Wednesday, February 26, 2014

An experience not to forget

The New Straits Times, 25 February 2014

By FADHLI ISHAK

KAJANG: The nation's best taekwondo exponents took a break from their gruelling training schedules to give back to the less fortunate by spending time with 60 orphans from Rumah Nur Hikmah last week.

Organised by Taekwondo Malaysia (TM), a total of 18 exponents from the national elite and back-up squads as well as coaches and TM officials took part in gotong-royong activities at the orphanage's compound.

The event also saw the orphans receiving cash, toys and clothing worth over RM5,000 from TM. A total of five young and talented exponents from the home were also given grants to cover their taekwondo training fees for a year.

Two-time Sea Games gold medallist Elaine Teo, who is now coaching the back-up squad, said it was an eye opening experience for the athletes.

"The event is being held in conjunction with TM's fourth anniversary and is a great way for us to give back to society," said the 33-year-old.

"It is also good experience for our exponents as they can see for themselves the hardships that others go through. It will help build their character.

"Hopefully, some of the kids here will become more interested in taekwondo after our visit and one day become champions."

TM president Tunku Imran Tuanku Ja'afar said the children from the orphanage represent the future of Malaysian sports.

"I just came here after the Winter Olympic (in Sochi, Russia) which represents the pinnacle of sports. These children here represent the grassroots and the future.

"If they are given the right support and have the determination, they too can represent Malaysia at the Olympics one day."

Taekwondo Malaysia president Tunku Imran Tuanku Ja'afar spends some time with orphan Muhammad Ikhwan Arifat at the Rumah Nur Hikmah in Taman Mesra Kajang last week. Pic by Osman Adnan

Kajang by-election and its effect on small businesses

Astro Awani, February 25, 2014

Linawati Adnan

Kajang by-election and its effect on small businesses

KUALA LUMPUR: By-elections are often perceived as the period where game changing plans are put into action. These plans are expected to bring in diversity and improvisation.

For small business operators, what do by-elections and the change of political scenario means to them?

Kajang is a district strategically located and offers abundance of business opportunities for its locals. We spoke to a satay stall operator, a nasi lemak seller and a biscuit shop operator.

They all have more than one thing in common: that they never expect anything from anyone, that they paved their way to success independently and the ups and downs of political condition in this capital district of Ulu Langat did not affect the will and the facade for their small business.

Nyok Lan Satay, Restoran Malaysia

Restoran Malaysia, which stood sturdily for over four decades, has evolved in terms of its business strategies to suit the growing challenge of urbanisation in Kajang.

For Chai Wai Kuen, who has been running this family business along with other family members said, the success of Restoran Malaysia is really due to the hard work of her ancestors who initially were seamstresses.

Wai Kuen and her family share their gratitude with Haji Samuri and his relative for their guidance in putting Nyok Lan Satay to where they are now.

Wai Kuen also said that after all these years staying in Kajang, the ups and downs of the political condition of this district have yet to affect her family business. Having said that, she would not mind having someone in power to help ease the congestion in this town.

Warung Nasi Lemak Misran, Kampung Sungai Sekamat

Misran Ibrahim has been working diligently to make ends meet for him and his family. His mother taught him the secret to good nasi lemak when he was a teenager. And today, he has been operating his nasi lemak stall for 18 years.

Misran said he is very independent when it comes to making ends meet with his business. He has always been very independent, standing on his own two feet, without relying to any one or any association to assist him and his business to flourish. This include venturing and clearing what once seem to be a forest like village to a now urban housing area.

Kwong Sang Woh, Jalan Tukang

Siew Pak Chong grew up in his family’s biscuit shop that has been in existence for more than a hundred years. Ah Chong, 82 years old has been selling over a hundred types of biscuits since he was 9 years old. Today, he is glad that he has witnessed a vast development of his hometown that contributes to the success of his business.

Ah Chong, like most of the small business operators in Kajang, paved his way to success in business independently. Currently, his wish for Kajang is for it to be properly developed.

Story first published on: February 25, 2014 09:21 (MYT)

Monday, February 24, 2014

Kajang Hospital to get RM10mil, says Dr Subra

The Star, Sunday February 23, 2014

by p. aruna

Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr S. Subramaniam

KAJANG: The Kajang Hospital will receive a federal Government allocation of RM10mil as a “short term measure” to upgrade its facilities.

In announcing the allocation here on Sunday, Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr S. Subramaniam said the Government was also looking at constructing a completely new facility, at a cost of over RM800mil, in a nearby location to replace the current hospital building.

“One of the requests raised was for the hospital to be transferred and to have a new building constructed, but this will cost between RM800mil and RM1bil.

“However, I will raise this matter with the Finance Ministry and to the Economic Planning Unit. If approved, the earliest we can build the hospital will be in about four to five years,” he told a press conference after a meeting with hospital staff and specialists.

Dr Subramaniam, however, stressed that the announcement had nothing to do with the March 23 by-election in Kajang.

The allocation, he said, was for the hospital to reduce congestion in its emergency ward, buy better equipment and improve it’s wiring system.

On another matter, Dr Subramaniam said the Selangor Goverment was not committed to fighting the outbreak of dengue in the state.

“The problem is, we (the Federal Government) have to do the work not done by the Selangor Government.

“Whenever we have meetings, they only send lower-ranking officers instead of those who have the authority to implement measures.

“The local authorities and all the resources are under their purview, and if they used this optimally, they could do a lot more,” he said adding that 60% of the dengue cases in the country were in Selangor.

Sunday, February 23, 2014

Kajang church denies supporting Anwar

The Malaysian Insider, February 21, 2014

Anwar addressing the congregation at the Holy Family Church recently. - The Malaysian Insider pic, February 21, 2014.

The Holy Family Church in Kajang today denied that they invited Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim last Sunday as a show of support for him in the Kajang by-election.

"It was not to help Anwar to canvass for votes. He was invited to deliver an inter-faith speech," said parish priest Reverend Father George Harrison.

Speaking to news portal Malaysiakini, Harrison said the function was in tandem with the church’s objective to improve relations between religions in Malaysia, and that the talk was organised by a church member who is also from the Centre for Reform, Democracy and Social Initiatives.

"I have been talking to people about building bridges with our Muslim brothers and sisters and so the event was allowed because a parishioner proposed it," the parish priest said.

"This is my message all along - I have said nothing to side anybody and to Anwar, I have only said: ‘This is my brother, welcome,’" said Harrison.

Anwar had delivered a speech at a multi-purpose hall after mass on Sunday and spoke on brotherhood between races and religion by quoting verses from the Quran and the Bible.

The priest said that his stand has always been to listen to all sides and make his own judgement.

"I have told my people that we must listen well to all and then make our own discernment and decision (on the by-election) - even Barisan Nasional's view and all,” he said.

The 40-year-old priest said that as a citizen, he too had a right to host a famous personality, and noted that it was the first time he and Anwar had met.

However, the priest stopped short of agreeing to extending invitations to Umno or Malay right-wing groups such as Perkasa or Isma to speak in the church.

"If this happens now, it will be very political,” he told Malaysiakini.

The church came under attack from various quarters for allowing its premises to be used by the opposition leader.

In his latest blog posting, former Perkasa deputy president Zulkifli Noordin lambasted the church for allowing Anwar to address its congregation, questioning why was the church getting involved in politics.

Zulkifli had posted that it was also rude of Anwar to raise the "Allah" issue in the church.

He said it would be a good idea for Umno to ask the church administration for an opportunity to address their congregation.

"Then we will see whether they are political hypocrites or are truly in support of democracy and freedom of speech," Zulkifli added. – February 21, 2014.

Price hikes power abuse trump BR1M for Kajang voters survey shows

MalaysianDigest.com, Friday, 21 February 2014

PIC: The Malay MailKUALA LUMPUR: Soaring living costs and abuse of power are likely to swing more votes towards the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) than the Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition’s annual cash handouts in the Kajang by-election, a survey of the state seat showed today.

In the Universiti Malaya Centre for Elections and Democracy (Umcedel) survey released today, 69 per cent of 576 Kajang voters said price hikes would influence more people to support PR, with 21 per cent disagreeing while 10 per cent said they were uncertain.

The figures of those who agreed were consistently high for the Chinese and Indian respondents at 76 per cent and 74 per cent and the Malay respondents at 62 per cent.

Unexpectedly, the living cost concerns were shared among all income groups, with 82 per cent of respondents drawing monthly paycheques between RM5,001 and RM10,000, saying they would cast their support for PR if prices rose further.

Eighty per cent of those earning between RM3,001 and RM5,000 as well as those earning between RM2,001 and RM3,000, also said they would back PR.

When unveiling the survey’s results today, Umcedel director Prof Dr Mohammad Redzuan Othman highlighted university students and civil servants as the groups with the highest concern for inflation at 82 per cent and 79 per cent.

For socioeconomic issues, the rise in house prices weighed heavily on the minds of those polled at 83 per cent, while 79 per cent and 77 per cent were concerned about the rising crime rate and illegal immigrants, followed by unemployment and social problems at 69 per cent.

While money was a key factor that could aid PR in drawing voters, the federal government’s annual cash handout to low-income households — Bantuan Rakyat 1 Malaysia (BR1M) — is not likely to win the BN federal coalition more support, the survey showed.

Those who said BR1M and other forms of financial assistance from BN would boost their support for the coalition stood at only 33 per cent.

In comparison, those who said “no” was 59 per cent.

An overwhelming 71 per cent of the Chinese polled said they would not be swayed, while 53 per cent and 34 per cent of the Malays and Indians polled gave a similar answer.

This contrasted against 53 per cent of the Indian community and 38 per cent and 22 per cent of the Malay and Chinese voters agreeing that they will support BN more after getting financial aid.

For individuals who earned less than RM3,000 monthly—potential recipients of BR1M, 56 per cent of Indians with such wages said their support towards BN would rise, while 42 per cent and 24 per cent of the Malays and Chinese polled said the same.

On the other hand, 68 per cent of Chinese respondents below the RM3,000 mark said their support for BN would not increase despite BR1M, followed by 48 per cent and 28 per cent from the Malay and Indian community.

Another key issue that could bring in more votes for PR is abuse of power, with 65 per cent saying that it would lead to support for the pact, while 17 per cent disagreed.

Mohammad also pointed out that 70 per cent of civil servants would support PR because of the power abuse observed, while 21 per cent disagreed and nine per cent said they were uncertain.

The most important service and infrastructure issues for the Kajang voters polled was traffic jams and parking at 68 per cent, followed closely by maintenance of drains and waste collection at 67 per cent.

The Umcedel survey was carried out from February 14 to 15.

The proportion of the survey’s respondents were matched against the actual demographics ratio — including race, education level, housing area, occupation and income level of the Kajang electorate in all 16 voting districts, Umcedel said.

PKR’s Lee Chin Cheh resigned as Kajang assemblyman in January, without giving any reason, triggering a by-election which will be held on March 23, with nominations scheduled for March 11.

The Kajang constituency is 48 per cent Malay, 41 per cent Chinese and 10 per cent Indian.

Chew set to take BN’s fight to Kajang

The New Straits Times, 22 February 2014

By ZARINA ZAKARIAH AND ELVINA FERNANDEZ

KUALA LUMPUR: Weeks of speculation over who will be Barisan Nasional’s candidate for the Kajang by-election ended yesterday when deputy chairman Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin announced that MCA vice-president Datin Paduka Chew Mei Fun would bear the coalition’s torch.

BN chairman Datuk Seri Najib Razak said the coalition would throw its full support behind Chew to wrest the seat from PKR.

“We will go in as the underdogs this time, but we will try our level best to ensure the best possible outcome,” said Najib.

He said this in a press conference after chairing the Umno supreme council meeting at the party's headquarters in Putra World Trade Centre here yesterday.

Shortly before the meeting, Muhyiddin announced that Chew had been picked to contest the seat, which fell vacant after PKR assemblyman Lee Chin Cheh resigned on Jan 27.

The announcement also put to rest speculations that BN would not be contesting the seat.

Muhyiddin said the decision by BN to field a candidate was done to uphold the spirit of democracy and after consulting with various parties.

"Kajang voters have a right to make a choice.

"We cannot allow the opposition to win uncontested.

"This is the best platform for BN to explain certain issues close to the people's hearts.

"If we give way and let the opposition win uncontested, the people will only know one side of the story, which is not fair."

Muhyiddin said Chew was the best candidate to contest against opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, who announced his candidacy on Jan 28.

Among those present at the press conference were BN secretary-general Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor, MCA president Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai and MIC president Datuk Seri G. Palanivel.

The Kajang by-election will be held on March 23, with nomination set for March 11.

After her candidacy was announced, Chew expressed confidence that she could do a good job if elected.

She was the Petaling Jaya Utara member of parliament from 1999 to 2008 and said based on her experience, she could serve the constituency well.

In George Town, Penang MCA announced that it would send a strong team to assist Chew. Additional reporting by Audrey Dermawan and Carisma Kapoor

Kajang’s shelter for refugees raises eyebrows

The Malaysian Insider, Sat, 22 Feb 2014

Amid the activity building up in Kajang as next month’s by-election approaches, one house appears to be attracting considerable attention especially as scores of foreigners have been seen flocking to it, raising concerns that migrants are being brought in for the polls.

Even the police have visited the house.

With the hustle and bustle surrounding it, one might be forgiven for thinking the place was the election operations centre for either the Barisan Nasional or Pakatan Rakyat but it is actually a halfway house for asylum seekers and refugees.

The Malaysian Insider visited the premises, aptly called Patronage of Refugees, yesterday and met R. Ravindran, who began operating the halfway house in November last year.

He told The Malaysian Insider that the house offered medical assistance only to those from war-torn countries.

"We help refugees and asylum seekers from Myanmar and Sri Lanka. There have been Indonesians and Bangladeshis who have sought assistance but we turned them away."

Ravindran, who works for a home appliance company, said the halfway house did not offer documents or work permits to foreign migrants.

"What we do is to offer medical insurance to these immigrants so that they can get treatment at government hospitals."

However, there is a process which the foreign migrants have to undergo before they can be issued with medical insurance cards.

"When these migrants come to the house, they have to produce some form of identification, preferably an identity card issued by their home country or passport.

"We then give them an appointment slip and tell them to come back at a later date. During this time, we verify the identity of the migrants with their embassies."

If the migrant's documents were being held by an agent who refuses to return them, volunteers will take the migrant to the Kajang police station to lodge a report.

The Malaysian Insider discovered that there were 12 Myanmar men and 21 women being sheltered at the halfway house.

The 12 men were suffering from malnutrition and one of them had recently undergone surgery.

It was learnt that most of the women had been referred to the halfway house by the United Nations High Commission for Refugees.

However, Ravindran declined to elaborate on the background of the 21 women being sheltered at the house.

Several Rela officers were seen on duty at the house yesterday, and their presence was explained by Ravindran: "We asked Rela to provide assistance as there have been scores of Myanmar migrants coming to seek help."

He added that the house was registered with the Registrar of Societies and the Home Ministry.

Several police Special Branch personnel also visited the halfway house yesterday and asked Ravindran to present himself at Bukit Aman for an interview.

It is understood that police had also heard rumours circulating about foreigners leaving the house holding pieces of paper and wanted to know what was going on.

Youth non-governmental organisation Solidariti Anak Muda Malaysia (SAMM) had recently voiced concerns over the influx of Myanmar migrants into Kajang.

There was speculation that the Myanmar nationals were flocking into Kajang to help swing the by-election in Barisan Nasional's favour.

During the 13th general election in May last year, PKR de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim had alleged that 40,000 Bangladeshi nationals had been brought into the country to vote for BN.