How a nephew of Tun Mahathir's sees Lee Kuan Yew

Singapore's Minister Mentor, Lee Kuan Yew, who was Singapore 's founding father, has always been very direct in his comments. This was the man who outsmarted the communists in Singapore (with the innocent help of Malaya then and the willing help of the British) and who later outwitted the British and outpaced Malaysia in all spheres.

Singapore practices corrupt-free meritocracy and Malaysia affirmative action. The former attracted all the best brains and the latter chased out all the brains. The Singapore cabinet consists of dedicated and intelligent technocrats whereas Malaysia has one of the most unwieldy cabinets. Not only that, brain wise it was below par not even good for the kampong. 

READ THIS ! The MACC No Further Action case against Khir Toyo

The MACC said that these are old cases. The MACC said that there is no evidence of fraud or corruption. The MACC said that the cases have been closed and the files marked No Further Action (NFA). So Malaysia Today is helping the MACC by providing the evidence they can’t seem to find. 

THE CORRIDORS OF POWER

Raja Petra Kamarudin

Najib's speech a disaster for moderate Malaysia, signals start of a hardline regime

Wong Choon Mei, Malaysia Chronicle

If Prime Minister Najib Razak is feeling the heat, it is not surprising. Other than hardcore supporters, he failed to impress Malaysians with his racial emoting and violent language at the much-watched Umno annual assembly, reflecting the citizenry' growing sophistication and underscoring the time warp that he and his party warlords seem to remain trapped in.

“I don’t understand why the Prime Minister feels the need to focus on those who challenge the Constitution and its provisions on the position of the Malays which are under Section 153. Who are these people, because so far as I know, no one has done that? But what I do know of is there are many who have criticized the implementation and abuse of Section 153,” Ramon Navaratnam, past president of Transparency International, told Malaysia Chronicle.

But who is challenging Section 153 and what does it actually state

Indeed even the Pakatan Rakyat led by Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim clearly states in its manifesto that it would defend the existing federal constitution, including Section 153, the position of the Malay rulers and Islam as the country's official religion.

EPF's RM75b for NYSE-listed mystery company?

By FMT Staff

KUALA LUMPUR: The government's decision to channel RM75 billion of public funds from the Employees Provident Fund to an “unknown foreign portfolio” in New York has got Indera Mahkota MP Azan Ismail worried.

"All we know at this point is that RM75 billion of EPF funds will be invested into a foreign portfolio. Who and what the portfolio is no one knows. It does not make sense.

"I'm guessing the investment is linked to the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) where the Malaysian government has a company which is listed. But todate the company remains a mystery.

Cops see over 1,000 militant Islamists in Germany

Over 130 Islamists in Germany have been classified as terror “instigators”. — Reuters pic

BERLIN, Oct 21 — Germany is probably home to more than 1,000 potentially violent Islamists and the number of identified militants has risen constantly in the past few years, the Federal Crime Office (BKA) said yesterday.

The number of investigations into Islamic terrorism in Germany, where the 9/11 attacks on the United States were planned, has risen  continually since 2001 according to the BKA. A total of 352 investigations were now under way, they said.

What award does Rosmah Mansor deserve from Sarawakians?

By Rosita Maja

Prime Minister Najib Razak’s wife Rosmah Mansor spearheaded a ‘First Ladies Summit’ in Malaysia on the theme “A Child Today, a Leader Tomorrow”. Rosmah’s soiree for the ladies cost RM24 million.

The ‘summit’ lasted for three days. It drew a poor attendance: a total of only fifteen ‘first ladies’, mostly from African nations, attended the inaugural ‘First Ladies Summit’.

The issue of this ‘summit’ has been brought up by Zuraida Kamaruddin, Member of Parliament for Ampang, for debate in Parliament, highlighting the extravagant sum of RM24 million spent on the confab and its surrounding publicity.

        What was the ‘summit’ for, and how much did it benefit the people on the ground?

Hajah Zuraida Kamaruddin: Dalam bajet tambahan ini, Yang Berhormat Titiwangsa, sebanyak RM24 juta. Jadi saya tidak tahulah apa program ini. Whether it is a ball night or what, I do not know. What is a program all about, dengan izin.

(Hornbill Unleashed translation: “In this supplementary budget, the Honourable Member for Titiwangsa, the sum of RM24 million (was spent). I have no idea what this programme is. Whether it is a ball night or what, I do not know. What is the programme about?”

Anwar says big projects sign of BN’s imminent fall

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 18 – Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim attacked the Najib administration for going down the mega projects track to boost the economy, saying  BN’s obsession with “grandeur” marks its imminent fall.

“The government’s excitement to display grandeur, that will be the sign of the fall of their empire. We will pray for this,” the Opposition Leader (picture) told the august House in his debate speech on Budget 2011 in Parliament this morning.

Opposition lawmakers in the House thumped on their tables in rapturous response.
“This rush for symbolic mega projects, supposedly to portray pride for the country, is being repeated now under the present Prime Minister.

“Here I would like to question the wisdom of Permodalan Nasional Bhd’s order from the government to involve itself in mega projects,” he said.

Anwar was referring to the 100-storey Warisan Merdeka skyscraper proposal by the government which is expected to cost over RM5 billion for construction.

Malaysian king's palace to cost millions

KUALA LUMPUR (AFP) - – A massive new palace being built for Malaysia's king is expected to be completed next June, at a total cost of 258 million dollars, parliament has been told. The "Istana Negara", or national palace, which is taking shape on a hilltop in a Kuala Lumpur suburb is an enormous complex of dome-topped buildings linked to the city's highways with special access roads.

The palace sprawls over a 100,000 square metre (one million square foot) site which was annexed in the 1990s in what has since become a prime residential area. Works Minister Shaziman Abu Mansor said the palace is expected to be completed on June 30 next year, at a total cost of 797 million ringgit (258 million dollars).

File photo shows Malaysian royal, Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin (C) flanked by Queen Nur Zahirah (R) alongside former Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi in Kuala Lumpur. A massive new palace being built for the Malaysian royal family is expected to be completed next June, at a total cost of 258 million dollars, parliament has been told.

RM22,500 to chop down one tree in Kuching

By Joseph Tawie

KUCHING: Did you know that it costs RM22,500 to chop down a tree in Kuching, Sarawak? That was the shocking disclosure by DAP secretary Chong Chieng Jen who said it was ridiculous for the Kuching South City Council to pay tycoon Ting Phek King's company RM22,500 to chop down a tree. 

Ting's company had apparently demanded from the council a payment of RM7.5 million to cut down about 300 trees along the one-kilometre stretch of Tun Jugah road.

Although Ting came under heavy criticism for cutting down the trees, the Mayor of Kuching James Chan in a recent statement defended Ting’s claim saying that the trees needed to be cut down as they posed a danger to road users.

5 Minutes Management Course

Lesson 1:
A man is getting into the shower just as his wife is finishing up her shower, when the doorbell rings.
The wife quickly wraps herself in a towel and runs downstairs. When she opens the door, there stands Bob, the next-door neighbor. Before she says a word, Bob says, 'I'll give you $800 to drop that towel.'
After thinking for a moment, the woman drops her towel and stands naked in front of Bob, after a few seconds, Bob hands her $800 and leaves. The woman wraps back up in the towel and goes back upstairs.
When she gets to the bathroom, her husband asks,
'Who was that?'
'It was Bob the next door neighbour,' she replies.
'Great,' the husband says, 'did he say anything about the $800 he owes me?'

Moral of the story:

If you share critical information pertaining to credit and risk with your shareholders in time, you may be in a position to prevent avoidable exposure.