Tag: Selangor Government

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.

Message from YAB TAN SRI DATO’ SERI ABDUL KHALID BIN IBRAHIM DATO’ MENTERI BESAR OF SELANGOR in conjunction with DIWALI CELEBRATION 2013

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Message

YAB TAN SRI DATO’ SERI ABDUL KHALID BIN IBRAHIM
DATO’ MENTERI BESAR OF SELANGOR

In conjunction with the DIWALI CELEBRATION 2013

Greetings and Well Wishes, especially to the Hindu community.

This Saturday, 2 November 2013, the Hindu community, in Selangor and Malaysia, will be celebrating Diwali.

I, on behalf of the State Government leadership and the people of Selangor, wish Happy Diwali to all Hindus.

Hopefully, as it is every year, this year the Indian community and Hindus in Selangor will benefit from the Diwali celebrations by performing a number of traditional activities together with family and loved ones.

We know that Deepavali or Diwali means festival of lights, and is celebrated on the 13th day of the Hindu calendar, or equivalent to the date between mid-October and mid-November, every year. On the eve of the celebration, Hindus decorate their houses with oil lamps, depicting the triumph of good over evil. The lights are left overnight in a clean room with hopes that goddess Lakshmi would visit.

The Diwali celebration is also accompanied by the burning of firecrackers or fireworks, aimed at banishing evil spirits from the family home. They also adorn themselves with new clothes and share sweets with family and friends.

Diwali day is a holiday in Malaysia and other countries including India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Mauritius, Guyana, Trinidad & Tobago, Suriname, Singapore and Fiji. It terms of celebration practices, Malaysian Hindus still retain some traditions practiced in India.

However, the matter of emphasis in Selangor and in Malaysia is the “open house” tradition, where Hindus, of all ethnic groups such as Tamils, Telugus and Malayalees, welcome friends of other religions and races to their home to enjoy a “halal” meal together.

The atmosphere of visiting while wishing “happy festive day…” is actually the “uniqueness” in Malaysia’s plural society, which shows goodwill and close ties between those of different races and religious beliefs, when festive celebrations of the large races in Malaysia, with a population of over 28 million, comes about.

Over 5 million from the amount live in Selangor Darul Ehsan, and are the people of Duli Yang Maha Mulia (His Royal Highness) the Sultan of Selangor. Now, the majority of people in Selangor enjoy a variety of assistance and initiatives through the Merakyatkan Ekonomi Selangor policy, which is implemented fairly and prudently by the Pakatan Rakyat State Government in Selangor since March 2008.

As the Dato’ Menteri Besar (Chief Minister) of Selangor, I am very happy and excited when I was informed that the people in this state, from various ethnicities and levels, from young to old, can equally enjoy a variety of assistance, incentives and guidance from the State Government for the benefit of all.

Thank you.

Happy Diwali.

MBPJ Adds CCTV to Enhance Security

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KUALA LUMPUR, 31 Oct: The Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) is taking proactive measures to add more closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras at pedestrian walks around the Kelana Jaya Light Rail Transit (LRT) stations near Taman Mayang.

The move is being made following the death of a student, Dickson Wong from Sarawak, who was attacked by snatch thieves near the LRT station two days ago.

The MBPJ Public Relations Unit, in a statement, said that the effort to add CCTVs at the area has received approval from the Mayor, Datin Paduka Alinah Ahmad and will be done within two weeks.

“The Council will also require for commercial premises, in their renewal of licence, to provide and install CCTVs at their premises to help maintain security together,” stated the press release.

In addition to the installation of CCTVs, the Council will also work with the Royal Malaysian Police (PDRM) to patrol around the area.

Dickson, who is in a coma, was found covered in blood near the LRT station in Taman Mayang after being attacked by snatch thieves.

Eliminating Subsidies is a Severe Punishment to the People

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GOMBAK, 31 Oct: The central government’s move to eliminate subsidies on essential goods in the Budget 2014 is a ‘severe punishment’ to the people seeing that the government does not adopt prudent spending, thus costing billions of the people’s money.

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The Assemblyman for Gombak Setia, Hasbullah Ridzwan said the low to middle-income earners will continue to be squeezed by economic constraints as a result of the elimination of the subsidies.

“We see this as a disaster for the people when the recent budget retracted subsidies of essential goods such as sugar, especially when a festive celebration is coming up,” he told TVSelangor.

Hasbullah said, the central government should adopt the concept of prudent spending and find ways to overcome the national deficit.

“The government should think of finding alternative measures to reduce the deficit and their weaknesses in administration.

“Let not the people, who are already suffering from rising prices of goods, be punished again in the budget,” said Hasbullah.

Prior to that, Hasbullah accompanied participants of the Diwali Jom Shopping (Let’s Go Shopping) programme organised by the Gombak Setia State Legislative Assembly and took the opportunity to mingle with other visitors at the Batu Caves Giant mall.

A total of 300 participants received shopping vouchers worth RM100.

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Malaysiakini’s Victory Good News for National Media Freedom

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SHAH ALAM, 30 Oct: The victory of the news portal, Malaysiakini, in the appeal case against the Ministry of Home Affairs (KDN), which did not want to issue a publishing permit to the online news portal, is good news thus opening a new chapter of media freedom in the country.

The former President of the National Union of Journalists (NUJ), Mohd Hatta Wahari said, the decision made by the Court of Appeal today is an important point in preparing the people and national leaders towards a mentality that is equivalent to that of first world countries.

Mohd Hatta also hopes that Malaysiakini’s victory will encourage other media to publish a variety of media materials to convey more transparent information to the people.

“This is good news, the recognition of media freedom, because previously what was implemented by the current government does not follow the new world order in freedom of information.

“Freedom of information is also very important so that accurate information can be delivered and it is left to the people to evaluate the move by the government or the opposition.

“Through media freedom, our country can be led towards being a developed country, not just in terms of development, but also in its mentality,” Mohd Hatta said when contacted by TVSelangor today.

Mohd Hatta also considers the decision today as a protest against the leadership pattern of the government led by BN since 56 years ago towards the country’s media practitioners.

The Court of Appeal today unanimously dismissed the Home Ministry and government’s appeal against a High Court judgment that Malaysiakini portal operator Mkini Dotcom Sdn Bhd be issued a publication permit and also allowed a costs of RM5,000 to be paid to Mkini Dotcom.

The decision was made after the Kuala Lumpur High Court dismissed the KDN’s order to not issue a publication licence to the publisher of Malaysiakini, Mkini Dotcom Sdn Bhd.

House of MIC Chief’s Widow Burned, Receives Support from Melawati CSC

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SHAH ALAM, 30 Oct: Despite her late husband being known for serving MIC when he was alive, the suffering due to a fire at the house occupied by Devi a/p Raman, 66, three months ago was ignored by the party representing the Indian community.

However, Devi was fortunate when the Coordinator of the Melawati constituency Community Service Centre (CSC), S.Manikavasagam, together with the Api-Api Parish Headman, Husain Idris, came forward to offer help to the single mother.

Manikavasagam said, among the assistance provided includes a cash contribution of RM500 presented by the Kuala Selangor District and Land Office, as well as building materials such as wood and Nypa leafs from the Melawati CSC.

“The late S.Anandan, the former Kampung Telok Piah MIC Branch Chief, used to serve in the MIC and was previously given a medal of honour by Tan Sri V.Manickavasagam for his services.

“However now, when his wife encounters difficulties and her house was damaged by fire, not on of the MIC leaders came to visit or help out. Where is the slogan ‘MIC Cares’,” Manikavasagam said to TVSelangor.

Manikavasagam said, as a result of the fire which brought an estimated loss of about RM75,000, Devi also lost her source of income from a small food business she ran out of her house.

Devi, who will be celebrating Deepavali soon, has also been included in the ‘Jom Shopping’ (Let’s Go Shopping) programme in conjunction with the Deepavali celebration which is being held at the Giant hypermarket in Pasir Penampang today.

“All the assistance rendered is actually not enough, but at least it is able to ease the suffering and burden shouldered by Devi,” added Manikavasagam.

PR Urges Central Government to Revoke Protection of Companies Monopolising the Sugar Market

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KUALA LUMPUR, 30 Oct: Pakatan Rakyat (PR) urges the Central Government to revoke the raw sugar procurement system and the protection of companies monopolising the sugar market in this country resulting in the higher price of sugar.

Member of Parliament for Petaling Jaya Utara, Tony Pua, said that the action to revoke would allow for the government to offer a lower sugar price for the people after opening up the market involving sugar companies in the country.

He said, with the elimination of the monopoly, the people will enjoy lower prices for sugar and sugar companies will become more efficient by not having to rely on government assistance.

“Pakatan Rakyat is of the opinion that the monopoly of sugar companies does not benefit the people at all.

“It is better to open the sugar market and let the price of sugar be determined by competition between companies and suppliers of sugar,” said Tony Pua in a press statement at the Parliament lobby.

Tony Pua said the method of importing raw sugar from companies abroad is just a trick to get a lower cost, enabling the company involved to gain handsomely.

“If sugar prices are set by the government, it should not increase their (companies) profits by so much.

“We suspect that the government is importing raw sugar to enable these companies to gain more profit,” he said.

Yesterday, Tony Pua revealed that the sugar price hike is not on the basis of subsidy cuts, rather it stems from the Central Government’s move to sign the raw sugar agreement at a high price.

In January 2012, the Minister of Domestic Trade, Consumerism and Cooperatives (KPDNKK), Datuk Ismail Sabri, announced that the government has signed a three-year deal to import raw sugar at the price of USD25 per 100lbs.

As a result, the people are forced to enjoy sugar that is more expensive due to the agreement signed by the KPDNKK last year.

RM3.14 Million Allocated to Improve Traffic Flow at Jalan Othman, Petaling Jaya

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PETALING JAYA, 30 Oct: The Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) decided to spend RM3.14 million to demolish the roundabout at Jalan Othman and replace it with traffic lights to solve the traffic congestion faced by motorists.

Member of Parliament for Petaling Jaya Selatan, Hee Loy Sian said the project which will be completed within the next 10 months is expected to improve traffic flow in the area.

“Originally, this project would take eight months. However, because technical issues caused by piping and wiring in the area, we expect for the project to be completed in September (next year),” he said.

“Currently, motorists in the area would need to take an hour to pass through the roundabout.

After the project is completed, we expect motorists to save 80 percent of the time taken currently,” said Loy Sian.

Hee Loy said this during the ground breaking ceremony of the Jalan Othman Roundabout Upgrading Project, together with the Assemblyman for Bukit Gasing, Rajiv Rishyakaran.

He said, this upgrading project will benefit residents of Sections 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 18, as well as those using the road leading to Puchong, Kota Damansara and Serdang.

Loy Sian urged the public to be patient at this point while waiting for the traffic lights to be set up in the specified period.

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CM Visits SP Setia Bhd Housing Project

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SHAH ALAM, 30 Oct: Chief Minister Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim spent over half an hour visiting the latest apartment housing project using the ‘prefabricated’ method which is being developed by a leading property developer, SP Setia Berhad.

During the visit to the project site, Abdul Khalid, who was accompanied by Selangor State Excos, was given detailed descriptions regarding the housing project by the Chief Operating Officer of SP Setia, Datuk Voon Tin Yow.

The housing project, among others, is being built near the New Klang Valley Expressway (NKVE) and Jalan Meru, Klang, with house area estimated at 850 square feet each.

A total of 3,960 apartment units at the 11-storey buildings are being offered at the market price of RM220,000, and has three bedrooms, two bathrooms and other facilities such as a swimming pool.

The medium-cost apartment project commenced building over a year ago and targets families with a household income of about RM3,000 per month.

It is understood that the housing project has been fully sold to the public.

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Selangor Provides Opportunity for University Students to be ‘Representatives of the People’

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SHAH ALAM, 29 Oct: Students of institutes of higher learning (IPT) have the opportunity to experience the real proceedings at the Selangor State Legislative Assembly (DUN) as ‘representatives of the people’ through the Selangor Young Assemblyman 2013 Programme from 16 to 18 December.

The programme, which is being organised for the first time, is a state government initiative to educate the younger generation on the role and responsibility of an Assemblyman, as well as provide exposure to the political world at an early stage.

The Selangor State Legislative Assembly Speaker, Hannah Yeoh, said the objective of the programme is to foster the attitude of leadership and cooperation between participants as well as to produce future leaders who have calibre and are responsible.

“The Selangor Young Assemblyman Programme organised by the Speaker’s Office and the DUN Office is especially for IPT students around Selangor to provide them a chance to experience real proceedings of the council,” she said in a press statement at her office this today.

Also present was the DUN Deputy Speaker, Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad; the Assemblywoman of Damansara Utama, Yeo Bee Yin; the Assemblyman for Bukit Gasing, Rajiv Rishyakaran and the Assemblyman for Gombak Setia Hasbullah Mohd Ridzwan.

Meanwhile, Nik Nazmi said the programme is open to students between 18 to 24 years from public and private institutes of higher learning, non-governmental organisations (NGO) and student associations.

“This year, only 30 students will be chosen to participate in this programme. If the response is encouraging, we plan to run this programme two times a year,” he said.

He said participants will be given the opportunity to voice their opinions and ask the government about policies, especially those impacting the younger generation, in addition to providing the opportunity to bring up suggestions to introduce new laws in Selangor.

“Participants will play the role of an Assemblyman in the council session, together with the Speaker and I, the Deputy Speaker. The programme also received the attention of state government executive councillors who are expected to take part in the session.

In relation to that, those interested in participating in the programme can apply online at www.adunmudaselangor.com before 8 November.

Increase in Sugar Price Affects Deepavali Celebration

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BANDAR TUN RAZAK, 29 Oct: The impact of the cut in sugar subsidies by RM0.34 announced by the Barisan Nasional (BN) Government at the tabling of the National Budget 2014 would adversely affect the Deepavali celebration on 2 November.

The price increase from 2.50 per kilogram to RM2.84 per kilogram is seen as a burden to the Indian community because Indian sweets use sugar.

The subsidy cut which was in effect since 26 October was made with the excuse of reducing the number of diabetic which is worrisome in Malaysia, in addition to saving government expenses by a total of RM64.02 million this year and RM551.25 million for 2014.

Starting 26 October, the price of sugar increased from RM2.50 per kilogram to RM2.84 per kilogram after the announcement of the RM0.34 subsidy cut made by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak at the tabling of the Budget 2014 the day before.

Several individuals met at the Deepavali Aid distribution ceremony for the Bandar Tun Razak Parliament expressed their disappointment on the government’s decision.

A resident, K Palanivel, expressed his disappointment following the increase of price before the Deepavali celebration and the burden shouldered by the people may not have been felt as badly if the increase was done before the celebration.

“The increase in price should not have happened and I am very sad with the government’s move. I am not the only one, but all Malaysians use sugar, so this decision should not have been done, especially since the Deepavali celebration is coming up,” he said.

For another resident, M Sarojini, the increase in sugar price caused her to be more improvident in celebrating Deepavali.

“My expanses have to be reduced because I am worried that there will be an increase in price of other goods due to the increase in sugar price,” she said.

The distribution ceremony was carried out by the Member of Parliament for Bandar Tun Razak’s wife, Puan Seri Salbiah Tunut, accompanied by her husband, the MP who is also the Chief Minister of Selangor, Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim last night.

In conjunction with the Deepavali celebration, the MP for Bandar Tun Razak gave RM50 cash as well as essential goods such as rice, sugar and flour to 100 less fortunate residents from around the area.

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MPK Confiscates Illegal Adverts

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KLANG, 29 Oct: The Klang Municipal Council (MPK) confiscated 37,564 illegal adverts, including 9,064 loan shark advertisements at Berkley Roundabout and other major roads.

The Director of MPK’s Enforcement Department, Andry Arman Masrom, said the move was made under the MPK Advertising By-laws (UUK) 2007 for the offence of putting up adverts without permission from local authorities, meanwhile, the act of bringing down the adverts was done under UUK 21 (2).

He said that the illegal advertisements were mostly in the form of buntings and posters that were giant sized, which obstructed the view of the public.

“We welcome information from the public in efforts to eradicate illegal adverts such as this, which are not only against the law, but affect the health of localities.

“In addition, some of these adverts obstruct the view of road users, as they were placed without following procedures set by the council,” he said in a press statement recently.

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Andry said among the locations of placing illegal adverts are at Bukit Tinggi, Bayu Perdana, Taman Sentosa, Pekan Kapar, Meru and Port Klang.

He said MPK frequently monitors illegal adverts from time to time in effort to overcome problems of obstructing road signs.

“MPK also hopes for cooperation from local communities to immediately report to us if they see any illegal adverts in their area,” he said.