Tag: Focus

Study: Increase in Price of Oil & Sugar May Lead to PAS Victory in Sg Limau

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SUNGAI LIMAU, 3 Nov: The increase in price of oil, sugar and other essential goods is a key factor in PAS maintaining its position in the Sungai Limau By-Elections.

A study by Ilham Centre, an independent research body, found that 73 percent of respondents among voters labelled the increase in oil price as unfitting.

More than half of the respondents, 56 percent, also said that BN failed to control the country’s economy well seeing that the price of daily necessities are on the rise.

The study which was conducted between 28 October and 1 November found that 45 percent of respondents consider the retraction of the sugar subsidy, as announced by the Prime Minister recently, as very unfitting.

The percentage was obtained based on specific questions posed to 602 voters registered in the Sungai Limau State Legislative Assembly.

The same study showed that 50 percent of the respondents know the PAS candidate, Mohd Azam Abdul Samad, compared to the BN candidate, Dr Sohaimi Lazim (one percent) before the By-Election.

The percentage who knows Dr Sohaimi increased to eight percent during the campaign period but lost out to Azam, whose popularity rose to 23 percent.

The study also found that 43 percent of the deciding factor is their leadership in religion, which favours Azam compared to Dr Sohaimi (seven percent).

In a press statement today, the Director Executive of Ilham Centre, Muhamad Hisommudin Bakar concluded that PAS electoral support is between 53 to 55 percent, while BN is between 45 to 47 percent.

“There are no major changes in voters for the Sungai Limau By-Election. The factor of party identification is too thick among voters, thus contributing to PAS retaining their votes,” he said.

Ilham Centre was established in 2006 by conducting independent research and using academic research methods at the tertiary level.

Rural Communities Leaning towards PR

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KUALA LANGAT, 2 Nov: Support from the rural communities is increasingly leaning towards Pakatan Rakyat (PR) and this will be more pronounced in the next General Election (GE).

Former Chief Minister of Selangor, Tan Sri Muhammad Muhd Taib said that this confidence is based on the achievement in the last GE-13, when PR achieved the popular vote of 53 percent compared to BN which only obtained 47 percent.

“According to the percentage of BN’s votes, BN should have lost. Out of 100 people, 53 voted for Pakatan Rakyat (PR). This is strange because our system is linked with seats.

“If 145,000 people vote for the Kapar Parliamentary seat (one seat goes to PR). If 10,000 people vote for a Parliamentary seat in Sarawak, one seat goes to BN,” Muhammad said during the ‘Apa Khabar Orang Kampung’ (How Are You Village People) programme in Dewan Putra here in Kampung Sawah, Banting.

Muhammad said that the challenges faced by Pakatan Rakyat in rural areas are restraints, restrictions and media manipulation.

He said that the thinking of people in rural areas is synonymous with decades of information championed by Umno through newspapers and television.

“Previously, when I was campaigning for the Sungai Limau State Legislative Assembly seat, my face was on TV every day. However, now, when I look through newspapers, there is not even one picture of me because I’m in PAS.

“But when I talk about Nik Aziz, faces turn fierce. Every day, on TV1, TV2, TV3, even until TV100 till TV200, all (the faces shown) belong to Umno. Representatives such as Hasnul (Assemblyman for Morib) will never come out,” he said.

Selangor Government Maintains RM9.65 Billion Offer

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(PRESS STATEMENT)

The Selangor State Government does not intend to revise the RM9.65 billion amount offered to water concessionaires in February 2013 to finalise the restructuring of water supply services in the state.

Chief Minister, YAB Tan Sri Datuk Seri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim said, the state government considers that the offer to give 12 percent of profits to shareholders is fairer towards concessionaires.

“The privatisation of water (services) aims to provide more efficient water service at a reasonable rate. This policy is not aimed at allowing concessionaires to profit excessively from the distress of the people, who are the consumers.

However, the offer we provide is more reasonable if compared to corporate practices,” he said.

The Chief Minister made this clarification following media reports recently stating that the state government is revising the offer price for concessionaires.

He said that senior state officials held a meeting with the Ministry of Energy, Green Technology and Water, as well as other Federal agencies such as the National Water Services Commission (SPAN) and Water Asset Management Company (WAMCO), to ensure that the year-end deadline to end negotiations will be achieved.

“During these meetings, the Federal Government has responded positively to our calculations we provided to enable us to buy the concessionaires and go on to restructure the water industry,” the Chief Minister said.

Tan Sri Abdul Khalid expressed his hope for the Federal Government to continue to support the efforts of the Selangor Government so that all stalled negotiations over the past few years can be resolved as soon as possible.

Released by
PRESS SECRETARIAT
OFFICE OF THE DATO’ MENTERI BESAR OF SELANGOR

Deepavali 2013 Message – Anwar Ibrahim

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The festival of lights that celebrates the victory of justice over tyranny is once again being celebrated by the Hindu community in Malaysia in the spirit of family and the tightening of relationships between family and friends.

This joy is emitted through a variety of decoration, various food, and colourful traditional clothing.

In celebrating this ‘victory’, let us not forget the lesson behind the Deepavali celebration which is continuation of the struggle to uphold goodness and justice, as well as full resistance against evil and tyranny.

The struggle to improve the living standards of the Indian community in Malaysia, especially in the issue of education and welfare of people living in rural areas, should continue to be fought for by all Malaysians.

This is important to ensure that the gap problem between the rich and the poor – regardless of race, of course – can be overcome.

While we celebrate this festival in joy, let us not forget our neighbours and friends who are less fortunate. Share you joy with them as much as possible.

Finally, I take this opportunity to wish “Deepavali Nal Valthukal” in conjunction with the Deepavali celebration this year.

Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim
Malaysian Parliamentary Opposition Leader
Parti Keadilan Rakyat

PDRM Urged to Improve Existing System

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SHAH ALAM, 2 Nov: The Royal Malaysian Police (PDRM) has been asked to improve their existing system in order to curb crime.

Inspector General of Police, Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar recommended it, in addition to requesting a review be done on all security officers.

Crime Analyst, Datuk Akhbar Satar, said that he welcomed Khalid’s recommendation. However, he said that it should be done holistically, significantly and tighter.

“In addition, the police should ensure that each member is given sufficient training, as well as to be equipped well with equipment and other needs such as weapons and logistics. If this criteria is met, the crime figures may go down,” he said when contacted by TVSelangor yesterday.

Yesterday, Khalid said that PDRM will be performing immediate checks of all security officers, as well as check their firearms licence as a short-term measure to curb identity fraud.

He said that PDRM will also design long-term plans in granting firearm licences to security officers, including tightening requirements for the renewal of licences, and the move will be made specifically to prevent occurrences of bank officers being shot in robberies from recurring.

In an incident, Norazita Abu Talib, 37, died after being shot in the head at close range by a security officer, believed to be an Indonesian national using a fake identity card, at USJ Central here in Subang Jaya at 6.20pm on 23 October.

Meanwhile, the Assemblywoman for Damansara Utama, Yeo Bee Yin, said that a restructuring of the police force should be carried out if we want rime statistics to go down.

“In cases of maddening crimes, it is time for the government to make changes in the division of duties by increasing police officers for crime prevention.

“At the moment, only a percentage of police officers are assigned to control crime, while the rest are assigned to other duties,” she said.

MPAJ and JPS Need to Discuss Flood Problem in Ampang Jaya

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AMPANG JAYA, 1 Nov: The Assemblyman for Chempaka, Iskandar Abdul Samad, has asked the Selangor Irrigation Department (JPS) to hold discussions with the Ampang Jaya Municipal Council (MPAJ) to find a solution to overcome the flooding problem in Ampang Jaya.

He said that the residents in Muhibbah Complex, Taman Nirwana, Taman Dagang and Taman Putra Sulaiman face flood problems twice a week due to above normal rainfall, causing existing drains to be unable to cope with large amounts, thus overflowing onto the roads and residential areas.

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“We need to improve the drains because they are too small and cannot accommodate rain water, which is believed to be the cause of flooding when exceeding normal levels.

“I asked JPS to discuss with MPAJ to make recommendations to solve this problem, including enlarging existing drains and ditches, in addition to making larger sewers,” he told TVSelangor after a visitation which was attended by representatives of the residents and the Selangor Public Works Department (JKR) here at Taman Putra Sulaiman today.

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At the location, TVSelangor found that the waterflow in some drains were not smooth and there was a lot of domestic and solid waste disposed in them, causing blockage.
Iskandar, who is also the Selangor Exco in charge of Housing also informed that the matter will be brought to the attention of the the Exco in charge of Selangor Development and Infrastructure, Dr Yunus Hairi, with reparation projects estimated at RM3 million.

“The cleaning of existing drains must be done because there is sand and waste from development projects, such as concrete, thrown in the same location. Existing construction sites should be monitored so that disposal of sand and construction debris into drains does not happen.

“Local residents are also reminded to not throw waste into drains because in the end, they will be affected when the drains are clogged,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Advisor of the Taman Nirwana Residents’ Association, Mahendran Thomas, 58, asked for the review of the drainage plan in Ampang Jaya, involving several major housing areas, to be carried out because there are various development projects going on in the area.

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“The drainage here should be reviewed because it joins the drain at Jalan 41, Taman Nirwana. This should not happen and developers should channel water to other areas.

“The new project also needs to be reviewed because it involves drainage plans for the long term of 20 to 25 years. There is no point fixing concrete because sometimes it breaks, causing drains to be clogged and flooding occurs,” he said.

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State Government Promotes Selangor as a Health Hub in Indonesia

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SHAH ALAM, 1 Nov: the State Government under the Exco of Health, Entrepreneur Development, Science, Technology and Innovation, made a stride in introducing Selangor as a Malaysian health hub in our neighbouring country, Indonesia.

The joint programme which was jointly organised by Tourism Selangor also led a delegation of representatives from private medical and health centres in Selangor for the success of the International Healthcare Tourism Expo 2013 in Jakarta, as well as the Selangor Meets Indonesia programme launch in Surabaya.

The Executive Councillor in charge, Dr Daroyah Alwi, said that the state government arranged this step forward to promote Selangor as a state with prestigious medical expertise in achieving its target.

She said that the opportunity was used to meet target groups and local tour operators to explain in detail about medical facilities and other attractions in Selangor.

“Our intention was clearly to attract Indonesians to come to Selangor to receive quality medical and health service at a cheaper rate and convenience.

“The package involved various parties that will facilitate patients so that they do not have to worry about the location where their family lives at, how to get halal food and drinks, attractive tourist sites and shopping centres,” she said.

Among the private medical and health centres that sent representatives were Sunway Medical Centre, DEMC Specialist Hospital, Sri Kota Specialist Medical Centre and Columbia Asia Hospital.

Dr Daroyah said that Selangor is also famous for its interesting tourist sites that cater to the preferences of visitors, in addition to having expertise, qualified doctors, hospitals and advanced medical infrastructure.

“There, we received a very positive response because most of them already know Selangor and know the advantages as well as locations of interest here.

“We are confident that the various packages offered are able to attract tourists to seek medical care in Selangor,” she said.

Premises Demolishing Spun into Racial Issue

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SHAH ALAM, 1 Nov: Datuk Teng Chang Khim is disappointed with those connecting the action by the Subang Jaya Municipal Council (MPSJ) to demolish an additional building of a restaurant in Serdang Perdana, with racial issues.

The Executive Councillor in charge of the Selangor Local Government, Studies and Research said that the issue is brought up to discredit Pakatan Rakyat (PR) by giving the impression that the Selangor Government is not helping Malay businessmen.

Instead, he said, the demolition was based on provisions of Local Government law that knows no colour difference.

“In this country, there are three main races; Malays, Chinese and Indians, in addition to other ethnic groups in Sabah and Sarawak.

“Every action, if not done to Malays, can be said to be done to Chinese or Indians.

“When action is taken against a Malay person, they accuse the government for being racist. If action is taken against a Chinese or Indian, the racial issue is still played.

“So, when will it end?” he said at a press conference at his office here at the State Secretariat Building (SUK) today.

Apart from the premises in Serdang Perdana, several food stalls owned by Malays were demolished by the Kajang Municipal Council (MPKJ) at Taman Mesra Batu 13, Jalan Cheras in Kajang, and the mainstream media has made an issue of it on 30 October.

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Vendors claimed that enforcement officers were biased when carrying out the action, however MPKJ denied the allegations.

Meanwhile, the MPSJ Director of Public Relations, Asfarizal Abdul Rashid said that the demolition had been done as the additional building was leased to foreign traders.

He said, the new building structure was built without permission, and was found to be a risk to the public because it was located near the main road.

“We act based on complaints received from the public because it endangers motorists passing through the area. The demolition was carried out on 28 October,” he said.

Last week, two houses in Kampung Chubadak were demolished by the Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) because the land was said to be owned by the Federal Land Commissioner.

Apart from the two houses, there are still about 200 houses in the village that would receive the same fate, and is now being monitored by the Member of Parliament of Batu, Tian Chua.

However, in contrast to the restaurant in Serdang Perdana, the issue of the demolition of the village houses, where the majority of residents are Malay, was deliberately not publicised by the mainstream media since the village is located under the jurisdiction of the Barisan Nasional (BN) government.

Nepal Government’s Mentality More Advanced, Possesses 127 Newspapers Compared to Malaysia

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SHAH ALAM, 1 Nov: Nepal is seen as more transparent and open as they have 127 newspapers compared to Malaysia, which is seen as giving less press freedom.

The Nepal government believes that by giving media freedom, it may lead to progress in the mentality of the South Asian country’s leaders and people.

Although Nepal is still categorised as a third world country in terms of physical development, but the mentality of the country’s leaders are considered to be more advanced than Barisan Nasional (BN).

The former President of the National Union of Journalists (NUJ), Hatta Wahari said, the matter has been proved when as of today, Nepal has 127 newspapers, excluding those published at the state level.

“Although we are developing and possess infrastructure like those of developed countries, the mentality of the government is still at the level of third world countries because they want to control the media. In fact, the government wants to control it all without giving freedom to the media and the community,” he said when contacted by TVSelangor today.

Hatta also condemned the action of the Minister of Home Affairs (MOHA) Minister, Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi who issued the threatening statement to shut down media that published his statement in a programme in Malacca recently.

“This is the most brazen statement coming from a leader and he has a third world mentality by assuming that he has power and can control freedom of the press. It is leaders like this that we have to reject,” he said.

Commenting on the victory of the Malaysiakini news portal in the MOHA appeal to reject its publication permit, Hatta hopes that the victory will be an example to other media to be brave in publishing balanced and transparent media.

“Malaysiakini’s victory should be an example to other media and I hope that the media industry would be free and advanced,” he said.

PKNS to Produce 200 Retail Entrepreneurs

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SHAH ALAM, 1 Nov: The ‘Retail 200’ entrepreneurship programme to be carried out by the Selangor State Development Corporation (PKNS) is in line with the desire to produce competitive entrepreneurs who have high mental and physical endurance.

The entrepreneurship programme will generate 200 retailers who can compete in the market, thus positioning themselves in upscale business complexes in the near future.

The PKNS Division Manager for Entrepreneur Development, Azilah Arshad said that entrepreneurs, including new entrepreneurs, will go through two years of training before being placed in business complexes, those owned by PKNS in particular, and Datum Jelatek.

“We will equip them with entrepreneurship knowledge, and educate them with physical and mental endurance to get used to doing business in high-class places. We also do not want half-hearted business culture,” she said in a press statement yesterday.

She said that they target a period of two years to train and produce entrepreneurs with the required criteria because entrepreneurs will be given appropriate training in retail and receive free advice from experienced consultants appointed by PKNS.

“We are also considering to place them on a temporary basis at PKNS-owned complexes as part of the training module.

“We hope this effort will help them position themselves in selected complexes after competition of training. Prospective participants need to pass through a competency exam to test their endurance,” she said.

Anwar: The People’s Income should be raised to implement GST

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KUALA LUMPUR, 31 Oct: Opposition Leader, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, insisted that all forms of leakages, corruption and monopoly, which rampant in the country, must be stopped before thinking about implementing the goods and services tax (GST).

He said, if Pakatan Rakyat (PR) was ruling, the GST would be implemented with conditions. However, it will not be a priority that has to be implemented urgently because it requires special consideration in advance.

He said, the people’s income should be given attention and increased before the implementation of the GST, which is seen as to be burdensome to the people, especially low and middle-income earners.

“I am not saying that I object the GST principle in my budget speech. I am stressing from the point that the implementation of the GST system should be done transparently and efficiently.

“The two conditions we are emphasising on is to firstly remove leakages by saving the money to spend,” he said in a press conference at the Parliament lobby today.

Anwar said that the second condition is that the income levels of the people should be improved and he acknowledged that the GST system would be efficient, with the country recording a surplus, when he was the Finance Minister.

“But now, the deficit is serious, and I would not have implemented it that time, despite studies on the system was fine, but the implementation is not appropriate,” he said.

Regarding his argument by making Singapore an example in the implementation of the GST, Anwar answered that the country implemented the GST with a time line, in addition to ensuring an increase in the people’s income.

“It is not that I do not support the basic principle, but Singapore implemented it a three percent, guaranteeing that it will not rise in seven to nine years,” he said.

“All PR component parties will pursue information sessions for the people on the GST so that they understand why this cannot be implemented now,” he said.

Previously, various quarters disputed Anwar’s statement and claimed that PR supports the implementation of the GST as a whole. However, this matter was denied.

Sugar Price causes Price Hike in Food and Drinks in School Canteens

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SHAH ALAM, 31 Oct: Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) Bureau of Consumerism received complaints that several canteens in schools around the Klang Valley has raised their price for food and drinks.

It’s Chairman, Yahya Shari, said that they received the complaint after the announcement by Prime Minister Datuk Najib Razak regarding the retraction of 34 cents in sugar subsidies.

He said, apart from school canteens, stalls have increased food and drink prices, with prices charged similar to that of coffeeshops.

“We have received many complaints about stalls and school canteens increasing the price of food and drinks at their premises.

“We receive a minimum of three complaints a day on the increase in prices. However, complainants did not provide detailed information and thus, we were unable to survey,” he said when contacted by TVSelangor today.

Yahya said, there are four schools that have raised the price of food and drinks, according to complaints received from parents.

In this regard, he called on the Ministry of Education and Higher Education to monitor and take action against school canteens throughout the country so that they do not raise prices at will.

“The price of food and drink cannot be increased at will because canteen operators are bound by contract of food prices, so the government should monitor this problem.

“We also want the central government to open more opportunities in the sugar industry so as to not only provide opportunities to duopoly companies by creating price competition in the sugar market.

He also urged for consumers to lodge complaints at the PKR Bureau of Consumerism if traders take advantage by increasing prices.

Previously, the Secretary-General of the School Canteen Operators Association, Hamzah Omar, said that they will ensure that canteen operators do not increase the price of canteen food and drinks because of the increase in sugar price by 34 cents, because it is stated in their contracts that they cannot raise prices at will.