Ex-manager jailed for raping minor whom he later married

The Star
by STEPHANIE LEE

KOTA KINABALU: Former restaurant manager Riduan Masmud has lost his appeal against his conviction and 12-year jail sentence for raping an underage girl last year whom he later married.

The 42-year-old, who has been out on bail, kept his head low when High Court judge Justice Stephen Chung dismissed the appeal yesterday.

He then ordered that Riduan start serving his sentence, which included two strokes of rotan.

Justice Chung said the jail term would begin immediately and dismissed an application by Ram Singh, Riduan’s counsel, for a stay of execution, adding that there was no reason for Riduan not to be sent directly to prison.

He said he had taken into account the points raised by Ram, including those pertaining to the competency of the two child witnesses, and found nothing to disturb the Sessions Court ruling on the case.

The victim and her school friend had testified against Riduan during the trial.

“Before recording the child witnesses, the trial judge had asked a series of questions on their competency as witnesses and after enquiring, the judge was satisfied that the children understood the procedure of court and proceeded to record their evidence under oath,” Justice Chung said.

“The trial judge also had the advantage of hearing and seeing them giving evidence in court and found that they were competent witnesses.”

Also, Justice Chung said, there was independent evidence that Riduan had had sexual intercourse with the victim inside the car and that there was penetration.

“Thus, rape has been established,” he said.

He said he had also taken into consideration the DNA evidence that was recovered from several items in the vehicle.

Riduan, a father of four children aged between two and 17, was found guilty on Jan 24 last year of raping the schoolgirl, who was about 12 at the time, in a parked vehicle near the Kionsom Waterfall in Inanam between 9am and 10am on Feb 18, 2013.

He married the girl in May that year in a bid to escape conviction and later admitted to attempting to bribe her father with RM10,000 to withdraw his police report.

For that offence, the Sessions Court sentenced him on June 22 last year to three day’s jail and fined him RM10,000 in default two months imprisonment.

Ram said he would appeal against the High Court decision today.

Early Schooling Special Aid Distributed From Today

Datuk Ahmad Yakob and Tan Sri Muhyiddin YassinKOTA BAHARU, Jan 6 (Bernama) -- The Early Schooling Special Aid of RM100 for each student will be distributed beginning Tuesday, and parents can claim for the aid from their children's schools.

Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, who is also the Education Minister, said a total of 5.6 million students would receive the aid involving an allocation of RM560 million.

"We have given the warrants to each state, so the respective State (Education) Director and the District Education Office (PPD) will be given the allocation according to the number of students," he told reporters after chairing the Kelantan State Post-Flood Coordination Action Plan meeting, here.

Also present were Kelantan Menteri Besar Datuk Ahmad Yakob and the Chairman of the Kelantan Flood Disaster Committee Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed.

Muhyiddin said for schools that could not be used after being affected by the floods, parents must go to the school nearby to collect the cash aid.

"If it involves a school that had been submerged by flood waters or is being occupied by flood victims and is still not opened, the process of payment will be made at schools which are not affected by any problem.

"We will use the school hall and parents can go to the nearest school to claim the cash immediately, the directive has been issued," he said.

He also said that the ministry would ensure that the school session for the year 2015 in Kelantan could commence according to the schedule set.

"We have an option whereby if any school cannot be used, the students can go to the nearest school to share (classrooms), if there is no space, the lessons will be postponed briefly and only in special cases.

"Ninety schools in Kelantan are affected by the floods and so far, 30 per cent have been cleaned for commencement of the new schooling session," he said.

The schooling session for the year 2015 in Kedah, Kelantan, Terengganu and Johor begins on Jan 11, 2015 (Sunday), while for the other states the new schooling session is Jan 12, 2015 (Monday).

-- BERNAMA

IGP: Silence not due to fear of Zahid

‘Walau tanpa restu presiden, pemilihan MIC tetap diterus’

Vigil in memory of Salman Taseer attacked in Lahore

LAHORE: Unknown miscreants on Sunday attacked a ceremony held with respect to the death anniversary of governor Punjab, Salman Taseer, ARY News reported.

According to details, a ceremony was organized at Lahore’s Liberty Chowk paying tribute to Salman Taseer on account of his death anniversary. A large number of masses from different walks of life participated in the ceremony to commemorate the slain governor of Punjab.

As soon as the prayers were held after lighting candles in Taseer’s memory, unknown persons wielding batons attacked the participants and torn apart the posters of the slain governor.

The attackers not only tortured the news men at the spot, but also misbehaved with the members of the civil society and the women there.

In reaction to the incident, an case has been filed in the Gulberg police station seeking registration of an FIR against the workers of Sunni Tehreek.

Following the incident, scores of masses regathered at the Liberty Chowk and again lit candles in memory of Salman Taseer.

Israeli attacked by men singing anti-Semitic songs in Berlin

Associated Press

BERLIN: German police are investigating an attack on an Israeli who was beaten by a group of young men after he asked them to stop singing anti-Semitic songs on the Berlin subway on New Year's Eve.

Spokesman Martin Dahms said Monday police are still looking for the attackers.

The victim, 26-year-old Shahak Shapira, who lives in Berlin, told The Associated Press that after he asked the seven men to stop chanting anti-Jewish songs, he recorded them on his cell phone.

When he got off at the next stop, the men, who Shapira says were speaking both German and Arabic, followed him and demanded he delete his video. When he refused, some of the men spat on him and beat and kicked him, injuring his head.
- See more at: http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2015/Jan-05/283102-israeli-attacked-by-men-singing-anti-semitic-songs-in-berlin.ashx#sthash.m1vm4uHB.dpuf

Penjelasan jet rasmi kerajaan melalui Facebook perlekeh pegawai JPM

 

Penjelasan Putrajaya yang jet rasmi 9M-NAA yang digunakan Perdana Menteri Datuk Seri Najib Razak “menghadapi isu teknikal dan terpaksa singgah di Amerika” adalah tidak logik, kata Lee Chean Chung.

Ahli Dewan Undangan Negeri (Adun) Semambu itu berkata, penjelasan melalui laman sosial Facebook oleh kumpulan propaganda sosial "Friends of BN" tanpa sebarang pengesahan rasmi daripada Jabatan Perdana Menteri (JPM) seolah-olah memperlekehkan pegawai Najib sendiri.

"Saya membidas laman Facebook 'Friends of BN' yang seolah-olah menjadi jurucakap JPM dengan memberi penjelasan berkenaan penerbangan jet rasmi 9M-NAA ini.

"Penjelasan yang jet tersebut menghadapi isu teknikal dan terpaksa singgah di Amerika adalah tidak logik dan penjelasan melalui Facebook tanpa sebarang pengesahan JPM seolah-olah memperlekehkan pegawai JPM," katanya dalam kenyataan hari ini.

Status laman sosial Friends of BN pada 2 Januari lalu berkata, pesawat berkenaan berada di Amerika Syarikat sebelum ini bagi menyelesaikan beberapa isu teknikal dan dalam perjalanan pulang ke Malaysia ketika ini.

Katanya, pesawat berkenaan singgah di London dan Dubai untuk mengisi bahan api, bukan untuk membeli-belah atau berseronok seperti digembar-gemburkan oleh pembangkang.

Mengulas penjelasan Pejabat Perdana Menteri jet tersebut berada di Amerika kerana masalah teknikal, katanya alasan itu tidak munasabah.

"Mengapakah Pejabat Perdana Menteri membisu terhadap isu ini dan penjelasan hanya diberi selepas seminggu?

"Adakah jet 9M-NAA berulang-alik dari Honolulu, Los Angeles dan New York untuk membeli 'spare part' kapal terbang?

"Di manakah senarai penumpang jet 9M-NAA?" soalnya.

Ketua Penerangan PKR itu berkata, pihaknya akan berkunjung ke JPM sekiranya perkara ini masih tiada penjelasan yang memuaskan.

"Seandainya perkara ini masih tidak mendapat penjelasan yang memuaskan, saya sendiri akan hadir ke Jabatan Perdana Menteri untuk mendapatkan jawapan, dan saya ingin menjemput Friends of BN datang bersama dalam lawatan tersebut," katanya.

Bekas Ketua Pengarang Kumpulan New Straits Times (NST) Datuk A Kadir Jasin mendedahkan penjelasan pegawai kanan Pejabat Perdana Menteri yang memberi alasan jet itu tidak digunakan untuk tujuan peribadi.

“Perdana menteri menaiki pesawat komersial melalui Hong Kong di mana seterusnya beliau dijemput Tentera Udara Diraja Malaysia (TUDM) terus ke Kota Baru.

“Langkah ini diambil ekoran jet yang digunakan perdana menteri dan keluarganya ke Amerika Syarikat berdepan masalah teknikal.

“Jet itu tidak ditinggalkan untuk kegunaan ahli keluarga perdana menteri. Ia juga tidak berada di Indianapolis," kata Jabatan Perdana Menteri kepada Kadir yang disiarkan di blognya hari ini.

Bagaimanapun, laman penjejak pesawat Flight Radar 24 menunjukkan pesawat rasmi itu dengan nombor pendaftaran 9M-NAA, mendarat di Indianapolis dari Los Angeles pada 6.52 pagi waktu Malaysia pada 26 Disember.

Pesawat itu mendarat di Lapangan Terbang Los Angeles pada 1.40 petang waktu Malaysia dari Honolulu, Hawaii yang merupakan destinasi percutian Najib.

Najib sepatutnya menggunakan pesawat kerajaan Airbus A319 itu untuk kembali ke Malaysia dua minggu lalu tetapi sebaliknya menggunakan pesawat TUDM. – 5 Januari, 2015.

- See more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/bahasa/article/penjelasan-jet-rasmi-kerajaan-melalui-facebook-perlekeh-pegawai-jpm#sthash.LzJmlw70.dpuf

Silence not due to fear of Zahid, says IGP

 

Inspector-General of Police Khalid Abu Bakar explained that his refusal to comment on the case involving alleged gambling kingpin Paul Phua was not due to fear of his boss, Home Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.

"Come on, this has nothing to do with being scared of the boss.

"Like what I said, this issue is in proceedings (in the court in the United States).

"Those who talk a lot on this matter, they do not know laws and court procedures. I know (the procedures).

"I do not want to jeopardise the ongoing trial. Let it continue," he told reporters after attending a conference at the Police Training Centre (Pulapol) in Kuala Lumpur.

It was not made clear whether the police chief was referring to lawyer Muhammad Shafee Abdullah (left) when he spoke about those "who talk a lot" about the case.

Also, Khalid dismissed the accusations that the government is cooperating with the mafia.

"How can? This is not a matter of accusing the government... when an issue is in trial, whoever issues statements could be asked to be a witness, so I do not want to jeopardise the trial," he said.

He further stated that 14K is a mafia group which has strong links with drug deals, but it has "never been" in Malaysia.

"We have very tough drug laws in this country, I don't think any 14K (members) would like to be in this country," Khalid said.

However, he did not rule out the possibility of Malaysians abroad being members of 14K.

Khalid also declined to reveal if Phua had any other criminal record in Malaysia when asked, stating that the police have been in contact with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) all along.

Khalid told Malaysiakini yesterday that he would not make any further comment on the issue as Phua was facing criminal charges in the US.

Instead, he advised Phua to focus on his charges.

'Gov't jet didn't stay in US for Najib's family'

 

The government's VIP jet, which stayed behind in the United States for several days after Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak returned to Malaysia, was not meant for the use of Najib's family, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) has explained.

"The aircraft had not stayed behind for used (sic) by PM's family members. Also, they are not in Indianapolis," the PMO said in a statement to veteran newsman A Kadir Jasin today.

The statement was published by Kadir in the comment section of his blog, as a follow-up to his posting titled, ‘As the country floods, PM golfs in Hawaii’.

When contacted, Kadir (left) confirmed with Malaysiakini that the statement was issued by a senior aide of the prime minister after the veteran newsman queried about the matter.

In the statement, the PMO also confirmed that Najib’s family had travelled in the government jet to Hawaii, where Najib played golf with US President Barack Obama on Christmas eve.

On Dec 26, 2014, Najib announced he would return to Malaysia after receiving flak for his holiday while the country faced the worst flooding in decades.

He arrived in Kota Baru the following day. The PMO said Najib had returned to Malaysia on a commercial flight.

“The prime minister came back on a commercial flight via Hong Kong where he was picked up (by) the Royal Malaysian Air Force and headed straight to Kota Baru," it said.

Najib admitted in Kota Baru that he had left his family which was on holiday to oversee the flood relief effort back home.

'VIP jet had technical issues'

This prompted speculation that the premier's family was still on holiday using the government jet.

However, the PMO said the aircraft had to stay back due to "technical issues".

"This arrangement came about as the aircraft which the PM and his family used to travel to Hawaii had to stay behind in the United States to sort out some technical issues," it said.

The PMO statement did not explain the nature of the technical issue or how Najib's family returned home.

Nor did it explain why the jet was tracked criss-crossing several countries before making it home yesterday.

As Najib made his way back, flight tracker portal FlightRadar24 showed the VIP jet with registration number 9M-NAA taking off from Honolulu, Hawaii to Los Angeles then Indianapolis.

It remained there for six days, until Dec 31, 2014.

After the long stop there, the aircraft took off for Los Angeles, followed by New York,  London, Dubai and finally arriving in Bangkok on Jan 2.

The aircraft finally arrived in Kuala Lumpur International Airport at 10.20 last night before departing for Subang Airport 35 minutes later where it is usually based.

'MIC re-elections on, with or without chief's nod'

 

With or without MIC president G Palanivel's approval, vice-president M Saravanan said he will form a special committee with 15 central working committee (CWC) members to hold re-elections.

"The Registrar of Societies (ROS) has recommended that we form a special committee to hold re-elections - the sooner the better. I will suggest this to the president.

"Don't forget that in MIC, with the agreement of 15 CWC members, we can do it. So don't push me," Saravanan told reporters after his meeting with the ROS in Putrajaya today.

"For the sake of the party, I need to see him (Palanivel) in order to suggest a meeting. If I have no choice, I will go to his house.

"If I don't see him in the MIC office, I'll probably have to spend one or two days outside his house," he added.

Saravanan also said that if Palanivel (left) continued to refuse to see him to discuss the fate of the party, he would call 40 division heads for a special assembly.

Meanwhile, Saravanan also clarified that the 68-year-old party would not be de-registered by the ROS, as former MIC secretary-general A Prakash Rao had sent the ROS a letter of suggestion on Jan 2.

The letter had urged the ROS to provide an extension of 60 to 120 days for MIC to solve its internal issues and come up with its re-election.

'The ROS will consider the proposal'

Saravanan said the ROS would consider the proposal, and might even extend the time span for the re-election of MIC members for up to 120 days.

On Dec 5, the ROS had nullified the elections of MIC's three vice-presidents and 23 CWC members, and proposed fresh elections for these posts.

ROS said the party elections had been nullified because of breaches of the MIC constitution and the Societies Act.

Saravanan also told reporters that he was disappointed that Palanivel set up a meeting with the ROS, taking along Senator 'Barath' Maniam - and an unknown lawyer by the name of Chandra - when Palanivel was mandated to bring the vice-president instead.

Saravanan then urged Palanivel to forget the past and "try to set a new chapter" within the party.

However, the ROS confirmed today during the meeting that the party's current committee members are no longer valid, as they were elected in 2013.

"Based on the documents with the ROS, the current committee members elected are no longer valid until we hold a re-election," Saravanan said, adding that the post for secretary-general and treasurer are also not valid, as the election took place in 2013.

Saravanan reiterated that he would try to get the members together, alongside the president, to save the party.

'Insane man' also destroyed Hindu deities

The man who destroyed deities at Wat Chataram in Bukit Mertajam, Penang last Friday had also attacked Hindu deities the next day, police said.

Police nabbed the man after a police report was lodged on the destruction of the Hindu deities on Saturday and sent him to the Perak Road Psychiatric ward on the island.

The man was seen hitting four deities with a machete at the Kaliaman River Side temple at Kampung Pokok Machang, Tasek Gelugor at 8.30 am that day.

He fled on his motorcycle when a local tried to stop him.

A Saundarajan, 53, lodged a police report over the incident at about 10.30am.

Another native of the village, R Thangaletchumy, 47, said the man went on a rampage and attacked a home which had two elephant idols at the porch after attacking the temple.

Visiting the Hindu temple today, Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng  expressed hope the incident would not recur as the culprit is now in custody.

"This is definitely not the culture of Malaysians and I thank everyone who condemned such acts," he said.

The temple, which is under construction, is a replacement for a 50-year-old shrine but building works were slow due to lack of funds.

Lim said the state government was prepared to provide some financial aid to help in restoring the deities.

Deputy Chief Minister II P Ramasamy said such incidents should not happen against any place of worship.

He urged the temple committee to write to the state government for financial aid to restore the deities.

"Religion is a sensitive issue and nobody has the right to destroy a church, mosque or temple no matter what their political ideology," he said.

Last year in January, molotov cocktail was thrown in the Church of the Assumption on Lebuh Farquhar.

In February, a slab of pork meat was hurled into the compound of the Cherok Tok Kun Atas Mosque.

No arrests have been made for the two incidents last year.

Isma: Is MCA preparing to join PR if BN loses next GE?

Isma deputy president says MCA is desperate for Chinese votes and is using The Star to win back those who support DAP.

FMT

PETALING JAYA: Keeping a keen eye on the politics of the day is Malay NGO Isma who has predicted that MCA would jump ship in the blink of an eye should the ruling coalition it belongs to bomb at the next general election.

According to “Portal Islam Dan Melayu”, Deputy President of Isma, Aminuddin Yahaya said MCA was already strategising its moves to ditch Barisan Nasional and join forces with Pakatan Rakyat by using its party mouthpiece The Star to attack Malays and in so doing, win back lost Chinese votes.

He was referring to how MCA was using The Star to give greater prominence to outspoken Malays in their columns.

He said, “Not only that, individuals with liberal mindset and critical about Malay NGOs are given prominent columns with lengthy interviews being published, be it a politician, social activist or a corporate figure.”

Saying, “How smart they are,” he explained the sly manner in which The Star was using Malays to criticise other Malays while safeguarding themselves from being accused of making seditious remarks.

He said, “They let the liberal and Islamically ignorant Malay to attack these Malay Muslim NGOs. By doing this it appears that the paper is clean from any seditious element and thus cannot be subject to any legal suit.”

Cautioning MCA against playing with Malay sentiment, Aminuddin said, “My assumptions may be wrong but I would like to caution MCA that do not underestimate the importance of the Malay voters.”

Saying MCA’s actions were causing Malays to become angry with the party, Aminuddin warned, “I will not discount that in the next election the Malays may no longer support them and they will lose all seats.

“By then MCA may become history.”

Promoting Local Artists

Local artists have to go through such hassles to get a chance in Malaysian radio whereas Indians are free to get a chance in Malaysia.

Saravanan, Sec. Gabungan Artist-artist Indian Malaysia.

Prime Minister’s Office
Blok Utama, Bangunan Perdana Putra,
Pusat Pentadbiran Kerajaan Persekutuan,
62502 Putrajaya,
Wilayah Persekutuan.

Jabatan Penerangan Malaysia
Aras 5, 8-16 dan 18,
Kompleks Kementerian Komunikasi dan Multimedia
No. 49, Persiaran Perdana,
Presint 4
62100 Putrajaya

YAB/YB/Tuan/Puan,
Malaysian Indian songs should be aired at least 50% in all Tamil radios in Malaysia. We are artists from Gabungan Artist India Malaysia requesting the Malaysian government impose strict guidelines for all Tamil radios to play Local songs more than foreign songs.

During the management of Tun Dr. Mahathir, he had a policy that local products should be the priority. In that context we would like to urge the government to draw a line for foreign songs especially in Tamil radio stations. We are not anti foreign songs but if local songs are not played even in Malaysia, how can the Malaysian Indian artist reach the height of International level? Foreign songs which are mostly from India already reach the International market.

Recently, many artists have had terrible experiences at THR radio, a private channel, which is enshrined under Jabatan Penerangan Malaysia. Many hardworking artists are not recognized by our local channels. For example:-

a) Local song writers should send their songs under a registered label.

b) According to THR’s website it will take 2 weeks for them to approve or reject a song. It is very interesting to know how they approve a song. First, they send a song for rating which has 18,000 listeners. Those 18,000 listeners will make a decision which song to play in the radio station. We would like to make a point here, not all the 18,000 people are well versed in music, lyrics and expression of a song. They are just listeners. Many songs are rejected because of a low rating. There is an important point which we would like to make here; there are 194,400 likes in THR’s Raaga facebook page, out of 100k people we can see an average of 60 people likes their posting and we can only see 5 or 6 people comment on their postings. If out of 100k people you can get average of 60 likes what you will get from 18,000 people? Not everyone has time to spend on just listening then rating local songs. It is a complete discrimination from THR towards local Indian artists.

c) When a song is approved or rejected they don’t even answer by mail or letter to the related artist. If a song is rejected they should give a reason for it so that an artist can improve.

d) All radio channels should follow the ministry’s guidelines to approve the radio licence. The percentage of local artists should be taken into consideration because it is a guideline from the government.

e) THR and RTM are advertising Indian movie songs even before the release of the CDs or movies. The Indian artists do not have to go through procedures such as Malaysian artists:
• Should fill forms which are downloaded from their website;
• Should make a CD cover for every single song;
• A CD should be sent by registered post to THR’s guard house – with lyrics attached and should include details of the artist involved in the song,

No Indian artist has to go through all the procedures mentioned above. Local artists have to go through such hassles to get a chance in Malaysian radio whereas Indians are free to get a chance in Malaysia. It is not a good system which is created either by JPM or radio stations.

f) For the past 16 years, Malaysian artists have been fighting to get a chance or rights to play their songs in Malaysian radio. According to our recorded conversation from the THR management they play 2 to 3 Malaysian songs in an hour. That means local artists are getting less than a 10% chance in an hour. How will the government promote Malaysian talent when the local radios and TV restrict local songs and talents?

Those 2 or 3 songs are played everyday after 16 years of struggle. Do we have to struggle another 16 years to get another 8% chance? We from Gabungan Artist-artist India Malaysia would like to urge the government under the Prime Minister Dato Seri Najib Razak to draft strict guidelines for local and foreign songs. We need to stick to Tun Dr. Mahathir’s idea where local products should be given priority. We would like to have an official reply from the ministry so that it can be helpful in our effort to highlight the grievances of local artists.

Thank you for your understanding.

Yours faithfully,

Saravanan
Sec. Gabungan Artist-artist Indian Malaysia

Palanivel didn’t keep promise to meet ROS

Saravanan says MIC risks being deregistered if the re-election issue is not addressed.

FMT

PUTRAJAYA: MIC president G. Palanivel needs to be present at the Registrar of Societies (ROS) office with deputy president Dr S. Subramaniam to find a solution to a directive by the ROS to hold a re-election said MIC vice-president M. Saravanan.

“If the re-election issue is not addressed, there is a risk of the MIC being deregistered because it is not a personal issue but one that involves the party,” Saravanan told reporters after meeting senior ROS officers, here today.

Saravanan said he was disappointed with Palanivel for not keeping his promise to be present at the ROS office with his deputy.

“I urge the president to change. Go with your deputy. Forget the past, let’s start a new chapter,” he said.

On December 5, the ROS had nullified the elections for the party’s three vice-presidents and 23 Central Working Committee (CWC) posts that was held during its general assembly in November 2013 and recommended a re-election within 90 days.

Saravanan said he was informed that Palanivel was at the ROS with a lawyer known only as ‘Chandra’.

“I do not know who the lawyer Chandra is and how he got the mandate to be at the ROS with the MIC president. If he went there as his (Palanivel) friend, there is no problem. But if he went there as a lawyer it was wrong because there is no mandate for him to represent the party,” he said.

Saravanan, who is also the Deputy Youth and Sports Minister, said the MIC would not be deregistered in the near future because the former MIC secretary-general Prakash Rao had already written a letter to the ROS on January2, seeking an extension of the period from 90 days to 120.

– BERNAMA

Can Umno be sincere in helping Kelantan?

It's cruel to conduct political horse trading in times of crisis, says Zaid Ibrahim.

FMT

PETALING JAYA: Umno, as the party dominating the Federal Government, has been urged to set aside political interests in helping Kelantan deal with the aftermath of the flood. It should not try to “seduce” PAS into giving political concessions just because the “time is opportune and the people need Umno’s money,” says Zaid Ibrahim in his latest blog entry.

He says PAS should be allowed to continue governing Kelantan until its current term ends although “it does not make sense to allow the party to rule for many more years” seeing that it “has not done much to build the state in economic terms” in its 24 years in power.

“In times of crisis it is especially cruel to conduct political horse-trading when what is required is a bipartisan approach to solving problems,” he writes. “That’s how the federal system works in other countries, but can Umno be civil, helpful and responsible for positive change while making no political capital from the flood disaster in Kelantan?”

Zaid, himself a Kelantanese, laments that the people of the state tend to choose “pious-looking men” as their leaders, saying it might be hard to deal with future calamities effectively if they continued to do so.

“Sometimes we also must pick leaders who care enough about the people in addition to those who care about God,” he says.

“People-oriented leaders will find ways to solve long-term economic problems as well as issues relating to flooding and the destruction of forests. Such leaders work towards social improvements and are able to protect both people and property.

“Managing a modern state or government is a complex process in the 21st century, and so Kelantanese must start looking for other qualities in their leaders besides the ability to lead in prayers.”

Responding to PAS leaders who have said that the flood is a sign of God’s wrath for the sins of the people or His test of the faith of believers, Zaid says, “I am inclined to believe that the floods are due primarily to global climatic changes. These changes have caused severe storms and heavy rain in many places and it would have been ‘miraculous’ for us to have been spared the floods, given that other countries such as China, Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines have experienced worse disasters.”

He sees a “ray if light” in the unity shown by Malaysians of various races in their support for the flood victims.

“Despite political forces going in full throttle to divide and break up the unity of the people,” he writes, “our sense of oneness is still strong.

“We must do more to support one another and achieve a united country as one people—in spite of the politicians.”

Malaysia’s Justice Minister Defends a Gangster

Ahmad Zahid Hamidi tries to get a major gambling kingpin off the hook in a US trial

Asia Sentinel

Malaysia’s Justice Minister has dealt his floundering government coalition a new blow by attempting to convince the US Federal Bureau of Investigation that a notorious high-stakes bookie on trial in Las Vegas for running an illegal gambling ring was not an organized crime figure.

The episode has raised inevitable questions about top members of the government leadership and their connections to international gaming and other interests who can move money offshore without questions being asked.

In his signed Dec. 18 letter to Mark Guiliano, the assistant director of the FBI, Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, Malaysia's top law enforcement official, wrote that Paul Phua Wei Seng, on trial for illegal transmission of betting information and operating an illegal gambling business, was not a member of the famed 14K Triad, a Chinese organized crime gang with tentacles into most of the Chinese communities across Asia, and that a 2008 Royal Malaysia Police report on Phua was erroneous.

Intriguingly, Zahid, who has been mentioned as a future prime minister, wrote that Phua had “on numerous occasions, assisted the government of Malaysia on projects affecting our national security.”

Opposition figures have seized on the episode to demand what Zahid knew and when he knew it, and how Phua was assisting doing what, insisting that Zahid answer questions in parliament.

“Mr Zahid writing the letter comes across as very shocking not only because the letter attempts to exonerate Paul Phua, who clearly has a checkered past, but also because Zahid claims that Phua has assisted with ‘projects of national security,’” Fahmi Fadzil, communications director of the opposition People’s Justice Party, told the media Sunday.

Since the letter became public in a South China Morning Post news story last Friday, Zahid and other members of the United Malays National Organization have asked that it be withdrawn from the case and have been fumbling for answers as to why the justice minister was defending, on official Ministry stationery, a man who according to a 2008 report in the Royal Malaysian Police’s own files, was in organized crime up to his ears and saying “as such, we are eager for him to return to Malaysia.”

It is clear that the letter, copied to lawyer Muhammad Shafee Abdulah, UMNO's top fireman and most prominent and ubiquitous lawyer, was never meant to see the light of day. It also raised questions why Shafee was interceding for a gangster of Phua's stature. Speculation in Kuala Lumpur centered on the possibility that Phua was a central figure in laundering money out of Malaysia for top political figures.

Shafee issued a confused explanation on Sunday, saying Zahid was asked by US lawyers for Phua to provide the information or he would be compelled to do it in court. He added that the 2008 report to the FBI identifying Phua as a member of the local 14K was wrong. However, asked to explain the discrepancy between the 2008 report and Zahid’s 2014 letter, the Inspector-General of Police Khalid Abu Bakar declined comment, refusing to back up his boss.

There is voluminous information from the FBI in the US besides the Malaysian police report that Phua was indeed deeply involved in organized crime, raising questions why Zahid felt he needed to personally weigh in to the FBI instead of allowing Khalid Abu Bakar to provide the information and possibly correct its own mistake, if there was one. Phua’s arrest in Macau last year uncovered what was said to be the biggest gaming racket in the city’s history. In Las Vegas, according to the police report, Phua’s illegal sports betting operation ran into the tens of millions of US dollars.

The episode also raises questions why Phua’s lawyers chose Shafee, UMNO’s top legal figure, to ask Zahuid for help instead of himself going to the police. Zahid could have simply said the government had no information to connect Phua to the 14K, feigning ignorance of the 2008 report. But instead, in what looks like a bizarre attempt to convince the FBI , he says Phua has been involved in projects affecting Malaysia’s national security – unless Phua was stressing through his lawyers that he had information that he could use against the government if they didn’t make the effort to help.

Malaysia Letter

John Malott, the former US ambassador to Malaysia and a critic of the current government, said in an email to Asia Sentinel that he had become interested in the case and researched it after the SCMP report.

"Zahid's defense of someone who was arrested in both Macau and Las Vegas for allegedly running some of the biggest illegal on-line sporting bets operations in history is simply mind-boggling," Malott said. “Zahid has a lot to answer for. Why is he going out of his way to defend someone like Phua? Why did he say that this man, who is on trial in Macau and the US for criminal activity, is essential to Malaysia's national security?"

Some Las Vegas gambling news websites say Phua’s attorneys are trying to get the case thrown out on civil liberties grounds. The other five people arrested in Vegas all confessed and cooperated with law enforcement. There is no doubt that the crimes took place; they were witnessed by the FBI, they also found evidence on the laptops and cell phones that were seized, and five people confessed, meaning the only way Phua can escape jail is via procedural mistakes.

Phua’s attorneys say the search and later the arrest warrant were not valid because the FBI had entered Phua’s operations without a search warrant. The FBI purposely disabled the internet connection to Phua’s suites where the illegal sports gambling operation was being conducted, then posed as internet repairmen and secretly witnessed and filmed what was going on. They confiscated laptops and cellphones.

Because there was no search warrant, Phua’s lawyers argue, the search and therefore the knowledge that illegal activity was in fact taking place was itself illegal. Under US law, if the search is illegal, all evidence and confessions obtained thereafter are illegal.

The US attorney is expected to argue, however, that there was reasonable suspicion to believe illegal activity was taking place, given the fact that Phua had just been arrested in Macau for illegal sports gambling before he came to Las Vegas and because he had requested an inordinate amount of internet connection equipment for the hotel suites.

According to various Las Vegas news websites, Phua’s attorneys say that the judge issued the arrest warrant for Phua only because the FBI (1) hid the fact that there was no search warrant and (2) because they told the judge that according to the FBI’s information from the Malaysian police, Phua was a known member of the 14K triad. The defense says that in doing this, the FBI poisoned the judge’s mind and led him to issue the arrest warrant.

PM gets a lesson in transparency

Blogger Shahbudin says Najib shouldn't have acted like someone with something to hide.

FMT

KUALA LUMPUR: Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak would have saved himself a lot of embarrassment if he had been open about his recent movements instead of behaving like a thief, Umno critic Shahbudin Husin writes in his latest blog entry.

Continuing with his series of caustic blog entries that comment on Najib’s unannounced Hawaiian holiday and the mystery of what happened to the private government jet after he cut short the golfing vacation, Shahbudin says it is odd that the Prime Minister apparently did not count on the Internet’s power to turn any Tom, Dick or Harry into a reporter when he himself has often spoken about that power.

He says the one lesson Najib must learn from the episode is that he, as a prime minister and very public figure, has to be transparent about everything in these times of instant information and open communication.

“If he had not left for his Hawaiian Christmas holiday in secret and had instead released information that he would be playing golf with Barack Obama, no one would have really cared when the picture of him golfing with the American President became widely distributed,” he writes.

“If he had returned in the same aircraft that took him to Hawaii when the flood situation had become frantic, no one would have really bothered to trace the whereabouts of the official plane.”

The official explanation that the jet had encountered technical problems came only after a lot of questions had been raised, Shahbudin points out. But the explanation, he adds, became meaningless when a check with FlightRadar24.com showed that the jet had been moving around the American continent. “In fact,” he says, “it burned the public’s desire to find out who was using it.”

Shahbudin also refers to Najib’s decision to go to Bangkok last Friday for a meeting with his Thai counterpart, saying he should have not gone there secretly as well. It was because he made the trip stealthily that people saw a coincidence in the jet being in Bangkok at the time, he says. “But just as he went to Hawaii in stealth, he went to Thailand like one making a rendezvous with a sweetheart but afraid of being found out by his wife.”

If Najib had informed the public that he would be reuniting with his family after meeting the Thai PM, Shahbudin says, “no one would be interested in his trip and in taking a picture of his wife shopping in Bangkok.”

Shahbudin says it’s strange that Najib, who is active in social media, still seems to think that media power lies with Utusan Malaysia, Berita Harian and government-controlled television stations.

He ends his posting with this parting shot: “As the Prime Minister, act like a real prime minister, not like a thief who runs and hide.”

Mercy mission

The Sun Daily
by Annie Freeda Cruez

PETALING JAYA: A non-governmental organisation, the United Sikhs "Baaj of Humanity, flew a special mission to remote areas in Gua Musang, Kelantan, to deliver aid to 11 orang asli settlements.

The United Nations-affiliated body undertook the one-day mission on Jan 3, with the help of Helistar, which is owned, operated and managed by an experienced Sikh pilot, Capt Bagawan Singh.

With the collaboration of the Centre For Asli Concerns (COAC), the Helistar helicopter took off from Kuala Betis base camp at 8.20am with five men aboard. It made eight trips to distribute mostly food to the remote villages.

For villagers without a landing base, food was air-dropped.

The helicopter carried 2,350kg of supplies to 278 families comprising 1,000 people who had been cut off from the outside world due to landslides caused by heavy rain and logging.

In certain villages, the people were left in dire straits for nearly three months because their hill paddy and tapioca were destroyed in the floods.

COAC coordinator, Colin Nicholas, who accompanied the mission, said: "It was tough for us to reach the villagers. We tried our best for almost one week but to no avail. But now, thanks to the United Sikhs, we made these mercy air drops a success."

Added Bagawan: "It was a fruitful mission. This mission was made possible thanks to all the support given by the volunteers who helped us pack and transport the goods by land to the Kuala Betis makeshift helipad."

Rishiwant Singh, or better known as the "Flying Singh", who is the humanitarian aid coordinator (Asia Pacific) for United Sikhs, said: "I thank Malaysians of all the races who joined the Sikh community to help the orang asli."

IGP Denies Existence Of 14K Group In Malaysia

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 5 (Bernama) -- Inspector-General of Police, Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar today refuted the claim of the existence of an international drug trafficking syndicate, known as the 14K group, in this country.

However, he did not dismiss the possibility of Malaysian individuals joining the group abroad.

"The tight drug law in Malaysia pertaining to trafficking has most probably curbed the group's entry into this country," he said after attending the Integrity Seminar for police station chiefs at the Police Training Centre (Pulapol), here, today.

Asked on the case of Malaysian Paul Phua Wei Seng and his son Darren Phua Wai Kit, who are now detained and to be taken to court in the United States for allegedly carrying out an illegal betting operation during the football World Cup 2014, Khaled declined to comment as they two are in the process of being charged.

He only said: "My advice to Phua is to focus on the charge."

He confirmed though that Malaysian police were always in contact with the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) on the matter.

Meanwhile, Khalid said the federal police Integrity and Standard Compliance Department was still under the purview of the Royal Malaysian Police (PDRM) and he did not intend to separate it from PDRM.

The department was set up on July 25, last year, aimed at boosting the integrity of police and ensuring that the standards set by PDRM were complied with in carrying out their duties.

-- BERNAMA

Scandal: Dutch police paid Salafis to help patrol The Hague during New Year’s Eve

Dutch police has capitulated: they can no longer uphold law and order in Muslim dominated areas, and is now hiring Salafi sharia-patrols from the local mosque to patrol the streets. This is not only in complete conflict with secular principles, it also lends authority to people who follow a doctrine that preaches destruction of democracy and death upon the very people that the police is supposed to protect.

Translated by Thomas from DenHaagfm:

The Dutch member of parliament Joram van Klaveren and Louis Bontes of the Party for the Netherlands (VNL) are upset about the cooperation during New Year’s Eve between The Hague police department and the Salafist As-Sunnah mosque.

Volunteers of the As-Sunnah mosque were patrolling the Transvaal and Schilderswijk districts of The Hague during the New Year’s Eve in order to prevent young people from causing trouble. The mosque also organized some activities for young people in the old school building “Het Startpunt”.

The volunteers of the mosque were rewarded with tourist vouchers.

The Party for the Netherlands finds it inappropriate that the Dutch government “should be represented on the streets by a Salafist mosque.” The former Freedom Party MPs said that “it is a misguided development” because “a fundamentalist Islamic institution, whose spokesperson said that it does not believe in universal human rights and that Dutch society is built on a godless foundation, should not be a partner for our secular government.”

Leon de Jong, the leader of the Freedom Party in The Hague’s city council has asked the city council written questions about what he calls the “sharia police” of the As-Sunnah mosque. “This kind of Islamization undermines the authority of the police,” he says. “The police should control the streets. For that reason, there should be no room in The Hague for any kind of Islamic law enforcement whatsoever.”

Islam forbids men from becoming homemakers, says religious research centre

By Malay Mail Online

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 4 — Islam prohibits its married men from being the homemaker in the family, the government’s Malaysian Institute of Islamic Understanding (Ikim) has said, amid Putrajaya’s efforts to discourage women from dropping out of the workforce to raise children.

Siti Fatimah Abdul Rahman, consultation and exercise unit leader in Ikim’s centre for economic and social studies, said the Quran mandates the husband, not the wife, to provide for the household, the Sunday edition of local daily New Straits Times reported today

“Although there is no prohibition for wives to work and even if the wife earns 10 times more than the husband, he still has to provide basic sustenance for the family,” Siti Fatimah was quoted saying in the New Sunday Times report.

The official from the government research centre cited the Quranic verse 34 of chapter An-Nisa in her argument that Islam made it imperative for men to be breadwinners and said it was unacceptable for a husband to manage the home while earning nothing.

Putrajaya is aiming to increase Malaysia’s female labour force participation rate to 55 per cent this year from 52.4 per cent in 2013, even as the nation plans to reach developed status in just five years’ time by 2020.

A 2012 World Bank report has noted that the Muslim-majority country’s female labour force participation level was the lowest in the Asean region at 46 per cent, compared to Singapore’s 60 per cent or Thailand’s 70 per cent, and said the rate was unexpectedly low given Malaysia’s level of development.

Muslim right-wing group Ikatan Muslimin Malaysia said last month that Malaysia could still be a high-income nation if men remained breadwinners and women focused on raising children.

The suggestion drew ridicule from social activist Datin Paduka Marina Mahathir, who called the idea old-fashioned and questioned its practicality given that women accounted for two-thirds of all tertiary students in the country.

Let public decide on Hamid’s racially charged views, says ex-Bar Council chief

Retired chief justice Tun Abdul Hamid Mohamad must be allowed to express his opinion, although his provocative views on race relations may be seen as destructive by many, former Bar Council chairman Ragunath Kesavan said.

Similar democratic space, he pointed out should also be accorded to the group of 25 prominent Malays (G25), comprising retired civil servants and influential leaders, who were on a different page from Abdul Hamid.

"I am extremely upset with the stand taken by Abdul Hamid, who once occupied the highest position in the judiciary," Ragunath said, referring to Abdul Hamid's role as the chief justice for nine months, from 2007 to 2008.

"We (council) supported his elevation to be the top judge then because he gave the impression of a man of integrity," he said.

In September, Hamid drew criticism from leaders within the ruling coalition and the opposition for claiming that only the Malays had fought for the country’s independence.

Comparing Hamid with the G25, who in an open letter on December 8 had asked for a rational dialogue on the position of Islam and Islamic law in a constitutional democracy, Ragunath said the public now can hear diverse views that has emerged after the 2008 general elections which saw the ruling Barisan Nasional losing its two-thirds majority in the Dewan Rakyat.

"They (G25) too have the right to speak out and influence public opinion. Let the people evaluate," he added.

"As such, we can also hear the views of prominent people who do not put on their thinking cap," he said, referring to Hamid's latest call, asking political arch rivals Umno and PAS to unite to check the non-Malays, especially the Chinese, from further consolidating political power.

Hamid, in a letter published in Utusan Malaysia yesterday, stated that PAS should emulate Aceh’s move when it cooperated with Jakarta after the northern Sumatran province was hit by a tsunami in 2006.

“10 years ago, Aceh, which was fighting for an autonomous Islamic state, was hit by a tsunami that resulted in thousands of deaths.

"Now Kelantan is hit by floods. Due to the tsunami, Aceh and the Indonesian government agreed to co-exist. What about the Malaysian and Kelantan governments?" he reportedly asked.

Hamid said both the federal and Kelantan governments should repent and start prioritising on bigger issues such as religion and race, instead of party interests.

The PAS-Umno unity government talk have surfaced again after Kelantan and seven other states were hit by severe floods last week which claimed the lives of 27 people and caused estimated damages of about RM1 billion on properties and infrastructure.

Ragunath said Hamid's views were skewed as the Chinese could never become a political force in this country as the Malays and Muslims formed the majority in Malaysia.

"Moreover, the overwhelming number of non-Malays have accepted the role of the rulers, the position of Islam and the special privileges accorded to the Malays," he said.

Ragunath said more voters, including the Malays were drifting away from Umno-led BN because it lacked good governance such as transparency, accountability, equality and justice.

He said it must also be remembered that it was the non-Malays who returned the BN government to power with a strong two-thirds majority in 1999 even after the sacking of former deputy prime minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

"The Malays then voted for the opposition, especially PAS and PKR. However, since the 2008 election, voters have moved away from the BN because it lacked good governance." he added. – January 4, 2015.

- See more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/let-public-decide-on-hamids-racially-charged-views-says-ex-bar-council-chie#sthash.MKwfGSjE.dpuf

What did cops tell FBI about 14K triad?

 

The Royal Malaysian Police (RMP) had as early as 2008 identified three Malaysians as members of the 14K triad, a transnational organised crime entity.

They also found the 14K triad to be operating in Malaysia, with activities ranging from, illegal gambling, money laundering and drug trafficking.

These are among the contents of an internal document prepared by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), obtained by Malaysiakini.

The document was submitted as evidence in a US court case involving alleged gambling kingpin Paul Phua Wei Seng.

One of the three Malaysians named as a 14K triad member by the Malaysian police, according to the FBI's legal attaché in Kuala Lumpur in the document, is Phua, who is a top earning junket operator in Macau.

US prosecutors, who believe Phua to be a 14K triad member, had slapped him with illegal gambling charges.

Phua came into spotlight in Malaysia after Home Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi wrote a letter dated Dec 18, 2014, to FBI deputy director Mark F Giuliano, insisting that Phua did not belong to the 14K triad.

The minister also claimed that Phua was assisting Malaysia on matters concerning national security and was "eager" for him return to Malaysia.

This is despite the statement coming in contradiction with what the Malaysian police had informed the FBI six years earlier - on June 11, 2008.

Is 14K triad operating in Malaysia?

Yesterday, veteran lawyer Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, who is acting for Phua in Malaysia, said the information by Malaysian police was "wrong" and the minister's letter to the FBI was merely to correct this at his law firm's request.

Shafee (left), who is a leading lawyer for Umno, also repeatedly insisted that the 14K triad does not exist in Malaysia.

According to the FBI Internal document, the agency said the 14K triad was primarily operating out of Bangkok, Thailand but further investigations identified "several key members of that organisation operating in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia" with links to individuals in the US.

"On June 11, 2008, Legat (legal attaché) Kuala Lumpur received information from the RMP regarding the 14K triad.

"The RMP has identified the 14K triad as a local organised crime syndicate involved in illegal drugs, illegal gambling and money laundering activities in Malaysia," read the FBI document dated July 16, 2008.

According to the document, Malaysian police which identified Phua as a 14K triad member, determined that he resided in the US between November 2007 and January 2008 and also succeeded in obtaining his US contact number.

The Malaysian police then shared his phone number, as well as several more US contact numbers of other suspected Malaysian 14K triad members with the FBI's Kuala Lumpur legal attaché.

"On June 19, 2008, (FBI) Legat Kuala Lumpur passed the information regarding the above US telephone numbers to the Detroit, Las Vegas and New York FBI field offices with a request to obtain subscriber information and to conduct any other logical investigation deemed necessary," read the document.

Of the three suspected Malaysian 14K triad members identified by local police, only Phua's name was made public in the FBI document while the other two names were redacted for court submission.

The FBI said it was also informed by Malaysian police, that it strongly believes one of the three suspected 14K triad members, is the organisation's boss for Thailand.

'The boss' had M'sian passport
 
The document also cited information from the FBI's Bangkok legal attaché who said Thai authorities had identified a 14K triad member who went by the name of "the boss".

It is unclear if the individual referred to by the Malaysian and Thai authorities are the same person as the names are redacted.

However, Thai authorities said "the boss" possessed a Malaysian passport which was used to enter Thailand about eight times for several years leading up to 2008.

Malaysian police also identified the third suspected Malaysian 14K triad member to the FBI, but the name was also redacted in the document.

The police informed the FBI that the third individual had made 13 phone calls to a US number.

"The RMP suspects that [redacted] works in a travel agency making travel arrangements for 14K triad members," read the document.

The FBI's Kuala Lumpur legal attaché viewed the Malaysian police's cooperation positively, stating that it was an opportunity to develop a bilateral investigation and strengthening the working relationship with them.

"The RMP has indicated that it is open to sharing information with Legat KL in the development of the investigation of the 14K triad crime syndicate.

"Investigative resources will be expended to fully identify [redacted], (Paul Phua Wei) Seng, [redacted] and other members of the 14K triad organised crime syndicate, as well as the scope of their criminal activities in Malaysia and the United States," said the document.

Phua' lawyer, Shafee, yesterday insisted that the top poker player is not a triad member and is innocent of the charge slapped on him by the FBI.

AirAsia: We followed SOP on 'dead engine flight'

AirAsia Indonesia said it followed all standard operating procedures by returning a Bandung-bound plane to the apron after a system shut down.

The engines on the Surabaya-Bandung flight QZ7633 carrying 161 passengers reportedly died just before take-off yesterday.

However, AirAsia clarified that it was not the engines that died but the Auxiliary Power Unit (APU) which automatically turns off in certain circumstances as part of its safety feature.

The APU powers up the pneumatic systems on the ground before the engines start, it said in a statement.

It shuts down in the event of overspeeding, low oil pressure or overheating, AirAsia Indonesia said.

"Further checks were completed by our engineering team according to their standard operating procedues.

"After the final check was completed, the aircraft was released to fly about an hour later.

"Despite the sensationalised coverage, there were no safety issues and the aircraft landed safely in Bandung," AirAsia Indonesia chief executive officer Sunu Widyatmoko said.

An Airbus A320-200, QZ7633 is the same make as ill-fated QZ8501 which crashed in bad weather on Dec 28.

A total 34 bodies of the 162 on board have been retrieved from the Karimata Strait. The search continues.

As flood recedes, Orang Asli still out of aid

 

As the country reels from the country's worst flood in decades, the Orang Asli community living in the interiors of Kelantan, Pahang and Perak found themselves to be the last to get much needed aid.

However, much needed aid arrived by air yesterday after NGO United Sikhs dropped some 2,350kg of supplies to 278 families to the Temiar community in the interiors of Gua Musang, Kelantan.


In a Facebook posting, the NGO said it flew six sorties from its Kuala Betis base camp to eight locations with 11 orang asli settlements.

It said some 1,000 of the local population had been cut off due to landslides.

"The flood in the last 10 days also devastated their tapioca, hill paddy and vegetable crops," it said.

Some villages have also been cut off for up to three months as roads collapsed at the beginning of the monsoon season.

The aid delivery by air was a collaboration between United Sikhs and the Centre for Orang Asli Concerns.

Prior to the delivery, Jaringan Orang Asal SeMalaysia (Joas) had made a desperate appeal for help for the indigenous community in the area.

"More than 20 Orang Asli villages in the interior Kelantan have been cut off for almost 10 days since the floods.

"They remain unreachable and uncontactable and we do not have much information on their current condition.

"Army helicopters delivered food but it was some time ago and not all areas were reached," it said.

Police alerted, but still no help

Some say they received an aid drop off once by the Orang Asli Affairs Department (Jakoa) but the supplies have run out.

Volunteer Firdaus Nisha Muhammad Faizal said in Kuala Koh the river broke its banks and submerged Orang Asli home within two hours.

Firdaus and six friends spent four days on an ad hoc relief mission delivering food and other supplies through their NGO friends.

"The villagers were quick and resourceful enough to make a large raft to ferry people from one end of the river to the other side where later they would head to higher ground," he wrote on Facebook.

These villagers, whose homes were surrounded by oil palm plantations received help from the estate manager but not all were as fortunate.

In Temerloh, 140 families in Kampung Paya Pelong have been trapped since Dec 26 even though flood waters have receded in other parts of the district, said Joas representative Shafie Dris said.

He said the village chief Harun Sok managed to report the situation to the Kerdau police station but hardly any help arrived.

"Nothing has arrived since then except for 30 bags of rice from the Kuala Krau elected representative and a few kilos of rice from NGOs and church for 140 families,” he wrote on Facebook.

Supplies hijacked

Meanwhile, in Dabong, Kelantan, aid workers complained their supplies were “hijacked” by some villagers.

Aid worker Mohd Zulkifli Daud said supplies in seven Toyota Hilux intended for Kampung Mahligai was offloaded by a nearby village.

"The aid mission was stopped, they overran it, open up (the vehicles) and took the food for themselves," he said.

He added that a villager had tricked them by telling them that the bridge ahead to Kampung Mahligai had collapsed.

A video of Zulkifli relating his experience was posted on Facebook by Siti Kasim, a Bar Council human rights committee member who also assisted in the United Sikhs mission.

Ibrahim Ali: No logging for 25 years to end flooding

Perkasa leader says move will lead to soil stability and let land recover.

FMT

KUALA LUMPUR: The Malay right-wing group Perkasa has proposed a 25-year freeze on logging in flood-prone states as a measure to avert the repeat of massive floods.

Perkasa president Ibrahim Ali said that so long as logging licences were issued, there would be destruction of forests; so long as there was legalised logging, there would be illegal logging.

“We only blame logging and destruction of forests as the cause of floods but never ask who issues the logging licences,” he told reporters after launching a Perkasa goodwill event with the Orang Asli in Bukit Lagong here.

Several academicians have said that the recent widespread flooding in several states recently could be linked to logging and destruction of forests.

“We can freeze logging for 25 years at least to allow for soil stability. Licences can be given only to those involved in the (downstream) industry, for example the furniture industry. I do not think that Malaysia will lose in terms of revenue without the timber cess,” he said.

He added that Perkasa members had helped to collect and distribute aid to flood victims, and was also accepting contributions in the form of building materials such as zinc sheets, cement and planks for repairs to flood-damaged houses.

- BERNAMA

Palanivel rivals to see Registrar to avert party shutdown

Silence from party chief prompts action as two branches face being deregistered.

FMT


KUALA LUMPUR: With two branches facing deregistration, and MIC president G Palanivel out of contact, two of his rivals are to meet the Registrar of Societies tomorrow for discussions on the party’s fate.

Deputy president S Subramaniam and vice-president M Saravanan, viewed as allies against Palanivel, are going ahead with the meeting to avert a possible shutdown of the whole party in March.

“RoS has issued a letter stating that two MIC branches would be deregistered tomorrow and more divisions were at stake if the problem was left unattended,” Saravanan was quoted as saying in Kulaijaya.

“If we do not act now, not only more divisions will have to face deregistration but the party as a whole would be deregistered in March,” he claimed, according to The Star Online.

He said Palanivel had refused to answer his phone calls or reply to messages. Palanivel was not available for comment, The Star said.

On Dec 5 the registrar nullified the party elections held in November 2013 and proposed that new elections be held for the three vice-presidencies and 23 positions on the central working committee. (Palanivel and Subramaniam were re-elected unopposed.)

Palanivel’s apparent inaction about the Registrar’s instructions were viewed by an ousted central committee member, G Ramanan, as a sign that Palanivel sought to have the party deregistered in order to set up a new party formed of his own supporters.

Ramanan was one of five people ousted by Palanivel on Friday, with S Vell Paari, son of former party strongman S Samy Vellu, being replaced as MIC strategic director, A Prakash Rao removed as secretary-general, KS Nijhar and KS Balakrishnan dropped from the central committee, and a disciplinary committee formed.

However MIC Youth has objected to the appointment of G Kumar Aaman as the new secretary-general. Youth chief C. Sivaraajh said Palanivel should review Kumar Aaman’s past in view of the party chief’s recent statement on gangsterism within the party.

“I believe this party’s image is in jeopardy with this appointment,” Sivaraajh was quoted as saying. He said Kumar Aaman had “plenty of baggage” and “even police reports”, Malaysiakini reported.

Kumar Aaman’s appointment was viewed as a reward for instigating the Gerakan Anti Samy Vellu faction,

Sivaraajh said Palanivel had not met the party’s youth wing even once in over a year.

Palanivel: We’ve been talking to RoS all along

Party chief dismisses claims by his challengers that MIC may be shut down.

FMT

KUALA LUMPUR: MIC president G. Palanivel, dismissing claims by his challengers that the party was heading for deregistration, said today the party had been in touch with the Registrar of Societies since Dec 5 and had already asked for an extension of time.

On Dec 5 the registrar had nullified the party elections of November 2013 on grounds of irregularities and had told the party to hold fresh elections.

Palanivel’s rivals have claimed that he had been incommunicado since then and alleged that he intended to have the party shut down so that a new party could be formed with his own supporters.

In a statement this evening, he described the steps that the party had taken since Dec 5, and gave an assurance that everything possible was being done to keep the party going.

He said there had been many allegations and misinformation given to the media, but the party had been following procedures and proper channels in the Societies Act in respect of the registrar’s decision.

“We, together with the lawyers, are following proper procedures and have taken all measures necessary to protect the interest of MIC in this matter,” he said in a statement quoted by The Star Online.

“Firstly, ROS had issued recommendations by letter dated 5 December 2014 to MIC in relation to the allegations made by certain quarters after the elections for the vice-presidents and central working committee members. These findings and recommendations were made without MIC being given any opportunity to answer them to the RoS.

“We had immediately appointed lawyers to look into these issues and we have, on the advice of lawyers, issued a letter dated 24 December 2014 seeking clarifications and raised certain issues with the RoS.

“RoS has replied by letter dated 31 December 2014. Our lawyers are perusing all the issues and will advice on the next course of action in the near future.

“At this juncture, I am not able to give more details as it may prejudice MIC’s rights. In the meantime, we have again written to RoS on 2 January 2015 requesting for extension of time, without prejudice to MIC’s rights.

“There are fears that MIC will be deregistered within 90 days from 5 December 2014 if no re-election is conducted. I would like to assure all that we will not in any way allow such de-registration to take place,” he said.

Najib errs in his silence on Rosmah

The Prime Minister should take a leaf out of Tony Fernandes' book.

FMT

The funny thing about rumours is that you can never really choose to ignore them. But then, if you say too much, people will assume that you are acting in self preservation because there is truth to the talk. Say too little, and you add to the intrigue. Say nothing at all, and a piece of gossip takes a life of its own, ever growing in intricacy and complexity till little of the original remains.

Considering the options on the table, you’d think that addressing the situation makes the most sense for the parties involved, in this case, Prime Minister Najib Razak and the elusive Perdana 1, which currently awaits the Prime Minister in Thailand after a week-long jaunt in the United States, stopping in Los Angeles, Indianapolis, Los Angeles again and then New York en route to London, Dubai and back to South East Asia.

The fact that the aircraft remained in the US while the Prime Minister rushed home to deal with the flood crisis has intrigued many commenters and critics across the social sphere, with many coming to the conclusion that it must be the First Lady of Malaysia (FLOM), Rosmah Mansor, who is aboard the flight, probably indulging her allegedly infamous penchant for extravagant shopping and travel.

The Prime Minister’s Office has tried to pass it off as a maintenance issue, but as a piece carried by FMT on Saturday suggests, there was only one possible reason for Perdana 1 to be in Indianapolis, and for a week at that, raising even more concerns over the use of the jet, and more important, the doings of its possible passenger.

Najib should have just come out and addressed the rumours before they became such a source of national concern. Had he said, yes, it is Rosmah on board, he would have caught flak for it, but no more than he already has, as many Malaysians have already made up their minds about FLOM’s temperament and passions. Instead, his elegant silence has dealt a far worse blow to his and his wife’s reputations, at a time when he actually has made a public relations score with his efforts to address the floods. Had he clearly told Malaysians that the jet had issues, and the reason why it was in Indianapolis for so long, his honesty would have at least been appreciated by Malaysians whose tax dollars pay RM27,501.75 per hour for use of the jet.

Compare this to the way AirAsia Group CEO Tony Fernandes has been dealing with the biggest crisis facing his airline yet. The ill-fated QZ8501 would have devastated AirAsia had Fernandes dealt with the situation the way that our Prime Minister has with Perdana 1. Had he been as opaque over the issue, critics would have lambasted him for having no sympathy for his employees and the passengers onboard the flight, but what Fernandes has done is give the world a master class in crisis management.

He has gone to the ground, given comfort to the staff of AirAsia, personally accompanied the body of a stewardess back to her home, communicated constantly with the public and media, and his efforts have been rewarded with a positive afterglow on the airline despite the disaster. His constant updates have left little room for rumour, little space for unbridled speculation.

It is this openness that has given Fernandes some leeway as the airline recovers from the disaster, and our Prime Minister would serve himself well to learn from what the AirAsia Group CEO has done over the past week. Due to Najib’s refusal to address the status of Perdana 1, he has given way for gossip to hit him and his wife much harder than anything he could have possibly confessed to, even a shopping spree that spanned the breadth of America, from Los Angeles on the West Coast to New York on the East Coast.

Obviously, the magnitude of the loss of QZ8501 cannot be compared to the extravagance Perdana 1 has been associated with, but the two leaders dealing with crisis and controversy have chosen to deal with their situations in mirror-opposite ways. Najib must learn from his mistakes and stop the cycle of PR disasters marking his tenure as Prime Minister of Malaysia.

Asking for urgent meeting with Najib before Cabinet meeting on Wednesday to present four-point proposal on the floods catastrophe for Cabinet adoption

By Lim Kit Siang Blog

I am seeking an urgent meeting with the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak, before Wednesday with a four-point proposal for adoption by the Cabinet with regard to the floods catastrophe which had ravaged nine states in the past two weeks.

It would appear that the Cabinet had not met since Dec. 17, as the two previous Wednedays had fallen on Christmas eve on Dec. 24 and New Year’s Eve on Dec. 31.

Although both these dates are not public holidays in Malaysia, it is the tradition that the Cabinet would not meet on these two dates as most Ministers would be overseas on vacations.

I believe that the Cabinet had also not met on Dec. 24 and 31 last year, as there had been no reports about Cabinet meetings on these two dates, which would be most unusual and extraordinary, as the country’s worst floods in decades had spanned both these dates.

However, I confess I am not privy to information as to whether the Cabinet had met on Dec. 24 and 31, and I am prepared to stand corrected if I am proved wrong.

If I am right that the Cabinet had not met since Dec. 17, then this is a gross remiss of public duties and responsibilities by the entire Cabinet and Najib owes the country a full and satisfactory explanation for the Cabinet playing truant when the country was faced with an unprecedented floods catastrophe, which caused the evacuation of a quarter of a million people, with over a million in nine states adversely affected by the floods catastrophe and the death of at least 21 people.

Although the worst of the second wave of the floods catastrophe seemed to be over, the Meteorological Department has warned of a a third wave of a moonsoon surge to begin on Jan 7 or 8, with possible continuous heavy rainfall up to three days over cerrtain states, especially in Johor, Sabah and Sarawak.

The National Security Council, and in particular, the Federal Government, should not be caught off-guard as happened in the second wave of the floods catastrophe in the past fortnight.

The four-point proposals concern:

# the declaration of a state of emergency for the flood-stricken states;

# the formation of a BN-PR Joint Action Council on Floods Catastrophe;
# Convening of a Special Parliament this month on the Floods Catastrophe;’

# Doubling of the RM500 million allocation for relief of flood victims to RM1 billion to enable every flood victim whose livelihood/business had been wiped out by the floods catastrophe to apply for interest free loans, ranging from RM1,000 to RM250,l000 to start life and business anew.

Seven MIC Divisions In Kedah, Four In Penang Want Palanivel To Settle Party Crisis

KULIM, Jan 4 (Bernama) -- Seven out of the 12 MIC divisions in Kedah today called on MIC president Datuk Seri G. Palanivel to stick to the decision made by the party at a meeting last Dec 18 to resolve its internal crisis.

Their spokesman S. Ananthan, who is also MIC Kulim/Bandar Baharu chief, said the president must act firmly and urgently along with his deputy Datuk Dr S.Subramaniam to resolve the party's problem with the Registrar of Societies (ROS).

"The president by right should keep the pledges made at the Dec 18 meeting to resolve the issue with ROS, not appoint new members to the party's Central Working Committee (CWC)," he told Bernama here today.

On Dec 5, ROS had officially notified the MIC that its polls for the vice-president and CWC seats as well as some divisional elections were null and void due to certain irregularities and ordered the party to hold fresh polls for the said seats within 90 days.

At the Dec 18 meeting, Palanivel had said that he would deal with the matter as best as possible and form a special committee made up of himself and Dr Subramaniam, the five members who lodged complaints about irregularities in the party polls and five others, in trying to resolve it.

Ananthan said the leaders from the seven divisions feared the party could be deregistered if Palanivel did not follow ROS's instructions for MIC to hold the fresh elections.

Present with him were division chiefs Arumugam Ariman (Merbok); M.Varatharajoo (Pokok Sena); M.Sinnapan (Kuala Kedah); R.Subramaniam (Jerai); S.Ganesan (Pendang ) and Datuk DrJoginder Singh (Sungai Petani division vice-head).

Yesterday, Palanivel in an e-mailed statement had announced that MIC Secretary-General A.Prakash Rao had been replaced by Datuk Kumar Silambaram.

He also announced that Ramalingam Krishnamoorthy has been appointed as the new Strategic Director of MIC replacing Datuk Seri Vell Paari, the son of former party supremo, Datuk Seri S.Samy Vellu who handpicked Palanivel as his successor.

He also appointed three new members to the CWC. They are Karuppanan Malairaja (Penang), Datuk Ganesan Subramaniam (Kedah) and Ganesan Thankaveloo (Selangor).

They will be taking over from Tan Sri K.S Nijhar, Datuk R. Ramanan and Datuk K.S Balakrishnan.

In PENANG, four of the 13 MIC divisions in the state echoed the same.

Bayan Baru division chief Datuk M. Nyanasegaran, speaking to reporters on the behalf in Butterworth, said the top leadership of the party must "save the party" from being deregistered.

"This is not a time for making changes to the office bearers (new CWC appointments) but to resolve the crisis the party is facing," he said.

He also urged Palanivel and Dr Subramaniam to update members on the status of the fresh polls.

Present with him were division chiefs R. Kamalraj (Nibong Tebal), M.Suresh (Permatang Pauh) and P.Arumugam (Balik Pulau).

-- BERNAMA