what about the system that they use. If you have read the Memoris of Lee Kuan Yew you should know Malaysia would have achieved better than this long time ago.

So Pak Lah, be realistic lah

The Star Online > Nation

Monday July 31, 2006

‘HK of Malaysia’ plan

By NELSON BENJAMIN, TEH ENG HOCK AND FARIK ZOLKEPLI

JOHOR BARU: Southern Johor, which is more than double the size of Singapore, is set to become a metropolis like Hong Kong island and Shenzhen in China, said the Prime Minister. 

Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said the Southern Johor Economic Region (SJER) was the largest development corridor earmarked under the 9th Malaysia Plan compared to other corridors in the peninsula, Sabah and Sarawak.  

“There is a lot of potential here as land is not too expensive like in other places and there is adequate workforce. Proper implementation of these projects will attract more investors and put Johor on the world map,” he said on arrival at the Senai International Airport at 9.15am yesterday. 

Thousands of people had gathered at the airport car park area to welcome Abdullah who was on a one-day trip here to explain the state's development projects under the 9MP to the Johor Sultan and state leaders. 

“We may not necessarily use the same methods of development (as in Hong Kong or Shenzhen) as we will mould it our way,” Abdullah said, adding that the 9MP had taken into consideration development projects already under way such as Nusajaya and Danga Bay.  

Abdullah said Khazanah Nasional Berhad would be the catalyst for the development. Later at a press conference, he added that the total investment for the SJER was RM15 billion, including foreign investments. 

Development of the various corridors in the country, he added, was important to steer the country towards achieving Vision 2020. The projects would bring development to other parts of the country and not be only concentrated in the Klang Valley. 

The Northern Corridor, which comprises Seberang Prai, Perak and Perlis, would be developed by Permodalan Nasional Bhd (PNB) and Sime Darby, while the Eastern Corridor covering Kelantan, northern Terengganu and western Pahang would involve Petronas.  

Abdullah, who met the Johor Sultan at Istana Bukit Serene at noon here, later told newsmen that the Sultan had given his approval for the projects to proceed.  

He also announced that both he and Mentri Besar Datuk Abdul Ghani Othman would be joint chairmen of a committee set up to oversee the projects.