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Thursday, 8 January 2015

Health Minister: We were not ready to face intense floods



Shocking uncensored video Paris attack

Pictured: Two brothers who 'trained in Yemen as assassins' and a homeless teenager identified by police as suspects in Paris magazine massacre that left 12 dead

  • Masked gunmen storm Paris headquarters with AK-47s shouting 'Allahu akbar!' and 'the Prophet has been avenged'
  • Stalked building asking for people's names before killing the editor, three cartoonists and the deputy chief editor
  • Editor Stephane Charbonnier had famously shrugged off threats, saying: 'I'd rather die standing than live kneeling'
  • Horrific footage shows a police officer begging for his life before being shot in the head at point-blank range
  • Cartoonist Corrine Rey told how she cowered with her young daughter as she watched two colleagues gunned down
  • Killers fled in stolen car across eastern Paris after a 'mass shoot-out' with police officers and remain on the loose
  • Militants believed to be from Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula which was behind plane bomb plots in US and UK
  • Three suspects said to be all French citizens - a homeless teenage man aged 18, and two brothers aged 32 and 34
  • Newspaper had earlier posted a picture of Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi on its Twitter account
  • Publication's offices were firebombed in 2011 for publishing satirical cartoon of Prophet Mohammed
  • White House had previously criticised Charlie Hebdo in 2012 for publishing its religiously sensitive cartoons
Cherif Kouachi, 33
Said Kouachi, 34,



















Two brothers were tonight named as being among the three suspects involved in a deadly terrorist attack on an anti-Islamist newspaper in France.

Said Kouachi, 34, and Cherif Kouachi, 32, were identified along with Hamyd Mourad, 18, with all three from the Paris commuter town of Gennevilliers.

At least 100,000 people gathered across France tonight to back the Charlie Hebdo publication, as a huge manhunt was launched to find the attackers.

The suspected Al Qaeda militants massacred 12 people in Paris today - and among those slaughtered was a police officer as he begged for mercy.

Tonight, thousands of people went to Republique Square near the scene to honour the victims, holding signs reading 'Je suis Charlie' - 'I am Charlie'.

The three suspects were tonight said by Metronews to be all French citizens - a homeless teenage man, and two brothers in their thirties.

There were disputed claims that the three men had been arrested 100 miles away in Reims, following a report by Libération. This could not be verified.

Cherif Kouachi was convicted in 2008 of terrorism charges for helping funnel fighters to Iraq's insurgency and sentenced to 18 months in prison.

Clad all in black with hoods and speaking French, the militants forced one of the cartoonists - at the office with her young daughter - to open the door.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2900259/Gunmen-kill-11-Charlie-Hebdo-attack.html

Danish mosque doubles down on Isis support

In a newly-aired documentary, leaders of the Grimhøj Mosque said that they want to see Isis win, that a Danish suicide bomber is a hero and that they do not believe in democracy.

The Aarhus mosque that made international headlines in September by declaring its support for the terrorist group Isis has now doubled down on its statements.

In a documentary from broadcaster DR that aired on Tuesday night, leaders of the Grimhøj Mosque said that they want to see an Islamic caliphate established, that they don’t believe in democracy and that a Danish convert who carried out a suicide bomb attack in Iraq is a hero.

“We want the Islamic State come out on top. We want an Islamic state in the world,” the mosque’s chairman, Oussama El-Saadi, said in the DR programme.

El-Saadi also said that he views Denmark’s participation in the US-led battle against Syria as a direct affront not only to his mosque but to all Muslims.

“The war is against Islam,” he said.

Another mosque leader also makes his disdain for democracy clear in the documentary.

“I can be integrated without being a fan of democracy. That’s my choice. You can certainly live here as a Muslim without going out and voting and participating things that don’t benefit the Muslims in Denmark,” Youssef Loubani, the chairman of the mosque’s board, said.

In the documentary, El-Saadi also lends his support to Victor Kristensen, a Danish man who converted to Islam and is suspected of having carried out a suicide bomb attack in Iraq that killed numerous people.

“I am expressing my right to free speech in order to give my opinion. And I think that if he did it for his beliefs and for Allah’s sake then he is a martyr and a hero,” El-Saadi said.

Grimhøj Mosque has long been accused of promoting an extremist interpretation of Islam. In July, a video emerged of Abu Bilal Ismail, an imam at the mosque, calling on God to “destroy the Zionist Jews”.

East Jutland Police also estimate that of the at least 110 individuals who have left Denmark to fight in Syria, around two dozen of them come from Grimhøj Mosque.

In the DR programme, the mosque leaders denied that its members were radicalized.

A clip from the documentary, in which Middle East expert Naser Khader confronts the leadership of Grimhøj Mosque, can be seen below.

Why no action on Uitm anti-Christianity seminar after 8 months, ask complainants

A number of police reports were lodged in Shah Alam and Sarawak over an anti-Christian seminar held in Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) in May last year. Until today, there has been no progress on the reports. – The Malaysian Insider file pic, January 8, 2015.Several people, including some from Sarawak, who lodged complaints against an anti-Christian seminar held in Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) in May last year have questioned police inaction and silence over the reports, suggesting that the authorities have swept the issue under the carpet.

One of them, Christopher Johann Jabat, who is based in Kuching, asked if the case has been closed.

Expressing disappointment over police inaction on his complaint, the 30-year-old Iban administrative assistant said he was informed by police that they would open a file based on his report and call him up if there was any development.

"But I've not received any call from them. It is obvious that they are sweeping the matter under the carpet and that no follow-up has been done," said Jabat, who lodged the report at the Simpang Tiga police station in Kuching a few days after the seminar.

He added that it was now up to leaders such as Sarawak Chief Minister Tan Sri Adenan Satem to raise the matter so that police would be prompted to do their job and investigate the reports made by Sarawakians against the seminar.

At the May 6 seminar, which featured speakers from Indonesia, the audience was told that undercover Christian priests had been sent to Malaysia under different guises, including working with Muslim children as football coaches, to proselytise and convert Muslims.

The seminar on the use of the word "Allah" and Christology also featured a talk on "10 reasons why Christians should become Muslims" and belittled the Bible by alleging that it contained "tales".

The seminar was jointly organised by the Academy of Contemporary Islamic Studies, UiTM, Warisan Ibnu Aaby and the Selangor Islamic Religious Council (Mais), and supported by Utusan Malaysia, Kumpulan Karangkraf, TV Al-Hijrah, Zikay Group and Pantai Bharu Group of Companies.

Among those who lodged reports against the seminar was Melanau Muslim Abdul Halim Hamdian, who criticised the lack of police action, saying that his reason for making the report was to ensure such events did not make their way into Sarawak.

But Halim, who lodged his report at the Dalat police station, is not confident that much will come out of his complaint, saying that people should instead focus their energy on raising awareness on the need to accept each other's faith.

Suzie Kulleh, 41, from Kota Samarahan, who had lodged a report at the Simpang Tiga police station, also wanted to know the progress of investigations.

She added, however, that more people from the peninsula should have lodged reports as well given that the incident took place in Selangor.

"I am disappointed that there were not more (peninsular) Malaysians and Christian leaders who complained to the authorities against the seminar.

"And it is not only about Christianity, we must stand firm against any religion being discriminated against," she told The Malaysian Insider.

Copies of books published by Mais on the threat of Christianisation and alleged evangelism among Muslims in Malaysia were also distributed to more than 1,000 students present at the seminar.

The book entitled "Pendedahan Agenda Kristian" warned Muslims to watch out for "tricks" by Christians to sway them from their faith.

The book also claimed that the main reason there was apostasy among Muslims was because of Christianisation.

Another book, titled "Obligation to preserve the sanctity of the name Allah", explained why non-Muslims, in particular Christians, cannot be allowed to use the word “Allah”.

Meanwhile, lawyer Annou Xavier, who is acting for two people who lodged reports in Selangor against the seminar, said he would write to the police again to find out the status of the case.

Private college lecturer Perzeus James and author Uthaya Sankar Narayanan, who alleged the seminar had vilified Christianity, had lodged police reports in Shah Alam two days after the seminar.

They were subsequently called up by the police twice – a week after the lodged their reports to have their statements recorded and again in June, where they were quizzed about “what exactly they were unhappy about”.

When they did not hear from the police after that, the duo in September instructed Xavier to write to the Shah Alam police chief requesting for an update on the reports lodged. In the letter addressed to Assistant Commissioner Azisman Alias and Inspector Rohaini Baharom on September 11, Uthaya and Perzeus also asked whether their complaints were being investigated under the Penal Code or the Sedition Act.

It was later found that one of the speakers at the seminar, who claimed to be a former Catholic priest turned Muslim, had used a false identity.

Insan L.S. Mokoginta had told the seminar that he was a former Catholic priest who converted to Islam in 1976.

However, the Bishops Conference of Indonesia confirmed that Mokoginta’s identity was false. Its executive secretary Father Edy Purwanto said he had no information or data on Mokoginta.

The Malaysian Insider also contacted the Selangor Criminal Investigation Department chief Datuk Mohd Adnan Abdullah on the status of the investigations but was told that police would not reveal details of the investigation to the media.

"We will only inform the complainant not the media. It is our SOP (standard operating procedure)," said Adnan.

He, however, added that if the media wanted to know the status of the investigation, they could write in officially Azisman, who is the Shah Alam police chief.

"The report was lodged in Shah Alam and it was being investigated by the officer in Shah Alam police district headquarters. Please write in officially to the OCPD," he told The Malaysian Insider. – January 8, 2015.
- See more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/why-no-action-on-uitm-anti-christianity-seminar-after-8-months-ask-complain#sthash.1SVSoa9O.dpuf

Zahid 'broke convention', police report to be filed

 
PKR has accused Ahmad Zahid Hamidi of breaching diplomatic convention in bypassing the Foreign Ministry by sending out a letter in defence of alleged Malaysian gambling kingpin Paul Puah.

Party vice-president Rafizi Ramli told Malaysiakini that a police report would also be lodged against the home minister and senior lawyer Muhammad Shafee Abdullah.

Rafizi claimed that Zahid's conduct "heightened suspicion that it (the letter to the Federal Bureau of Investigation) is not above board."

"If it is a genuine and above-board clarification by the Malaysian authorities, it should have been done by the police and communicated through Wisma Putra's diplomatic channel.

"The fact that Zahid broke both conventions highlights the serious inappropriateness of his act and warrants investigation to be commenced against him," he said.

In particular, Rafizi stressed, it was important to determine how many such letters have been issued so far.

A check by Malaysiakini with those familiar with such procedures also revealed that in cases of vouching for a citizen, the proper channel would be the Foreign Ministry.

As for the police report, Rafizi said it would also be a test for Inspector-General of Police Khalid Abu Bakar.

“This is to see if the IGP will act independently to investigate the home minister (who oversees the police force) and an Umno lawyer when it is so clear that a possible ministerial misconduct had taken place,” he added.

Meanwhile, Rafizi also expressed concern over a Malaysiakini report yesterday that Zahid did not consult the police before sending the letter.

He said the minister should have engaged the police as they knew better about the case as opposed to “misrepresenting the country”.

Contacted later, Khalid said should PKR lodge the report, it would definitely be investigated.

“We investigate all reports, regardless of whom these are lodged against,” the police chief told Malaysiakini.

Previously, Shafee, who is representing Phua in Malaysia, said Zahid had penned the letter to correct a mistake regarding his client, who is facing court proceedings in the United States.

Shafee said that Phua was not a member of the transnational crime organisation 14K, as alleged, and added that the triad did not exist in Malaysia.

However, the IGP later said that while 14K did not exist in Malaysia, Malaysians abroad were known to be members of the triad.

Today, Shafee remained firm that there was an error and dismissed the Malaysiakini report stating that the police defended their findings on Phua.

Zahid, on the other hand, has remained tightlipped on the matter.

Sec-gen: MIC boss will strike at right time

 
MIC president G Palanivel is keeping a close watch on the drama unraveling in the party and will swing into action at the appropriate time, said newly-minted secretary-general G Kumar Aamaan.

He said Palanivel is monitoring the statements made by "power hungry" quarters in MIC and would not hesitate to do what is necessary to maintain the party's credibility.

"The president will strike when the time is right," he added in a statement today.

Since the Registrar of Societies (ROS) ordered MIC to hold a re-election, the president has come under constant attack, with detractors even accusing his wife of calling the shots.

However, Palanivel has dismissed the allegation.

Even his deputy, Dr S Subramaniam, is aligned to the opposing faction which is insisting on re-elections.

Subra: I'm working with Palanivel

However, Subramaniam today told reporters that he will be working with Palanivel to solve the party's woes.

"We met today at cabinet and we had a very good discussion on moving forward.

"I told him that we should combine all our resources together in trying to solve these problems," he said at a press conference after a blood donation drive in Kuala Lumpur.

When asked on Palanivel's decision to meet the RoS without him, Subramanian declined to comment on

"Some things we discussed personally, and we'd rather keep it that way," he said.

Subramaniam (left) also denied allegations that Palanivel's wife runs the party, and said such things should be left out of politics.

On Monday, MIC vice-president M Saravanan said a re-election would be held with or without the president's consent.

Kumar added that there are some factions within the party who are bent on using the issue with ROS for their own political agenda.

72-hour deadline

He pointed out that he has given ROS 72 hours to meet him to straighten out certain stories or he will go to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) with some important elements.

“For the record, I have also requested an appointment with the director-general of ROS (Mohammad Razin Abdullah) last Monday to demystify certain stories that have still remained a mystery.

“ROS however, cancelled the meeting at the very last minute, claiming that the director-general is still on a holiday.

“I have given them (ROS) 72 hours to meet with me. If not I will extend some key elements to the MACC,” Kumar (right) warned.

He added that he has some important information from a well-known politician regarding the investigation ROS is conducting against MIC.

“I will reveal the ‘truth’ when the time comes,” he stressed.

FRU caused permanent injury, High Court told

 
As a result of a permanent injury - caused by the police during the first Bersih rally in 2007 - he has had to use a walking stick, a 38-year-old freelancer related to the Kuala Lumpur High Court today.

Aleyasak Hamid @ Hassan, from Kajang, Selangor said that he was an innocent bystander and had merely wanted to observe the Bersih rally when the incident on Nov 10, 2007 occurred.

He added that he was at the Kampung Baru mosque for afternoon prayers, and then he asked his aunt to send him to Dataran Merdeka, as he had never watched a big rally before.

"She dropped me at Kamdar Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman. From there, I walked with the crowd towards Dataran Merdeka, and there I saw people reciting the doa and selawat. The situation was orderly, controlled and peaceful," he noted.

"Suddenly, I heard shouts of ‘run, run!’ and watched the Federal Reserve Unit (FRU) approaching. Initially I sat at Dataran Merdeka, then after hearing the commotion I started to run, but fell near the big flower pots by the side of the road.

"Then the FRU officers surrounded me and kicked at my ribs. They stepped on my left knee and then I heard a ‘pop’ sound - I knew then that my knee was fractured," he told the court in answering to questions from his lawyer Latheefa Koya.

Aleyasak (left) was testifying in his suit where he named the Kuala Lumpur police chief, the Dang Wangi OCPD, the inspector-general of police and the government as defendants.

The plaintiff added that he could not run from the authorities following the fracture and he pleaded to the FRU to stop assaulting him.

Aleyasak said he shielded his face with his arm to prevent further assaults by the police.

“I pleaded to them to carry me to the police truck as they asked me to move there. However, my calls went unheeded and I walked to the truck in pain while the police continue to hurl verbal abuses at me. When I arrived at the truck, a policeman kicked my fractured knee and it hit the truck,” he said.


Surgery two days later

The plaintiff said surgery was performed on his leg at the Kuala Lumpur Hospital (HKL) on Nov 12, and he had to undergo follow-up treatment at HKL and also at the Kajang Plaza Medical Centre till today.

Aleyasak said he lodged a police report over the incident, a day after the rally but till today no action has been taken.

He said that as a result of the injury, he could not do his job at a pest control company as he no longer had the strength to climb high places and lift things.

“As a result of the injury, I had to do odd jobs to support my family and by selling nasi lemak, goreng pisang (banana fritters) and giving tuition. My pay is not stable and depends on my personal business,” he said, adding that he also find it difficult to find a permanent job as a result of the injury.

“I am saddened that I could not be a a good father to my child as I cannot run or do activities which require physical strength,” Aleyasak said about the extent of his injury.

He produced reciepts for his treatment at HKL and Kajang Plaza Medical Centre and also the for the purchase of his walking stick as evidence in the trial.

The hearing continues before Judicial Commissioner Azizul Azmi bin Adnan tomorrow with testimonies from the former HKL doctor who treated him and two police officers.

Make PM listen, NGO heads tell Mahathir

Three prominent Muslim NGO leaders met with former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad last week with the hope that he would pressure Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak to act on their concerns.

Speaking to Malaysiakini, Islamic Renaissance Front (IRF) chairperson Dr Farouk Musa described the meeting held last Tuesday, as a private initiative.

Farouk clarified that the three leaders did not represent the G25 agenda, despite their respective organisations supporting the 'Eminent Malays'.

He said the hudud issue was the main thrust of the meeting, which was also attended by Sisters in Islam (SIS) founding member Zainah Anwar and Movement for a Just World (Just) chairperson Chandra Muzaffar.

"It was not on the G25 agenda, it was a private initiative by the three of us.

"We wanted to voice out our concerns about what is happening in this country - the rise of the voices of extremists and all the Ikatan Muslimin Malaysia (Isma) and Perkasa issues.

"They are doing whatever they think it right, and nobody is saying no to them," Farouk said.

When it was pointed out that Mahathir is the patron of Perkasa and considered by many to be part of the problem, Farouk explained that the former prime minister's voice "carries weight".

"Najib does not listen to anyone else. It's only Mahathir, who can say something that he would probably listen to," he added.

Mahathir stood up against hudud

Farouk elaborated that Mahathir has a major influence over the people, and had stood up against the Islamic agenda of PAS and hudud before this.

"What worries us is that even the government and ministers have been enticing PAS to table the hudud bill.

"As civil society leaders, we understand that the reason for them to entice PAS is to break up Pakatan Rakyat," he said.

Farouk said during Mahathir's (right) reign, he had "put a stop to it" when the hudud agenda became a prominent issue.

"So, we want Mahathir to advise Najib on the hudud agenda, which we think is going to break the country apart," he stressed.

Farouk also reiterated that the meeting was about hudud and its effects on the country.

"It was not about us representing G25 or anything like that. No, they would have to do their own work with the PM. This is our own private initiative," he added.

Death sentence of man who torched wife, daughter upheld

Victims made declarations which implicated ice seller before their death.

FMT

PUTRAJAYA: The Federal Court here upheld the conviction and death sentence of an ice seller for killing his wife and daughter, about 10 years ago, by splashing kerosene and setting them ablaze.

A five-member panel chaired by Federal Court judge Suriyadi Halim Omar also upheld the High Court decision to sentence P Balan Subramaniam to 12 years’ jail for attempted murder of another daughter.

Suriyadi, who presided on the panel with justices Ahmad Maarop, Jeffrey Tan Kok Wha, Mohamed Apandi Ali and Abu Samah Nordin, dismissed Balan’s final appeal on his conviction, death sentence and jail sentence.

Balan, 62, was found guilty and sentenced to death by the Ipoh High Court for the murder of his 48-year-old wife, R Angeladevi.

The High Court had originally acquitted and discharged Balan on the charge of killing his daughter, Anuradha, 20, a college student, and attempted murder of his then 23-year-old daughter Malini (now 34 years old), a hospital assistant, without his defence being called.

However, on appeal to the Court of Appeal by the prosecution, the matter was subsequently remitted back to the High Court for Balan to enter his defence on the two charges.

At the end of the defence case, Balan was found guilty and sentenced to death for killing Anuradha and he was also found guilty and given a 12-year jail sentence for the attempted murder on Malini.

He lost his appeal to set aside his conviction and sentences at the Court of Appeal.

Balan was accused of committing the offence at his house in Jalan Anggerik, Desa Changkat, Batu Gajah in the Kinta District of Perak between 10pm and 11pm on October 11, 2004.

According to the facts of the case, a quarrel broke out on the day of the incident which led to the arson. Angeladevi and Anuradha had made declarations implicating Balan before their death.

Balan was represented by lawyers K Kumaraendran and Dev Kumaraendran while deputy public prosecutor Hamdan Hamzah appeared for the prosecution.

So it was golfing and shopping in Thailand after all

Looks like the speculation surrounding the whereabouts of our PM and his wife are true - the couple was in Thailand on a private trip.

FMT


KUALA LUMPUR: The Bangkok Post has put to rest the endless speculation surrounding our prime minister and his wife by reporting that the couple was indeed in Thailand recently on a private New Year’s vacation and to meet with General Prayut Chan-o-cha.

Quoting a source close to General Prayut, the paper said on Tuesday that Najib Razak and his wife, Rosmah Mansor made the trip to Thailand on January 2, where they shopped, played golf and stayed the night at the Shangri-La Hotel in Bangkok.

The source also said the trip was kept under wraps on account of etiquette as it was of a private nature.

The paper also disclosed that Najib lunched with Prayut at the general’s residence in Kesakomol where the two discussed a variety of issues including that of dual citizens and border crossings by Malaysian vans into Thailand.

“The Malaysian prime minister had to tweet that he had lunch with Gen Prayut to thank Thailand for donating 500 tonnes of rice to help flood-hit Malaysian victims and to exchange views on flood solving and restoration.

“This is seen as trying to avoid criticism about his trip. Thailand did not disclose news about his visit for etiquette reasons as he went to holiday here” added the source.

Najib and Rosmah have been under intense scrutiny and criticism in light of the devastating floods in Malaysia as neither was present to help deal with the national crisis until much later.

Najib was also accused of sneaking off to play golf with US President Barack Obama until a Washington Post photograph of him and Obama on the greens forced Najib to explain it away as merely “golfing diplomacy”.

Cutting short his Hawaii trip all the same, criticism reached new heights when the focus turned to Rosmah instead, with many questioning her absence in the country and that of the government jet.

Photos of a woman resembling Rosmah shopping in upmarket Bangkok Central Chidlom Mall later surfaced online, with many stating their disbelief that the first lady was not by her husband’s side delivering aid or meeting with flood victims back home.


Decision on appeal in Altantuya case on January 13

The prosecution is appealing against the August 23, 2013 decision of the Court of Appeal in acquitting the two policemen of murder.

FMT

PUTRAJAYA: The Federal Court has set January 13 to deliver its decision in the prosecution’s appeal against the acquittal of two former special action unit (UTK) personnel on a charge of murdering Mongolian model Altantuya Shaariibuu.

Federal Court corporate communications and international relations head Mohd Aizuddin Zolkeply confirmed that the decision date had been fixed for January 13.

The decision would be delivered by a five-member panel led by Chief Justice Tun Arifin Zakaria who heard the appeal for three days from June 23 last year and reserved their decision.

Presiding with him were Chief Judge of Sabah and Sarawak Richard Malanjum and Federal Court judges Abdull Hamid Embong, Suriyadi Halim Omar and Ahmad Maarop.

When contacted, lawyer Hazman Ahmad, who is representing chief inspector Azilah Hadri said his legal firm received a notice from the Federal Court registry yesterday, notifying the date for the decision.

Counsel Kamarul Hisham Kamarudin representing corporal Sirul Azhar Umar and deputy public prosecutor Tun Abdul Majid Tun Hamzah also confirmed the date.

Tun Abdul Majid is also deputy solicitor-general I (Litigation) in the Attorney-General’s Chambers.

The prosecution is appealing against the August 23, 2013 decision of the Court of Appeal in acquitting the two policemen.

The Court of Appeal had allowed the policemen’s appeal to set aside the 2009 Shah Alam High Court’s decision in finding them guilty for the woman’s murder and the sentence to death.

Former political analysts Abdul Razak Baginda, who was charged with abetting Azilah and Sirul Azhar, was acquitted by the High Court on October 31, 2008 after it (the high court) held that the prosecution failed to establish a prima facie case against him.

The prosecution did not appeal against his acquittal.

– BERNAMA

Controversial Malaysia Fund Misses Payment

Struggling state investment vehicle spells bad news for PM

Asia Sentinel

The failure of Malaysia’s ill-starred state run investment fund 1Malaysia Development Bhd to meet a RMB 2 billion (US$563 million) repayment to domestic banks spells bad news for Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak, the chief advisor to and ostensible brains behind the fund.

Reuters reported on Jan. 6 that 1MDB, as the fund is known, had missed a Dec. 31 payment and is exploring ways to settle with lenders, primarily RHB and Maybank, two of the country’s biggest banks, by the end of January. It is the second time 1MDB has missed a payment. It previously asked Bank Negara, the country’s central bank, for a three-month extension on its loan obligations.

The performance of the fund, which has borrowings of RM42.2 billion, has become intricately bound up with the attempt to bring down Najib that is being waged by forces allied with former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad. In recent days the campaign to force out the prime minister has sprung into the open, partly over the fact that he was invited to play golf in Hawaii with President Barack Obama at a time when the east coast of the country was inundated with some of the worst floods in decades.

“It is a watershed and an ominous one when the rakyat (the people), through the blogs, the independent news portal and the social media outlets, discovered that the PM was golfing in Hawaii while a quarter million people were flooded out of their homes,” wrote A. Kadir Jasin, the former editor of the Straits Times and Mahathir’s chief spear carrier, on his blog. “They asked, ‘does the PM care?’”

When Najib belatedly rushed home to visit the flooded area, he caught an infection from e.coli bacteria in the polluted waters, opening him to ridicule from his critics. He also left behind in the United States Perdana 2, the luxurious government-owned Airbus ACJ320 executive jet. Blogs, especially those aligned with Mahathir, erupted in criticism, saying the plane had been left behind to make stops in Los Angeles, Indianapolis, Los Angeles, New York, London, Dubai and back to South East Asia, carrying the prime minister’s wife, Rosmah Mansor, whose taste for extravagant shopping and overseas travel have made her a lightning rod for criticism.

Muhyiddin Yassin, the current deputy prime minister, has in recent weeks stepped up his oblique criticism of the way the government is run, saying the ruling Barisan Nasional could lose the next election, due in 2018, if changes are not made. Criticism has been growing among the rank and file as well, with one UMNO member filing a complaint with the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission in December over the operation of 1MDB before he was told to knock it off.

The disastrous performance of the fund has been complicated by the circumstances of its 2009 inception. It was proposed to Najib by Jho Low Taek, then a 27-year-old investment advisor with a lot of Middle Eastern friends and a reputation as a playboy who made the papers of New York tabloids, partying with the likes of Nicole Ritchie and Paris Hilton as well as the prime minister’s wife, Rosmah Mansor.

Arul Kanda Kandasamy, formerly executive vice-president, head of Investment Banking Group and head of Corporate Finance for the Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, was brought in last week to take over from former COO Mohamad Hazem Abdul Raman, who quit suddenly. Kandasamy told reporters he is confident the problems the fund faces can be overcome.

“I genuinely believe that the majority of the allegations that have been directed at the company have more to do with a misunderstanding of the business, or are raised for purposes that aren’t necessarily business related, as compared to any real issues that exist within 1MDB,” he said

Nonetheless, 1MDB has been struggling vainly for months to get away a US$3 billion IPO of its power assets, which critics contend were purchased at vastly inflated prices in an attempt to generate cash flow after much of its initial funding disappeared into a middle eastern oil exploration company called PetroSaudi.

Instead of repaying the RMB7 billion loan, PetroSaudi converted the money into an 11 year loan, to be repaid at 8.5 percent annual interest. The money was invested through the Cayman Islands, a notoriously unregulated banking haven. To criticism, 1MB replied that the fund is regulated by authorities in the Caymans, Switzerland and Hong Kong, which critics said means almost no regulation at all.

It was Jho Low, as he is known, who steered the RMB7 billion loan to PetroSaudi. According to records in London, he also used a letter from the fund to back a failed bid to take over three prestigious London hotels and there is considerable suspicion that he also used the fund’s credit standing to help guarantee funding for the production of The Wolf of Wall Street, a phenomenally successful movie co-produced by Reza Aziz, Rosmah’s son.

In recent months, the government, in an attempt to build up 1MDB so that its power assets can be listed, has strong-armed at least three no-bid contracts to build coal-fired and solar power plants to supplement the fund’s assets. One of those power plants, in Port Dickson near Malacca, was awarded to 1MDB despite a lower bid from a joint venture of YTL International Bhd and SIPP, partly owned by the Sultan of Johor, who is said to have been enraged by the snub and is demanding privately that SIPP be given its own no-bid contract for another plant. The government has also given another plant a 10-year extension to its production agreement, which was supposed to end in 2016 but has been extended to 2026.

Powertek, 1MDB’s fund’s wholly owned subsidiary, also has operations in five emerging markets in addition to Malaysia. They are Egypt, Bangladesh, the United Arab Republic, Sri Lanka and Pakistan.

"1MDB has invested the proceeds with regulated and licensed international fund managers, the fund said in a prepared statement early last year. “These fund managers adopt an absolute return strategy of which the primary investment objective is to achieve long-term capital appreciation and/or steady income through investments in listed and/or unlisted companies.”

The opposition has been cudgeling Najib for months on the fund, which appears to be in growing jeopardy to the point where major defaults could send a serious shock through the domestic banking system. The fund has twice missed deadlines for filing its annual reports and its auditors have quit twice. But when Mahathir unlimbered his criticism, the allegations picked up serious steam. In particular, they have been percolating through the UMNO rank and file, probably Najib’s most dangerous trouble spot, given that the opposition is regarded as disorganized an toothless.

One ominous harbinger, according to well-informed sources in Kuala Lumpur, is that Khairy Jamaluddin, the son-in-law of former Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, is said to have moved into Mahathir’s camp. Khairy abandoned the Badawi wing of the party after Mahathir and Muhyiddin pushed Badawi aside and joined Mahathir’s van.

If Najib can succumb to E.coli, flood victims surely at risk, says Dyana Sofya

Malay Mail Online

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 6 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak contracted E.coli food poisoning spending just a few days in flooded areas, signalling just how easily an epidemic could break out from the flooding disaster, DAP's Dyana Sofya Mohd Daud said today.

The political secretary to DAP adviser Lim Kit Siang pointed out that victims of one of the worst floods to hit Malaysia in decades have spent weeks in high-risk conditions — with little sanitation and limited access to clean water and medicine.

"The water may have subsided and those who still have homes may have returned to them, but there is now an urgent need to take steps to prevent an epidemic from breaking out,” Dyana Sofya said in a statement.

“It is almost a certainty that thousands of victims, both adults, children and elderly alike, are currently exposed to contaminated floodwater and have not been eating nutritional food. With their morale and immune system at their worst, they are certainly at risk,” she added.

Dyana Sofya said both federal and state governments need to come up with a transparent and inclusive plan to manage the post-flood situation now that waters have subsided and people have begun returning home after major floods struck the east coast last month.

The Prime Minister's Office announced yesterday that Najib was fighting an E.coli infection, believed to be food poisoning, after visiting flood-affected areas.

E.coli or the Escherichia coli (E.coli) is a bacteria that is widely found in the human intestine. Certain strains can cause mild to severe food poisoning symptoms. Infection can happen if water or food contaminated by human or animal feces is consumed.

Najib made several trips to areas devastated by the floods on December 27, including Kelantan, which is among the states worst hit in the disaster that saw almost 250,000 people evacuated from their homes at one point.

- See more at: http://www.themalaymailonline.com/malaysia/article/if-najib-can-succumb-to-e.coli-flood-victims-surely-at-risk-says-dyana-sofy#sthash.ewCnmKXp.dpuf

Court orders man’s body exhumed to probe death 4 years ago

Crossing the first hurdle in what is expected to be a painful experience ahead, the mother of a doctor who died under mysterious circumstances in Langkawi four years ago today obtained a High Court order to exhume his body for the purpose of another post-mortem.

The Alor Setar High Court also granted Santaamal Philip's application for an inquest to determine how Dr Sebastian Joseph, who was a medical officer at the Kuah government clinic in Langkawi, died.

DPP Mohamad Rizal Fadzil and the family's lawyer also came to a compromise that the post-mortem will be jointly handled by the family’s choice of Australian pathologist Dr Richard Byron Collins and local pathologists.

The family will also bear all costs related to the exhumation and post-mortem.

Santaamal's lawyer M.Visvanathan told The Malaysian Insider that he expected the exhumation of Dr Sebastian's remains from a cemetery in Shah Alam to take place this month, after he extracts the relevant orders from the court next week.

He said the next step would be to liaise with the Attorney-Genral’s Chambers, the police and Dr Collins on the scheduling of the exhumation.

"We want Dr Collins to be here when the exhumation takes place, so I am hoping we can do this by the end of this month," Visvanathan said.

Visvanathan said that while the family is relieved that they are finally on track to finding out what happened to the 30-year-old medical officer, it is not going to be an easy journey for them.

Dr Sebastian was found dead in his government quarters in Padang Matsirat on November 17, 2010.

He was said to be in a kneeling position with his hands clenched.

In her application to the court in November last year, Santaamal said the post-mortem on Dr Sebastian was conducted at Langkawi Hospital by Dr Muhamad Arif Mohamad Rasat but the report stated the cause of death as "unascertained".

She said that the doctor who conducted the post-mortem was not a pathologist but only a general practitioner.

In a previous interview, Santaamal had said that a month before her son's death, she had visited him to help him furnish his five-bedroom quarters, and said he had shared some “troubling” information of what was going on at his workplace.

Declining to elaborate, Santaamal only said it had to do with how many of the patients at the health clinic were prescribed Panadol for all sorts of ailments.

Dr Sebastian had also told his mother that various types of medication prescribed by him were not available in the clinic pharmacy, and that he wanted to report the matter to his superior. – January 7, 2015.

- See more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/court-orders-mans-body-exhumed-to-probe-death-4-years-ago#sthash.mq74J4OW.dpuf