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Najib, Rosmah bring cheer to kids in hospital

Posted: 24 May 2011 12:07 PM PDT

Najib, Rosmah bring cheer to kids in hospital

KUALA LUMPUR: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak and his wife Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor's brought smiles to the landslide victims recuperating at Ampang Hospital yesterday.

They were touched that Najib and Rosmah and a delegation of VIPs took the trouble to lift their spirits up after their tragic loss of friends and relatives.

M. Alaudeen Safree, was especially elated and opened up when Rosmah began a conversation with him.

Alaudeen, 14, was one of the nine survivors of the landslide tragedy which killed 16 others at the Hidayah Madrasah Al-Taqwa orphanage in Kampung Sungai Gahal, Hulu Langat last Saturday.

Alaudeen told reporters he missed his brother and friends but would pray for them, adding that he wanted to continue going to the "madrasah (religious classes)" to learn more about the Quran.

Alaudeen lost his brother, 10-year-old Mohd Hazim, in the tragedy.

Meanwhile, 13-year-old Mohd Aizat Khusairi Abdul Halim was smiling broadly when he got Najib and Rosmah to sign the cast on his arm.

"I will frame this," Aizat told Rosmah, adding that he wanted to be a soldier when he grew up.

During the hour-long visit, the victims shared their stories with the prime minister and his wife.

Twins Mohd Shafiq and Siti Fatima Ibrahim were deeply affected by the tragedy.

Siti Fatima had witnessed tonnes of earth and boulders crashing down onto the orphanage. She burst into tears when she saw a picture of the boys, decked in long robes and white head gear, taken during their nasyid rehearsal posted on Facebook.

Shafiq, wearing a neck brace and in a wheelchair, spoke softly to Dusun Tua state assemblyman Ismail Sani and asked if the orphanage would be rebuilt so that they would have a place to return to after they got better.

Others present were Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai and his deputy, Datuk Rosnah Abdul Rashid Shirlin, Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil, Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Minister Datuk Seri Noh Omar and Ampang Hospital director Datin Dr Aishah Ahmad Makinuddin.

Rosmah, who is also Bakti and Kasih president, gave RM1,000 and a hamper to each victim.

Later, Liow told reporters that some of the victims were expected to be discharged after a week.

"We have three in the Intensive Care Unit and one of them (Mohd Izzudin Abdullah @ Ibrahim) is still in critical condition."

The other two are Zulkhairi Aminuddin, 12, and Md Izwan Zakaria, 32.

Another victim, 9-year-old Khairul Anuar Nazri, has been transferred to the Kuala Lumpur Hospital.

The other survivors are Mohd Harris Izuddin Syahrul Azmi, 11, at the Ampang Hospital and Mohd Akmal Mohd Jefry at the KPJ Kajang Hospital.

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Subsidy review necessary

Posted: 24 May 2011 11:46 AM PDT

We don't want people to suffer later, says DPM

PAGOH: Although the move to review subsidies will not go down well with the people, a responsible government is obliged to do it, said Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.

The deputy prime minister said as a reliable government, it must manage development and the economy well to ensure the people did not need to shoulder a worse burden in future.

"Anything that involves cost increases to the people will make the government unpopular.

Although we want to be popular, we also have to discharge our responsibility to the people." He was speaking after a meet-thepeople session at Kampung Sawah Tulang Gajah here. He also received application forms to join Umno from the Orang Asli villagers of Kampung Sentosa.

Muhyiddin, who is also Umno deputy president, said good economic and financial management would ensure the country did not follow in the footsteps of several countries in Europe, like Greece and Portugal, which needed bailouts after facing economic crises.

Muhyiddin said if the nation's economy faced a downturn because of poor financial management, it would have an adverse impact on the people.

He said the government wanted the see the nation's fiscal deficit, which stood at 5.4 per cent of gross domestic product now, reduced through subsidy rationalisation.

"The government wants the fiscal deficit to be reduced because if it continues to rise, we fear Malaysia's economic rating will drop and cause investors to shy away. This will result in opportunities lost in terms of new jobs, affecting people." Muhyiddin, however, said the government would "not withdraw subsidies entirely". It would continue its subsidy programme but ensure only the right people benefited, like those in the lowerincome group, the disabled and the poor.

He said the current system was unique to Malaysia and not practised in other countries.

"However, the system is not sustainable in the long run, especially now when the prices of items like oil are increasing. For example, we will have to spend as much as RM21 billion this year on oil subsidies."

At present, the government is providing subsidies for essential items like fuel, cooking gas, electricity, sugar and flour.

Muhyiddin also said the opposition should come up with constructive proposals to help deal with increasing prices of goods, instead of protesting any price rise or subsidy reduction.

"Their protests do not help the country. In the current economic situation, the government has to come up with measures and strategies for the best financial management as we want to reduce our deficit.

"If the opposition leaders are that clever, they should help the government by coming up with ways to tackle this issue."

Earlier, Muhyiddin spent more than an hour with the Chinese community at Taman Sri Pagoh and attended a meeting with Umno divisional leaders.

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Kredit: www.nst.com.my

Selasa, 24 Mei 2011