Penang open tender spree shows up Putrajaya
Posted by Kit in Good Governance, Penang Government on Tuesday, 3 August 2010, 10:14 am
By Lee Wei Lian | The Malaysian Insider
KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 3 — The Penang government’s open tender spree in the past few months could put the federal government in a bad light as both strive to show the public that they stand for transparency and excellence.
While both have initiated efforts to make procurement more transparent to the public, the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) Penang government seems to have taken the lead with a stream of open tenders announcements for its big ticket items while the Barisan Nasional (BN) federal government has appeared very slow off the mark.
Among landmark projects that were tendered out by the Penang state government include the multi-billion 100 acre Bayan Mutiara township project, the restoration of Fort Cornwallis, restoration of Crag Hotel, management of the Penang International Sports Arena and the Penang Hill facelift. Upcoming tenders include that for the Pulau Jerejak tourist development project.
In the case of the Bayan Mutiara project, the Penang government seems to have taken a leaf out of the Singapore playbook and has opened the tender to international bidders in an attempt to build an “iconic, prestigious and sustainable” development.
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Abolish the ISA and all oppressive laws
By Thomas Lee Seng Hock | Mysinchew
Thirty-five persons — 30 in Petaling Jaya, four in Penang, and one in Ipoh — were detained by police during a peaceful candle-light vigil held in several parts of the country on the night of Sunday 1 August 2010, the date commemorating the 50th anniversary of the oppressive Internal Security Act (ISA).
Those arrested were among the people who had gathered to protest against the country’s most hated and feared legislation, which allows for detention without trial and has been wielded against more than 10,000 people since it went to effect on 1 August 1960.
The enactment of the ISA in 1960, three years after Malaya gained independence, was related to the internal battle against the Communist Party of Malaya (CPM) which was then involved in an armed insurgency and insurrection, which started soon after World War 2.
Earlier in 1948 after three European planters in Perak were killed by communists, the then colonial British administration introduced the Emergency Regulations Ordinance 1948 and declared the infamous Emergency across the country.
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BN working to solve issues before snap polls
Posted by Kit in Elections, Najib Razak on Monday, 2 August 2010, 3:55 pm
KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 2 — Barisan Nasional (BN) is looking to solve three pressing issues — the Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) case, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s second sodomy trial and Teoh Beng Hock’s mysterious death — before considering a call for snap elections.
The Malaysian Insider understands that BN leaders have privately agreed that these issues, together with the soft economy, need to be addressed before the ruling federal coalition is confident of dissolving Parliament for the country’s 13th general election, which is not due until March 2013.
“The three issues need to be solved. There is no two ways about it,” a BN leader told The Malaysian Insider over the weekend.
Talk is rife that Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak might call for snap polls to coincide with the Sarawak state election, which is due by July 2011, but the consensus is that the country’s largest state will proceed with its own election first. Pakatan Rakyat-ruled (PR) states have said they might not follow BN’s schedule as they want to fulfil promises made in Election 2008.
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Cabinet should make a decision to withdraw the appeal against Lau Bee Lan judgment on the Allah controversy
The Cabinet should make a decision to withdraw the appeal against the KL High Court judgment of Lau Bee Lan on the Allah controversy now that the Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein has admitted that his predecessor, Tan Sri Hamid Albar should not have banned the word “Allah” from being used by the Catholic Church.
Speaking at the Fourth Annual Malaysian Student Leaders’ Summit yesterday, Hishammuddin admitted that this issue will continue to haunt his ministry “for a very long time”, saying: “We should have let the sleeping dogs lie.”
With Hishamuddin’s admission, the Cabinet should do what it had failed to do these past six months after the Lau Bee Lan judgement in January, i.e. take a policy decision that the Home Ministry should withdraw its appeal against the High Court judgement allowing the Catholic Church to use the word “Allah” in the Bahasa Malaysia sections of its newspapers, Herald, to demonstrate the government’s seriousness and commitment to resolve the issue through inter-religious dialogue.
So far, Cabinet Ministers had been denied the right to consider whether the Home Ministry should withdraw its appeal against the Kuala Lumpur High Court judgment on the “Allah” controversy.
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Tiada Maruah (Lack of Integrity) At The Very Top
Posted by Kit in Bakri Musa, public service on Monday, 2 August 2010, 3:43 pm
By M. Bakri Musa
Last week I wrote, “So we have two disturbing displays of less than exemplary behaviors if not outright lack of professionalism at the highest levels of our civil service. One is the Chief Secretary not hearing both sides to the Lim Eng Guan and Nik Ali squabble before rendering judgment, and the other, the Solicitor General failing to recognize a breach of professional ethics.”
I penned that piece too soon. For a few days later we have yet a third example from another top civil servant, this time Attorney General (AG) Gani Patail. Responding to the allegation of improper behavior by one of his prosecutors in the Sodomy II trial, Gani Patail simply reassigned her.
Living ten thousand miles away I have little to do with the Malaysian civil service. My daily life is thus not affected by these tiada maruah (lack of integrity) folks at the top. The organization however, is essentially Malay; likewise the political establishment. These top civil servants and political leaders are thus seen as representing the best of not just their organizations but also of Malays. Consequently, their shortcomings are viewed less as personal failures but more of our community. When they behave tiada maruah, collectively Malays are also seen as such. That is what makes me angry.
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Mass arrests of 36 people for candlelight vigils protesting 50th ISA anniversary – clear signal by Najib and Hishammuddin
Posted by Kit in ISA, Najib Razak, Police on Monday, 2 August 2010, 12:24 pm
The mass arrests of 36 people in Petaling Jaya, Penang and Kota Bahru for candlelight vigils protesting the 50th anniversary of the Internal Security Act is a clear signal that the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak and Home Minister, Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hisham are not prepared to repeal draconian laws to show greater respect and commitment to human rights of Malaysians.
The Najib government was fully aware beforehand of the peaceful candlelight vigils planned countrywide to protest against the pernicious and draconian Internal Security Act, which had detained over 10,000 people without trial in the past half-century, stifling fundamental liberties of Malaysians to freedom of speech and expression, the right to peaceful assembly and association and most important of all the right to liberty and freedom from arbitrary arrest or detention.
The police crackdown on peaceful candlelight vigils protesting against the 50th anniversary of the ISA in various parts of the country last night is an unmistakable statement by the Najib administration that it cannot be trusted in taking the country towards a more open, democratic and accountable direction.
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Kit Siang: ‘Renewed’ and ‘committed’ to fight ISA
By Melissa Chi | The Malaysian Insider
KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 1 — For Lim Kit Siang, a veteran politician popularly known for his no-holds-barred rhetoric, the one most painful experience from his detention under the Internal Security Act (ISA) was having his freedom capped.
The DAP adviser’s only freedom had come in tiny doses and during those difficult days and his only comfort came from being allowed to wear his own clothes and to take short jogs around the secured compound to keep himself active.
When relating his story recently, Lim told The Malaysian Insider that it was really during his 35-month confinement under the ISA that he truly started to value his freedom.
“Freedom is the most precious thing, it is not tangible, something only when you lose, you’ll cherish it,” said Lim, who was detained on two separate occasions in 1969 and 1987.
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We were once ‘Malaysians’
Posted by Kit in nation building, Razaleigh Hamzah on Saturday, 31 July 2010, 3:57 pm
By Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah
The following keynote speech given by former finance minister and Gua Musang parliamentarian Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah at the 4th Annual Malaysian Student Leaders Summit (MSLS) today.
I have played some small role in the life of this nation, but having been on the wrong side of one or two political fights with the powers-that-be, I am not as close to the young people of this country as I would hope to be.
History and the 8 o’clock news are written by the victors. In recent years, the government’s monopoly of the media has been destroyed by the technology revolution.
You could say I was also a member of the United Kingdom and Eire Council for Malaysian Students (UKEC). Well, I was, except that belonged to the predecessor of the UKEC by more than 50 years, The Malayan Students Union of the UK and Eire. I led this organisation in 1958/59.
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MCA Ministers and leaders should show at least equal concern for “Justice for 27 million Malaysians who are victims of the RM12.5 billion PKFZ scandal” than “Justice for Ling Liong Sik”
MCA leaders, including Housing and Local Government Minister Datuk Seri Chor Chee Heung, lined up to give support to former MCA President and Transport Minister, Tun Dr. Ling Liong Sik after he was charged with cheating the Cabinet in the RM12.5 billion Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) scandal.
Without commenting on Ling’s case, Malaysians are entitled to expect that MCA Ministers and leaders should show at least equal concern for “Justice for 27 million Malaysians who are victims of the RM12.5 billion PKFZ scandal” than “Justice for Ling Liong Sik”.
What have the MCA national leadership, and in particular the four MCA Ministers, done to ensure justice for the 27 million Malaysians in connection with the PKFZ scandal?
Did the MCA national leadership and the MCA Transport Minister Datuk Seri Kong Cho Ha prioritise the interests of the 27 million Malaysians when he overrode the decision of the Port Klang Authority (PKA) and directed it to pay its PKFZ bond obligation of RM222.58 million to Kuala Dimensi Sdn Bhd (KDSB) special purpose vehicle Free Zone Capital Bhd (FZCB)? Read the rest of this entry »
Bolstering and Breeding Bigotry in Bolehland
Posted by Kit in Court, Martin Jalleh, nation building, Religion on Friday, 30 July 2010, 2:55 pm
By Martin Jalleh
The light, lenient, ludicrous and laughable court sentences on the cow-head protestors lends credence to the growing belief that Umno lives and lasts on bigotry
On 28 August last year, more than 50 people, shortly after their Friday prayers, marched from the Selangor state mosque in Shah Alam to the Selangor State Secretariat to protest the relocation of a 150-year old Hindu temple to their neighbourhood.
Amidst strong chants of “Allahuakbar!” they dragged and paraded the severed and bloodied head of a cow. One of their leaders shouted “I guarantee bloodshed and racial tension (if the temple relocation takes place)”.
Some of them made fiery speeches, spat on the severed cow’s head, kicked it, stomped on it, dumped it in front of the gates of the State Secretariat and proudly posed for photos, as police stood stoically, silently and submissively by.
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Will Mahathir or any of his Ministers in 2002 Cabinet testify in court of being misled by Ling to approve Port Klang Authority’s purchase of PKFZ land with 15-year repayment with compound interest instead of 10 years?
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Court, Financial Scandals, Mahathir, PKFZ on Friday, 30 July 2010, 1:05 pm
The charge preferred against former MCA President and Transport Minister, Tun Dr. Ling Liong Sik, in connection with the RM12.5 million Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) scandal has mystified many.
The charge against Ling reads:
“That you, between Sept 25 and Nov 6, 2002, at Level 4 of the Prime Minister’s Office in Bangunan Perdana Putra, cheated the Govern ment by deceiving the Cabinet into approving a land purchase in Pulau Indah for a Mega Distribution Hub project in Port Klang according to the terms agreed between Kuala Dimensi Sdn Bhd and Port Klang Authority which, among others, are:
the size of the land being 999.5 acres or 43,538,200 sq ft
the purchase price for the land being RM25 per sq ft amounting to a total of RM1,088,456,000
the repayment period being based on a “deferred payment” of 15 years with an interest rate of 7.5% per annum (total RM720,014,600), and thereby dishonestly hiding the fact that the valuation by the Valuation and Property Service Department on the land was RM25 per sq ft for a repayment period of 10 years or RM25.82 per sq ft for a repayment period of 15 years, including coupon/interest that could be charged for the repayment period.
Restructuring federal-state relations: Critical issue in next polls
Posted by Kit in Good Governance, Penang Government, Tourism on Friday, 30 July 2010, 8:06 am
Power must be devolved, decision-making must be decentralised, and development funds must be shared all the way down, asserts Francis Loh.
An important issue in the next general election, no doubt, must be the restructuring of federal-state relations. Our federal system of government needs to be transformed from a highly centralised to a more equal and co-operative one. Indeed, cooperative federal systems are the norm throughout the world, not only in Canada, Australia and Switzerland, but also in India, South Africa and Nigeria.
This means that more devolution of power must occur. As well, decentralisation of decision-making and of course disbursement of development funds from the federal government to the state governments. And the civil service must act more professionally to serve the government of the day, regardless of party affiliation.
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PKFZ scandal: Ex-transport minister Ling charged
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Court, PKFZ on Thursday, 29 July 2010, 6:21 pm
Former transport minister Ling Liong Sik was today charged at the Kajang Sessions Court over his involvement in the multi-billion ringgit Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) scandal.
Ling, 67, who is also former MCA president, is by far the most prominent politician to be nabbed in recent years.
He is charged under Section 418 of the Penal Code with misleading the cabinet between Sept 25 and Nov 6, 2002 into agreeing to purchase 999.5 acres of land on Pulau Indah for a project, that is now known as PKFZ, at a price of RM25psf on a deferred payment method for a 15-year period, at a 7.5 interest rate.
The cumulative interest paid would total at RM720 million at the end of the repayment period.
He was also ffered an alternative charge under Section 417 of the Penal Code for the same offence.
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Call for reports of the PKFZ scandal “super taskforce” to be made public to account for actions taken by Najib administration in past year
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Financial Scandals, PKFZ on Thursday, 29 July 2010, 3:10 pm
The decision by the Transport Minister, Datuk Seri Kong Cho Ha to override the decision of the Port Klang Authority (PKA) and direct it to pay its Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) bond obligation of RM222.58 million to Freezone Capital Bhd (FZCB) is another proof that his topmost concern and those of the Najib Cabinet is to bail out the PKFZ turnkey contractor Kuala Dimensi Sdn. Bhd (KDSB) rather than to do justice to the 27 million Malaysian people in the RM12.5 billion PKFZ scandal.
The PKA Board had acted properly in expressing reservations on the payment of RM222.58 million to KDSB’s special purpose vehicle, FZCB, because of an RM1.4 billion ongoing suit and considering withholding payment because of its worry that it may not be able to recover funds from KDSB.
Kong’s decision is all the more deplorable as it has now been revealed that KDSB had given undertakings that it will cover any shortfall in bond repayments should PKA fail to do so, making it KDSB’s problem and not that of Malaysian taxpayers.
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Malaysia in the Era of Globalization #25
Posted by Kit in Bakri Musa, globalisation on Thursday, 29 July 2010, 10:54 am
By M. Bakri Musa
Chapter 4: Modern Model States
The Celtic Tiger
Ireland is synonymous with emigration. Throughout the 19th and 20th Centuries Ireland’s biggest “export” was its people; they were desperate to escape the wretched conditions of their homeland. Only recently was this trend reversed, with Irish émigrés returning to work in the republic’s burgeoning hi-tech and other industries.
In absolute numbers, the Irish immigrants were not large; there were far more Chinese and Indians who emigrated. But as a percentage of their home population, the number of Irish who left was truly staggering. During the Great Famine of 1845-48, out of a population of eight million, two million left: one in four! Imagine what would have happened had a quarter of China’s population left!
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Anwar insists PAS-Umno talks will never take place
Posted by Kit in Anwar Ibrahim, Pakatan Rakyat, PAS, UMNO on Wednesday, 28 July 2010, 12:31 pm
Malaysian Insider
July 28, 2010
KUALA LUMPUR, July 28 — Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has nixed the chance of unity talks ever taking place between his Pakatan Rakyat (PR) ally PAS and the ruling coalition’s Umno, even without being stonewalled by the Islamist party’s Spiritual Adviser, Datuk Nik Aziz Nik Mat.
The Barisan Nasional (BN) Malay party has long viewed Nik Aziz as the main stumbling block towards achieving bi-party unity and political cooperation, an idea that has repeatedly cropped up post Election 2008.
“PAS maintains its stand it will not cooperate with Umno based on its past experiences and without being backed by principles.
“PAS leaders also reject this cooperation,” Anwar was reported saying during a visit to Kumpulan Media Karangkraf yesterday.
The PKR de facto chief added that Umno did not understand PAS; noting the grand old Malay party thought “if they can capture Nik Aziz, they would be able to control PAS.” Read the rest of this entry »
The world has spoke “yes to economic freedom, liberal market, no to NEP and corruption”
Posted by Kit in Dr. Chen Man Hin, Economics, Najib Razak, NEP on Tuesday, 27 July 2010, 12:52 pm
By Dr Chen Man Hin, DAP life advisor
UNCTAD, a UN body has issued its World Investment Report (WIR) 2010 on Foreign Direct Inflows (FDIs) of world countries.
The report on the 2009 FDIs into the Asean region are as follows
| Singapore | US$16.1 billion |
| Malaysia | 1.38 billion |
| Philippines | 1.95 |
| Thailand | 5.95 |
| Indonesia | 4.88 |
| Vietnam | 4.56 |
The FDI for Malaysia in 2008 was US$7.2 billion, which meant that there was a 81% precipitous drop for the year 2009.
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Guan Eng-SDO spat a test of civil service impartiality
Posted by Kit in Lim Guan Eng, public service on Tuesday, 27 July 2010, 9:16 am
Malaysian Insider
By Yoges Palaniappan
July 26, 2010
GEORGE TOWN, July 26 – Lim Guan Eng and state development officer (SDO) Nik Ali Nik Yunus’s running feud highlights widespread misunderstanding over the different roles of the civil service and political parties, political analysts said today.
Universiti Malaya Law Faculty associate professor Azmi Sharom and political analyst Wong Chin Huat backed the Penang chief minister’s criticism against Nik Ali, despite the stout defence of the federal employee put up by Chief Secretary Tan Sri Mohd Sidek Hassan.
They were of the opinion that the civil service needed to understand the distinction between political parties and government.
Azmi and Wong were commenting on the ongoing clash between Lim (pic) and Nik Ali which had escalated following a recent outburst by the federal civil servant, who said Lim had lowered his own status of a chief minister by criticising a SDO. Read the rest of this entry »
Civility in the US, vitriol in Penang
Posted by Kit in DAP, Lim Guan Eng, public service on Tuesday, 27 July 2010, 1:06 am
Making Sens
By Tan Siok Choo
26th July 2010
A CIVIL servant makes a speech. Heavily edited and later publicised, the speech makes the speaker appear racially biased. Journalists and politicians suggest the civil servant should be sacked. After the civil servant resigns, the full speech is published showing its theme of racial reconciliation had been turned into a racist rant.
This incident happened not in Penang but in the US. Nevertheless, last week’s fiasco involving Shirley Sherrod, state director of rural development in Georgia, provides a useful counterpoint to the spat between Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng and State Development Officer (SDO) Nik Ali Mat Yunus.
In the US, Sherrod’s speech was edited by a conservative group to suggest she had discriminated against a white farmer. Last Monday, Fox News Channel aired the edited excerpt and host Bill O’Reilly called for Sherrod’s resignation. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack obliged and asked Sherrod to leave.
However, the unedited version of Sherrod’s speech showed the black civil servant had helped the white farmer and was recounting the experience to illustrate that race should never be considered in dealings with others.
Thereafter, President Barack Obama telephoned the US Agriculture Department employee to express his regret over her forced resignation while Vilsack offered Sherrod his apologies and a unique new position in the department.
In contrast to the furore in Penang, one aspect of the Sherrod imbroglio stands out. Although the exchanges in the US were heated, they were civilised. Apart from labelling Sherrod a racist, name calling was notably absent. This contrasts with the volleys of verbal vitriol in Penang between Nik Ali and Guan Eng.
This prompts several questions: Is civility now an endangered trait in Malaysia? Why isn’t it possible for two persons to disagree without being disgustingly disagreeable? Read the rest of this entry »
Discipline the Little Napoleans
Posted by Kit in Education, nation building, Religion on Monday, 26 July 2010, 11:50 pm
By Thomas Lee
MySinchew
26.7.10
It is indeed a relief that Deputy Prime Minister cum Education Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin has given an assurance that non-Mulsim religious clubs or societies are not banned in schools.
Muhyiddin has pledged that school clubs and societies related to non-Muslim activities that have been in operation for decades need not be disbanded.
He said the Education Ministry has not issued any directive for such clubs or societies to close.
If such is the case, then disciplinary action must be taken against the officials of the Selangor Education Department and certain school heads who have been flexing their muscles to curb religious activities by the non-Muslim students in the schools.
The recent case of the Klang High School being ordered to close its non-Muslim religious clubs is not an isolate case. Read the rest of this entry »
