Najib goes after voters with fistfuls of cash in populist elections Budget

UPDATE 6 As expected, Prime Minister Najib Razak unveiled a Budget 2012 stashed with cash goodies aimed to lure voters back to the BN fold, but it was immediately shot down not just by opposition but also by financial experts who gawked at his overly rosy economic projections.
In Budget 2012, Najib forecast GDP growth of 5 to 6% while the deficit was to drop to 4.7% from a projected 5.4% in 2011.
“That’s a pretty bullish outlook relative to the street and relative to ourselves as well. We’re looking at 4 per cent this year and 4.2 per cent next year. Second-half growth has to turn up to 5.5 per cent to average even 5 per cent. So that looks a bit optimistic from my view,” Hak Bin Chua from Merrill Lynch Bank of America told Reuters.
Faking it with overblown growth projections, no details on where money to come from

But Najib, who is also Finance minister, may have no choice. If he did not 'fake' his projections, there may not be enough to finance the plans he unveiled. There were no details as to where the money would come from other than the plucked-from-the-air increase in GDP growth that was noted and panned by banking and financial experts.
"Perhaps the most worrying is that Malaysians are like the proverbial frog in the hot soup, where the frog does not realise the soup is slowly but surely reaching the boiling point," Tony Pua, the DAP MP for Petaling Jaya Utara, said in an immediate reaction.
"We may not yet be facing the crisis of Greek proportions, but Budget 2012 is doing very little to avert such eventuality, leaving the Malaysian economy nakedly exposed to the inevitability."
Buttering up Felda settlers and the civil service
On Friday, the scandal-tained 58-year-old Najib presented a RM232 billion budget, with RM181.6bil for management and RM51.2bil for development. He also announced the much-anticipated listing of Felda Global Ventures, promising a 'windfall' for all settlers - who now number some 2 million in total, including their children and grandchildren. Obviously, the Felda folk will form  a crucial and core voting bloc for his Umno party.
There were no individual or corporate tax cuts as speculated, despite plans to launch an unpopular and hefty Goods and Services Tax or GST after the 13th General Election.
Najib also increased employers’ contribution for the Employees Provident Fund from 12% to 13% for those earning RM5,000 and below.This obviously is good for the employee but puts more money into the EPF, which has come under fire for questionable loans to government-linked firms and agencies, such as the recent and unannounced RM6billion loan to Felda.
He also announced an additional half-month salary bonus, with a minimum of RM500 for government pensioners, to be paid together with the December 2011 salary. So, for the whole of 2011, including previously declared bonuses, a total RM1,000 minimum has been announced for civil servants and government pensioners. This will benefit some 1.3 million civil servants, 618,000 pensioners and will cost the government RM4 billion.
“Najib has promised everything on earth but he doesn’t talk about increasing revenues or transparency. It is unrealistic. It is clearly an election ploy. In the last 10 years, growth, deficit and foreign investment figures have always been proven to be wrong,” Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim said in an immediate response to reporters.
Wooing back lower income group hit by subsidy cuts
For the lower-income groups, who have been upset at his slashing of subsidies for consumer essentials including petrol, cooking gas and sugar, rather than touch the RM19 billion gas subsidies given to crony-Independent Power Producers, Najib unabashedly courted them fistfuls of cash.
He announced a one-off RM500 cash assistance for households earning 3,000 per month and below, which will set the government back RM1.8 billion to benefit 3.4 milliion households, a one-off RM100 schooling assistance for primary and secondary school students from age 6 to 16, up to Form 5, which will cost taxpayers RM530 million, and a one-off RM200 book vouchers for students of private and public tertiary institution for Form 6 students, costing RM260 million.
EPF would also be allowed to ring fence RM1,300 from Account 2 of contributors for the purpose of pilgrimage to Mecca. The money will stay with the contributors, while they register for the Haj, which can a very long waiting list.
"It is very simple to tell whether or not it is an election ploy - just look at the number of one-off cash assistance. Najib is looking to buy GE-13 but my feeling is Malaysians are smarter. They should take the money, which actually comes from the tax that they or their parents pay, and then make sure the BN is booted out once and for all before they bankrupt Malaysia," PKR vice president Tian Chua told Malaysia Chronicle.
Main projects in 2012
Total revenue for 2012 was forecast to increase 1.9% to RM186.9bil and the deficit to decrease to 4.7% of GDP from 5.4% in 2011. Najib also set aside RM29.8bil for investment in infrastructure, industrial and rural development and RM13.6bil for the social sector, including education and training, welfare, housing and community development.
The PM, who had to put on hold his New Economic Model after heated protest from hardliners in his Umno party, also announced plans to "focus on accelerating investment and further liberalise 17 services sub-sectors, in places enabling 100% foreign equity." However, given that he did not immediately detail the sectors, these are expected to be non-critical and little-demanded sectors.
Among main projects to be implemented in 2012 are the East Coast from Jabor to Terengganu and road upgrades from Kota Marudu to Ranau. RM18bil of the RM20bil PPP Facilitation Fund will be used for high impact projects, with RM2 billion for bumiputera entrepreneurs. The government will also allocate RM978mil to accelerate the development in five regional corridors namely, Coastal Highway JB-Nusa Jaya,Taiping Heritage tourism project, Besut agropolitan project, Lahad Datu palm oil cluster project and water supply in Samalaju.
The Treasury Management Centre will be established and offer incentives to develop M'sia as a competitive financial centre. The Kuala Lumpur International Financial District will also kick off, with incentives including income tax exemptions for firms.
Property tax up, school fees abiolished
Real property gains tax was also raised from 5% to 10% if sold within 2 years; if sold between 2-5 years, it would stay at 5%; if sold after 5 years, it would be zero. RPGT was set at a 5% flat rate for properties disposed of within five years of purchase since April 1, 2007.
All primary and secondary school fees were to be abolished beginning with 2012 school term. This will cost the government RM150 million. Education would be allocated RM50.2 billion, of which RM1.9 billion for all schools, including mission and vernacular schools, RM1 billion for upgrade of schools premises (RM500 million for SRK, RM100 million for SRJK (Chinese), RM100 mil SRJK (Tamil), RM10 million for mission schools, RM100 million for Sekolah Agama Bantuan, RM100 million to MRSM - Mara secondary schools).
For the rural sector, Felda again walked away with the biggest goodies. Najib promised a RM400 million upgrade of water supply system in Pahang, Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu.
He also set aside RM150 million for rural public transportation via SME bank for bus companies in low interest loans of 4% interest, and RM90 million for the Orang Asli for basic needs, including treated water and income generation, RM20 million for the community affected by Cameron Highlands landslide.
The civil service were not left out, with teachers receining the lion's share. Teachers will now get 'time-based pay rise schemes', so teachers can go up the ladder faster. Effectively, it was an annual pay rise from RM80 to RM320 according to grade, or up 7-13%.
Senior citizens won't have to pay outpatient fees at all government hospitals and clinics. 50% discount on LRT and monorail.

Budget 2012 fails to live up to the Prime Minister’s reform pledges in NEM, GTP and ETP

Media Statement by Tony Pua, DAP National Publicity Secretary and Member of Parliament for Petaling Jaya Utara in Kuala Lumpur

The expectations were high for a pre-election budget where Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak will stamp his “reformist” credentials. It is for the Prime Minister to put into action the various reform pledges made in his cornerstone policy blueprints – the New Economic Model (NEM), Government Transformation Programme (GTP) and the Economic Transformation Programme (ETP).

However, the announcement of the budget left much to be desired as little has changed beyond tweaking the budget of the previous financial year. Instead what is perhaps the most worrying is that Malaysians are like the proverbial frog in the hot soup – where the frog does not realise the soup is slowly but surely reaching the boiling point.

We may not yet be facing the crisis of Greek proportions, but Budget 2012 is doing very little to avert such eventuality, leaving the Malaysian economy nakedly exposed to the inevitability.

Federal Government Debt

Our Federal Government debt has increased rapidly from RM242 billion in 2004 to RM363 billion in 2009 and RM456 billion in 2011. That represents a marked 88.4% increase in debt over the past 7 years. It is also an increase of 25.6% or nearly RM100 billion over 2 years.

The increase in debt has increased the pressure on reigning in our budget deficit as our annual debt service commitments have increased to RM20.5 billion next year from only half the amount 5 years ago in 2007.

While our federal government debt to GDP ratio is still at a moderate 53.8%, a far cry from Greece’s 117%, we are not far from Spain’s 64% or Ireland’s 67%, both of whom are facing economic turbulence of their own.

Our debt levels will only worsen in the next few years as we embark on record levels of infrastructure spending such as the RM53 billion Klang Valley MRT project which is expected to be funded entirely on debt.

Wages and Pensions

At the same time, our public sector expenditure is increasingly mirroring that of the European countries with ballooning civil service obligations. The budgeted expenditure for wages and pensions for 2012 is a whopping RM64.1 billion, an increase of RM6.2 billion or 10.8% budgeted for 2011. The increase is even more worrying when contrasted against the budgeted RM36.9 billion 2007, a 73.7% increase in just 5 years.

The GTP had promised a more efficient and cost effective government and civil service. What we are seeing from the Budget is only on which is indebting our children, entrenching our structural problems and very weak expenditure controls.

Economic Growth

Despite the Governments efforts in the ETP, our manufacturing and export statistics paint a starkly different picture.

Our export sector grew a miserly 2.7% in 2011 against 13.2% in 2010. However, we should be further alarmed by the fact that the growth was a result of increased contributions from exports of rubber, paper, textiles, clothes and shoes which grew in excess of 15%, and the petroleum products by 9.3%. Our electrical and electronics sector, which constitutes 26.4% of our total exports industry shrunk by 4.9% in 2011.

From the above indicators, there appears to be a shift away from higher value-added export sectors to the primary products industry such as rubber, wood, textiles and crude oil. This is the exact reverse of what we are trying to achieve via the ETP.

Budget deficit

Based on the Economic Report, we are expected to meet our deficit target of 5.4% for this year only because our revenues had grown beyond the expected in the 2010 budget due to very strong commodity prices. The Government has managed to collect RM21.1 billion of extra revenue on top of the originally budget RM165.8 billion. If not for the unexpected increase in government revenue, our budget deficit would have been a shocking 7.9%.

The Government is planning a 4.7% deficit for 2012, a figure which doesn’t give hope that the 2.5% deficit target promised by Najib can be met by 2015. Even then, based on poor expenditure controls and the habitual ad hoc expenditure patterns of past BN governments, even meeting the 4.7% target will be a challenge, especially if commodity prices were to fall below expectations next year.

Optimistic projections

Finally, despite having achieved on 4.2% growth in the first half of 2011, and a slowing global economy in the face of another potential economic crisis, the Government has retained its unrealistic growth assumptions of 5.0 to 5.5%. To meet the target, Malaysia’s economy will have to grow by at least 5.7% in the 2nd half of the year, which is highly optimistic to say the least.

The Federal Government’s unrealistic expectations coupled with a budget which failed to demonstrate substantive reforms and political will for change makes the 2012 budget a highly disappointing and puts in serious doubt our ability to become a high income nation as aspired in Najib’s New Economic Model.

Wide-Ranging Perks To Strengthen Domestic Economy In 2012 Budget

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak when tabling 2012 Budget in Parliament today.Pic: fotoBernamaKUALA LUMPUR, Oct 7 (Bernama) -- Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak today unveiled the 2012 Budget, providing a gamut of incentives to further strengthen the domestic economy, a RM6 billion special stimulus package, perks to attract investments and boost the Islamic sukuk market, banking, finance and hospitality industries, as well as much-awaited support for small-and medium- scale enterprises.

Najib, who is also Finance Minister, also announced that Felda Global Ventures Holdings will be listed by mid-next year to raise funds for the land development agency to emerge as a global conglomerate as well as income tax exemptions to accelerate development of the Kuala Lumpur International Financial District (KLIFD).

"The listing will create another blue chip plantation company besides attracting international investors to Bursa Malaysia," he said when tabling 2012 Budget in Parliament today.

In clearly keeping the wheels well-oiled in Malaysia's economic transformation process, Najib said 17 services sub-sectors will be liberalised besides an allocation of RM2.5 billion under the public-private partnership (PPP) facilitation fund with RM300 million for Bumiputera entrepreneurs.

To accelerate development of the five regional corridors, the government will allocate RM978 million including an agropolitan scheme in Besut, Terengganu, and a palm oil industrial cluster project in Lahad Datu, Sabah, and Samalaju water supply project in Sarawak.

In efforts to woo multinational corporations and establish treasury management services, the government has proposed an income tax exemption of 70 per cent for five years, witholding tax exemption on interest payments on borrowings and stamp duty exemption on loans and service agreements.

Najib said the 2012 Budget will cost RM232.8 billion, of which RM181.6 billion is for operating expenditure and RM51.2 billion for development.

Of the development expenditure, RM29.8 billion is provided for the economic sector to support infrastructure needs, industry, agriculture and rural development.

As for the KLIFD, Najib proposed a 100 per cent income tax exemtpion for 10 years and stamp duty exemption on loans and service agreements for KLIFD-status companies, an industrial building allowance and accelerated capital allowance for KLIFD marquee-status companies and income tax exemption of 70 per cent for five years for property developers in the district.

Turning to sukuk (Islamic bond) market, which has emerged as a feather in the cap for Malaysia's Islamic finance, the Prime Minister said a tax deduction on expenses incurred for "sukuk wakala" will be given for a three-year period from 2012 to encourage more sukuk issuances.

"The income tax exemption given for non-ringgit sukuk issuance and transaction is extended for another three years until the year of assessment 2014," he said.

He also said the I-VCAP, a subsidiary of Valuecap Sdn Bhd, will provide RM200 million as seed money for shariah-compliant exchange traded funds (ETF) which will see the fund provide a matching loan subject to a maximum of RM20 million.

The prime minister also said the full exemption of import and excise duties on hybrid and electric cars given to franchise holders will be extended to end-2013.

Realising the importance of small and medium enterprises to the country's economy, Najib said a RM2 billion shariah-compliant SME Financing Fund will be established next year, which will be managed by selected Islamic banks.

The government will finance two per cent of the profit rate.

To prevent entrepreneurs succumb to failure due to economic recession and higher costs, he said the government will provide RM100 million for the SME Revitalisation Fund.

In addition, he said, the goverment will also establish a RM10 million SME Emergency Fund to help them affected by natural disasters so that they can recover and restart their businesses quickly.

Najib said the franchise fees borne by local franchisees will be allowed tax deduction in efforts to develop the local franchise industry and Malaysian brands.

He said Pulau Langkawi will be redeveloped with the Langkawi Five Year Tourism Development Master Plan to be launched with an allocation of RM420 million to be used to restructure the Langkawi Development Authority, set up a park rangers unit, upgrade museums, beaches and small businesses as well as provide a more efficient transportation system.

Hotel operators in Peninsular Malaysia investing in new four and five-star hotels will be given pioneer status with 70 per cent income tax exemption or 60 per cent investment tax allowance for five years.

In efforts not to jeopardise the ability of low-and middle-income groups to buy houses, Najib said the real property gains tax (RPGT) will be reviewed, whereby for properties held and disposed within two years, the RPGT rate is 10 per cent and five per cent for properties held for more than two years and up to five years.

"I am confident the revised RPGT rates are low and will not affect genuine property owners and will curb speculative activities," he said.

He also announced a RM100 million allocation for creativity and innovation of which RM30 million will be used to establish the Market Validation Fund to be managed by the Malaysian Technology Development Corporation together with the Malaysia Innovation Agency.

The Prime Minister said a Gross National Income of more than RM30 billion will be generated by 2020 from commercialisation of some 300 intellectual properties in the form of new products and technology from universities by the private sector.

To enable SMEs to commercialise research products, the government will establish a shariah-compliant Commercialisation Innovation Fund totalling RM500 million with an attractive profit margin.

"Effective 2012, this fund will be available at selected Islamic banks with the government financing two per cent of the profit rate", he said.

Bank Simpanan Nasional (BSN) will provide RM100 million for soft loans with four per cent interest including stamp duty exemption to encourage professionals such as lawyers, doctors and accountants to set up firms in small towns as part of the government's Rural Transformation Programme, he said.

Besides this, he said, the Rubber Industry Smallholders' Development Authority (Risda) will implement new planting and rubber replanting programmes with an allocation of RM140 million which will benefit 20,000 smallholders.

Najib also said the government will continue to implement rural infrastructure projects with an allocation of RM500 million, which will give opportunities for 29,000 Class "F" contractors.

To ease inflation and enhance the people's well-being, the Prime Minister said RM1.1 billion will be set aside next year for the development of agriculture in Terengganu, Sabah and Sarawak.

A RM300 million allocation will be provided to expand the scope of the Commercial Agriculture Fund to include innovative agriculture projects, a move which will increase the number and income of agropreneurs.

Other measures to ease rising costs and prices and lighten the people's burden include increasing the number of Kedai Rakyat 1Malaysia (KR1M) nationwide next year, offering 250 types of 1Malaysia products which are up to 40 per cent cheaper than other goods in the market.

The government plans to open 85 KR1M units next year with an allocation of RM40 million.

He said 1Malaysia People's Housing (PR1MA), the sole agency to develop and maintain affordable and quality houses, will develop several plots of government-owned land around Sungai Besi and Sungai Buloh, while identifying areas in the vicinity of mass rapid transit (MRT) and light rail transit (LRT) areas.

He said next year, 7,700 houses will be built in Cyberjaya, Putra Heights, Seremban, Damansara and Bukit Raja besides 1,880 houses built in Putrajaya and Bandar Tun Razak this year.

"The government will also provide 100 per cent stamp duty exemption on loan instruments to buy houses," he said.

He said the government will continue its noble efforts of rehabilitating abandoned housing schemes with an allocation of RM63 million to revive 1,270 abandoned houses besides RM40 million apportioned for restoration and maintenance of public and private low-cost housing.

To increase home ownership, Employees Provident Fund (EPF) withdrawals for house purchases will be extended to expatriate working in Malaysia, he said.

Permodalan Nasional Bhd together with selected financial institutions will implement Skim Amanah Rakyat 1Malaysia or SARA 1Malaysia for households with income below RM3,000 a month to increase their disposable income and encourage savings.

This is expected to benefit 100,000 households, the prime minister said.

To develop the Bumiputera community, he said, the government will allocate RM200 million for the development of Bumiputera entrepreneurs and contractors to the Rural and Regional Development Ministry.

Najib said the government will set aside RM10 million for training programmes to encourage female professionals to return to work.

He also said RM2.1 billion will be made available for micro financing to entrepreneurs, particularly women, and of this, RM100 million each will be provided for Malaysian Indian and Chinese entrepreneurs through a special unit under Amanah Ikhtiar Malaysia (AIM).

The government has also established MyCreative Venture Capital with an initial RM200 million fund to encourage creative ideas among Malaysians.

"We need to ask, with the stringent financial structure, will the ideas of people like Bill Gates, the late Steve Jobs, Michael Dell, the Wright brothers, Thomas Edison, be successful.

"Ideas worth billions of ringgit may have been wasted," he said in announcing the fund which will remove constraints to financing creative ideas.

The federal government's total revenue next year is expected to increase by 1.9 per cent to RM186.9 billion from RM183.4 billion this year, while the government's deficit in 2012 is set to improve to 4.7 per cent of the gross domestic product from 5.4 per cent this year.

The great Malaysian run-around

By avoiding giving evidence for Sodomy II, Najib has only added to the speculation that he is guilty of involvement in the Saiful-Anwar probe.
COMMENT

Malaysians heaved a collective groan when the Kuala Lumpur High Court threw out the subpoenas served on Prime Ninister Najib Tun Razak and the self-styled “First Lady”, Rosmah Mansor, to testify at Anwar Ibrahim’s Sodomy II trial.

In scenes reminiscent of Sodomy I, Najib will be the second prime minister who has avoided taking the witness stand. The first was Dr Mahathir Mohamad who avoided giving testimony in Anwar’s 1998 trial.

The difference between the two trials is that in Sodomy II, both Najib and Rosmah had been placed on the prosecution witness list, unlike Mahathir in Sodomy I.

The degree of confusion that Malaysians have been subjected to by the trial judge, and the level of mistrust and loss of faith that Malaysians have for its public institutions is unparalleled.

One’s “periuk nasi” is a powerful and motivating factor. For some, integrity, self-respect, belief in the rule of law and equality for all, mean nothing. It is worse when those who have been placed in positions of trust are amoral, such as our judges.

Questions abound. Why were subpoenas issued in the first instance? Why does the judge now claim that the testimonies of this couple are irrelevant because they are not “material witnesses” in the trial?

These questions seem inconsequential when compared with the question of why this sham trial was allowed to proceed and why incompetent chemists were allowed to give evidence.

Anwar’s lawyer, Karpal Singh, said, “The trial judge did not even give reasons for his ruling, especially since he reserved his judgment for days.”

Perhaps when Najib said that he wanted to create “the best democracy in the world”, he meant it, but only for himself and his inner circle.

He and his cronies will be above the law. They need not testify or be made to account for their actions. Uppermost in their minds is the need to suppress evidence which may help others.

Any judgment will invariably be in their favour. Any judgment which goes against them, will ultimately be over-turned. We also learn that judges in the Malaysian judiciary are allowed to get away with plagiarism.

So whilst ordinary Malaysians are ruled by law, and are not at liberty to ignore a subpoena or a summons to appear in court, the Umnoputras are free to roam around like “binatang2 liar”.

The Apco link

That is what it means to live in the fast lane of the Umnoputra elite. Even those who give them patronage also benefit. Responsibility and accountability mean nothing. The rakyat are too meek to act. The paralytic state of our minds and actions are what Umno-BN thrives on.

In December 2010, Najib went all out to prevent Anwar presenting his evidence which would have exposed his close ties with Apco, a US-based firm with strong links to Israel.

Anwar said, “We have all the files, the documents and were ready to face any of their questions. But instead of giving me the chance to defend myself, the BN parliamentarians said they had enough ‘evidence’ to decide whether or not to suspend me.”

In a move which took Anwar and his lawyers by surprise, the Najib administration sprung a surprise in Parliament and authorised the Rights and Privileges Committee, to cancel Anwar’s defence.

They then solely relied on a letter from Apco and barred other witnesses from testifying that “1Malaysia” had been cooked up by Apco.

In the ensuing fracas, Anwar and three of his fellow parliamentarians who came to his defence, were slapped with six-month suspensions from Parliament.

Najib might believe he has escaped censure but the court of public opinion thinks differently. By avoiding giving evidence for Sodomy II, Najib can only have added to the speculation that he is guilty of involvement in the Saiful-Anwar probe.

Najib should note that former British premier Tony Blair was asked to appear at an inquest into the Iraq war while ex-president Bill Clinton had to deal with the Starr investigation, the Paula Jones lawsuit and then the ignominious Clinton-Lewinsky affair.

Both these heads of state came out untarnished. In fact, some claim that their popularities, which had been on the wane, improved after their performances during the court hearings.

Najib may think he has the last word in Malaysian affairs and Malaysia’s lop-sided justice. But will he fare just as well when the Scorpene trials take place in France? France can at least claim to be a country governed by the rule of law.

There are several routes Najib may take if he is served with a subpoena in a French court. He may choose to ignore it and he may be tried in absentia. He might even be found guilty and be issued with an international arrest warrant.

Quest for justice

Perhaps, Najib will take comfort in that President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe is still running free in the world and although he is not welcome in Europe, he is a regular visitor to Malaysia and is alleged to be Mahathir’s good friend.

Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir is another who has managed to evade capture, despite an international arrest warrant on charges of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide.

Thus, the allegations of Rosmah’s intricate dealings in the Middle East might suddenly find credence. After the Jasmine revolution, Leila, the opulent wife of Tunisia’s ex-president Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali, is known to be living a life of luxury, in exile in Saudi Arabia and Dubai.

Now is the time when Malaysians have to stand united and demand that our fight against injustice continues.

We need courage and determination as well as patience to overcome all the obstacles in our way.

A crooked judiciary is something that we can dispense with after the next general election. Will those who triumph guarantee us that?

The quest for justice is not just for Anwar but also for the others who are not among the great and good.

These are the ordinary people, including the marginalised, who have died at the hands of the police, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) or just disappeared under unexplained circumstances.

Mariam Mokhtar is a local political commentator and a FMT columnist.

Appeals Court to decide today on housewife's RM4.1m award

The Sun
by Tan Yi Liang

PUTRAJAYA (Oct 6, 2011): The Court of Appeal will decide tomorrow on an appeal by the A-G’s Chambers against a High Court decision awarding a housewife RM 4.1 million for her husband’s death 11 years ago.

Justice Datuk Seri Abu Samah Nordin, who sat with Justices Datuk Mohd Hishamudin Mohd Yunus and Datuk Aziah Ali , fixed the date after hearing submissions on the appeal filed against the award given to Suzana Md Aris for her husband’s death in police custody on Aug 19, 1999.

A post mortem found that her husband Mohd Anuar Sharip, 31, in all probability, died of bronchopneumonia.

Suzana filed a suit in 2000 against Gombak police chief DSP Ishak Hussain, district CID chief ACP Massari Hashim, then Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Norian Mai and the government.

In October 2009, then-High Court Justice Datuk Kang Hwee Gee ruled that the police were negligent and failed to take reasonable care of Mohd Anuar while he was in their custody.

Girl, eight, sold to Afghan police officer as his bride

Innocence: A three-year-old Afghan girl at her engagement to a cousin aged seven. The law should prohibit child marriages 

Girls are still sold as child brides in Afghanistan, despite laws banning the practice.

Ten years after British forces entered the war-ravaged country, the Standard has uncovered shocking evidence of an eight-year-old girl who was married off to a policeman for cash. She was sold to the officer, in his twenties, in clear breach of laws introduced two years ago to protect women.

She was then the subject of a remarkable battle that symbolises the plight of girls in Afghanistan. Her story vividly highlights the failure to bring about social reforms in the stricken nation, despite the long presence of British forces.

It is revealed ahead of tomorrow's 10th anniversary of the first air strikes on Afghanistan and is a grim reminder of how once-high hopes for democracy, modern justice and social progress there have been dashed.

It also comes a day after David Cameron renewed his promise to withdraw combat troops by the end of 2014. The Standard has been told disturbing details of the case by British advisers who are concerned that the girl is still in danger. They are angry that they are powerless to act.

The child was sold to a member of the Afghan border police, a state employee, within the past year by her father in the southern Helmand district of Garmsir. A price was agreed with the father and the marriage was duly solemnised in a ceremony with a mullah.

This was against Afghan state law on marriage but the ceremony gave legitimacy and status in the eyes of the communities and the families.

It was agreed in the deal that the groom would not have sex with the bride until she had passed puberty. Under current law, the legal lower age for marriage is 16.

After a few months, the father returned to the bridegroom's family to complain. In breach of the contract, the husband had attempted sex with the child bride.


This was referred, with the help of international advisers and counsellors, to the legal authorities.
The public prosecutor and the Haquq, the local arbitrator and a key figure in community justice in Afghanistan, were requested to consider a prosecution against the abusive husband.

"The child was taken into custody," said my source, a governance adviser from the international community.

"She was examined by a US Marine doctor and was found to have been interfered with." At this point, the authorities decided this was a matter not for the law of Afghanistan but community and tribal custom.

The village elders decided that the husband had breached the agreement and so should pay the bigger bride price demanded by the father. They also ruled the child should return to her husband, whatever the risk to her health, happiness and even life.

In Afghanistan, despite the law against child brides, more than half of all girls are married before they turn 15, usually to settle disputes. On my recent visit of just under a month across Afghanistan - the third this year alone - I found that the trading of young girls as brides is far from rare.

"Bride prices" are up to $20,000 and the big payers are those rich in opium, gangsters, middlemen and warlords.

After the case of a three-year-old girl who was being prepared for marriage in October 2007, Afghan officials promised to crack down on the practice.

Tiny Sunam was pictured in a bridal veil as she was promised to her seven-year-old cousin Nieem. But the Standard has learned that such promises have not been honoured.

A Unicef study from 2000 to 2008 found that more than 43 per cent of women in Afghanistan were married under age, some before puberty.

In 2009 Human Rights Watch and Unifem, a UN agency, classified 57 per cent of all brides as under age, which is below 16. Despite the changes in the state law, not much seems to have changed since then because old tribal customs nearly always seem to trump the laws of the land - despite strenuous efforts by government and international agencies to educate tribal elders and local judicial figures, like the judge and the Haquq.

In 2009 an Elimination Of Violence Against Women law was passed. But this has only been implemented in 10 of the 34 provinces.

Now, in addition to concerns about Kabul turning a blind eye, Oxfam has issued a stark warning that if the Taliban comes back to power as part of a peace deal in Afghanistan, this could mean a catastrophic setback for the rights and fair treatment of women. Among them will be child brides.

Tomorrow is the anniversary of allied intervention to oust the Taliban regime and its al Qaeda sponsors from Kabul. But any fragile gains made by women since 2001 may now be endangered if the Taliban were to insist on their harsh interpretation of Sharia law as the condition for ceasing hostilities and entering a coalition government.

More than 380 UK soldiers have died fighting the Taliban in a bid to stop Afghanistan being a safe haven for terrorists. Al Qaeda has largely been forced out of the country and over the border into Pakistan.

British forces took part in the Allied air strikes against the Taliban on October 7. Royal Marines from 40 Commando were sent in to secure Bagram airfield, near the capital Kabul, the following month.

The first British casualty was Private Darren George, 23, of the Royal Anglian Regiment, killed in April 2002.

Anwar incapable of ‘vigorous activities’, court told

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 6 — An orthopaedic surgeon said it was impossible for Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to engage in “vigorous activities” since he suffers from severe arthritis and nerve damage.

Dr Thomas Hoogland, who performed surgery on Anwar’s back in 2004 in Munich, Germany said Anwar suffered from three problems — “neck stenosis, facet joint arthritis, and nerve route damage.”

He was testifying today at the opposition leader’s Sodomy II trial.

The doctor said Anwar’s operation in 2004 left him with arthritis and that his condition had worsened between that time till 2008.

“The most increase in the problem could have been from 2004 to 2008. We are dealing with three problems — nerve damage, stenosis causing a lot of limitation in the movement of his back and the damage to the joint, causing the on-going problem, arthritis,” he told the court today.

Anwar, who has had a history of back problems, is accused of sodomising 26-year old Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan.

The last part of the defence’s examination session was conducted in-camera, where the public was ordered to leave the court.

Anwar’s lawyer Sankara remained tight-lipped when asked later whether the defence was trying to argue that the PKR defacto leader was physically incapable of the alleged act due to his medical condition.

“I cannot comment on that, as it is in-camera. But what we are trying to get at is that Anwar is unable to act vigorously,” Sankara said.

Dr Hoogland told the court he had even advised Anwar about how to conduct his daily prayers.

“He needs to move slowly to prevent pain. As stated earlier, he has problems bend (beyond) 10 to 15 degrees,” said the surgeon.

Anwar’s last checkup with Dr Hoogland was on September 8 this year.

The trial resumes tomorrow morning with the prosecution cross-examining the Dutch surgeon.

Still a long road ahead for Palanivel

The job of rebuilding MIC is far from over, says a veteran observer.

PETALING JAYA: MIC president G Palanivel still has much work to do to establish himself as a credible leader for Malaysian Indians, according to a veteran observer of MIC politics, Denison Jayasooria.

He said Palanivel was not a tested politician and that pundits still linked his political life to that of his former boss, S Samy Vellu.

Denison is a former director of the Social Strategic Foundation, a think-tank that MIC established in 1997 to address the social problems of Malaysian Indians.

In an interview with FMT, he said Palanivel still had a long way to go to rebuild MIC after the losses it suffered in the 2008 general election.

“Palanivel was not elected to his presidency and he doesn’t hold a parliamentary seat. This definitely has an impact on his effort to rebuild the party. However, only time will tell whether he can get a better deal for the Indian community.”

However, he added, Palanivel was fortunate that Najib Tun Razak, unlike previous prime ministers, offered an inclusive political agenda and was equally determined to win the hearts of the Indian community.

“Najib’s decision to offer a second minister’s post to the Indian community is a way to reach out to the community. While some may find this insignificant, it shows Umno’s new approach towards the Indian community.”

He described Najib’s approach to the community as “direct and persistent” and said it seemed to be paying off.

But Denison does not expect Indians to give Barisan Nasional the same level of support they gave before 2008.

“BN could probably get 65% of the Indian support at the most. The majority of the Indian middle class and professionals still distrust BN.”

Lacking vision

Commenting on the increase in the number of Indian-based political parties, Denison said this was due to the inability of “certain dominant political parties” to be inclusive in their approach.

Most of the new parties are either pro-BN or pro-Pakatan Rakyat. The exception is the Human Rights Party, which wants to serve as a third force.

“Indians are very passionate people, with each one believing he could become a leader to champion a certain cause,” Denison said.

“But what is lacking is a vision to keep the community together, as each leader with a following is trying to push his views to the national leadership,” he said.

He said that there should be strong cooperation among the different parties to address issues affecting the Indian community.

He heaped praises on Sungai Siput MP Dr Michael D Jeyakumar of Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) for going beyond racial and religious bounds in his political approach.

“He is a politician who takes a class-based approach in his struggle rather than the usual race and religion rhetoric we hear,” he said.

“In a forum recently, Jeyakumar presented his case on how political work could be done without money and power, but by mass mobilisation of people.”

Work with NGOs

Denison advised MIC to try to win the hearts of the middle class and the professionals in order to ensure its continuity.

For starters, he said, MIC should explain to Indians how the government’s Economic Transformation Plan (ETP) and its New Economic Model (NEM) would benefit the community.

“And MIC should also work with the NGOs on this.”

He commended Palanivel and his deputy, Dr S Subramaniam, for breaking BN ranks last June when they called for the release of PSM activists detained under the Emergency Ordinance.

“While Najib’s image may be battered by the detention, it was commendable for Palanivel and his deputy to have called for their release.”

He also praised MIC’s handling of the Interlok issue, saying it enhanced the party’s image as a “consistent political voice” for Malaysian Indians.

PSM, Jerit picket in 8 towns

The protest is against amendments to the Employment Act, said to be unfair to workers.

PETALING JAYA: Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) and the NGO Jaringan Rakyat Tertindas (Jerit) today held joint pickets in eight towns to protest against amendments to the Employment Act that they see as an outrage against the interest of workers.

The pickets were held in Kajang, Shah Alam, Penang, Tampoi (Johor), Senawang (Negri Sembilan) and the Perak towns of Sungai Siput, Tasek and Tanjung Malim.

The amendments free employers from having to compensate workers they retrench. They also allow a month’s delay in paying overtime.

PSM treasurer A Sivarajan, who led the picket in Shah Alam, said about 50 workers took part in the demonstration there and that they were supported by several members of PAS, DAP and PKR.

He said about 10 policemen in three patrol cars observed the picket.

In Kajang, according to Jerit coordinator S Parameswary, motorists blared their horns to show support for the picket.

He said Jerit would gather a larger group to meet Human Resources Minister Dr S Subramaniam if the government ignored opposition to the amendments and went ahead to table it in Parliament.

On Monday, the Malaysian Trade Unions Congress staged a protest against the proposed amendment outside Parliament House for about 45 minutes.

Ku Li not concerned by move to ban Undilah video

Razaleigh said he personally felt that the video was conveying a good message to the people.

KUALA LUMPUR: Gua Musang MP Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah is not concerned over the decision to remove the “Undilah”video clip from public broadcast.

“Those who want to ban the video and have the power to do so, will of course ban it,” he told reporters when met at the Parliament lobby, here.

Razaleigh is among 40 personalities featured in the public service announcement video including politicians from Barisan Nasional and opposition as well as local artistes and sports personalities.

The four minutes, 38 seconds video, produced by musician Pete Teo, was launched on Malaysia Day urging the people to register as voters.

Razaleigh said he personally felt that the video was conveying a good message to the people.
“I was asked to make a statement urging the people to register, so I came forward,” he said.

The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) said the clip had not yet been approved by the Film Censorship Board, hence the decision to pull it from public broadcast.
-Bernama

Land dispute: MIC man says dissolve party if...

A branch leader says MIC should be dissolved if it does not return a plot of land claim to have been allocated for a Tamil schoool.

KLANG: MIC should be dissolved if it fails to return a plot of land purportedly allocated for a Tamil school in Damansara.

And the ultimatum came from a MIC grassroots leader himself, Taman Mujur branch chairman V Thiagarajan.

Speaking to FMT, the vexed local leader said MIC would become irrelevant to the Indian community if it continued to overlook the issue.

The Effingham Tamil school is located in Bandar Utama. The accusation about the land grab first surfaced in 2009, with former students and residents of the area claiming that the developer of Bandar Utama had set aside six acres for the school in 1999.

They claimed that the late K Sivalingam, a MIC leader and an executive councillor in the then Barisan Nasional-led Selangor state government, decided that only three acres should be given to the school and the rest to the party.

However, MIC claimed that there was an error in the description of the proprietor in the land title and that the party is the rightful owner of the three acres.

‘I have evidence’

Thiagarajan said that he has evidence that the Bandar Utama developer allocated the land to the school and not MIC.

According to a plan drafted in 1996, the district land office registered the land under the name of the primary school.

“The total size of the land is 12 acres. And the housing developer awarded six acres for both the Tamil school and a religious school respectively,” said Thiagarajan.

“However, in a new plan drafted in 2005, the plot was divided into two separate plots where three acres was for the school and another three acres for MIC,” he added.

He also asked if there was indeed an error, why did MIC take almost 10 years to rectify it?

Refusing to accept the explanation, Thiagarajan claimed that there was something fishy concerning the deal and urged MIC president G Palanivel to return the land.

“Do not turn the Effingham Tamil school issue into another Padang Jawa temple issue like in 2007, where the demolition of the temple was one of the reasons behind MIC’s heavy losses in the 2008 general election,” he warned.

FMT could not reach MIC secretary-general S Murugesan for comments.

Dr M: Maintain current system to achieve Vision 2020

The present system had proven to be the best solution for a multi-racial country like Malaysia, says the former prime minister.

SIBU: The current system of wealth and power sharing should be maintained for the country to achieve its Vision 2020 objective of becoming a developed nation, former Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad said.

The system, especially power sharing implemented by the country’s first prime minister Tunku Abdul Rahman, had proven to be the best solution for a multi-racial country like Malaysia, he said.

“We have this concept of working together of different political parties representing different races under a coalition.

“It has obviously worked very well, first under Perikatan, then the Alliance, and now the Barisan Nasional.

“They had and have won elections after elections and formed the governments at either the federal or state levels,” he said when addressing about 1,000 Sibu residents here last night.

Mahathir was here on a one-day visit at the invitation of the Bumiputera Graduate Association.

He said despite being a multi-racial and multi-religious country, Malaysia was now a country of great unity, stability and progress because of the system.

“Of course there is this bit of unhappiness as no one, not any race, not any group can hope or expect to get 100 percent of what they think is theirs by right.

“But this is the characteristic of a society that is fair and just to everyone. We are doing the right thing when almost everyone feels a little bit unhappy,” he said.

He said people should continue to realise the need for them to make some sacrifices in order to gain from something more worthwhile.

“People should not believe in making demands which cannot be met or in confrontations as this will generate tensions and fightings and this will mean the end to the great progress we have made,” he said.

On wealth sharing, he said it had been the policy for all states to share the country’s wealth.

He said the country’s wealth were in its oil and gas resources and in its oil palm, rubber and pepper industries.

“But our wealth also come from the many big businesses centred in places like Kuala Lumpur where there are very many rich people in the country. Our system is such that the richer you are, the more you are taxed,” he said.

Mahathir said proceeds from such wealth and taxes were re-distributed nationwide by the government so that small states like Perlis could finance its development and progress instead of being left out.

He said that if one were to say that one’s wealth was for his state alone, then the wealth of Kuala Lumpur should be spent only within the city.

“But this is not fair as Kuala Lumpur is the place where everyone wants to congregate because of the superior facilities in communications, travel and in doing all kinds of businesses,” he said.

Mahathir reiterated that it was because of the fairness in the re-distribution that “development is coming up everywhere in the country”.

-Bernama

Cincin RM72 juta sudah pulang?

Tidak cukup duit gaji Najib dikumpul sejak mula jadi menteri hingga sekarang untuk membelinya. Maka Najib mesti menghilangkan keraguan orang tentang cincin itu supaya tiada wang negara disalahgunakan dan tiada urusan yang tidak betul melayakkan cincin itu boleh menjadi milik isterinya.

Subky Latif, Harakah Daily

ADAPUN cincin ajaib yang diposkan kepada isteri Perdana Menteri, Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor telah dipulangkan kepada yang mengirim.

Berita yang dibongkar oleh Cikgu Bard, seorang pemimpin ternama PKR betapa adanya cincin yang semahal sekitar RM72 juta dihantar kepada Rosmah secara pos dan terpaksa melalui pemeriksaan kastam itu adalah benar apabila Menteri Nazri Aziz mengesahkannya dalam Parlimen.

Menteri Nazri dalam jawapannya kepada soalan mengenainya di Parlimen memberitahu bahawa cincin itu telah dikembalikan kepada syarikat pemunyanya.

Apabila ia telah dikembalikan kepada sipengirim, bererti pernah dibawa masuk ke negara ini dan dihantar kepada Rosmah di alamatnya.

Bagaimana ia dibawah masuk telah didedahkan oleh Cikgu Bard. Bagaimana ia dipulangkan tidak pula diketahui.

Berita rasmi mengenai cincin ini hanya yang disahkan oleh menteri Nazri di Parlimen. Penjelasan menteri di Parlimen diterima sah. Anggota Parlimen tidak boleh membuat kenyataan palsu di Parlimen. Jika dibuktikan anggota Parlimen membuat kenyataan palsu di Parlimen, maka hilang kelayakannya sebagai anggota Parlimen.

Berita ia sudah dikembalikan itu boleh diterima. Tetapi penapian Rosmah betapa cincin itu dihantar kepadanya sebagai fitnah tidak dipercayai. Orang percaya cincin itu telah dihantar kepadanya dan telah diterimanya.

Jika diadakan penyiasatan telus di Jabatan Kastam, nescaya orang dapat tahu bagaimana cincin itu sampai ke Jabatan Kastam dan cara mana kastam mengendalikannya? Kastam juga tentu dapat menceritakan ke mana cincin itu dihantar selepas diperiksa kastam?

Yang menjadi misteri sekarang ialah bagaimana cincin itu boleh dihantar ke Malaysia dan kepada orang yang dikirim di alamatnya?

Adakah syarikat yang mengirimnya sekadar untuk menunjuknya saja kepada Rosmah?

Adalah tidak munasabah cincin yang semahal itu boleh dihantar begitu saja kalau tiada persetujuan atau permintaan dari orang yang dihantar?

Kalau atas tujuan untuk dipertontonkan kepada orang Malaysia dan kemudian dipulangkan balik, mengapa tidak dihantar kepada Raja Permaisuri Agong yang kedudukan baginda adalah lebih tinggi dari isteri Perdana Menteri?

Rosmah memang terkenal sebagai seorang yang lincah dan diketahui pula suka bermewah serta gemar kepada benda-benda yang mewah.

Jika cincin itu untuk tujuan pameran, tiada berita tentang pameran barang mewah termasuk cincin itu. Adalah mustahil pameran diadakan sekadar untuk menunjukkan sebentuk cincin itu saja.

Kalau untuk dipamer, tentulah tuan punya cincin itu sendiri datang kerana dia akan dapat menjawab semua pertanyaan para peminat tentang cincin itu. Adalah mustahil cincin itu dipamerkan tanpa kehadiran tuan punya bagi menjamin keselamatan cincin itu.

Agak ajaib jika cincin itu sekadar dipinjamkan kerana ia bukan benda yang murah. Apa jaminan jika cincin itu hilang?

Tiada jawapan yang dapat diterima bagi tuan punya melepaskannya kepada orang lain selain dari dijual.

Orang seperti Rosmah dipercayai tidak akan melepaskannya apabila ia sudah di tangannya. Sedaya upayanya dia akan menjadikannya hak miliknya. Setinggi mana pun harganya tidaklah penting sangat tetapi dia ada cara untuk menyelesaikannya dan dia ada cara bagaimana Perdana Menteri Najib dapat membantu mendapatkannya.

Kita tidak menyanggah penjelasan Menteri Nazri ia telah dikembalikan kerana kita menghormati kata-kata di Parlimen adalah benar dan tiada yang tidak benar.

Tetapi siapa saksi cincin itu telah beredar dari tangan Rosmah? Apa bukti ia sudah diterima semula oleh tuan punya?

Apa pun perkiraan antara kedua tuan punya dan orang yang menerima cincin adalah urusan dan transaksi kedua mereka.

Negara, kerajaan dan rakyat ada hak untuk mengetahui urusan cincin itu. Kita yakin Rosmah mahu memilikinya. Tuan punya tentu sudah diyakinkan urusan niaganya dan penyerahan cincin itu tidak mendatangkan risiko.

Tidak cukup duit gaji Najib dikumpul sejak mula jadi menteri hingga sekarang untuk membelinya. Maka Najib mesti menghilangkan keraguan orang tentang cincin itu supaya tiada wang negara disalahgunakan dan tiada urusan yang tidak betul melayakkan cincin itu boleh menjadi milik isterinya.

Sukar orang untuk mempercayai adanya urusan tentang cincin itu boleh dibawa ke sini.

Silap Rosmah ialah mengapa cincin itu tidak dipakai dan dibawa pulang sendiri? Tiada siapa tahu jika ia tidak dipos.

Jawatankuasa khas rangka akta ganti ISA

Utusan Malaysia
Oleh AZIAN AZIZ

SHAH ALAM 5 Okt. - Satu jawatankuasa khas telah ditubuhkan untuk merangka dan meneliti dua akta baru yang bakal menggantikan Akta Keselamatan Dalam Negeri (ISA).

Peguam Negara, Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail berkata, jawatankuasa itu dianggotai oleh beliau serta profesional undang-undang antaranya tiga bekas ketua hakim bergelar Tun dan dua peguam bela.

Beliau berkata, jawatankuasa itu akan turut merujuk kepada beberapa pakar perundangan dari luar negara yang mempunyai pengetahuan dan pengalaman mengendalikan kes-kes melibatkan keganasan antaranya Amerika Syarikat, United Kingdom dan Jepun.

Menurut beliau, mereka akan mengadakan perbincangan berterusan dengan Suruhanjaya Hak Asasi Manusia (Suhakam), agensi kerajaan terlibat dan akhirnya mendapat pandangan masyarakat sebelum akta itu dibentangkan di Parlimen.

"Saya ingin memberi jaminan bahawa dua akta baru ini yang melibatkan undang-undang jenayah dan keganasan serta subversif akan mengambil kira perimbangan di antara hak asasi dan keselamatan awam.

"Cuma, saya minta semua pihak agar memberi kami peluang untuk melakukannya (merangka akta), pelajari betul-betul dan seterusnya mengemukakan draf yang terbaik," katanya.

Beliau berkata demikian selepas menyampaikan syarahan perdana Peguam Negara bertajuk Isu Semasa Berkaitan Undang-Undang Pencegahan di Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) di sini hari ini.

Mengenai kajian semula beberapa akta antaranya Seksyen 27 Akta Polis 1967 yang membabitkan demonstrasi, katanya, pihaknya akan memastikan pindaan yang bakal diperkenalkan dalam akta itu akan difahami oleh semua pihak.

"Kita akan memastikan tiga faktor diambil kira iaitu peserta demonstrasi, pihak berkuasa dan orang yang akan mendapat kesan daripada demonstrasi yang diadakan seperti peniaga dan lain-lain," jelas beliau.

Ditanya sama ada tindakan terhadap Bekas Setiausaha Agung Parti Komunis Malaya (PKM), Chin Peng akan terhapus dengan pemansuhan Akta Buang Negeri 1959 (Akta 79), Gani menjawab:

"Bagi mereka yang dikenakan tindakan di bawah Akta Buang Negeri 1959, mereka akan dilepaskan secara serentak atau berperingkat selepas kes mereka diteliti, tetapi Chin Peng tidak pernah dikenakan tindakan di bawah akta itu. Jadi dia tidak ada kena mengena."

Gani turut menjelaskan, keputusan kerajaan memansuhkan ISA dan Akta Buang Negeri tepat pada masanya kerana ia tidak lagi relevan dengan situasi sekarang sebagaimana Ordinan Darurat 1969.

Sodomy II: Najib, Rosmah need not testify

Anwar has failed to show the relevancy and materiality of both Najib and Rosmah to the trial, ruled the judge.
FMT ALERT

KUALA LUMPUR: Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim has failed in his bid to haul up Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak and his wife Rosmah Mansor to court to testify in his Sodomy II trial.

Judge Mohamad Zabidin Mohd Diah today allowed an application by the couple to set aside the subpoenas compelling them to be defence witnesses in the trial.

“After going through the affidavits and submissions, I found that the defendants have failed to show the relevancy and materiality of both Najib and Rosmah to the trial,” said Mohamed Zabidin.

On Monday, the judge heard 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 meeting involving the prime minister and the 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.

Najib’s lawyers had alleged that Anwar was embarking on a “fishing expedition”.

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.

Meanwhile, Anwar’s trial continues.

Tung Shin incident "blown out of proportion"

The Sun Daily
by Karen Arukesamy and Alyaa Alhadjri

KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 5, 2011): Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein today defended the police's standard operating procedure (SOP) in dispersing Bersih 2.0 demonstrators, saying the Tung Shin hospital incident during the July 9 rally had been blown out of proportion.

Referring to the Health Ministry probe which concluded police had broken their own SOP by firing water cannon and smoke bombs into the hospital compound during the rally, Hishammuddin said the police are not the only ones to be blamed for the incident.

“On Tung Shin there is a spin – it is looking as though the standard operating procedure of the police is at fault.

“This is just one incident and the fact they are just looking at one particular incident relating to internal disciplinary action based on SOP, to me is like making a mountain out of a molehill,” Hishammuddin told reporters at the Parliament lobby today.

The Home Minister said there was a need to widen the scope of the probe and not just pick one particular incident.

“The report is already done but we need to widen the scope of investigation," he added.

Hishammuddin also said the incident at the hospital was one of “six or seven” incidents that involved the wrongdoing of “one errant police officer”.

“This does not mean that those who are at fault, including the police officer, will not be prosecuted. But the Attorney-General will decide on that. This is a process that we have to go through,” he said.

Meanwhile Inspector General of Police Tan Sri Ismail Omar, who was also present, said there is “nothing wrong with the SOP”.

Failing to explain further, he just said the investigating committee will check on the report and that the police officer is from a “different department”.

The Home Ministry in a press statement released late yesterday night had reportedly admitted that police had breached the SOP and had acted unethically in the dispersal of demonstrators of the Bersih 2.0 at the Tung Shin Hospital based on the Health Ministry’s highest level internal investigation committee’s report.

Home Ministry secretary-general Tan Sri Mahmood Adam said his ministry will refer the personnel concerned to the Royal Malaysian Police (PDRM)'s disciplinary committee for its consideration and further action.

Meanwhile, at a separate press conference at Jalan Tun Razak police station today, KL CID Chief SAC Datuk Ku Chin Wah said disciplinary action will be taken against a police officer with the KL police contingent for using "forced violence" to disperse protesters taking part in the July 9 Bersih 2.0 rally.

Ku said the officer was identified by the police from one of the many videos circulated online of incidents which took place on the day, including of alleged police brutality.

"He was seen in the video to be wearing a red handkerchief that covered his face, but we have identified him and submitted our investigation paper to the DPP (Deputy Public Prosecutor)," said Ku.

He however said the DPP decided that no further action can be taken as no victims had came forward during the investigation process.

"We had completed our investigations in August and received a reply from the DPP last month," said Ku, who however did not elaborate on the exact incident he was referring to.

He said the officer concerned will be referred to the PDRM Disciplinary Committee for future action.

In an immediate response, Bersih 2.0 steering committee member Dr Wong Chin Huat questioned the police's motive behind narrowing its investigation to only one individual.

"That is why no victims can be found. All other reported cases does not stand," he claimed.

How tax reliefs subsidise the rich

Come Budget Day, many taxpayers will be hoping for more tax reliefs on all sorts of expenditure. But do you know such tax reliefs actually favour the rich?
Not only that, they tend to benefit powerful business lobby groups such as private hospitals and insurance companies.
Economist Subramaniam Pillay explains in more detail in an article on the Aliran website ahead of Budget Day.
With policies like these, it it any wonder then that the rich are getting richer?

Nude squat probe finds no impropriety by officers

The two Singaporeans were detained for driving through an unmanned Immigration inspection lane.

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 5 — The Immigration Department’s probe into a recent nude squat incident involving two Singaporean women has found that its officers exercised their responsibilities in a “good and orderly” fashion, the Home Ministry said today. In a written response to Fong Po Kuan (DAP-Batu Gajah), the ministry said the women were examined by a female officer, as required under the department’s standard operating procedures (SOP).
Fong had urged the ministry to furnish the full details of the probe, including why the women were forced to perform nude squats, how they had passed the Johor immigration officials without being checked and the number of such incidents.
The ministry explained that the women were detained on June 9 under Section 6(1)(C) of the Immigration Act for entering Malaysia without a valid pass.
According to the probe, the women had entered Malaysia without being checked as the department’s counter had been closed.
“At the time, there were no immigration officials on duty at the counter,” said the ministry.
The women were then brought to the Pekan Nanas detention depot and were made to undergo standard “inspection procedures”, which were carried out by female immigration officials.
“According to the investigation, the officials involved in the inspection ensured that their responsibilities and duties were carried out in a good and orderly fashion,” the ministry concluded.
According to a Singapore Straits Times report on June 14, the two women who drove to Johor Baru for supper on July 9 were questioned by Malaysian immigration officials, handcuffed, thrown behind bars and made to do squats while naked.
The two women claimed they drove through uninspected because the immigration lane was unmanned, and that no one answered the intercom.
Following their punishment, they were allowed to return to Singapore after 48 hours with a warning.
Both women have reportedly vowed never to return to Malaysia after the incident, which drew criticism from opposition MPs who called the act “humiliating and ridiculous.”
The ST added that one of the women, known as Chang, would be taking legal action.
The Malaysian Immigration Department suspended two officers following the incident but it insists that the detention was legal under the Immigration Act as they had entered the country without passing through biometric fingerprint checks.
The Malaysian Insider reported on June 29 that a special multi-agency panel had concluded its investigations into the nude squat incident after the republic submitted written reports from their affected citizens.
“The written reports have been handed over to Malaysian authorities,” a source told The Malaysian Insider.
It is also understood that the island state has demanded an explanation from Malaysia after an earlier request for details concerning the case.
The incident also caused a furore in during the last Parliament session, with opposition MPs from DAP demanding an explanation from the Home Ministry.

Perkasa minta siasat transaksi saham Sime Darby-E&O

Siasatan terperinci perlu dibuat jika wujudnya krisis kepentingan, penyelewengan dan salah laku penjawat awam, kata ketua penerangan Ruslan Kasim.

KUALA LUMPUR: Pertubuhan Peribumi Perkasa Malaysia (Perkasa) hari ini mengemukakan aduan kepada Suruhanjaya Pencegahan Rasuah Malaysia (SPRM) berhubung isu pembelian 30 peratus ekuiti syarikat Eastern & Oriental Berhad (E&O) bernilai RM776 juta oleh Sime Darby Berhad (Sime Darby).

Laporan itu dibuat oleh Ketua Penerangan Perkasa Ruslan Kasim di Bangunan SPRM Wilayah Persekutuan, Jalan Cochrane di sini petang tadi.

Bercakap kepada pemberita, Ruslan berkata siasatan terperinci perlu dibuat jika wujudnya krisis kepentingan, penyelewengan dan salah laku penjawat awam ke atas transaksi dagang dan pembelian saham terbabit yang berharga RM2.30 seunit.

Ruslan berkata, transaksi berprofil tinggi dalam jangka masa singkat menunjukkan timbulnya keraguan tentang peranan yang dimainkan oleh Pengerusi Suruhanjaya Sekuriti (SC) Tan Sri Zarinah Anwar dalam transaksi yang melibatkan suaminya sendiri yang juga Pengerusi Bukan Eksekutif E&O Datuk Azizan Abdul Rahman.

‘Insider trading’

Beliau mendakwa wujud aktiviti dagangan dalaman (insider trading) memandangkan beberapa pengarah E&O termasuk Datuk Azizan didapati telah membeli saham syarikat tersebut sebelum diumumkan pembelian 30 peratus oleh Sime Darby.

“Walaupun Zarinah terpaksa mengumumkan beliau tidak campur tangan dalam siasatan berkaitan dengan urusan tersebut, tetapi apakah tiada kemungkinan imej dan pengaruh yang dimilikinya sebagai Pegerusi SC dapat pula mempengaruhi sebarang tindakan dan keputusan sepanjang siasatan dilakukan.

“Kenapa dalam keadaan baru lepas menanggung kerugian berbilion ringgit, Sime Darby sanggup membayar sehingga 60 peratus lebih dari harga pasaran E&O?,” soal Ruslan selain turut membangkit persoalan penglibatan individu yang menjadi dalang dalam permainan transaksi ini.

Sehubungan itu, beliau mendesak SPRM bertindak dengan segera menyiasat isu ini tanpa pilih bulu sama ianya melibatkan ‘ikan paus’ atau ‘ikan bilis’ dan mengheret mereka yang terlibat ke muka pengadilan jika terbukti wujudnya salah guna kuasa.

Siasatan ini amat diperlukan sekaligus bagi melindungi dan menjamin ketelusan, kewibawaan dan integriti sebuah badan pengawas selia kewangan sektor awam berprofil tinggi seperti SC, katanya.

Isu membabitkan Azizan timbul selepas beliau didakwa telah membeli kira-kira 450,000 saham syarikat hartanah daripada pasaran terbuka membabitkan lima transaksi berasingan sejak April dan Ogos tahun ini.

Tiga daripada transaksi dibuat antara Julai dan Ogos dan transaksi terakhir membabitkan pembelian 100,000 saham pada 12 Ogos lalu.

Penguasaan itu menjadikan Sime Darby sebagai pemegang saham terbesar dalam syarikat hartanah yang memiliki Hotel E&O di Pulau Pinang.

Sementara itu, SC yang diketuai dua pegawai kanannya Datuk Francis Tan dan Datuk Gumuri Hussain telah mula melakukan siasatan menyemak transaksi saham E&O-Sime Darby sejak bulan lalu, manakala Zarinah terpaksa menarik diri dalam siasatan itu.

Pakistan's Stolen Cultural Heritage

Pakistani fasting Buddha (photo credit: Christie's)

(Asia Sentinel) Christie’s halts a planned auction of a rare Pakistani artifact
At the behest of UNESCO, the fine arts auction house Christie’s has halted a planned auction this month of a fasting Buddha, a nearly 2,000-year-old statue from the Gandhara civilisation, which was believed to have been stolen from Pakistan and sold to a private collector in Germany in the 1980s.

The grey schist figure of the emaciated Siddhartha, or ‘Fasting Buddha’, was called the most fascinating 3rd or 4th century Gandhara piece in Christie’s entire collection. Islamabad’s Department of Archaeology and Museums was spurred to look deeper for Pakistan-origin artifacts that might have reached the auctioneer surreptitiously for sale. The search revealed that Christie’s was in possession of 60 more Gandhara-period relics with price tags ranging from $2,000 to $200,000.

Pakistani authorities must prove their claim that the sale was illegal if they are to recover the Buddha. What will become of it remains to be seen, yet this news evokes realization of the country’s cultural heritage despite its increasingly tarnished image as a hub of myopia and intolerance.

Located at the crossroads of South Asia, Central Asia, Western Asia and the Arab Gulf region, Pakistan’s heritage is in fact both diverse and unique. Its historical sites range from the ancient urban settlements of Mohenjo-daro from the Indus Valley civilization of Sindh and the rich Buddhist Ghandara civilization, to Mughal monuments, shrines of Muslim mystics, Sikh and Hindu temples and colonial period architecture, as well as numerous natural wonders.

However, at present the cultural diversity of Pakistan and its invaluable natural landscapes receive little attention in comparison to the gigantic political, social and economic problems confronting the country. It is also unfortunate that the present international image of Pakistan obscures the cultural heritage of the country, leading to its increased international isolation. In order to reverse such disturbing trends, it is vital to draw attention to its unique cultural heritage and harnesses its potential to promote a more balanced picture of the country.

In order to do so, it is necessary for relevant government institutions to make greater efforts to protect and promote the aspirations of the diverse range of ethnic and linguistic groups which reside in Pakistan. Instead of devising top-down bureaucratic interventions, efforts must be made to encourage increased participation of marginalized local communities, including women, in conservation and management of varied national cultural assets, including historical buildings, local literature, folklore and even music. After all, this heritage is a testament to the rich diversity of cultures and religions in this land for centuries.

Pakistan’s Ministry of Culture acknowledges the need to recognize and promote its cultural diversity, including appreciation and respect for the multitude of cultures that have been a part of Pakistan’s history.

However, its low priority and the lack of sufficient resource allocation to realize this goal has resulted in rather ad hoc attempts to promote cultural heritage, mostly in the form of renovation or preservation of a very limited number of historical sites, such as the 17th century Shalimar Gardens built by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan or the 16th century Lahore Fort built by the Mughal emperor Akbar. There is an absence of practical measures for protection, conservation and maintenance of numerous other heritage sites strewn across Pakistan.

Last year, a Quaid-i-Azam University survey documented 450 heritage sites in Islamabad and Rawalpindi alone which are in desperate need of protection and preservation. These sites included Buddhist settlements, ancient caves, rock shelters and temples. Preservation and promotion of traditional skills and crafts, music and literature is under similar threat due to lack of suitable conservation policies and financial support.

Pakistan’s natural heritage is similarly being subjected to the onslaught of population pressures and commercial exploitation. While the government has taken some steps to protect the environment by creating Environmental Protection Agencies at the federal and provincial levels, these entities continue to struggle with a host of resource and capacity deficiencies due to which they remain ineffective in halting the threat of encroachment, deforestation and pollution of Pakistan’s irreplaceable natural heritage.

Cultural tourism perhaps offers the best means to promote cultural assets, while at the same time deriving economic benefits out of them. There are ample international examples from Southeast Asia, and parts of Africa and South America indicating how cultural and ecological sites can be preserved through adoption of sustainable tourism plans. Although there is huge dormant potential for tourism in Pakistan, growing insecurity in the country must be tackled first.

(Syed Mohammad Ali is a freelance columnist and consultant. This article was written for the Common Ground News Service.)

Najib: Malaysia Needs World-class Educational Institutions With World-class Leadership

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 5 (Bernama) -- Malaysia not only needs an education system that nurtures creative and analytical human capital but also world-class educational institutions with world-class leadership, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said.

This was in line with the government moves towards an innovation-led economy, the prime minister said.

"We are taking a series of measures to encourage more young people to think the unthinkable and forge a bold new path -- shaping a supportive ecosystem, creating new opportunities and funding enablers for innovation," he said in his speech at the Students In Free Enterprise (SIFE) World Cup 2011 dinner here, Wednesday night.

His speech was delivered by his deputy Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin who is also Education Minister.

Najib said the Malaysian government was "determined to do everything to support innovation" by creating an environment in which corporations, research organisations and individuals were better able to engage in innovative activities.

"Measures to achieve this include developing human capital, investing in innovation infrastructure and nurturing new ventures through incubators," he said.

Najib wanted to see more commercially-viable innovations and urged the private sector to come forward and collaborate with universities and schools to innovate new products which had the potentials to contribute to economic growth and to societal well-being.

"But the success of our innovation agenda will depend on our ability to value openness, to embrace critical thinking and to encourage risk taking and experimentation; because sometimes we all get things wrong before we get them right," he said.

Najib also said that there was a need revamp the education system "to unlock individual skills and talents" and to produce well-rounded individuals.

"Poor performance in education today will have negative impact on the country's tomorrow, as higher education levels are consistently correlated with robust economic growth," he said.

Indonesia: Radical Islam infiltrating top universities says counter-terror agency

Jakarta, 3 Oct. (AKI/Jakarta Post) - Radicalism has found its way into several of Indonesia's top universities, according to the national counter-terrorism Agency (BNPT) .says
.
“We are seeing a massive increase in radicalism. It is penetrating some top-quality and favourite universities such as [the University of Indonesia] and [the Bandung Institute of Technology],” BNPT chief Ansyaad Mbai said Tuesday.

Mbai added that he had received reports from several university leaders about radical movements within their institutions.

“BNPT has received reports from rectors, deans and rector’s assistants concerning issues of radicalism at their campuses,” he said.

Radicalism had not only been found among students studying religion, but also students of other faculties such as engineering, mathematics and science, Ansyaad said.

Will Pakatan, Hindraf team up?

Hindraf believes it still has the 'power' to swing votes and that Pakatan is making a mistake by ignoring its overtures.
ANALYSIS

Hindraf Makkal Sakti and its offspring Human Rights Party (HRP) are blithely wooing Pakatan Rakyat to forge an electoral alliance to face its common enemy – Umno-helmed Barisan Nasional – in the fast-approaching 13th general election.

But signs are clear that Pakatan is not interested.

Pakatan allies – PKR, DAP and PAS and, to a certain extent, Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) – may have realised that Hindraf was the most influential factor that convince the Indian voters to shift their traditional allegiance with BN in the last general election.

Many Pakatan candidates were seen then working hand-in-hand with Hindraf activists to secure votes.

The Indian swing contributed to Pakatan’s massive electoral gains at the expense of BN.

But post-2008 election, Pakatan has practically decided to end its marriage with Hindraf, especially after the formation of HRP.

Pakatan is aiming to win over the Indian votes without Hindraf’s support.

Pakatan’s body language signals that it is happy with current set-up and does not want to include Hindraf and its political offspring HRP.

Fed up with Pakatan

HRP and Hindraf’s constant criticisms, justified in many cases, against Pakatan state governments for not doing enough or nothing at all for the Indian community, have not gone down well with Pakatan’s top brass, especially the Indian elected representatives.

Apparently ethnic Malay and Chinese leaders in Pakatan do not want an Indian-based party in their fold.

“They would rather prefer ethnic Indian individuals… to join PKR or DAP.

“In that way, the Pakatan top brass – dominated by Malays and Chinese – can control, tame, weaken and breed the Indian elected representatives as their mandores.

“Pakatan definitely did not want a strong grassroots movement championing the Indian cause within its sphere,” said a political observer.

But despite Pakatan’s virtual rejection, the Hindraf-HRP axis still dreams of teaming up with Pakatan merely to vote out Umno-BN from Putrajaya.

Hindraf-HRP adviser N Ganesan told newsmen last week that the group’s immediate political objective was to remove Umno from power.

“This is important to enable us to achieve our long-term goal to eliminate racist and religious supremacist state-sponsored policies trampling on the rights of minorities,” he said.

Both Hindraf and HRP have realised that this could not be achieved without forging close working ties with Pakatan.

Indications are that the next general election could be quick snap polls and just around the corner.

Pakatan to lose states

If recent Hindraf brainstorming session in Singapore is anything to go by, Pakatan would fail to capture its holy grail, Putrajaya.

According to Hindraf’s analysis, Pakatan stands to lose between 22 and 50 state seats and 10 and 18 parliamentary constituencies across the country in a 20 to 50 percent Indian vote swing.

Hindraf claims Pakatan would lose Kedah and Selangor, and would not regain Perak.

Hindraf analysts also claimed that eight cabinet ministers risked losing their seats. Even some segments of Pakatan’s own grassroots believed in the computation.

They conceded that Hindraf-HRP could make a decisive difference in the next election.

But, unlike in 2008 when Hindraf gave a free lunch to Pakatan by throwing its support behind the opposition coalition, this time it wants Pakatan to make some seat concessions for HRP.

Hindraf has Indian support

Critics, however, argued that Hindraf was taking too much credit for Pakatan’s electoral success in 2008.

Of course, Indian votes alone did not win the day for Pakatan.

Significant shifts in Malay and Chinese votes were also a major reason for Pakatan’s win.

That explains why Pakatan leaders now prefer to play into the popular bi-racial gallery comprising the ethnic Malay and Chinese vote banks, rather than actualising the multi-racial concept.

Critics have also argued that Pakatan and Hindraf were not competent for each other because of the latter’s Indian agenda.

But then both groups were competent in 2008.

Hindraf-HRP claims that it can move Indian votes for Pakatan, especially the working class Indians who make up some 70 percent of the community.

Hatred for Umno

Critics argued that most well educated Indians were not with Hindraf-HRP because they despised racist politics.

“Educated Indians feel they would be better off under Pakatan than Hindraf,” they said.

But a random survey among educated Indians revealed most backed Hindraf’s Indian stance and acknowledged that Pakatan had done “very little” for the Indians.

Indeed, most argued that the Malays and Chinese have gained the most from the 2008 political change, while ethnic Indians, who were instrumental for it, were largely sidelined and isolated.

“For Pakatan, Malay issue is a national issue and Chinese issue is a multi-racial issue.

“But an Indian issue is a racial issue,” said a national school Indian teacher.

Their hatred for Umno is the only factor stopping these well educated Indians from going back to BN.

The Pakatan strategy is to capitalise on this sentiment to fish educated Indian votes without Hindraf-HRP support.

But the Hindraf-HRP alliance believes Pakatan would fail without it.

Tricky question

The alliance is putting its faith in Indian voters whom they believe will respond to it in the next polls as they did the last time.

“Pakatan and Hindraf-HRP must work together to end Umno’s rule,” insisted Ganesan.

Hindraf-HRP has already offered an olive branch to Pakatan to work together for the next polls to oust Umno and company from the federal government.

But Pakatan is unlikely to entertain it because some leaders and supporters believe that HRP candidates would lose their deposits if they contested alone.

But Hindraf-HRP leaders believe they have nothing to lose and, moreover, they would gain more political strength by taking the centre-stage in the next general election.

They insist that it is Pakatan which has more to lose with non-cooperation.

It looks like this is shaping up to be a one-upmanship political game between Pakatan and the human rights socio-political movement.

With election around the corner, any cooperation would have to take place fast.

For cooperation to happen, it will take a great deal of wisdom to shake off egos, arrogance and short-sighted thinking.

Whether Pakatan will ever accept Hindraf-HRP axis into its fold will remain a tricky question.

Report: Police acted unethically in dispersing July 9 protesters (Update)

The Sun Daily
by Husna Yusop

PUTRAJAYA (Oct 4, 2011): The Home Ministry today admitted that police had breached the standard operating procedures (SOP) and had acted unethically in the dispersal of demonstrators of the Bersih 2.0 rally on July 9 at the Tung Shin Hospital.

Its secretary-general Tan Sri Mahmood Adam said the Home Ministry will refer the personnel concerned, to the Royal Malaysian Police's disciplinary committee for its consideration and further action.

In a statement issued late today, Mahmood cited the Health Ministry's highest level internal investigation committee's report on the incident saying water cannon was sprayed by policemen towards the demonstrators who were gathering at the multi-level car park and the main entrance of Tung Shin Hospital.

"However, this action is merely intended to disperse the groups of protesters gathered there," Mahmood said.

It was also stated that tear gas was shot towards the Waz Lian premises by the police force, targetting at protesters who were gathering in a public car park outside Tung Shin.

"However, the claim that there was firing of tear gas into Tung Shin grounds is not true because it happened outside the hospital," Mahmood quoted the report.

Another incident was the throwing of smoke grenades by the police towards protesters gathering at the parking lot of the Chinese Maternity Hospital.

"With regards to the smoke grenade incident, the investigation found out it did not happen within the Tung Shin Hospital compounds but in the Chinese Maternity Hospital, which, in terms of administration, is separated from Tung Shin.

"The Chinese Maternity Hospital had ceased its operations since September 2006, as the whole premises was undergoing macro or major renovation starting December this year," Mahmood said.

"This decision clearly shows that the ministry views seriously the work ethics of each of its personnel and would not compromise in taking disciplinary action if it was proven the SOP has been violated by any of them," he said in a statement late today.

Muhyiddin Warns Schools Barring Students From Taking Exams

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 5 (Bernama) -- Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin Wednesday warned of action against schools which deliberately prevented any pupil or student from sitting for important examinations.

Muhyiddin, who is also education minister, said the Education Ministry was scrutinising the reports it had received on the matter.

There have been reports recently that some schools prohibited pupils weak in their studies from sitting for examinations so as to maintain a high pass rate.

Muhyiddin said the teachers could not be blamed if the pupils or students themselves did not wish to sit for the examinations.

The deputy prime minister spoke to reporters after a visit to Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Seri Hartamas near here to have a first-hand look at the students sitting for the 2011 Penilaian Menengah Rendah (PMR) examination which began yesterday.

The PMR students were taking their English Language Paper 1 examination then.

Muhyiddin reiterated that schools should not be too obsessed with attaining academic excellence to the extent that they denied any pupil or student his or her right to sit for important public examinations.

"No one should be denied his or her right to sit for a public examination," he said.

He reminded schools not to repeat the mistake and to ensure that every pupil or student was provided ample opportunity to get a proper education and sit for examinations to gauge their achievement.

Muhyiddin also said that an award would be introduced this year to accord recognition to parent-teacher associations which helped to raise the achievement of pupils or students.

He said an evaluation would be made of these associations which actively collaborated with the school administration to elevate the achievement of the pupils or students.