Maths, Science grades classified as secret?

In 2003 the Trends International Mathematics and Science
Study (TIMMS) ranked Malaysia as 10th out of
46 countries for Mathematics, now we are 36th.

By Winston Way

KUCHING: A baffled opposition here has questioned Education Ministry’s need to classify students’ SPM grades in Mathematics and Science subjects under the Official Secrets Act (OSA).

Sarawak DAP chief Chong Chieng Jen had written to the ministry seeking a breakdown of the grades for General Mathematics, Additional Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry and English Language for the years 2006-2012 and was told that the information was “secret”

“I cannot understand why Mathemaics and Science grades are classified under the Official Secrets Act (OSA). How can revealing the grades jeopardise national security?” he asked.

All 3 Ex-Chief Justices in Singapore were former Malaysians

1st Singapore Chief Justice, Wee Chong Jin

The first,  Wee Chong Jin was from Penang Free School. The second, Yong Pung How (nicknamed the "Hanging judge"?) was an ex-VI boy in KL.

And the third, Ipoh-born Chan Sek Keong, hailed from King Edward VII School in Taiping, and later the Anderson School in Ipoh.

Had they remained in Malaysia, they might have made it to the level of a Sessions Court judge, if they are lucky.

Our nation's loss is the little red dot's gain.

Note:  CJ Chan wrote an average of 30 judgement a year, now compare that to Karpal's complaint that a Malaysian senior judge has yet to deliver his written judgement after 5 years
 

Hindraf calls on Prime Minister Najib to get cracking on the Hindraf BN MOU

By N.Ganesan, Hindraf National Adviser

The recent high pitched campaign by the police to address the rising crime rate in the country has helped to highlight the extent to which Indian youth are caught up in the whirlpool of crime. The fact that there is such a large involvement of the Indian young is a fairly recent phenomenon. This has not always been the case. This trend was set some 30 odd years ago in tandem with the massive forced displacement of Indian plantation workers out of their traditional abodes in the estates. This crime problem of the Indian young is only one of many, ailing the Indian community and is also only symptomatic of the more serious socio-economic problem.

Sabah Must Assert and Celebrate Independence Day on 31 August - Jeffrey

Kota Kinabalu:     Sabah must assert and celebrate its independence on 31st August as independence day is the most important milestone of any nation and more so when 2013 marks its 50th anniversary of independence” said Datuk Dr Jeffrey Kitingan, Chairman of STAR Sabah, in a press statement released today.

The people must know that Sabah gained independence on 31 August 1963 and was 16 days before being rushed into forming Malaysia with 3 other independent nations, Malaya, Sarawak and Singapore.  The correct history needs to be re-written and thought to our young that Malaya gained independence on 31 August 1957 while Sarawak and Singapore gained theirs on 22 July 1963 and 3 June 1959 and that Malaysia was formed as a new nation on “Malaysia Day”, 16 September 1963.

Egypt today; the challenges for the democratic popular movement

SAMIR AMIN   August 24

ONE:
Too much is written on Egypt, which is understandable, even when coming from people whose knowledge of the Arab world is limited.

Too many are absorbing the info given by the mainstream western media, which is in that case as well as it is with respect to Venezuela for instance, almost always systematically distorted and even often completely false.

Many are also simplifying the issue , the alternative being : "respect of elections’ results - we  say in Egypt rightly of so called elections - or support to a military power".

‘So who killed Altantuya?’

The verdict on the two former policemen illustrates
the failure of the system, says Lawyers for
Liberty's N Surendran, who is also a PKR leader.

PETALING JAYA: Lawyers for Liberty (LFL) has termed the release of the two policemen involved in the Altantuya Shaariibuu case as a ‘national embarrassment’.

LFL member and PKR vice president N Surendran labelled the Court of Appeal ruling this morning as such and said the verdict was expected.

“We expected this from the beginning since it was a set-up to hide the truth and protect the guilty,” he said.

“The bottom line is, she was murdered in the most gruesome and brutal manner and after so many years, no one has been held accountable or found guilty,” said the Padang Serai MP.

‘Slave labour rampant at Murum Dam’

Penan communities have been complaining for years
that their families are being abused by in-commers
and that many of their children are the product
of rape – this girl spoke out to Sarawak Report

PETALING JAYA: Independent online portal, Sarawak Report, alleged that migrant workers at the Murum Dam were being treated like slaves, with the state agency in charge hardly paying their wages.

In addition, the portal also claimed that Penan women are still being exploited sexually by travelling salesmen linked to the dam work camps, with no action taken against the perpetrators.

According to the report, several workers from the dam project, who managed to escape from the site revealed the shocking details to its reporters.

The workers are mainly Chinese, Bangladeshis, Pakistanis and Burmese.

Salleh semakin lantang

Sebelum ini Salleh 'menembak' sekurang-kurangnya dua
kementerian persekutuan yang kebetulan diterajui
dua pemimpin Umno Sabah sendiri.

Oleh Jurle Sagayong

KOTA BELUD: Kebelakangan ini Timbalan Ketua Perhubungan Umno Sabah, Datuk Salleh Said Keruak ada beberapa kali membuat gesaan atau lebih tepat “teguran” kepada beberapa kementerian persekutuan berhubung Sabah.

Yang terbaru ialah gesaannya supaya Kementerian Pendidikan pusat memberikan lebih kuasa autonomi kepada Jabatan Pelajaran Sabah dalam perancangan dan pelaksanaan projek pembangunan pendidikan di negeri kedua terbesar itu.

Sebelum ini Salleh, yang juga Speaker Dewan Undangan Negeri, juga “menembak” sekurang-kurangnya dua kementerian persekutuan yang kebetulan diterajui dua pemimpin Umno Sabah sendiri.

Pushing out Malayans, pulling in S’wakians

They say all’s fair in love and war. But in Taib Mahmud’s case let me add politics. No one can grudge Sarawak’s top man his political strategy.

Taib’s a savvy politician, on his toes and ahead of his enemies.

He knows that in Sarawak, he is not the enemy, Putrajaya and Umno is.

And so he embraces Newton’s 3rd Law of Motion which states that “every action has an equal and opposite reaction”.

Heaviest Man Alive Airlifted to Hospital in Saudi Arabia

Shaari being transferred to
Medical Center

By Kochava Rozenbaum

Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah took part in assisting the heaviest man alive, Khalid bin Mohsen Shaari, who weighs 1,345 pound (610kg), to the country’s capital Riyadh for medical treatments.

The obese young man had to be fork-lifted from his apartment bedroom to an airlift heading to the King Fahd Medical City, reported CNN yesterday.