Why are we facing a gas shortage?

We are known to have rich reserves of natural gas. So why is Petronas facing a shortage in gas supply, which has resulted in crippling losses for Tenaga Nasional?

Source: Petronas Financial Results Announcement quarter ended 30 June 2011

Petronas used to deliver 1200 million standard cubic feet per day (mmscfd) of gas to the power generation sector. The supply has now dropped to around 900mmscfd this year.
The shortage is squeezing the life out of TNB, which has had to resort to fuel substitutes that are six times more expensive than gas. TNB posted serious losses in its third quarter and its fourth quarter results could be just as dire.
A proposal has reportedly been put forward that some of the independent power producers should share the higher costs.
Energy costs for TNB in FY2010 added up to RM19.1bn of which RM12.5bn went to the IPPs, reported The Edge last month. TNB will now have to shell out an additional RM400m per month in fuel costs. Imagine, it had to reportely put a tender out for fuel supply on two occasions and even had to import electricity from Singapore! The gas supply situation must be really grim if you have to import electricity from Singapore!
The worst part is that, if nothing is done, the higher costs could soon be passed to consumers, perhaps in December or after the coming general election, which some believe could be held by the end of the year.
According to Petronas, the gas shortage is due to subsidised gas prices (tell us, who benefited the most?) and the use of gas as a substitute for coal and this has spurred the demand for gas. Declining reserves and aging facilities have also taken its toll, it added.
Petronas also highlights the following:

• Subsidised gas prices since 1997 created impetus for gas demand as a substitute for coal and oil = pushing demand beyond organic requirements.
• Declining reserves coupled with aging facilities stretched supply dynamics = eventual gap between supply and demand.
• Little room for error on supply management.
• We have intensified mitigation actions to alleviate the gas shortage.
• Material portion of future supply = derived from imports at market prices = 1997 subsidies gradually withdrawn.

Less well known is the impact of a fire last December at the Bekok C gas platform, located 200km off-shore from the east coast of the peninsula. The resumption of full supply has been repeatedly delayed.
But even if supply from Bekok C is fully restored, will the shortage be resolved? Perhaps unlikely.
The funny thing is that Malaysia is ranked 14th in the world in terms of its gas reserves, according to the Gas Malaysia website.

As at 1 January 2008, the natural gas reserves in Malaysia stood at 88.0 trillion standard cubic feet (tscf) or 14.67 billion barrels of oil equivalent, approximately three times the size of crude oil reserves of 5.46 billion barrel.
Of this, 33.5 trillion standard cubic feet (tscf) or 38% is found off the East Coast of Peninsular Malaysia, 41.8 tscf (48%) offshore Sarawak and the remaining 12.7 tscf (14%) offshore Sabah. At the current rate of production, Malaysia’s gas reserves expected to last another 36 years.
In 2007, Malaysia’s production of natural gas averaged 7.01 bscf per day. As at 31 March 2008, Malaysia had 88 producing fields of which 61 were oil fields and 27 gas fields. About 50% of these producing fields are solely operated by PETRONAS’s subsidiary, PETRONAS Carigali.

So, I repeat the question, why are we facing a gas shortage? The reason often cited is ongoing maintenance work. But that sounds vague. So what’s really going on?
A thorough independent audit is needed on all the country’s gas platforms and the delivery process to find out what is happening to our gas supply and the reason(s) for the shortage.
Meanwhile, perhaps someone from Petronas can tell us what’s happening?

Victory for a Moroccan Christian Convert

We are glad to inform you that our client, a former Muslim from Morocco, has been granted asylum in the United States. Our client, Z, whose name has been kept confidential for security reasons, is a young Christian who grew up in a wealthy and strong Muslim family in Morocco. After his conversion to Christianity, he was attacked by radical Muslims and was stabbed multiple times. After losing a lot of blood and remaining unconscious for three days, Z was miraculously saved.

Z told the ACLJ that he was brought up in a “purely traditional Islamic way and had a burning desire since adolescence to be a good Muslim in the eye of Allah and to make his family proud of him.” At a very young age Z was sent to a Moroccan mosque to study the Quran for four years. However, Z said that “the more I tried to know Allah, the more I became afraid of him.” Z’s fear came to an end when he met with a Christian schoolmate in Europe. When Z shared Islam with this schoolmate, he says, “instead of being amazed and convinced of what I had said to her, she simply told me that she already has Jesus Christ, and she is scared of nothing.” Z started a comparative study of the Quran and the Bible. While studying the Bible, Z said, “the thing that struck me the most was that no one can ever be good enough to deserve God’s favor, to win God’s heaven, because from birth we are all pre-disposed to rejecting God and living our lives our own way. That’s why it was necessary for God himself to shrink into a human body and die on the cross, dying the death we deserve.”

Z left Islam and started secretly living as a Christian. In 2010, when he was attending a secret house church in Morocco and going to an internet cafe to fulfill his need to listen to worship songs and sermons, he was approached by four men as he left his house. The men surrounded him and said they knew that he had left Islam and dishonored his family and Islam by becoming a kafir (infidel). The men stabbed Z multiple times and left him for dead. One of Z’s neighbors saw him lying on the ground, bleeding. He took Z to the hospital where he underwent two surgeries. He gained consciousness after three days and thanked God for saving his life. Z came to the United States and contacted the ACLJ. Our legal team filed for asylum and within just four months, Z was interviewed and granted asylum. Z is currently attending a Bible school where he is continuously growing in his Christian faith.

In recent years, Morocco has been very unwelcoming of Christian foreigners and has expelled many from the country. And, just last year, at least 14 Christian converts were arrested in Morocco. In 2005, a Christian convert was sentenced to 15 years in prison.

Ahmadi schoolteacher shot dead in Sheikhupura

Dilawar Hussain was shot twice at the government school where he taught. 

LAHORE: As his students watched, a recent convert to the Ahmadi faith, Dilawar Hussain, 42, was shot dead at a government primary school in a village in Sheikhupura on Saturday.

According to the FIR registered, the deceased was shot twice while he was taking a class at the primary school in Dere Golianwala.

Hussain, along with his wife, Ishrat Bibi, and four children, had recently converted to the Ahmadi faith. His family was the only one in the village belonging to the Ahmadiyya community, Sheikhupura’s Ameer Jamaat Ahmadiyya Chaudhry Abdul Hameed Bhatti told The Express Tribune.

He said the deceased’s siblings boycotted him after his conversion and other relatives went against him when local clerics declared him “liable to be killed”.

Bhatti said even his brothers, one of whom is a police officer, did not want to register an FIR and become a complainant. Instead, they made Ishrat Bibi the complainant and prepared the application themselves.

Hussain’s relatives refused to own his body. At the same time, they created obstacles for his widow to take the body away from the village to Rabwah, the headquarters of the Ahmaddiya community. However, under police security, she finally managed to take the body away.

Sheikhupura SHO Shahid Zafar Gujjar said that as the FIR was registered against two unidentified people, they had no information about the murderers.

The SHO said authorities will be able to trace out the assailants once the witness identifies them. He added that the police had completed the legal requirements by getting autopsy of the body and registering the FIR. He revealed FIR # 1146/11 under section 302 of the Pakistan Penal Code had been registered against the assailants.

Saleemuddin, a spokesperson for Jamat-e-Ahmadiyya Pakistan, condemned the murder and demanded the immediate arrest of the accused. He said fatwas declaring members of the Ahmadi sect “liable to be killed” were being issued in different parts of the country and these religious edicts were being published in vast numbers. This, according to Saleemuddin, has resulted in target killings of many Ahmadis.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 3^rd, 2011.

Pakatan MPs want 'plagiarist' judge removed

Report: Police breached SOP in Tung Shin incident

(Malaysiakini) A Health Ministry probe has confirmed that the police had breached standard operating procedures (SOP) when dispersing Bersih 2.0 rally participants at the Tung Shin Hospital.

In a statement late this evening, Home Ministry chief secretary Mahmood Adam said based on the Health Ministry report, errant police personnel would be referred to the police's disciplinary committee.

“The investigation results concluded that there were unethical actions which were beyond the SOP of the Royal Malaysian Police when enforcement was performed on rally participants who were wrongly using the hospital premises,” said Mahmood.

The Health Ministry report, released today, confirms that the police water cannon was fired at demonstrators who were converging at the hospital multi-storey carpark and main gate.

“However, this action (was taken) solely to disperse groups of protesters who were gathering at the hospital area,” said Mahmood, quoting from the Health Ministry report.

Smoke bombs

It was also confirmed that tear gas canisters were fired from the Waz Lian Enterprise Sdn Bhd building in the direction of a carpark outside the hospital compound.

“However, allegations that there was tear gas fired inside the hospital compound are not true because it happened at a public carpark outside the hospital compound,” said Mahmood.

The report also states that 'smoke bombs' were thrown by police personnel towards protesters who were converging at the Chinese Maternity Hospital (CMH) carpark.

“Referring to the smoke bomb incident, investigations found that this did not happen inside the Tung Shin Hospital compound, but at the CMH compound, which in terms of administration, is separate from Tung Shin.

“CMH had ceased operations since September 2006 because of major renovations which will take place in December 2011,” said Mahmood.

Initial denial

He stressed that the decision to refer errant police personnel for disciplinary proceedings shows that the Home Ministry was serious in ensuring that its staff follow procedures.

“(The Home Ministry) will not compromise on disciplinary action if it is found that there are (staff) who are proven to have violated operational guidelines,” he said.

Health Minister Liow Tiong Lai had initially denied claims that riot-control weapons were fired into the Tung Shin Hospital compound during the July 9 rally.

However, pictures which were widely distributed on the Internet suggested the contrary, leading Liow to announce the formation of a “high-level committee of enquiry” to probe the claims.

Pakatan’s ‘prosperity for all’ budget

The opposition unveiled its 2012 budget which emphasises on cleaning up the economy of corruption.

UPDATED

KUALA LUMPUR: Pakatan Rakyat unveiled its shadow budget for 2012 today aimed at overhauling the country’s “flawed” macro and micro economic management to cut costs while adding value.

The budget, themed “Prosperity For All”, was announced by Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim at Parliament here.

Much of the pact’s alternative fiscal management plans were similar to its past budget where the emphasis was on cleaning the economy of corruption, the “typical characteristics of the Barisan Nasional government”, which Anwar said cost the country dearly.

The underlying principles of Pakatan’s budget would be to:

• Assist the majority poor; ensuring long-term fiscal survival focusing on deficit trim;

• Adding value to government spending by combating graft so money will reach voters;

• Empowering the people’s economy through training programmes and strengthening;

• Strengthening political reformation which is essential in protecting voters from “elements that will monopolise wealth for them and their cronies.”

As much as RM220 billion would be allocated for the said purposes.

Although the amount was RM14 billion lesser than the ruling coalition’s 2011 Budget, Anwar said this would be consistent with the aim to cut deficit to 4.4% of the GDP or 1.1% less than BN’s annual target.
Trimming public debt, which stood close to 7% of the GDP in 2009 forced the government to push the panic button and compelled Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak to resort to a much needed but unpopular measure – dismantling the hefty subsidy regime amid soaring inflation.

Pakatan, however, argued that slashing subsidies on basic goods was not the only solution and said that ethical and transparent governance would help stop fiscal “leakages” and unnecessary waste of public funds.

This meant Pakatan would maintain subsidies and offsets by disciplined fiscal spending. As much as RM22 billion would be allocated for subsidies on basic goods under the pact’s budget.

Anwar, a former finance minister, said with ethical, transparent and responsible fiscal management, the lesser figures allocated for the 2012 budget could add 20% more value than what the BN government could achieve.

Slash PM’s Dept spending

Among the measures introduced to cut public fund wastage was the slashing of the RM10 billion allocation for the Prime Minister’s Department.
Currently, the PM’s office had the discretionary powers to set allocation at any amount. There had been a constant increase in allocations since 2004 despite having to cope with the rising deficit.
Other measures, Anwar said, included ending monopolies by “crony companies” in key industries like power and rice.
Najib would table his third budget as prime minister this Friday and is expected to announce measures to tackle the rising cost of living as the country copes with sluggish growth.

From 7.2% last year, growth stood only at 4.4% in the first half of this year.

The prime minister’s announcement would likely “break the bank” by including announcements such as a new civil service pay scheme that would see salary rise by as much as 40%.

Civil servants were considered an important vote bank for the ruling coalition and winning them over would be key to realising Pakatan’s Putrajaya ambition.

In an apparent bid to woo them, Anwar announced his coalition’s intention to implement a minimum wage policy of RM1,100 which would immediately benefit 300,000 civil servants earning below that base.

Other salient points of the pact’s budget were based on policies outlined in its “Orange Book” where much of the spending would be in the form of cash aides and incentives targeted at the lower income group.

Highlights of the shadow budget

• An additional RM1.2 billion of revenue will be raised by auctioning Open APs, presently issued at RM10,000 each by the BN government. An auction price of RM30,000 each will bring the additional RM1.2 billion revenue.

• 10,000 teachers will be trained and RM200 million will be allocated to address the shortage of Chinese, English, Tamil and religious teachers, as well as an additional RM200 million to be immediately disbursed to improve excisting buildings of vernacular and religious schools.

• An open tender for government procurement to reward know-how instead of know-who.

• Affirmative measures for bumiputera and other disadvantaged groups will focus on strengthening the capability of such groups to compete through education, training and financial support.

• A Unfair Public Contracts Act will be enacted to empower a review into lop-sided concessions and agreements that are deemed to be against the public interest.

• GLCs will be freed from political interference and allowed to operate based on comercial priorities. Ultimately only GLCs in strategic sectors will be retained.

• The Competition Act will be extended to all sectors of the economy, including telecommunication companies, pay-tv services and the power sector.

• Press and media cartels will be dismantled, Astro’s monopoly will be broken up and taxi licences to be given directly to individual taxi drivers.

• A senior Malaysian bonus of RM1,000 for the elderly, payment of RM1,000 for qualified homemakers and supplemanting hardcore poor households income. A childcare allowance of RM1,000 a year for children below 12-years-old from households earning less than RM1,000 a month.

• These immediate measures to help Malaysians will cost: RM1.7 billion for senior Malaysian bonus for the elderly; RM2 billion for support of homemakers; RM200 million for top-up payments for the hardcore poor.

• Will not implement Good and Services Tax until and unless Malaysia departs from the middle income trap.

• The police force will be refocussed on crime prevention and enhancing public security.

• A National Transport Policy to prioritize public transport following the principle of “moving people, not cars”.

• To reform political landscape by revoking existing emergency proclamations, to restructure Public Complaints Bureau into an Ombudsman institution, revoking media licensing requirements by repealing the Printing Presses and Publications Act, to restore academy freedom and autonomy of local universities, and to abolish the Official Secrets Act and enact a Freedom of Information Act.

• Improving the road networks in Sabah and Sarawak, strengthening the electrical grid network in Sabah and revamping the flying doctors services in Sarawak by giving an additional allocation of RM100 million.

• No increase in sin taxes on cigarettes and alcohol as it is ineffective in curbing unhealthy habits. Public awareness and education would be a better alternative.

• Pakatan will reintroduce the import tax for 200 luxury items that were exempted by Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak in the last budget.

• RM2.2 billion for teachers from special teaching allowance and minimum wage.

• RM1 billion for public housing.

Pakatan guns for 'copycat' judge

According to Karpal Singh, the Court of Appeal judge allegedly plagiarised a judgment by a Singaporean counterpart in early 2000.

FULL REPORT

KUALA LUMPUR:  Sixty Pakatan Rakyat MPs are pushing for a motion to censure a Court of Appeal judge for alleged plagiarism.

Leading the pack, Bukit Gelugor MP Karpal Singh said that justice Abdul Malik Ishak had allegedly committed the offence while serving as a High Court judge in Johor in early 2000.

The judge was accused of plagiarising a judgment by then Singapore High Court judge GP Selvam and the irony of the matter was that Malik was hearing a case regarding copyright.

Speaking at a press conference in Parliament, Karpal said: “We have filed the motion (to discuss the censuring) with the secretary of the Dewan Rakyat.”

“This motion (is in line with) Article 127 of the Federal Constitution which allows for discussion of the conduct of judges if 1/4 of parliamentarians support the motion,” he added.

The total number of MPs is 222, and with 60 backing the motion, it exceeded the required number.

Suspend the judge


Meanwhile, Karpal described the charge against the judge as serious, and did not reflect well on the judiciary.

“It is clearly misconduct of a very serious nature on the part of Malik bringing the Malaysian judiciary into disrepute,” he said, demanding that the judge be suspended and brought before a tribunal.

Karpal said that portions of Selvam’s judgment were copied without quoting and acknowledging the original source.

The DAP leader said he had written twice to Malik in August and September this year but did not receive a response from him over the matter.

Karpal added that the motion filed today was also in line with Parliamentary Standing Orders 27 and 36 (8).

Standing Order 27 states that advance notice must be sent to the Dewan Rakyat secretary before tabling a motion in parliament.

While Standing Order 36 (8) required a motion to be tabled in parliament first before there is any discussion regarding a public officer appointed under constitutional provisions.

Law graduate from Singapore

According to the judiciary website, the Johor-born Abdul Malik was appointed to the Court of Appeal on July 16, 2007.

A law graduate from the University of Singapore – graduating in 1974 , Abdul Malik was appointed as a Judicial Commissioner on Oct 1, 1992, and subsequently, as a Judge of the High Court of Malaya on Aug 17,1994.

Prior to that he had served as a magistrate, deputy public prosecutor, state legal adviser, senior Sessions Court judge and advisory board chairman at the Prime Minister’s Department.

[Judge's photo from the judiciary website]

Tun M: Pakatan's Alternative Budget is like an "Empty Pocket"

(Bernama) - "It's easy when we want to spend the money which we don't have," is what former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said when asked to comment on the tabling of the alternative Budget by the opposition Pakatan Rakyat.

It was reported that Pakatan Rakyat would table its annual budget today, three days ahead before the federal government presents its 2012 Budget.

The opposition coalition's budget is said to be an alternative budget before the 2012 Budget is tabled by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak in Parliament on Friday. Najib is also Finance Minister.

"It's always easy to spend the money which is not under our control. We can do anything (like) promising to give 20 percent oil royalty.

"Yes, we can make the promise as we are not the government. Make promises, so long you win the elections (general election).

"It is common, even (US President Barack) Obama promised to close Guantanamo Bay in Cuba, but until now the detention center has not been closed yet. But he was elected," said Dr Mahathir to reporters after delivering a keynote address at the 8th Kuala Lumpur Islamic Finance Forum 2011 here today.

Dr Mahathir also served as finance minister when he was the prime minister for 22 years.

Noose Tightens in French Defense Scandal

Malaysia's sub, lost in the fog

Asian dimension as French state-owned arms company faces murder, bribery allegations
After years of inaction and coverup, details are emerging in France of the sale of armaments by the French state-owned defense contractor DCNS to countries across the world including Pakistan, Malaysia, Chile, India, Taiwan and Saudi Arabia, with bribes and kickbacks built into DCNS’s budget, ensnaring politicians across the globe.

Allegations involving DCNS, formerly known as DCN, range from murder to bribery and corruption and go from defense procurement officials in each of those countries to some of the top politicians in France.

Under the French legal system, prosecutors under the control of the Ministry of Justice must make a preliminary enquiry, during which no one has access to the files, so that any information the police have obtained cannot be shared. The prosecutors have been stymied for years by the ministry. However, investigators appear to be losing their awe of politicians all the way up to President Nicholas Sarkozy.

In September, for instance, Nicholas Bazire, 54, the best man at Sarkozy’s wedding to supermodel Carla Bruni, was arrested and charged with misuse of public funds in the 1995 presidential campaign of Edouard Balladur. Sarkozy was Balladur’s campaign spokesman and budget minister at the time. Another friend, Thierry Gaubert, Sarkozy’s cabinet chief when he was budget and communication minister, was arrested earlier. Sarkozy is seeking avoid the appointment of an instruction judge in an effort to keep the cases under control. But the political knives may be out for Sarkozy.

That increases the chances that investigating judges will allow prosecutors a more detailed look at DCNS’s books to probe kickbacks in Pakistan, where 11 French submarine engineers were killed in a bomb attack, and Taiwan, where a number of murders and suicides have been recorded in connection with the sale of frigates to Taiwan’s navy. The details can be found here.

William Bourdon, the leader of a three-lawyer team investigating Malaysia’s US$1 billion purchase of submarines from DCNS for the Malaysian reform organization Suaram, earlier told Asia Sentinel he hoped his team would have access to the files by October. Bourdon was summarily deported from Malaysia in July after giving a speech in Penang describing some of the details of the allegations.

Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak was defense minister at a time when Malaysia bought two Scorpene-class submarines from DCNS. Included in the transaction was a €114 million commission paid to Perimekar Sdn Bhd, a company owned by Najib’s close friend, Abdul Razak Baginda. The transaction has been mired in controversy since 2006, when Altantuya Shaariibuu, a party girl and translator ostensibly hired to help in the contract, was murdered after demanding US$500,000 from Razak Baginda, her jilted lover, for unspecified reasons. Razak Baginda was acquitted of her murder under unusual circumstances without having to provide a defense. Two of Najib’s police bodyguards were convicted and sentenced to death. They have appealed the verdict.

Joseph Breham, a lawyer with Solicitors International Human Rights Group and a member of Bourdon’s team, said in London last week that DCNS often budgeted as much as 8 to 12 percent of its total receipts as "commissions" paid to grease sales of armaments in third-world countries. Breham’s speech was reported for the Malaysia website Malaysiakini by Miriam Mokhtar.

Malaysia bought two Scorpene submarines from DCNS for about US$1 billion and leased a third from a DCNS subsidiary for training. Of that, the €114 commission was paid to Razak Baginda’s company, Perimekar Sdn Bhd.

Breham said Razak Baginda’s company Perimekar had received the commission for "supporting the contract," which he said was a euphemism for unexplained costs, and also for "housing the crew" of the submarines in France. Perimekar was wholly owned by another company, KS Ombak Laut Sdn Bhd, which in turn was also controlled by Razak Baginda. His wife Mazalinda, a lawyer and former magistrate, was the principal shareholder, according to the French lawyers.

Breham questioned why such vast sums could be paid to Razak Baginda’s company. The €114 million obtained by Ombak Laut, he said, was more than the amount paid by France to all of its primary school teachers for a year. He also revealed that DCNS’s former finance director had written memos in which he alleged that €31 million of the €114 million had been used for "commercial engineering", a term Breham said had no legal meaning.

Breham said that in France, before 2002, any money used to bribe foreign officials was tax deductible. When the former finance director of DCN made a claim for the €31million allegedly used to bribe the Malaysians for the purchase of the Scorpenes, the Minister of Budget questioned such a large bribe, although he did eventually authorize the tax break.

The French lawyer mentioned a possible third commission, which arose because of the different mechanisms that enabled the submarines to operate. The Malaysian submarines had to be modified to operate in tropical waters, he said, which required altering the technical specifications. A variation order was made which incurred a further US$2.5 million. Breham concluded that the only doubt about the €114 million payment, which is reflected in Perimekar's financial statements, was whether the payment was for valid reasons or unethical ones.

The sticking-point for DCNS is the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions, signed by all 34 members of the OECD including France in 1997. The convention establishes legally binding standards to criminalize bribery of foreign public officials in international business transactions and provides for a host of related measures that make this effective. Thus the alleged bribery by a French company of Malaysian officials became an offense under French law.

In April 2010, the lawyers, acting for Suaram filed a 'plainte avec constitution de partie civile' complaint, which is a criminal prosecution with a concurrent independent action for civil damages. That would mean there would be two trials, one a criminal trial and the second a civil trial for compensation.

This has two great advantages, Breham said. First, an independent instruction judge is appointed for the civil case. Second, Suaram becomes a party to the case, at which point the legal team, acting for Suaram, can then have access to all the files about the case and can ask questions of the instruction judge and request that he investigates on its behalf.

There is a huge struggle in France between the prosecution and the instruction judge. Breham says that unlike a prosecutor, this independent judge has investigative powers to subpoena officials from DCN, and access documents in the DCN offices to obtain evidence of commissions. The judge can also request "mutual criminal assistance" from the Malaysian authorities for purposes of information and cooperation. So far, there is no indication that Malaysian officials intend to cooperate.

Jawapan bertulis di Dewan Rakyat hanya melepas batuk ditangga

Dia atas ini ialah jawapan bertulis Kerajaan bagi menjawab soalan mengenai
cincin RM24.45 juta yang dibangkit oleh 6 orang ahli parlimen

Kenyataan Terbuka
Solidariti Anak Muda Malaysia

4 Oktober 2011

1. che'GuBard bagi pihak Solidariti Anak Muda Malaysia (SAMM) telah mula membuat pendedahan mengenai isu kewujudan kemasukan sebentuk cincin harga RM24.45 juta yang dalam kotak penerima dalam borang kemasukan tertera nama Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor, sehubungan dengan itu SAMM tampil memohon penjelasan dari beliau.

2. Dalam persidangan Dewan rakyat kali ini SAMM difahamkan terdapat 6 ahli parlimen yang mengajukan soalan sebelum persidangan mengenai cincin ini.

3. Seperti dijangka soalan ini hanya akan mendapat jawapan bertulis bukan lisan. Di atas ialah jawapan bertulis yang dibuat oleh Menteri Di Jabatan Perdana Menteri, YB Dato Seri Mohamed Nazri Abd Aziz. jawapan tersebut hanya seperti melepaskan batuk di tangga sahaja.

4. Bermula dari 8 Julai kali pertama che'GuBard mendedahkan mengenai cincin ini, saya dihambur berbagai tuduhan antaranya ialah pendedahan saya palsu, dokumen kastam yang saya siarkan telah diedit komputer dan ada juga tuduhan tidak wujud cincin berharga semahal rm24.45 juta.

5. 13 Julai, che'GuBard tampil di SPRM Pulau Pinang untuk membuat laporan SPRM dengan menyerahkan sebahagian dari bukti yang ada. Jika minta SPRM siasat mana dapat duit beli sudah tentu SPRM tidak siasat, maka 'angle' mudah perlu difikirkan. SAMM telah membuat laporan SPRM dengan mengambil sudut cukai kocong untuk cincin bernilai RM24.45j. Laporan sengaja dibuat begitu walaupun tahu perhiasan wanita seperti cincin telah dikecualikan cukai dalam pembentangan belanjawan yang lepas.

6. Terperangkap dengan sudut laporan , maka SPRM bertindak dengan 'serbu' bahagian kargo KLIA. Menurut maklumat yang diperolehi pegawai syarikat kargo A.Krishnan ditahan dari petang hingga awal pagi dan akhirnya dibebaskan. Selepas sesi soal siasat mendapati fakta memang cincin seperti itu tidak perlu cukai. Kemenangan yang kami perolehi ialah dengan memulakan siasatan SPRM mengakui dokumen kemasukan cincin itu benar, asli dan memang wujud.

7. Selepas itu ada maklumat juga sistem komputer Kastam 'hang' hampir 3 jam. Serentak dengan itu wujud tiba - tiba di laman-laman blog pro Umno kononya borang cincin ini di bawa keluar ke Singapura dengan 'hand carry'. Di siarkan juga borang Kastam sebagai bukti cincin ini keluar menerusi KLIA

8. Cuma timbul keraguan dalam borang cincin ini keluar. Beberapa pindaan dibuat tanpa pengesahan dan nama pegawai kastam yang menandatangani cincin itu keluar menurut laman web rasmi KDRM (yang terakhir dikemaskini pada 4 Oktober 2011) menyatakan dengan jelas nama pegawai tersebut berkhidmat di Bahagian Latihan, Ibu pejabat Kastam. Adakah keluar cincin ini urusan rasmi khusus yang amat penting hingga memerlukan tandatangan pegawai yang bertugas di Ibupejabat KDRM ?

9. Menurut laman - laman blog pro Umno kononya cincin ini masuk untuk pameran yang konon diadakan untuk VVIP sahaja. Mengenali Rosmah yang sukakan publisiti adakah kemasukan belian bernilai RM 24.45 j itu disenyapkan jika ia untuk pameran ? Adakah ia untuk pameran yang sulit, di tempat yang sulit, dengan tetamu yang sulit pada masa yang sulit ? Beliau buat peragaan fesyen busana Muslim pun ada media yang mengatakan 'diminta khusus' memberikan liputan. Jika untuk pameran kenapa ada nama Rosmah adakah dia mengambil kerja sambilan sebagai penganjur pameran belian.

10. Lebih menarik apabila muncul bekas setiausaha, YB Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim (ketika menjadi TPM) yang menyatakan kononya belian itu masuk dan milik bakal besan Rosmah. Cara beliau menyatakan mungkin untuk menimbulkan persepsi bahawa keluarga bakal menantu Rosmah amat kaya dan cincin itu ialah hadiah.

11. Malah lucunya kenyataan beliau yang mencabar che'GuBard membuat laporan mengenai berlian tersebut ternyata satu propaganda lucu mengampu kerana cabaran dibuat selepas lebih dari sebulan che'GuBard membuat laporan SPRM. Propaganda murahan inilah yang mendapat liputan besar di media seperti Utusan dan TV3. Dengan kenyataan bertulis Menteri juga propaganda ini juga dinafikan.

12. Nampaknya kempen pelancongan Malaysia amat berjaya bukan sahaja pelancong tetapi cincin berlian juga datang masuk bersiar-siar dan keluar semula selepas itu dari Malaysia.

13. Ingin ditegaskan, che'GuBard tidak menuduh tetapi dengan kewujudan bukti dan pembelaan puak pengampu yang menambah kecelaruan fakta maka lebih menuntut Rosmah untuk tampail memberikan penjelasan, bukan hanya menyatakan "itu semua fitnah dan mereka dengki dengan saya"

14. Rakyat sedang bergelut dengan perbagai tekanan hidup, khususnya kelompok pekerja muda yang sedang membina kerjaya dan keluarga. Kesombongan dan imej mewah Rosmah yang cuba menyamar sebagai wanita pertama negara seperti mencurah garam ke luka rakyat.

15. Itu belum lagi mengambil kira gelang tangan bernilai RM1.65 juta yang ada gambar dipakai oleh Rosmah dari syarikat yang sama mengeluarkan cincin.

16. Kini terpulang pada rakyat. SAMM minggu hadapan akan mula mengedarkan risalah buku kecil mengenai pembaziran dan kemewahan melampau khususnya mengenai isu cincin ini.

sekian

che'GuBard

Pengerusi SAMM

Mystery witness’ a former college mate of Saiful

Saiful hated Anwar, campaigned for BN, says witness.

FMT ALERT

KUALA LUMPUR: The “mystery witness” in Anwar Ibrahim’s Sodomy II trial today turned out to be a former college mate of accuser Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan.
Mohd Najwan Ali, who now works at the office of Selangor economic adviser (Anwar), said he knew Saiful since 2003 and was shocked when Saiful joined Anwar’s office in 2008 as he had previously expressed hatred towards Anwar and was very “pro-government”.
“When I knew him, he hated Anwar, from all the conversations I had with him,” said Najwan.
Najwan said that he had previously seen in Saiful’s social networking site Friendster a photo showing a banner saying “Anwar pemimpin munafiq” (Anwar is a hypocritical leader) and another with the Barisan Nasional (BN) logo.
Najwan testified that he believed the photos meant Saiful had campaigned for BN, and Saiful told him that Anwar could not be trusted.
He also said Saiful was “publicity crazy” and loved attention.

Indian voters in the role of kingmakers

In the 2008 general election Indians voted for Pakatan but for the coming election they are undecided and that is why their votes are so important for the opposition and BN
COMMENT

Hindraf Makkal Sakthi, earlier this week, released a detailed analysis of how the voting pattern, Indians in particular, went during the 2008 general election with some comparisons from 2004. The figures are both from independent analysts as well as from Hindraf, the ad hoc apolitical human rights movement run from London.

Extrapolating from the figures by logical deduction, Hindraf has since discovered that the Indian community is generally split down the middle, confirming earlier observations. Both national coalitions, Barisan Nasional (BN) and Pakatan Rakyat, today command equal support from among Indians.

This emerging scenario can only be seen as a severe setback for Pakatan which could commanded 85 per cent Indian support during the 2008 general election. This made a telling difference in 63 of the 67 Parliamentary seats in Peninsular Malaysia where Indians make up a significant number of the voters while Malay votes were generally for BN.

If elections were to be held tomorrow, Hindraf projects that some 30 per cent of the registered Indian voters would again, as in previous elections, not turn out at all. Hence, it appears that one problem here is strategizing in a way which can help increase the Indian voter turnout come polling day to head in a particular political direction. Traditionally, such voters can be seen as pro-opposition.

Of the remaining 70 per cent, 49 per cent comprise the underclass championed by Hindraf for being denied even cendol permits among others, 14 per cent the middle class – about three-quarters still for Pakatan as in 2008 — and seven per cent the top crust which have always been with the BN.

The underclass is equally divided between Pakatan and BN unlike in 2008 when 85 per cent of them voted with the makkal sakthi – people power – wave to put the opposition in power in five states and the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur.

Indian underclass disillusionment with Pakatan, the reason for the trek away from the opposition alliance, is hardly surprising. The opposition state governments in Selangor, Penang, Kedah and Kelantan have been seen as largely too pre-occupied with reaching an enduring power-sharing accommodation between the Malays and Chinese, rather than worrying about Indian woes.

The DAP has been largely dismissive of Indian efforts to strike out politically on its own and sees the community as part of its own, ostensibly multiracial, turf.

The Indians don’t see why they must add to the strength of the Chinese numbers in the state assemblies and Parliament at their expense. Indian DAP leaders beg to differ. However, they have been largely silenced and shackled by their own incompetence and impotence in the wake of the infamous Kampung Buah Pala incident in Penang where the DAP-led state government seized Indian trust land and chased out the inhabitants without batting an eyelid.

Losing the shackles

If nothing is done to intervene on the Indian voting pattern, including Hindraf staying out of the fray, it’s more than likely that Pakatan will lose Selangor and Kedah at the next, the 13th general election while only hanging on to Penang and Kelantan and missing the chance to re-take Perak which it won in 2008.

However, should Hindraf come out on the side of Pakatan and woo the Indian underclass as in 2008, it’s a certainty that the opposition alliance will not only maintain its current haul of four states, but re-take Perak and add Negri Sembilan as well. Again, the figures in the analysis of the voting trends in 2008 speak for themselves.

Getting Hindraf on board the Pakatan bandwagon would mean the opposition making a deal with its political wing, the Human Rights Party Malaysia (HRPM), to accept its latest minimum demand of five to seven Parliamentary seats in Peninsular Malaysia and 14 to 15 state seats.

The party, as yet unregistered, had initially targeted 15 Parliamentary seats and 38 state seats. It’s likely that HRPM candidates would have to stand under the symbols of the various Pakatan component parties.

Between Hindraf, Pakatan and BN, the Indian community would have to consider whether or not they would be better off striking out on their own to bring change and reform to the politics of Malaysia.

There’s considerable interest, including from Hindraf, in a radical new school of thought making its way through cyberspace i.e. that the Indian community would be better off in the long run if they deliberately embarked on a strategy of uniting to throw out the ruling party, whether at the state or Federal level.

In short, the idea is not to vote for but against someone.

Elections not too soon

How this will translate into reality on the ground remains to be seen. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. The Indians have nothing to lose but their shackles .

An intelligent guess-estimate, given the radical new school of thought, is that Pakatan would only be able to maintain Penang and Kelantan but, given Indian support, will re-take Perak and add Negri Sembilan to the haul. Again, these numbers would mean Pakatan would hang on to four state governments, two old, regain one and add a new one.

If proponents of the new school of thought have their way with or without Hindraf’s support, the Federal Government is likely to fall to Pakatan at the 13th general election but only if the opposition alliance can pull off the impossible and get the Indian community on board.

The current thinking among political pundits is that the BN, is in no great hurry to call for an early general election although Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak has already begun his campaigning.

The political campaigning will continue, but the general election will only be held when the BN has completed its five-year term in 2013.

Between now and then, the opposition alliance will be reduced to watching the ruling party campaign desperately to cling on to power by hook-or-crook.

If the opposition alliance tries to emulate the BN and launch a similar political campaign of their own in preparation for the 13th GE, they are likely to be dragged to court by the police for not having the required permits.

RM2 million, 11,000 policemen to contain Bersih rally

The Home Ministry revealed that over RM2 million was spent to contain the one-day Bersih rally.

KUALA LUMPUR: Police spent a whopping RM2 million and used 11,000 policemen to contain the Bersih rally on July 9.

This was revealed by the Home Ministry in a written reply to a question posed by Seputeh MP, Teresa Kok, in Parliament.

The total cost to contain the “illegal” assembly which saw thousands of people taking to the streets was RM2, 018, 850.06.

“PDRM had to make preparations which included expenditure for additional fittings, food and drinks, lodging and other logistic needs,” Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein said in explaining the expenditures.

The Bersih 2.0 rally was to seek free and fair elections. Police fired tear gas and water cannons on some 50,000 demonstrators according to Bersih’s estimations, resulting in nearly 1,700 arrests and scores of others injured.

Kok also enquired about the number of policemen that were deployed in the Klang Valley from the July 6 till 9.

The Home Ministry stated that policemen came from all over the country to help the Kuala Lumpur police contingent.

The number of policemen on duty that day in the Klang Valley were 11,046 with an additional of 2,600 officers on stand-by.

There were numerous complaints of police high-handedness during the rally. One such prominent example is the Tung Shin hospital incident where police were accused of firing tear-gas and spraying water cannon directly into the hospital compound.

The police had set up three special committees to look into such allegations; however, they have yet to release their reports.

Electoral reforms

The government’s response to the rally was heavily criticised as over-zealous and aggressive by the international community.

Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak was forced to go on an extensive damage control measures, including making key concessions in a bid to recoup lost support from Malaysia’s huge chunk of fence-sitters.

Among them is the setting up of the parliamentary select committee (PSC) to look into cleaning up Malaysia’s election system but voters have greeted the move warily after he failed to promise the implementation of reforms before the 13th general election is held.

Najib is likely call for snap polls within the next six months.

The PSC, which held its first meeting this morning, will have six months to do its job and make recommendations on ways to improve the electoral process.

Putrajaya said the setting up of the panel was not an admission that the electoral system was flawed but was done in good will and to prevent any accusations of bias against the Election Commission in the future.

Bersih wants detailed breakdown

In an immediate reaction, Bersih steering committee member Maria Chin Abdullah said that a more transparent expenditure breakdown was needed.

“(Home Ministry) said that they spent RM2 million on food expenditure and others but I think a more transparent breakdown is needed on where the money went,” she told FMT.

Asked if the money spent was justified, she merely shrugged, saying that the police force was there to protect the people.

“But I think they spent more on suppressing the people more than food expenditure”.

ISA repeal delayed to consult stakeholders, say ministers

The Malaysian Insider
By Shannon Teoh

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 3 — The government said today that the Internal Security Act (ISA) can only be repealed in March as it needs to consult and engage with stakeholders to ensure “we get it right”.

The replacement of the ISA, which allows for preventive detention, with two new laws was the highlight of Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s Malaysia Day address in which he promised more freedom to the public.

But opposition lawmakers have called the delay in repealing the law, which it says Barisan Nasional (BN) abuses to silence dissent, a “cop out” as the prime minister is likely to call snap polls soon after Budget 2012 is passed.

“No, it’s a question of engagement and consultation. We want to get it right,” Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein (picture) told reporters when quizzed on the delay.

Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz also said that the new laws were now in the hands of the Attorney-General and the government would need to be cautious when repealing the ISA.

“If we have no new law, then we must immediately release terrorists currently detained under the ISA,” the de facto law minister told reporters in Parliament today.

When told that the Bar Council has said that no new laws were needed as Malaysia had other legislation to deal with terrorism, Nazri said “that is the Bar’s view and it is one which we will look at.”

Datuk Seri Najib Razak tabled in Parliament today the repeal of the Restricted Residence Act and the Banishment Act, as announced in his Malaysia Day address to kick off his reform package.

The repeal of the two laws is scheduled for debate on Wednesday.

However, the repeals of the ISA and three emergency declarations were not mentioned in Dewan Rakyat today.

These reforms appear to be key concessions by Najib to win back middle Malaysia before snap polls expected early next year.

His administration had come under heavy fire for its clampdown on the July 9 Bersih rally for free and fair elections.

Police had fired tear gas and water cannons to disperse tens of thousands of demonstrators in chaotic scenes which resulted in nearly 1,700 arrested, scores injured and the death of an ex-soldier.

Haj Pilgrims Reminded Not To Hide Diseases

MEDINA, Oct 4 (Bernama) -- Pilgrims have been reminded not to falsify documents or try to hide information about diseases because they want to perform the haj.

Medina Haj Operations Director (Medical) Dr Mahyin Kudong said they were cases where pilgrims tried to hide information about health or attempted to falsify documents fearing they would not be allowed to perform haj.

He said haj pilgrims who hid their diseases would only complicate detection of health problems if they suddenly fall ill.

"Pilgrims must take medication at certain time, drink a lot of water, avoid long exposure to sunlight and get plenty of rest," he told a Tabung haji (TH) media task force at pilgrims treatment centre at Alauddin building here today.

Diseases which pilgrims tried to hide include diabetes, kidney failure and high blood pressure.

Earlier, the media members were brought to tour the treatment facility provided at the medical centre which opened several few days ago.

Dr Mahyin said the treatment centre provides 20 beds for patients and more could be made available to accommodate more patients.

"If after adding the beds, we can't accommodate the patients, they will be sent to other hospitals in Saudi Arabia.

"But this has not happened as we have enough beds. It may not be comfortable as they will be less space but it is not serious and does not last long," he added.

The medical team in Mecca and Medina consist of 253 staff with 30 specialist doctors, 19 medical officers while the remaining are assistant medical officers and nurses.

At Medina, a medical team with a doctor is always stationed at the airport as soon as the flight carrying pilgrims from Malaysia arrived.

A team of two doctors are stationed at two major pilgrim hotels in Medina - Al-Haram Hotel and Movenpick Hotel while the rest are placed at Alauddin building.

Muslim extremists and authorities shut down Protestant church in West Java

by Mathias Hariyadi

The village chief in Mekargalih, along with members of the Islamic Defender Front, expels Christians from their place of worship for allegedly engaging in “proselytising” in a predominantly Muslim area. A Christian woman complains, “Police have no guts against this radical group.” Pancasila principles are violated.

Jakarta (AsiaNews) – A group of extremists from the Islamic Defender Front (FPI) have shut down a Protestant church in Jatinangor, in Bandung sub district, last Friday, the Muslim day of prayer. As in previous occasions in which Christian places of worship were seized and religious activities interrupted, the fundamentalists were aided and abetted by the local administration.

Recently, rumours spread according to which the Protestant church was a haven for a “community of newly baptised”. Extremists also accuse Rev Bernard Maukar, head of the Christian community, of engaging in proselytising in a predominantly Muslim area.

Arief Saefolah, village chief in Mekargalih (where the church is located), said he had the right to close down the place of worship as “illegal” because it was within his jurisdiction. “This area is under my authority,” he told the Christian community. “Please, get out as soon as possible.”

Tensions had been rising until last Friday’s showdown. Saefolah and other local security officials (Satpol PP), plus 30 FPI members, seized all Christian properties, including chairs, musical instruments, tables and cars.

A Christian woman from the community, known only by her nickname Pur, lamented the fact that police did not lift a finger to stop the “vandalism”. In her view, “police have no guts against this radical group.”

The village chief denied claims that he brought in FPI fundamentalists to shut down the church. However, he did urge Christians to “go elsewhere” to worship their faith.

Outraged, Christians had rejected the proposal because it would force them to undertake long trips. Besides, they note that Arief Saefolah’s orders violate the principles of Pancasila, which define modern Indonesia, based on pluralism and freedom of worship.

Devamany: Amendments to protect workers

Decision on Najib, Rosmah’s application on Thursday

The judge will decide if the prime minister and his wife will have to appear in court as defence witnesses in Anwar's trial.
UPDATED

KUALA LUMPUR: The High Court will decide on Thursday the joint application by Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak and his wife Rosmah Mansor to set aside subpoenas compelling the couple to testify in Anwar Ibrahim’s Sodomy II trial.

Judge Mohamad Zabidin Mohd Diah set the date after hearing submissions from the couple’s lawyers, as well as from lawyers representing Anwar.

Anwar’s argument is that it was important to have Najib and Rosmah to testify in his trial so that he could find out what had transpired in a meetings involving the prime minister and complainant Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan.

Anwar also wants Rosmah to explain about her meeting with Muhamad Rahimi Osman, a close friend of Saiful. (Rahimi was said to have gone to Rosmah to seek assistance on behalf of his friend.)

Najib and Rosmah have however stressed that they have no knowledge of the alleged sodomy and stated they were not relevant to the trial.

Both had denied conspiring with anyone to incriminate Anwar despite Najib admitting in his affidavit that he had met Saiful two days prior to the alleged sodomy.

One of Najib’s lawyers, Hisyam Teh Poh Teik, today submitted that the couple could not provide “relevant and material” evidence to the proceedings.

He also accused the defence of embarking on a “fishing expedition”as Anwar had failed to show connections and nexus on why both Najib and Rosmah could provide relevant evidence to the trial’s proceedings.

Meetings not linked to trial

Reading excerpts of Najib’s affidavit, Teh said: “I have no knowledge at all of the incident (sodomy) that had occurred on June 26. I have never seen Saiful before June 24, I only met him then and do not know him previously”.

Teh argued that the June 24 meeting had no relevance to what had happened on June 26.

“This meeting has got no nexus or connection whatsoever with the (sodomy) charge on June 26. He (Anwar) wants Najib to provide further clarification and gratification on what had happened on June 24. But there is no connection,” he said.

He added that the primary charge in the trial was to prove whether the sodomy act had occurred on June 26 and not to discuss matters which happened “a day before or the day after”.

On Rosmah’s meeting with Rahimi, Teh asked what was the connection between the meeting and what had transpired on June 26. He also said that Rosmah in her affidavit had denied ever meeting Saiful.

Adding to this argument, Solicitor General Mohamed Yusof Zainal Abiden said that nowhere in Anwar’s affidavit did he state what relevant evidence did Najib and Rosmah have in order for them to testify in court.

“(Anwar) has to show that Najib and Rosmah have in their possession relevant evidence to cause them to testify in court. In both affidavits, nothing has been stated on what is the relevant or material evidence (that they possess) that is significant and essential to help the court come up with a decision,” he said.

“Not only does he have to show the evidence, he must show the evidence which will effect and influence the court’s decision and that the respondent (Anwar) has failed,” he added.

Important to know what transpired at meetings

Anwar’s lawyer Karpal Singh argued that Najib had admitted meeting Saiful for half an hour, and this was “quite a period of time” during which they must have discussed other matters which may be relevant to the trial.

He added that since clarification and explanation over the meetings were sought, and both Najib and Rosmah had declined to be interviewed by Anwar’s counsel on Aug 12, a subpoena was the only way to obtain more information.

“We wanted to know from the prime minister of what transpired during this time,” he said.

He also said that it was ‘mind-boggling” that Saiful, merely two days after receiving advice from Najib to lodge a police report on Anwar’s alleged actions, would allow himself to be sodomised again on June 26.

“Surely, one would follow the advice of a personality of no mean rank,” he said.

On Rosmah, Karpal argued that investigating officer DSP Jude Blacious Pereira had given evidence in the trial that a statement under section 112 of the Criminal Code Procedure (CPC) had been recorded from Rosmah.

Karpal said that under Section 112, she was “suppose to have been acquainted with the facts and circumstance of the case” against Anwar. Hence it was bona fide to ask Rosmah to appear in court.

Last month, Najib and Rosmah were subpoenaed by Anwar’s defence team to appear as defence witnesses.

On Sept 21, Najib and Rosmah filed the applications to set aside the subpoenas, which was heard before the trial judge today.

Anwar, 64, claimed trial on Aug 7, 2008, to committing carnal intercourse against the order of nature at the Desa Damansara Condominium in Bukit Damansara between 3.10pm and 4.30pm on June 26, 2008.

Anwar’s trial meanwhile will continue tomorrow.

Indians need affirmative action

Premier Najib Tun Razak's programmes targetting the Indian community is too focused on 'giving out handouts', says Denison Jayasooria.

INTERVIEW

 

PETALING JAYA: The Malaysian Indian community which comprise less than 10% of the Malaysia’s 27 million population has always cried discrimination even from as far back as the 1970s when the New Economic Policy (NEP) was introduced to, primarily, help improve the lot of the Malays.

Since independence and despite lacking in numbers and economic strength, the Malaysian Indian community has struggled to make their plight heard while giving its undivided support to the Barisan Nasional (BN) government.

But in 2008, the community finally lost its patience and gave their votes to the opposition in the 12th general election.

This caused the BN to lose its customary two-thirds hold in the Parliament. The community gave the opposition Pakatan Rakyat coalition historic wins in five states.

Their swing to the opposition proved that the Indian votes are a force to be reckoned with and should never be taken for granted any longer.

In a recent interview, former Yayasan Strategik Sosial (YSS) director Denison Jayasooria shared his thoughts on the issues plaguing the Indian community and ways to address their plight.

Understanding Indians

For starters, he said, the government must understand that the Indian community is not a homogenous group.

“There are socio-economic, historical and cultural differences within the community itself,” said Denison.

He said the government should prioritise helping Indians who come under the low income category.
This group, he said, consisted of mainly former plantations workers or their descendants.

Denison explained that when plantation land were taken away for massive development projects in the 80s, the community was forced to move to urban areas.

Lacking the necessary skills to live in high density areas, the community’s social support system slowly deteriorated and eventually broke down as they were unable to fend for themselves.

“While political parties and non-governmental organisations did try to help, it was not enough to mitigate the adverse effects caused by the displacements, rendering them marginalised and disadvantaged,” said Denison.

Needs of minorities ignored by some

Being low income earners also poured fuel into the fire as the Indian youths felt helpless. Many turned to crime to earn a living.

To help them, Denison said the government should moot an affirmative action plan to assist the minority groups in the country.

“And the plan should include all low income earners such as the aborigines and the indigenous people from East Malaysia.

“The aid must be given on a needs basis,” said Denison.
He added that although the NEP was originally crafted to address this issue, over time, the needs of the minority were ignored by certain institutions.

He added that under the premiership of Najib Tun Razak, the government had introduced many programmes through the YSS, the social wing of MIC and the newly minted Special Implementation Taskforce which comes under the purview of the Prime Minister’s Department..

However, Denison said, the programmes are very much politicised and were more focused on dishing out handouts to the community.

“What the community really needs is a comprehensive plan to break away from the cycle of poverty,” said Denison.

Need for better access 

For starters, Denison said, the community needs better access to pre-school programmes and more education and skills training opportunities.

“The Indians also need comprehensive training on how to start a business and easier access to micro credit schemes,” he said.

Denison also lauded the Pakatan-led state governments for mooting their own projects to address the needs of the Indian community.

“States like Selangor and Penang have included Indian civil society leaders as local councillors and direct allocations have been made to help the community there,” said Denison.

However, he admitted the programmes would take time to bear fruit as there is no shortcut to solve problems plaguing the community for decades.

“But I’m optimistic that Indian community would overcome these hurdles sooner or later,” he said.

Khalid Samad on Hudud and Heroes of Independence

Women Appear on India Inc's Radar

Anything men can do, I can do better

Companies finally look at a major untapped talent resource
Corporate India, facing a looming talent crunch, is reversing historical gender discrimination against women in a concerted drive to augment their female headcount.

Companies are not only bringing in more women, they are also trying to retain the existing lot in novel and more proactive ways. A recent study by the Chennai-based FLEXI Careers India, which sources only women executives, suggests that diversity hiring intent among leading companies has gone up by almost 500 percent since last year.

That is a dramatic reversal from 2001, when the census found that most women remained outside the organized sector, with women making up only 2.3 percent of administrators and managers as well as only 20.5 percent of professional and technical. Women suffer enormous disparities in the wider society. According to a report by the Insead graduate business school, 2010 literacy rates for women – crucial for representation in the workforce -- were 53.67 percent, lagging those for men at 75.26 percent

The multinationals are at the forefront of attempts to reverse these figures. Software giant IBM India, for instance, is conducting women-only recruitment drives across different Indian cities several times a year. The organization has hired more than 2,000 women workers in the past two years, pushing up the organization’s total tally of female workers from 24 percent to 26 percent.

Companies like Hindustan Unilever Ltd., Godrej Industries, PepsiCo India, Genpact, Kraft, Procter & Gamble (P&G) and Deutsche Bank, among others have also stepped up their gender diversity hiring. The sectors actively recruiting women include telecoms, retail, outsourcing and knowledge processing firms, and pharmaceutical research companies.

Energy management company Schneider Electric, 50 percent of whose employees are blue-collar workers, has also pushed up its women’s headcount from 9 percent in 2009 to a still-modest 20 percent this year. Banking and financial services, hospitality, media and consulting too, are seeking to drive up female employee numbers. The flexibility of work hours and work-from-home options introduced by various IT firms has been a major factor in hiring and retaining women.

The food and beverage conglomerate Kraft has gone a step ahead by hiring women for what were hitherto “male-specific” jobs: finance, legal and frontline, modern trade roles. At IBM, more women are opting for positions in technology and product development.

The drive to hire women makes sense considering there is a worldwide shortage of job-seekers with industry-specific training, both male and female, but it is an overwhelming issue in Asia. Common sense dictates that more women be trained in fields where demand for talent is high.

"As corporations face increased global competition from everywhere, they must build growth and drive strategy,” says Arjun Sabharwal, human resources director of Compscope, a Delhi-based IT company. “India Inc wants more women on its rolls, not because it's fashionable, but because it makes good business sense. This creates the need for experts with diverse skill sets. The best ideas flourish in a diverse environment, and companies benefit from accessing female talent.”

Companies are increasingly endorsing healthy male-female ratios coupled with being equal opportunity providers. More and more women are actively participating in career enhancement and growth within the corporate world --hence pushing boundaries of their career span further.

According to a Global Asia report “The Secret to Asia's Long-term Prosperity? Improving Roles for Women at Work” by David Arkless, Asian women are among the most under-utilized assets in today's labor market. Limits on women's participation in the workforce across the Asia-Pacific region cost the economy an estimated US$89 billion a year.

Increasing the number of women in the workforce, suggests the report, “will not only stimulate greater economic growth; it would provide a model for gender parity in all regions of the world.”

The study also suggests that bringing more women into the workforce is a necessary and vital step for companies to thrive in today's cutthroat competition. “A swelling women’s workforce will accelerate economic growth, reduce poverty, improve health care and social programs and ensure greater social well-being across the region.”

According to the global HR consultancy Hewitt Associates, a majority of Indian companies, particularly those in infrastructure and energy sectors, are keen on a women’s-only recruitment drive in the next few quarters.

Analysts say that despite eagerness to hire women in India, their presence at senior management echelons is hardly noticeable as most quit long before reaching the top rungs. A study by Women in Leadership (WILL) Forum underscores that far fewer women are in senior positions in Indian companies compared with multinational firms.

Western companies in the country still remain several notches higher in having women-friendly policies. The WILL study states that Indian banks like Axis Bank had 21 percent women participation in its total workforce. In comparison, 43 percent of total staff strength in American Express’s work force of 5,500 are women. The study also shows that 84 percent of Indian subsidiaries of multinationals have adopted women's advancement strategies compared with only 37 percent of India-headquartered companies.

What do the male candidates have to say about their organization’s female-centric HR policies? While many welcome the move, others are not so sure.

“There's a price to be paid for diversity. Women often have to manage both home and office in India, while men do not,” says Kumar Bhasin, an entrepreneur and former Infosys employee. “If we want them to compete on equal terms, we will have to provide for a handicap else it won’t be a level playing field.”

Says another male employee, “By giving precedence to men, we lose out on the thoughts, perspectives and rich ideas that women can bring to the table. This thought process encourages an unbalanced, male-centric society.”

However, most employees are unambiguous that though diversity makes for a good HR policy, it shouldn't be practiced just for the sake of meeting a quota requirement. “Diversity is about having a healthy mix and being inclusive in your thinking,” Sabharwal said. “It shouldn’t be at the cost of ruling out meritorious male candidates.”

(Neeta Lal is a New Delhi-based senior journalist)

Najib’s ISA Replacement Laws Are Against Democratic Norms

I refer to Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak’s statement in the Dewan Rakyat today that the two new laws intended to replace the ISA will ” provide a balance between civil liberties and safeguarding public order.” This is a hollow and misleading statement designed to persuade the people of this country that detention without trial is necessary, and that their fundamental freedoms will be protected. It is important to remember that under the new ISA replacement laws, preventive detention will be allowed for both terrorism and public order threats. The PM in his September 15 speech cited the United States and United Kingdom as examples of countries allowing preventive detention. This was frankly dishonest of the Prime Minister. In contrast with Najib’s proposed new laws, the US and UK do not allow preventive detention on public order grounds; both countries allow very limited preventive detention in suspected terrorism cases only. In the US only non-citizens can be held without trial as in the case of the notorious Guantanamo Bay detention facility. The United States constitution absolutely prohibits security-related preventive detention. As such Najib’s new preventive detention law on public order grounds has no parallel in countries like the US, UK, Australia or Canada. It is aberrant in a democracy and anathema to the rule of law.

As regards terrorism laws, it should be noted that the UK, Australia and Canada anti-terrorism provisions are extremely limited. In Australia, detention is only allowed in the case of an ” imminent terrorist act” and limited to 14 days. Anti-terrorist laws in the UK allow up to 14 days detention, whereas Canada allowed preventive detention only for 72 hours. Even these limited preventive laws have come under severe criticism in the respective countries.The trend in the West is to progressively reduce preventive detention powers. There has been no preventive detention law in Canada since 2007, when the Canadian parliament acted on principle and refused to renew it. In the UK, the previous detention limit of 28 days was reduced to 14 days earlier this year. In short, there are no ISA-like anti-terrorist laws existing in advanced Western countries post- 9/11. This is a deliberately distorted picture advanced by many BN leaders, including the Prime Minister in his September 15 speech, in order to justify the continued existence of detention without trial laws in Malaysia. Trying to justify detention without trial on public order grounds, by vague and inaccurate references to terrorism laws in the West is unprincipled and unbecoming in a sitting Prime Minister. In any case, the terrorism threat can be combated by tightening existing penal laws that target terrorism related activities, and by good police and intelligence work. The PM and his Cabinet must urgently reverse the government’s intention to replace the ISA with two new preventive detention laws and repeal Article 149 of the Federal Constitution. All laws passed by our nation’s Parliament must be consistent with the rule of law and and international legal norms.

Issued by,

N SURENDRAN
VICE PRESIDENT
KEADILAN

Press freedom, a la MCA

by Thomas Lee Seng Hock
COMMENT

MCA president Chua Soi Lek has declared that his party wants the current restrictive and oppressive Printing Presses and Publications Act scrapped, to keep up with the increasing public demands for more openness and freedom of expression.

Chua said at the recently concluded 58th MCA annual general assembly that the aspirations of the new generation of Malaysians for a more liberal and democratic society means that the Barisan Nasional government should be bold and confident enough to dump the intolerable piece of harsh and authoritarian legislation, not just make amendments to it.

“We must work towards abolishing the Printing Presses and Publications Act and set a time frame for that. The government has to be bold and confident enough to take such a step,” he said.

Chua pointed out that there is no level playing field now in the communication and information arena between the traditional main stream media (MSM) and the fast expanding and influential cyber media.

“The print media is subject to various laws, but the new media seem to have a free hand. There should be no such discrimination,” he said.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak had announced in his Malaysia Day message to the nation on 16 September 2011 that the Barisan Nasional administration would amend the Printing Presses and Publications Act to exempt newspaper publishers from the current mandatory obligationto apply for a new printing permit annually.

The MCA proposal to go beyond just making adjustment to the intensely unacceptable and undesirable legislation iscertainly commendable and deserving of praise and support.

But, an honest and objective look at the current attitude, policy and practice of the party in the area of press freedom surely exposes the hollowness of the Chua proposal, and the insincerity,and even hypocrisy, of the party leadership.

If Chua and the MCA are truly and sincerely in favour and supportive of the real and pragmatic practice of press freedom, advocating the unrestrictive, unregulated, and unreserved media culture in the country, then the very first thing the MCA must do is to divest itself totally of its control of The Star and other related publications, by selling its shares in these media companies to the general public. At the same time,the party must remove all political appointees currently running the editorial operation of The Star and the party-controlled Chinese newspapers.

Chua Soi Lek should shut up about the issue of press freedom if he is not able to make the MCA give up the control of The Star and other newspapers it currently owns.

The political control of the nation’snewspapers is surely the most glaring and conspicuous of a bad press culture,of which the MCA is among the top two culprits, the other being Umno which controls the Utusan Malaysia and other Bahasa Melayu newspapers.

Chua Soi Lek wants to project himself as one who believes in and advocates the practice of a free press culture, yet he is not prepared to lift the political control and abuse of the newspapers owned by the party.

If The Star can publish in full Chua’s presidential address at the MCA assembly, it should also publish in full the policy message of DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng, if it is truly a free and independent paper, with the catchphrase tagline “The People’s Paper”.

The political slant in its news reporting and political commentaries is very obvious. Anything spoken by the MCA bosses must be published in full, while anything from the DAP or other opposition groups, especially those critical of the MCA, will not see the light of day.

Editors at the MCA-control newspapers practise self-censorship to ensure nothing detrimental to the party and its leaders is published. Such a bad press culture in these newspapers is largely responsible for the eroding of the independence and freedom of the media in our nation.

I challenge Chua Soi Lek to walk the talk on the matter of press freedom by freeing The Star and the MCA-owned Chinese newspapers from the party control. The test of his credibility and sincerity is not just in the talk advocating a free press culture, but in a determined, decisive, and deconstructive effort to deactivate the political control and abuse of The Star and other MCA-owned newspapers.

Until Chua Soi Lek liberates The Star and other MCA-control newspapers, he has no moral right to talk about the freedom of the press and freedom of expression.

Public Seminar on the Abolition of the Death Penalty in Malaysia

Bar Council together with Delegation of the EU to Malaysia and SUHAKAM will hold a public seminar titled "The Abolition of the Death Penalty in Malaysia". This is the first public seminar under the Anti-Death Penalty Campaign. To learn more about this issue, please come and attend the seminar which will be held as follows:

Date: 13 Oct 2011 (Thursday)

Time: 3:00 pm to 7:30pm

Venue: Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre, Kuala Lumpur City Centre, 50088 Kuala Lumpur

For more details or to register, please contact Adi Irman (03-2050 2102; adi@malaysianbar.org.my) or Adilah Ariffn (03-2050 2091; adilah@malaysianbar.org.my) or click here to download Circular No 187/2011 dated 25 Aug 2011.

Najib, Rosmah Not Relevant Witnesses To Anwar's Sodomy Trial - Counsel

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 3 (Bernama) -- Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak and wife, Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor, were not relevant or material witnesses in Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's ongoing sodomy trial, the High Court heard Monday.

Counsel Hisyam Teh Poh Teik, representing Najib and Rosmah, said although the first applicant (Najib) in his affidavit in support, admitted that he had met complainant Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan on June 24, 2008, two days before the alleged offence, there was no connection and nexus to the charge faced by the respondent (Anwar).

"We agree with the contention of the respondent (Anwar) that he has the right to subpeona both Najib and Rosmah, but at the same time, the applicants also have the right to come to court in setting aside the subpeonas," he argued.

Citing several case laws in relation to material witness, Hisyam said Anwar had no legal right to call witnesses who did not have in their possession, any material evidence.

Referring to Najib's affidavit to support his application to set aside the subpoena, he said the charge faced by Anwar was on the alleged incident on June 26, 2008 and therefore, whatever transpired between Najib and Mohd Saiful during a meeting at his residence in Taman Duta, two days earlier (June 24), was not relevant to the case.

In the application filed on Sept 29, Najib and Rosmah sought the High Court to set aside the subpeona and stressed there was no conspiracy whatsoever, against Anwar, nor did they instruct anyone to fabricate incriminating evidence against the accused.

"It's our submission that it is just a 'fishing expedition' and abuse of the court process on the part of the first respondent and therefore, the court should allow the applicants' applications in setting aside the subpeonas," said Hisyam.

He submitted that it was very clear that the purpose of the two subpoenas was clarification and confirmation for Najib and Rosmah on what transpired during the meeting with Mohd Saiful.

"The law, as it stands, allows both the applicants to have the subpoenas set aside, if the party requesting the subpoenas to be issued, cannot pass the twin tests of relevancy and materiality," he added.

Karpal Singh, in his submission, told the court that the purpose for subpoena was for clarification on Mohd Saiful's visit and meeting with the then deputy prime minister.

He said Najib's former special officer, Datuk Khairul Anaz Jusoh, during the witness interview on May 25, this year, had told the defence counsel that Najib and Mohd Saiful's meeting lasted for an hour.

Karpal said the time was quite substantial and the defence wanted to know what actually transpired.

"Such evidence would be, it is emphasised, relevant and material. It is submitted that the application by Anwar is bona fide and does not constitute abuse of process of court nor oppression against the prime minister. The right of the party to the attendance of a witness is a crucial part of the judicial system," he said.

Solicitor-General II Datuk Mohamed Yusof Zainal Abiden, representing the second respondent (prosecution) supported Hisyam's submissions.

He said Anwar had to show the court the relevant evidence in Najib and Rosmah's possession, but failed to do so.

He said the relevant or material evidence was essential to influence the court to arrive at a decision.

Najib, in his affidavit affirmed on Sept 23, this year, had confirmed he had met Mohd Saiful on June 24, 2008, about 8.30pm at his residence where Mohd Saiful had told him he was sodomised by first respondent (Anwar).

He also stated that he had told Mohd Saiful to leave the matter for police investigations.

Najib said that since he had no knowledge or information from the complainant on the alleged incident on June 26, 2008, he could not assist Anwar in his defence.

He said the subpoena obtained by Anwar was malafide and an abuse of the court process.

Rosmah, in her affidavit affirmed on Sept 21, said she never met or spoke to Mohd Saiful at anytime, and therefore, she could not give any information or evidence on any issue raised by the defence.

Anwar, 64, pleaded not guilty in the Sessions Court on Aug 7, 2008, to committing carnal intercourse against the order of nature at the Desa Damansara Condominium in Bukit Damansara between 3.10pm and 4.30pm on June 26, the same year.

The trial judge, Justice Datuk Mohamad Zabidin Mohd Diah, set Thursday for decision on the application.

Chemistry Department director-general Lim Kong Boon will testify at the main trial which resumes tomorrow.