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Wednesday, October 22, 2014

Celcom now taking iPhone 6 orders

 
Celcom Axiata Bhd is now taking pre-orders for the iPhone 6 and Plus models, with registration of interest which can be conducted at its website.

In a statement today, Celcom said the new iPhone models will be available at the telco for its customers in Malaysia in about fortnight’s time – from Nov 6.

These devices were available in 10 countries around the globe since Sept 19 and was sold in China a month later – from Oct 17.

Celcom has yet to unveil the prices of the iPhones to be sold in Malaysia or the package plans, but these are expected to be similar to past launches of the Apple devices.

Other major telcos have yet to announce the launch dates – which should also be the same – or the packages prices too.

-therakyatpost

MALAYSIAN DIPLOMAT MUHAMMAD RIZALMAN TO FACE SEX CHARGE IN NEW ZEALAND

 
Wellington ( Agencies + DIPLOMAT.SO) – The Malaysian diplomat accused of a sex assault on a Wellington woman will return to New Zealand on Saturday morning to face the charges.

New Zealand formally filed an extradition request in recent weeks for Malaysia to return Muhammad Rizalman bin Ismail so that he could appear in court in New Zealand. He left the country exactly five months ago, today.

Rizalman was arrested on May 10, and charged by Wellington police with burglary and assault with intent to rape relating to an alleged attack on Tania Billingsley, 22, in the Wellington suburb of Brooklyn.

However, he was able to leave New Zealand on May 22 after Malaysia refused to waive his right to invoke diplomatic immunity.

Rizalman was employed by the High Commission of Malaysia, also based in Brooklyn.

Official sources confirmed in recent days that Rizalman was due to return this week.

It has since emerged Rizalman is scheduled to arrive in the country this Saturday morning.

It is understood he will fly back from Malaysia overnight on Friday, escorted by New Zealand police officers. On landing in the capital he will immediately be taken to Wellington District Court to face the charges, it is understood.

An inquiry continues into Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade representatives’ handling of the case after they gave the impression that New Zealand officials gave their blessing for Rizalman to leave.

Malaysia later announced it would begin the process to return him to face the charges.Billingsley waived her right to name suppression and publicly criticised Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully’s handling of the case, demanding an apology.

While there is no formal extradition treaty between New Zealand and Malaysia both countries agreed to commit to the process and had been sharing documents to hasten the legal process previously described as “complex” by Mfat.

Despite repeated requests for information from media, there has not yet been any official advice from either side on Rizalman’s return date.

Foreign Minister of New Zealand Murray McCully said he had been advised a Malaysian court had ordered Rizalman’s extradition.

The matter was now “entirely in the hands of the judicial systems of both countries”, McCully said.

He was “not in a position” where he could confirm Rizalman would return to New Zealand this weekend, and referred the matter to the judicial authorities involved.

“There’s been a lot of publicity about it, and the legal people are very concerned to ensure that we observe proper process so I’ve left it entirely to them.”

McCully had “heard a report along those lines” that New Zealand police had gone to Malaysia to accompany Rizalman back, but said that would need to be confirmed by the police.

“There’s been a lot of speculation in the media, what is clear now is that there will be a trial in New Zealand.

“The legal people have gone to a lot of trouble to try and ensure that is going to be a fair trial and that there is no question of flawed process that is going to imperil it and I’m showing, as I hope others will, respect for that process.”

In the case of any extradition, there would be a lot of liaison between the police and the prosecutorial authorities on both sides to ensure there was a seamless process, McCully said.

-diplomat.so

Spacecraft Spots Ice at Mercury's North Pole

 
NASA's MESSENGER spacecraft has sent back its first visible-light images of water ice on Mercury, the tiny charbroiled planet that orbits closest to the sun.
The findings, described in the journal Geology, reveal that the ice deposits look surprisingly "fresh" -- and hint that water could have been very recently delivered to rocky little Mercury.

Even though Mercury sits less than 36 million miles from the sun -- which is less than two-fifths of the Earth's comfortable 93 million miles from sun -- some ice still manages to cling to the planet's surface. That's because the ice lies at the poles, in permanently shadowed regions inside craters that are eternally shielded from sunlight and remain very, very cold.

More than two decades ago, ground-based radar observations picked up signs of this polar ice, and the MESSENGER spacecraft later lent support to the idea with its own suite of instruments. But it's tough to actually see these permanently shadowed regions with the spacecraft's visible-light camera because, well, it's dark there. But recently, the team was able to refine the images of the ice-deposit surfaces with the help of what little light was reflecting off the crater walls.

The scientists examined Prokofiev, which at roughly 69.6 miles in diameter is the largest crater at Mercury's north pole thought to have water-ice deposits. There, the surface ice had a "cratered" texture -- showing that it was placed there more recently than the smaller underlying craters.

And in other spots, such as Berlioz crater, the researchers found that the water ice was "covered by a thin layer of dark, organic-rich volatile material." The boundaries of those icy regions were surprisingly sharp -- they hadn't been in place long enough to get smoothed out.

"The sharp boundaries indicate that the volatile deposits at Mercury's poles are geologically young, relative to the time scale for lateral mixing by impacts," the study authors wrote, "and either are restored at the surface through an ongoing process or were delivered to the planet recently."

To put that idea in perspective, estimates indicate that there could be roughly enough water-ice on Mercury to fill Lake Ontario. And if at least some of that water is indeed being delivered to the planet, it sheds new light on dynamics in the inner solar system, the scientists said.

"If Mercury's currently substantial polar volatile inventory is the product of the most recent portion of a longer process," the study authors wrote, "then a considerable mass of volatiles may have been delivered to the inner Solar System throughout its history."

-sci tech

Sabah sea curfew extended amidst concerns

 
KOTA KINABALU: Continuing security concerns and other related issues along the eastern seaboard of Sabah has compelled the authorities to extend the sea curfew imposed in the Eastern Sabah Security Zone (EssZone).
The new curfew, the seventh since July 19, will be in force until November 6.

“We believe the security situation in the east coast of Sabah is still in need of the curfew order to ensure continuous safety,” said Sabah Police Commissioner Jalaluddin Abdul Rahman on Tuesday in explaining the need to extend the curfew to ensure continuous security measures along the east coast.

“We also want to curb smuggling activities, and ensure security forces stationed at the areas are able to carry out their duties effectively.”

Jalaluddin dismissed fears that the continued curfew has affected economic activities especially among the fishing community through reduced catches and sent prices skyrocketing in local markets.

The police chief assured that resort and tourism operators in the east coast support the imposition of the curfew from time to time and its continuance if the situation warranted.

The sea curfew, two weeks at a time, was first imposed on July 19 in six EssZone coastal areas and water borders covering about 121,272 square miles or 194,035 kilometers in Sandakan, Kinabatangan, Lahad Datu, Semporna, Kunak and Tawau.

-fmt

Lee Chong Wei identified as athlete who failed drug test

 
PETALING JAYA: Lee Chong Wei, Malaysia’s darling of badminton, has been reported by The Star Online as the top athlete who failed a recent drug test.

Lee was picked at random to be tested for drugs after a tournament recently and expressed his utter shock when informed later that he had failed the test.

He had requested a second test be carried out for the “B” sample 16 days later, the results of which have not been made known yet.

Earlier Bernama reported that the Ministry of Youth and Sports (KBS) would not tolerate any athlete testing positive for drugs.

Saying athletes could not go on blaming their coaches or medical specialists when they failed drug tests, Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said it was up to the athletes themselves to ensure the food, supplements and treatments they took were free of substances banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).

Khairy also said the ministry upheld its “zero tolerance” policy when it came to the issue of doping among athletes.

He reiterated this in light of an investigation now being conducted by the National Sports Institute (ISN) and the Malaysian Anti-Doping Agency (Adamas) regarding the case.

-fmt

Sunday, October 19, 2014

'Real Madrid would be wise to sign Lucas Silva'

 
Real have been linked with a move for 21-year-old midfielder Silva amid reports of Sami Khedira's possible departure from the Spanish capital, with Arsenal and Chelsea rumoured to be admirers of the latter.

Silva has quickly become one of the hottest properties in Brazilian football, having emerged from Cruzeiro's youth team in 2012.

The Brazil youth-team international has been a regular for Cruzeiro in 2014, making 19 appearances as the defending Serie A champions sit top of the table.

And veteran Baptista, who spent three years at the Santiago Bernabeu, believes Silva has the quality to succeed in La Liga.

"It would be a wise move," Baptista told Marca of Real potentially signing Silva. "The first day I saw him I knew he was a player that would turn heads and I told him so.

"He's a two touch player, a quality that would fit right in Spain or the Premier League. In Brazil, players hog the ball, but Lucas plays it quickly.
"He is ready to make the giant leap to Europe and into a big club like Madrid, but he needs time to settle, because it's not an easy club.

"But in terms of footballing ability, there's no doubt he'd fit in very nicely at Real Madrid. He's a player brimming with talent."

Despite strong links to Real Madrid, reports in British media have linked Chelsea with stealing him away to Stamford Bridge from under Carlo Ancelotti's nose.

-my yahoo sport

Saturday, October 18, 2014

Explain refusal to disclose water deal, Selangor MB tells minister

 
Datuk Seri Dr Maximus Ongkili must explain why the federal government cannot reveal the contents of its water restructuring agreement with Selangor, Azmin Ali said today.

The Selangor Mentri Besar said he was surprised that the Energy, Green Technology and Water minister had made a public statement on the matter when he has yet to reply to Azmin’s letter asking permission for the water deal to be publicly disclosed.

“The federal government has explained why they cannot reveal contents of water deal.

“I will wait for minister reply before deciding further,” he told reporters here after officiating an event at the Viva Home shopping mall.

Earlier today, Ongkili had reportedly said that his ministry would not disclose the contents of the water deal, following legal advice from the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC).

“After advice from the AGC, we feel that it is not time to disclose the water deal.

“People already know (the contents) because it has been mentioned in the memorandum of understanding (MoU), Heads of Agreement (HoA) and master agreement,” online news portal The Malaysian Insider quoted him as saying.
Ongkili added that a full disclosure needed an agreement from all stakeholders including state water concessionaires.

Azmin is demanding that the federal government publicly disclose all contents of the recently-signed water restructuring agreement made during his predecessor’s time.

He had said that such a move was necessary as a first step in reviewing the controversial water deal.

Under the water agreement, Selangor will infuse a new special purpose vehicle with RM14.92 billion in assets to manage the water restructuring exercise now finalised with Putrajaya.

Former Mentri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim said last month the asset injection will go to a new entity, Pengurusan Air Selangor Sdn Bhd, which will come into operation after the state concludes the takeover of assets and liabilities currently held by water concessionaires operating in Selangor.

The federal government will also provide RM2 billion to help offset the state’s cost of taking over the four concessionaires — Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor Sdn Bhd (Syabas), Puncak Niaga Sdn Bhd, Konsortium Abbas Sdn Bhd and Syarikat Pengeluar Air Selangor Sdn Bhd (SPLASH).

The new SPV will be under the control of state-owned Kumpulan Darul Ehsan Berhad.

Of the four concessionaires, only Syabas, Puncak Niaga and Konsortium Abbas have agreed in principle to Selangor’s combined offer of RM7.817 billion.
SPLASH has said it will negotiate its acquisition separately.

Khalid’s administration had initially made a combined offer of RM9.651 billion to take over assets and liabilities of the four concessionaires.

SPLASH rejected the offer outright, however, which pushed Selangor to threaten to enforce Section 114 of the Water Services Industry Act 2006. The law provision allows Putrajaya to forcibly acquire a concessionaire.

Separately, the assets and liabilities of the three concessionaires that have agreed to the terms will be transferred to Perbadanan Aset Air Berhad on a 45-year lease, covering all liabilities such as water debts and bonds valued at RM6.1 billion, and water assets owned by the concessionaires.

The facilities and service licences will be issued to Air Selangor by the National Water Services Commission, along with the proposed Langat 2 water treatment plant which will be leased to and managed by Air Selangor.
The water restructuring plan and the Langat 2 project were among several reasons given by PKR in deciding to remove Khalid from office.

-malaymailonline

Pan Borneo highway projects ready for take-off

 
KUCHING: The Works Ministry will prioritise three main projects in the Pan Borneo Highway development programme in Sarawak, involving RM490 million.

Its minister Fadillah Yusof said RM110 million of the amount would be for the construction of 22 overtaking lanes along the proposed highway.

“The companies that would be building the overtaking lanes have already been appointed,” he said, while launching the Unitar International University, Sarawak open house here Saturday.

He said upgrading of the road stretching five kilometres, from Km16 to Km21 along Jalan Kuching-Serian costing RM80 million would likely commence in May next year.

Fadillah said the long-haul route between Sibu and Bintulu would be upgraded at a cost of more than RM300 million.

According to him, other phases in the construction of the Pan Borneo highway would be undertaken by a company to be appointed by the Economic Planning Unit in the Prime Minister’s Department.

Prime Minister Najib Razak said while tabling Budget 2015 last week, that RM27 billion would be allocated for the development of the 1,763 km Pan Borneo highway linking Sabah and Sarawak.

Fadillah who is also MP of Petra Jaya, said a new bridge across the Sarawak River would also be built next year to link Kuching South City to a booming commercial and residential area.

He said the road network in the area would also be upgraded to four lanes. – BERNAMA

NGO wants Perkasa out of Sabah

 
KOTA KINABALU: The Angkatan Gabungan Rakyat Asli Sabah (Agaras) on Friday lodged a police report against hate group Pertubuhan Pribumi Perkasa Malaysia (Perkasa) stating that it does not want the latter to be in Sabah or conduct any activities in the state.

“Agaras is strongly against Perkasa as they are a threat to the unity of our people, especially the youths, whom they are manipulating into joining their organisation,” said Agaras’s President, Cornelius Frederick @ Michael F. J. Sulip. “We don’t want the NGO to be in Sabah under the guise of Bumiputeraism and the unity of the Bumiputera.”

Sabah like Sarawak, he pointed out, is about the Orang Asal living in harmony with others.

He said this in reference to the police report lodged by the NGO at the Penampang police station.

Cornelius added that hate preacher and Perkasa chief Ibrahim Ali’s call for the burning of Bahasa Melayu bibles and his NGO’s ideologies and teachings were not in line with the 1Malaysia ideology initiated by Prime Minister Najib Razak.

He also hoped that the authorities concerned would take the necessary action to stop Perkasa from spreading their teachings in Sabah.

“If this problem is not nipped in the bud it will affect the minds of our youths, spread hate, shatter the harmony of our country and drive it into chaos,” he added. “We will not allow Ibrahim Ali in Sabah.”

Copies of the police report will be handed to Sabah chief minister Musa Aman, the state secretary, the Immigration Department, local authorities in the state, component parties of the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition and the opposition.

The NGO believes that the Sabah Government can use its autonomy in immigration powers and not only ban Ibrahim Ali from the state, as the Sarawak Government had done, but root out the NGO in the state.
He suggested the local authorities, for example, deny a trading licence to the NGO.

Trading licences, obtainable from local authorities, were necessary in Sabah to operate any organisation from lawfully recognised premises. Organisations were not allowed to operate from residential premises.

The City Hall in Kota Kinabalu said they would look into the presence of Perkasa in the Sabah capital. A spokesman declined to comment further.
Agaras’s vice president Patrick Sadom also lodged a police report at the same time against a Facebook user named ’Zef Fithry’ “for posting insulting and degrading remarks on Sabah and its people”.

“This is unacceptable. We hope that the authorities will look into the matter and bring the person to justice,” said Sadom. “We believe the person is from the peninsula. No Sabahan would ever post such hate about his own people.”

’Zef Fithry’ has allegedly posted, among others, remarks that Sabah was a shame to Malaysia, that its people were stupid and jobless and forced to resort to prostitution, and that artistes in the state looked like male private parts.

-fmt

Time to call it a day, Anwar

 
PETALING JAYA: Without mincing words, Youth NGO Lensa (Lensa Anak Muda Malaysia) has told PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim his time is up and that he had best retire because the people are tired of him.

In a statement, coordinator for Lensa, Ekhsan Bukharee said, “For how long do the people need to be dragged along with this case (sodomy)?”
He also asked, “Should you (Anwar) be imprisoned, are you hoping for a show of solidarity in front of the prison gates?

Saying the people will not take to the streets once again in solidarity for Anwar, Ekhsan said, “No, Datuk Seri no. This is no longer 1998 or 1999. We are following our own path now.”

This harsh statement came in the light of an AMK movement under Nik Nazmi who is trying to mobilise people to stand in solidarity when Anwar’s verdict on the Sodomy II trial is read on 28 and 29 October.

Accusing Anwar of making the Reformasi movement all about himself and for using the people to fight his cause, Ekhsan added that as long as Anwar was in politics, his enemies would continually devise ways to end his political career.

He said, “If you win Sodomy II, then we will have to wait for Sodomy III, Sodomy IV, Sodomy V that will likely end with the people dragged into more dirty politics.”

Ekhsan asked why Anwar didn’t accept the Turks’ invitation to retire there, adding that it was a far better alternative than “remaining in the country and facing a cruel regime that will only stop harassing you when you bow to them in submission.”

Stating firmly, “There will not be a second Reformasi of 98/99. Time to forget politics and focus on your personal life instead.”

Citing Anwar’s tumultuous political life that started in the 60s and saw him imprisoned under the ISA Act twice, Ekhsan said Anwar, who was now in his 60s had still persisted in taking a more difficult path instead of the easier one.

Ekhsan said, “Your (Anwar) fight has all been a waste that will end up with you in prison once again.”-FMT

Dayak NGO not cowed by threats

 
KUCHING: De Facto Dayak Informal Group (DIG) Chief, Dr. Dusit Jaul, has vowed that he will not be intimidated by threats, even to his person, and that he will continue to speak up on the rights of the Orang Asal and on human rights issues.

“We do not trample on or deny the rights of other communities. All we ask is for Dayaks to be treated fairly, no more and no less,” said Dusit who stressed that he cannot be bullied into submission when his people, the majority community in Sarawak, have been marginalized.

“It’s not wrong if we speak up on the matter to attract attention to the issues at hand. Everything is done according to the law when we air the grouses of the Dayak community to the government.”

Dusit was explaining a police report lodged on Friday at the Sungai Maong station by a DIG member, Eric Dile, on behalf of the NGO and other members following threats to him (Dusit) by a group of unknown persons on October 4, 5 and 7.

Earlier, Dusit had lodged a report of the incidents at the Urban Transformation Centre (UTC) Police One Stop Centre. He added that “he wants the government to seriously consider the group’s requests or face the wrath of the community”.

“The government can choose to fulfill our requests or face a more aggressive and skilled Dayak community in the future,” he warned. “We believe that what we are doing today is for the good of Sarawak and the Sarawak government.”

Recalling the alleged incidents, Dusit claims that five men reportedly from the “Special Branch in Bukit Aman” trespassed into his residence in Tabuan Jaya on October 7 at 10.45 am when he was not at home.

Apparently, they refused to produce any identification documents.

The five ordered Dusit’s wife, who was alone at home at the time, to advise her husband to stop harping on the rights and issues affecting Dayaks.

“They told my wife to advise me to follow the footsteps of ‘good’ Dayak government figures like Michael Manyin, Peter Nansian, and Alfred Jabu Anak Numpang,” related Dusit. “The five men disclosed that they would be issuing a similar warning to James Masing in the near future.”

According to Dusit’s wife, as related by him, three of the five were fluent in Iban, while the other two were an Indian and a Malay.

Dusit believes the five men who confronted his wife are the same ones who had apparently been monitoring his movements of late.

Earlier, in two separate incidents on October 4 and Oct 5, he alleged that some men trailed his vehicle to Lubok Antu.

It appears that he was pulled over somewhere along the way, by the men trailing him, and asked to wind down all of his car windows before being allowed to continue his journey.

Sarawak Police, according to sources, are in the dark about the alleged incidents and hinted that the suspects may be rogue elements engaged by politicians who keep a tight leash on the Dayak communities.

-fmt

High Internet rates, but poor service

 
KUALA LUMPUR: The rates for Internet services are high compared with the quality of the services provided and must be reduced, National ICT Association (Pikom) chairman Cheah Kok Hoong said today.

“The quality of Internet services has to be stepped up based on the many complaints from consumers who have to pay an exorbitant sum for low-quality service.

“The bulk of Internet users are students and the average price for broadband access is RM79 to RM133 per month which is a burden to them,” he said.

There has been an increase in Internet usage among Malaysians from 22% in 2008 to 60% in the first quarter this year.

Based on World Bank estimates, this figure will continue to increase in the next couple of years.

Cheah said the government had to regulate prices according to the needs of the consumer towards the services demanded.

“It goes without saying that the Internet is crucial to turn Malaysia into a developed nation.

“Many Malaysians also use social media as a tool to supplement their income and often transact over e-commerce websites.

“At least, if the government cannot reduce the prices then it must ensure that the services offered are on par with the amount charged,” he said.
According to a study by Ookla, a global leader in broadband speed testing and web-based network diagnostic applications, Malaysia ranked 126 out of 196 nations in terms of Internet access speed.

But, the study undertaken from May 2013 to April 2014 revealed that Malaysia ranked behind Cambodia and Vietnam in the region.

-fmt

Friday, October 17, 2014

What Venezuela's Security Council Seat Means for the U.S.

 
In an election sure to be a thorn in the side of the U.S., Venezuela on Thursday won the non-permanent member seat on the U.N. Security Council for the Latin American region. The country, which has had frosty relations with the U.S., is unlikely to be an ally on key issues involving Syria, Iran and Russia in a time of global turmoil.

Socialist Venezuela traditionally has opposed U.S. and Western positions on international issues. Jason Marczak, deputy director of the Adrienne Arsht Latin America Center at the Atlantic Council, says the country’s presence on the council will mean a vote against the American position on nearly every topic.

“Whatever global issue you can think of that the U.S. would have an opinion on, I think Venezuela is going to take an opposing viewpoint,” Marczak says.

Relations with former Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, who died in 2013 of cancer, were strained, and things have not improved under Nicolas Maduro. In February, the current president expelled three American officials, charging that they had recruited students to take part in protests that were spreading across the country. Citizens were dissatisfied over shortages of goods, high inflation, growing crime and increased censorship of the media, but Maduro has continually accused the U.S. of supporting an opposition he's said is planning a coup. Forty-three people were killed in the violence over three months.

Venezuela is likely to be an ally of permanent Security Council member Russia as that country continues to foment dissent in neighboring Ukraine. In March, Venezuela was one of just 10 (other than Russia) countries to vote against a U.N. resolution that recognized Crimea as falling within Ukrainian borders.

The Latin American country is also likely to oppose any attempted Security Council action against Iran, another ally. The U.S. and five other world powers are engaged in nuclear negotiations with Iran, but additional sanctions against the country could be pursued in the Security Council should the negotiations fail. Maduro also has been a vocal opponent of Syrian President Bashar Assad, whom the U.S. has long wanted to step down.

Venezuela ran unopposed for the seat to represent Latin America, in line with a closed-door agreement to allow the spot to rotate among countries in the region. Chavez sought a seat in 2006, but the U.S. opposed the campaign and succeeded in shutting it down.

This time, the U.S. was silent on Maduro’s bid, which Marczak attributes in part to so many other world crises requiring attention. It also downplays the significance of the winning bid.

“The approach of the U.S. to Venezuela joining the Security Council is to not give Maduro an opportunity to further play up this as a diplomatic success at home,” Marczak says. “The way he’d be able to do that is by showing the opposition of the U.S. and his ability to overcome the U.S. opposition, and by the U.S. being quiet, it’s much less of a diplomatic victory for Maduro.”

U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, D-Fla., said that due to Venezuelan support of “state sponsors of terrorism like Iran, North Korea and Syria,” the U.S. should have actively tried to stop the country's bid for a Security Council seat. Members of Congress on both sides of the aisle called on Secretary of State John Kerry to oppose Venezuela's effort.

-us news

Thursday, October 16, 2014

Beware of those who use religion as a tool

 
KOTA KINABALU: Sabah Chief Musa Aman has reminded the people of Sabah not to be swayed by certain quarters who tried to instigate them by using religion as a tool.

He said that these instigators had their own agenda as religious issues did not arise in Sabah, where the people lived in peace and harmony regardless of race, religion or culture.

“Even Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak himself acknowledges and recognises that Sabah is the best example of the 1Malaysia spirit,” he said when speaking at the Sabah government financial aid presentation to non-Muslim non governmental organisations (NGO) and Southwest Coast and Lower Interior schools here on Wednesday.

Also present were Deputy Chief Minister Joseph Pairin Kitingan and Special Functions Minister Teo Chee Kang.

At the function, Musa presented financial aid, totalling RM32 million, to nearly 200 non-Muslim NGOs, national type, missionary and private schools.

Musa also urged all strata of the community to be with the government to nurture and sustain the spirit of unity, togetherness and harmony that had been achieved in Sabah all this while.

He said religious bodies played an important role in instilling good and positive values among the people of various races and religions.

Since 11 years ago, the Sabah government had presented financial aid totalling RM208,533,199, including RM88,536,019 to missionary, national type and private schools and RM119,997,180 for non-Muslim NGOs, he said.
- Bernama

No Borneo Highway scraps for Sabah

 
KUALA LUMPUR: Another two Sabah MPs, echoing Kalabakan MP Abdul Ghapur Salleh’s comments in Parliament on Wed on the budget speech, want the RM 27 billion contract packages for the 1,633 km Pan Borneo Highway to be awarded by open tender.

Jimmy Wong and Stephen Wong, Kota Kinabalu and Sandakan MPs respectively, have expressed fears that behind the scene moves are underway to award the Sabah stretch of the contract to the Peninsular Malaysia-based UEM-MMC Consortium under the guise of a government-private sector partnership initiative.

The two Wongs disclosed that their claim on the award of the contracts was based on reliable information. Any kind of direct negotiations was totally unacceptable and inconsistent with the open tender process called for under the Government Transformation Programme, they added.

“We do not want Sabah companies to pick up scraps from the table by being sub-contractors to Peninsular Malaysian companies who will reap most of the profits from the contract,” said Jimmy on the sidelines of the Parliamentary session on Wed.

“We do not want the highway to impose toll and make Sabahans, already living in the poorest state, suffer like fools while the payments make Peninsular Malaysian companies very rich.”

He urged the Federal Government to finance the entire Pan Borneo Highway project instead of looking to the private sector to carry the burden.

UEM and MMC, it’s understood, will play no part in the Sarawak stretch of the contracts which will go to local companies. One fear here is that companies linked to the ruling Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB) will secure the Sarawak stretch through negotiated tenders.

Sarawak does not hesitate to use its autonomy in immigration matters to keep out Peninsular Malaysian operations deemed inimical to its interests.

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