Sabah BN struggling to regain initiative

KOTA KINABALU: If there was one thing that MP Wilfred Bumburing did for the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition when he defected to the opposition in July, it was to force the disparate  BN branch in Tuaran to unite.

With the opposition in the state, seen by the BN as their ‘fixed deposit’, gaining ground,  the parliamentary constituency of Tuaran has always been shaky as could be seen by the surge in support for the opposition in the last election.

There has always been a fear within the ruling coalition that the defection of top Sabah BN leaders to the opposition would have a domino effect around the state.

Nazri: Large number of foreigners in Sabah not a threat

Nazri Aziz

(The Star) - The presence of 889,770 legal and illegal foreigners in Sabah is not a threat to the country or the state's security and order, said Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz.

He said that while national population growth was 2.5% annually, the growth in Sabah was higher.

"The population growth rate is higher in Sabah compared to Sarawak and Peninsular Malaysia for several reasons, including the presence of illegal immigrants from neighbouring countries," he said in response to a question by Datuk Seri Wilfred Mojilip Bumburing (Tuaran) on whether the presence of 800,000 foreigners in Sabah posed a threat to national safety and security.

Secret Malaysian resettlement plan for dam-affected natives exposed

Source

The affected communities have only received information about the conditions of their resettlement through the report leaked to ­the whistle-blower website Sarawak Report. The withholding of the Resettlement Report goes against all international standards on transparency. 

Bruno Manser Funds

Leaked Resettlement Action Plan for natives to be displaced by Murum dam reveals the Sarawak government’s neglect of basic rights and fair compensation

(MURUM, SARAWAK, MALAYSIA) A report by the Malaysian state government of Sarawak about the resettlement of over 1,500 natives has been leaked just a few months before the planned resettlement due to a mega-dam. The impoundment of the 944 MW Murum dam is meant to start in early 2013 and will flood almost 250km2 of forest and cause the displacement of six Penan and one Kenyah native communities.

STAR Qualified to Contest State and Parliament Seats in PRU-13: SPR

"Kalau Bukan Sekarang, Bila Lagi?"

“STAR Sabah is pleased to clarify that the Party is qualified to contest in PRU-13, both in State DUN and Parliament seats, nationwide as confirmed by the SPR Sabah Director at a meeting with the SPR yesterday.  STAR is also listed in the approved political parties qualified to contest in PRU-13.” announced DatukDr. Jeffrey Kitingan, Chairman of STAR Sabah at a Press Conference held to announce STAR’s stand on the Sabah Land and NCR issue.

The meeting with the State SPR was arranged to seek clarifications from the SPR following the unfounded rumours being spread by other desperate political parties against STAR Sabah following its meteoric rise in support from the people in Sabah and growing base in Sarawak.

STAR: BN Government Planning to Abolish Native Rights

The native customary rights of indigenous people are recognized and are to be protected and have been universally adopted of late by many countries under the United Nations Declaration of Rights of Indigenous People.

The recent statement by the Lands and Surveys Director that NCR does not exist after the enforcement of the Sabah Land Ordinance, 1930 is not unexpected as the present government has failed to resolve NCR problems in the State.

The Director cannot be blamed for being used as the mouthpiece of the BN government and merely echoed the previous statement of the State Attorney General.

Setakat manakah kejujuran bn selepas pecah tanah?

Naib Ketua Pemuda SAPP, Rudy S. Mairi

Oleh: Mail Mathew
TENOM: Kerajaan Barisan Nasional (BN) digesa agar penyempurnaan majlis pecah tanah pekan kecil Melalap benar benar menepati janji mereka kepada rakyat dan bukan ibarat sekadar melepaskan batuk ditangga kerana pilihanraya umum kali ke-13 (PRU-13) sudah menghampiri waktunya.

Malahan majlis seumpama itu pernah berlaku semasa era bekas Perdana Menteri Tun Mahathir Mohammad lebih 10 tahun lalu dimana ketika itu satu majlis pecah tanah di Tenom Lama kononnya untuk memulakan pembinaan jalanraya antara Tenom ke Beaufort namun sehingga kini dilupakan begitu sahaja.

Budget snub a ‘blessing in disguise’

Although there is no Budget cheer for Sabah
and Sarawak, the people in the two states
can now plan for alternative solutions in
the coming general election.

By Luke Rintod of FMT

KOTA KINABALU: Sabah and Sarawak, which have been treated as Barisan Nasional’s “fix-deposit”, have been sidelined in Budget 2013.

But it is a “blessing in disguse” because the people in the two states can now plan for alternative solutions.

It appears that Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak, his advisers and the ruling BN are very confident that both states won’t slip away from BN grip at the coming general election.

This explains why they could afford not to deal with the prevailing “touchy” issues in Sabah and Sarawak.

7 fingernail problems not to ignore

Spoon nails
Spoon nails (koilonychia) are soft nails that look scooped out. The depression usually is large enough to hold a drop of liquid. Often, spoon nails are a sign of iron deficiency anemia or a liver condition known as hemochromatosis, in which your body absorbs too much iron from the food you eat. Spoon nails can also be associated with heart disease and hypothyroidism.

Terry's nails
With the condition known as Terry's nails, the tip of each nail has a dark band. Sometimes this can be attributed to aging. In other cases, it can be a sign of a serious underlying condition, such as liver disease, congestive heart failure or diabetes.

No major budget cheer for Sabah, Sarawak

Waiting for vital direct-benefit goodies,Sabahans
and Sarawakians were again left behind in Prime
Minister Najib Tun Razak's budget 2013.

KOTA KINABALU: Instead of lifting the crippling 1980 cabotage policy, Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak today announced a price uniformity scheme to neutralise costs differences between consumer products in West and East Malaysia.

The catch however is that the scheme is only applicable in Kedai Rakyat 1Malaysia (KR1M) stores in Sabah, Sarawak  and Labuan.

Najib said 57 more stores will be set up throughout Sabah and Sarawak.

Sabah is the second largest state covering 73,997 sq km while Sarawak is sprawling comprising  124,450 km2.

Battle for Tambunan: Pairin unshakable?

Despite views that Joseph Pairin Kitingan
failed as a leader, it is unlikely that
the Kadazandusun community will vote
against him in the 13th general election.

TAMBUNAN: Opposition parties and their candidates are lining up to have another go at toppling Deputy Chief Minister Joseph Pairin Kitingan from a seat that he has held for over a generation.

Others have tried and failed but the times are changing and the opposition is gaining momentum mostly because of the growing perceptions of corruption in high places and the slow pace of development in the resource-rich state.

Now a veteran of Sabah’s murky politics, Pairin, can expect to be challenged by candidates from State Reform Party (STAR) and PKR, to name two, in the Tambunan state constituency in the coming 13th general election.

The Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) president can also expect challenges from several independents for the state seat which he has held for well over three decades since 1976 when he won the seat for Berjaya.

The septuagenarian politician who many say has become irrelevant in the Umno-led Barisan Nasional state government recently announced that he intended to defend his state and (Keningau) parliamentary seats, one more time.