Rabu, 28 September 2011

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Mixed reaction to local authorities issuing traffic tickets

Posted: 28 Sep 2011 06:27 PM PDT

2011/09/29
By Suganthi Suparmaniam
news@nst.com.my

KUALA LUMPUR: There was a mixed reaction from local councils and police over the decision to give local authorities the power to issue traffic summonses
for offences previously not within their jurisdictions.

Federal traffic police chief Senior Assistant Commissioner Datuk Abdul Aziz Yusof welcomed the move and said he did not foresee any problem with it.

However, Johor police said they would be the only authority to issue traffic summonses.

Aziz said the issue of overlap would not arise as both parties had a mutual understanding. He added that police would coordinate
with Kuala Lumpur City Hall on issuing summonses.

"There is no problem. We can start immediately as the understanding on the operation was established long ago at our weekly meetings," he said yesterday.

From Saturday, Kuala Lumpur City Hall traffic wardens will issue summonses.

Forty traffic wardens will work in two shifts, from 6.30am to 7pm, to monitor 10 road junctions.

They include Jalan Raja Laut-Jalan Sultan Ismail, Jalan Pudu-Jalan Bukit Bintang, Jalan Parlimen-Jalan Raja Laut, Jalan Gereja-Jalan Raja Chulan
and Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman-Jalan Sultan Ismail.

Apart from issuing summonses for indiscriminate parking and obstruction of vehicles, thewardens will now also issue tickets for beating red lights, stopping in yellow boxes, jumping queues and disobeying traffic warnings.

Mayor Tan Sri Ahmad Fuad Ismail said the move was intended to reduce congestion in the city centre.

He said the government's Special Task Force To Facilitate Business (Pemudah)
had, on Sept 9, given the warrant authority to City Hall traffic wardens to operate like traffic police in enforcing traffic laws.

However, Johor police chief Datuk Mokhtar Shariff said, until today, they had not received any instructions from the Federal police or the Home Ministry about local councils' receiving the authority to issue traffic
summonses.

There are three local councils in Johor Baru, with 12 municipal councils
in each district.

Petaling Jaya Municipal Council spokesman Zainun Zakaria said it would wait and see before deciding whether to follow suit.

"Let's see the effectiveness of this joint programme."

Subang Jaya Municipal Council president Datuk Asmawi Kasbi said:

"It's different for us because although we have traffic congestion, it's not because of people breaking traffic laws, but because of roads and volume of cars," he said, adding that working with traffic police on th matter was not an urgent need.

He said the council focused more on safe neighbourhoods, illegal dumping and others.

If only this deaf man could hear...

Posted: 28 Sep 2011 10:42 AM PDT

2011/09/29
By Patrick Sennyah
news@nst.com.my

Muhammad Ridhwan Abdullah made news last year for attempting to walk from Seremban to Putrajaya to meet Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Shahrizat Abdul Jalil about getting welfare aid.

SEREMBAN: A hearing-impaired red identity card holder missed his chance to obtain citizenship because a Home Ministry official told him about the citizenship interview date over the telephone.

Muhammad Ridhwan Abdullah, 43, did not attend the interview as he was unable to hear and understand what the official was telling him.

He must wait another five years before reapplying.

"I received a letter dated July 18 from the Home Ministry informing me that my application for citizenship was unsuccessful as I did not attend the interview," said the odd-job worker, who can lip-read.

Ridhwan, from Kampung Sentosa Jaya, near here, said he went through many procedures in efforts to get citizenship.

On March 8, he received a letter from the ministry informing him that the status of his application would be known by Dec 31.

"When I read the letter, I thought I would just have to wait for their decision. I didn't know about the interview.

"I can't hear, so how can I know when I was asked to attend an interview? They should have known about my condition and sent a letter instead."

Ridhwan was abandoned at birth and was raised at Sultan Abdul Aziz Children's Home in Kuala Kangsar.

He made news last year for attempting to walk all the way from here to Putrajaya to meet Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Shahrizat Abdul Jalil about getting welfare aid.

He eventually met Shahrizat at a Welfare Department gathering here and has since received the aid.

Negri Sembilan Islamic Religious Affairs officer Muhammad Zulkarnain Abdullah, who helped Ridhwan during his conversion, said he contacted the Home Ministry and was told that applicants could be informed about the citizenship interview
either by phone or mail.

"Ridhwan cannot hear. How is he going to understand anything over the phone? The ministry officials should admit their mistake and let him attend another interview."

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MTUC wants retirement benefits stipulated by law

Posted: 28 Sep 2011 10:48 PM PDT

PETALING JAYA: The Malaysian Trades Union Congress (MTUC) today called on the government to legislate the retirement benefits for private sector employees.

At present, there were no such benefits stipulated in the country's labour laws, said its Selangor chairman, N. Gopal Krishnam.

"Private sector retirees only have their EPF savings and no other benefits, unlike their counterparts in the civil service who enjoy gratuity and free medical benefits upon retirement."

He said that while MTUC welcomed the extension of retirement age from 55 years to 65 years, it was surprised that no one was talking about the benefits for these retirees.

Gopal was commenting on the recent statement by Human Resources Minister Datuk Dr S.Subramaniam that the government was proposing to extend the retirement age of private sector employees which received the wide support of both workers and employers.

He said Selangor MTUC, having met and discussed the proposed extension, suggested that the following benefits be considered: For those with less than two years of service be paid 10 days' salary for every year of service as gratuity, or those between two and five years of service be given 15 days' salary, and for those with five years and more, 20 days' salary.

He hoped the newly set-up wage council would study this proposal and make appropriate recommendations. -- BERNAMA

Empire Shopping Gallery halts operations temporarily

Posted: 28 Sep 2011 10:29 PM PDT

KUALA LUMPUR: The management of Empire Shopping Gallery in Subang Jaya, Selangor, which was rocked by an explosion early yesterday, has decided to halt all operations until further notice.

It said the move was made following the advice of the Fire and Rescue Services Department and in the interest of public safety.

"We have taken the decision to halt operations as safety is our highest priority. We assure all our tenants that this decision has been made after carefully considering all factors and advice from the authorities," said Empire Shopping Gallery's general manager, May Woo, in a statement here today.

Woo said tight security had been implemented around the premises and urged all affected parties to contact the hotline at 018-7012880 should they require information.

Alternatively, the public can get updates through the website (www.esg.com.my), Facebook (www.facebook/esg.com.my) and Twitter (Empire SHGallery.com).

An explosion rocked the shopping mall at about 3am yesterday, believed to be caused by a gas leak at one of the outlets on the lower ground floor of the shopping mall. -- BERNAMA

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Posted: 14 Mar 2011 10:28 AM PDT

2010/11/04
Joniston Bangkuai, Patrick Sennyah and Sajahan Waheed
news@nst.com.my

KUALA LUMPUR: Substantive swings produced two key by-election victories for the Barisan Nasional tonight.

BN has now won three of the four of by-elections this year, losing Sibu by 398 votes.

In Kelantan, BN wrested the Galas State seat from Pas by a majority of 1,190 - improving its near-victory in the July 2009 Manik Urai by-election when the coalition lost by 65 votes.

BN shall now look to repeat the kind of performance it produced in the 2004 general election when it won 21 state seats in Kelantan. As for now, Galas brings its state seats to 7 in a 45-seat Legislative Assembly.

The Galas by-election was called following the death of Pas' Che Hashim Sulaima, 46, on Sept 27 from colon cancer. Che Sulaima had defeated BN's Mohd Saufi Deraman by a 646 vote-majority in the March 2008 general election.

In the 2004 general election, Che Hashim had lost to Mohamad Saufi, by 1,729 votes.

Significantly for Kelantan politics, the Galas battle had been billed as contest between BN's Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah and Datuk Nik Aziz Nik Mat, the Kelantan Menteri Besar and Pas spiritual leader.

Analysts had said that a Pas defeat would be seen as a sign of Nik Aziz losing grip. He is 79 and had been Menteri Besar since 1990.

"The face to face interaction adopted by BN has worked..this is a indicator of how BN can change," Prof Dr Sivamurugan Pandian of Universiti Sains Malaysia told the New Straits Times tonight.

Pas had during the campaigning mocked Abdul Aziz Yusoff, the BN candidate for his lack of qualification. Dr Zulkefli Mohamed of Pas now has to his name three unsuccessful attempts to win seats in the Gua Musang area.

The results of the nation's 12th by election since March 2008 were announced by returning officer Wan Mustapa Abdul Hamid at the Gua Musang Civic Centre here tonight.

Many of Chinese voters in Galas had returned to BN, according to preliminary analysis of the results.

Pas lost in Kampung Baru, which is a Chinese majority area by 41 votes. It garnered more than 200 over votes there in the general election.

The BN election machinery which was led by Tengku Razaleigh, the Gua Musang MP, had adopted a new campaign strategy this time where they focused on a more personal approach as opposed to big scale ceramah and large entourages.

Election Commission deputy chairman, Datuk Wan Ahmad Wan Omar said voter turnout was 82.71 per cent or 9,555 of the total 11,553 voters in the constituency, compared to a 80.57 per cent turnout in 2008.

In Batu Sapi, the choice of a woman as a candidate and the joint-leadership of Datuk Seri Musa Aman and Tan Sri Joseph Pairin Kitingan of Parti Bersatu Sabah had contributed to the increase of majority from 3,708 (2008 general election) to 6,359, analysts said.

"My husband is watching me now and I think he is proud of me," said the BN candidate, Datin Linda Tsen Thau Lin.

Tsen's husband Datuk Edmund Chong was the late parliamentarian of Batu Sapi. His death on Oct 9 had led to the by-election.

UiTM student posts highest score in accounting course

Posted: 10 Mar 2011 03:55 PM PST

2010/12/23
By Hanif Miswan

SHAH ALAM: Few Malaysians can stake claim to being the best in the world, Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) student Khalid Kamarulzaman is one of
them.

He was acclaimed the 'World's Best CAT Graduate' in the Certified Accounting Technician (CAT) programme. The results were announced in October.

The 19-year-old Faculty of Accountancy student scored the highest aggregate of 474 marks or an average of almost 95 per cent, for five advanced CAT papers.

CAT is an international qualification offered by the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), the global body for professional accountants headquartered in the United Kingdom.

The qualification provides the graduate with the necessary knowledge and skills in Finance and Accounting to perform an accounting-support role. It is also designed to fast-track students towards a full-fledged career in accountancy.

Khalid achieved a perfect score in Drafting Financial Statements (T6) and came close in Managing People and Systems (T5) with 98 per cent.

His marks in these two papers were the highest in the world.

He also posted 97 per cent for Planning - Control and Performance Management (T7), 90 per cent for Preparing Taxation Computations (T9) and 89 per cent for Managing Finances (T10).

"It was important for me to shine in this programme as it has placed me on the right path to achieving my dreams so I can help my less fortunate family," said Khalid in an interview with Varsity Voice on Nov 21.

Although he expected to pass the CAT exams with flying colours, the outstanding results were "...a dream come true, and a tribute to my love for mathematics and numbers".

The third son in a family of nine siblings from Hulu Langat, Selangor, Khalid has now set his sights on completing another 11 courses in the ACCA programme to become a chartered certified accountant.

"CAT is only the first step. I intend to do just as well in the ACCA examination before gaining work experience and eventually opening up my own accountancy practice."

"For now, I must be careful not to get too carried away as there is still a lot to learn and a long way to go before I can fulfill my aspirations," he added.

The CAT programme was first offered by the faculty in 2002 to SPM graduates who had at least five credits, inclusive of Mathematics, Malay and English.

Khalid was recognised as a top student during the Faculty's Excellence Day on Oct 6, during which he received an award from UiTM's Vice Chancellor Datuk Professor Dr Sahol Hamid Abu Bakar.

(Ed: This article first appeared in Varsity Voice, a monthly publication jointly produced by the New Straits Times and Universiti Teknoogi MARA (UiTM) under the newspaper's Journalism on Campus project.)

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AirAsia X IPO put on hold: CEO

Posted: 28 Sep 2011 06:27 PM PDT

AirAsia X Sdn Bhd, the long-haul arm of Malaysian budget carrier AirAsia Bhd, has put its planned stock market listing on hold pending a potential stake sale to state investment company Khazanah Nasional Bhd, Chief Executive Officer Azran Osman Rani said in a Bloomberg TV interview. - Bloomberg

Auto stocks fall on car sector downgrade

Posted: 28 Sep 2011 06:41 PM PDT

Malaysian auto stocks, led by DRB- Hicom Holdings Bhd, fell in Kuala Lumpur trading after RHB Captial Bhd downgraded the industry to "underweight" from "neutral".

DRB dropped 2.2 percent to RM1.78 at 9:30 a.m. local time, while UMW Holdings Bhd declined 1.3 percent to RM6.61, set for its lowest close since Sept. 17. -- Bloomberg

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Tennis / Malaysian Open: Tricky tie for Melzer

Posted: 28 Sep 2011 05:04 PM PDT

2011/09/29
By Ajitpal Singh and Fadhli Ishak
nstsport@nstp.com.my

Jurgen Melzer returns a shot to Rik De Voest in the Malaysian Open yesterday. Melzer won 6-0, 6-4. — Picture by Fariz Iswadi Ismail

AUSTRIA'S fourth seed Jurgen Melzer and Russia's seventh Dmitry Tursunov cruised into the quarter-finals of the Malaysian Open after breezing past their opponents at the Putra Stadium in Bukit Jalil yesterday.

Joining them in the last eight was the tournament's only surviving wild card player Marcos Baghdatis of Cyprus, a former Australian Open finalist.

Melzer, the World No 21, broke serve four times and won 86 per cent of points behind his serve for an impressive 6-0, 6-4 victory over South African qualifier Rik De Voest. The debutant faces a tricky quarter-final match against Baghdatis, who is seeking his fifth career title, tomorrow.

"I started really well. The first set was one of the best sets I've played all year for sure. I'm feeling really good here, hopefully it can continue," said Melzer yesterday.

"The conditions are very slow but if you have enough power, it can give you a little more time to set up for your shots and go for some winners, which is nice for my game."

Baghdatis edged India's Asian and Commonwealth Games champion Somdev Devvarman 7-5, 6-4 in 105 minutes.

Somdev started well by breaking in the seventh game and had a break point opportunity to seal the set at 5-4. However, Baghdatis won the game in deuce before breaking the World No 89 in the 12th game for victory.

In the second set, the 26-year-old Baghdatis saved three consecutive break points before holding serve in the first game. He went on to break Somdev in the fourth and 10 games to make his second straight quarter-final appearance.

"I was quite impatient at the beginning but I changed my style of play once I realised things were not working out. It was tough as the courts here are very slow and tough to hit winners.

"I took my time and slowly managed to get back into the match. I am glad that I've beaten Somdev as matches between us have always been tough," said Baghdatis.

Tursunov, the World No 41, defeated Belgian wild card David Goffin 6-3, 6-3 to set-up a quarter-final clash with either Serbia's second seed Viktor Troicki or Uzbekistan's Denis Istomin.

In a first round match, Italy's World No 96 Flavio Cipolla got the better of Australia's World No 56 Bernard Tomic, a quarter-finalist in Wimbledon, 6-2, 6-2 to claim only his fourth ATP-level win of the season in 72 minutes.

The Italian faces Serbian third seed Janko Tipsarevic, who received a bye through the first round, today.

Local wild cards Ahmad Deedat Abdul Razak and Ariex Elyaas Deen Heshaam, as expected, were beaten 6-2, 6-2 by Frantisek Cermak- Filip Polasek in the doubles first round.

Hockey: Good start for Sultan of Johor Cup

Posted: 28 Sep 2011 05:02 PM PDT

2011/09/29
By J.J. Shah
nstsport@nstp.com.my

Sultan of Johor Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar, Malaysian Hockey Federation president Tengku Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah and Johor Menteri Besar Datuk Abdul Ghani Othman with the sponsors of the Sultan of Johor Cup at yesterday's launch. — Picture by Zulkarnain Ahmad Tajuddin

THE state government's bid to turn Johor Baru into a sporting hub received a shot in the arm when the inaugural Sultan of Johor Cup was launched by Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar at the Johor International Convention Centre yesterday.

It will become the second annual international tournament in Johor Baru, joining the five-year-old Iskandar Johor Open Golf which draws big names from the European and Asian tours.

Johor Menteri Besar Datuk Ghani Othman listed cricket as the next international event that could be held in Johor Baru.

The Sultan of Johor Cup received a tremendous boost with a total of RM1.25 million in sponsorship at the launch.

In this year's tournament, Australia, New Zealand, India, Pakistan, South Korea and hosts Malaysia will compete at the Taman Daya Hockey Stadium on Nov 5-12. The tournament, held in conjunction with the Sultan of Johor's birthday celebrations, has been sanctioned by the International Hockey Federation (FIH) and will feature on its hockey calendar.

"Due to time constraint, it is a six-nation tournament this year but we hope to bring European teams in the coming years and probably increase the total to eight or more teams," said Malaysian Hockey Federation (MHF) president Tengku Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah.

Sultan of Johor Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar launched the tournament.

A total of RM1.25 million was raised from various sponsors with the Johor State Government contributing RM500,000 while other major sponsors include Johor Corporation, Danga Bay, Genting Berhad, Sapura Holdings, Sports Ministry, Century Logistics, Malaysian Pacific Corporation, SAJ Holdings Sdn Bhd, Central Malaysian Properties, BCB Berhad, UEM Land Holdings Berhad, Tenaga National and Titan Chemicals Corporation.

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Rabu, 28 September 2011