Lupakan hasrat tukar kerajaan

KUALA LUMPUR 3 Dis. - Segelintir warga Malaysia yang mahu bereksperimen menukar kerajaan diminta melupakan hasrat tersebut, sebaliknya mereka perlu bersama-sama mempertahankannya demi masa depan negara lebih cemerlang.

Menteri Penerangan, Komunikasi dan Kebudayaan, Datuk Seri Dr. Rais Yatim berkata, perkara itu amat penting kerana terbukti kerajaan Barisan Nasional (BN) komited memajukan negara ini, dalam masa sama membela nasib hidup rakyat melalui pelbagai program transformasi.

Sehubungan itu, beliau berkata, sekiranya program-program transformasi itu masih ada ruang untuk ditingkatkan, rakyat diminta bersama-sama membantu kerajaan supaya matlamat pelaksanaannya tercapai.

"Perdana Menteri, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak telah mencetuskan pelbagai program transformasi dan tujuannya adalah untuk memajukan negara dan membela nasib hidup rakyat.

"Oleh itu, rakyat diminta bersama-sama dengan kerajaan untuk menjayakannya. Dalam masa yang sama hentikanlah sebarang hasrat untuk menukarkan kerajaan," katanya.

Beliau berkata demikian selepas merasmikan sambutan ulang tahun Arkib Negara Malaysia yang ke-55 bertemakan '55 tahun Arkib Negara Malaysia: Era Digital' di Arkib Negara di sini hari ini.

Yang turut hadir, Ketua Setiausaha kementerian, Datuk Kamaruddin Siaraf; Ketua Pengarah Arkib, Daresah Ismail dan Pengerusi Lembaga Penasihat Arkib, Nancy Syukri.

Beliau mengulas kenyataan bekas Naib Pengerusi DAP, Tunku Abdul Aziz Tunku Ibrahim semalam, bahawa cubaan segelintir rakyat di negara ini bereksperimen menukar kerajaan merupakan tindakan berbahaya dan akan memakan diri sendiri.

Tunku Abdul Aziz berkata, tindakan itu yang dilakukan hanya kerana termakan janji manis dan fitnah pembangkang, sekali gus mengakibatkan kerugian dalam jangka masa amat panjang

Sebelum ini, Rais pernah menegaskan, adalah berbahaya jika rakyat melakukan eksperimen menukar kerajaan tanpa membuat pertimbangan adil dan teliti.

Sementara itu, beliau berkata, kementerian sedang meneliti mekanisme perundangan dalam usaha memastikan rakaman koleksi-koleksi sejarah serta peristiwa penting diserahkan kepada pihak Arkib apabila diminta.

Beliau berkata, koleksi tersebut sama ada yang disimpan oleh agensi kerajaan mahupun swasta.

"Setakat ini, kita belum dapat menentukan sama ada mekanisme perundangan ini memerlukan pindaan undang-undang atau tidak. Saya sendiri memerlukan input-input serta taklimat daripada semua pihak sebelum keputusan seterusnya diambil," ujarnya.

Dalam pada itu, beliau menghargai keupayaan pihak Arkib yang berjaya melakukan proses digital terhadap 126,299 bahan sejarah untuk tujuan rujukan.

"Usaha ini memerlukan komitmen yang begitu tinggi daripada semua pihak. Saya harap dalam kita menjadikan bahan-bahan ini dalam bentuk digital, yang asal juga perlu dipelihara," katanya.

sumber:utusanmalaysia

‘Shielding M’sia from global financial crisis our biggest success’

GREAT JOB: Najib speaking at the monthly assembly. The prime minister thanked public service officers for helping the government attain globally-recognised success.— Bernama photo

PUTRAJAYA: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said yesterday the country’s biggest success this year was shielding the nation and people from the global financial crisis.

He said the success was no mere feat because many other countries were in a state of uncertainty and had seen their economies crash, while Malaysia achieved a moderately high growth.

“That’s not all. Much recognition was showered on us at the international level because we achieved a commendable economic growth in a situation when the world faced challenging external factors.

“Additionally, the process of national development, taking care of the people’s well-being, socio-economic programmes and the national transformation agenda went on smoothly and effectively,” he said at the monthly assembly of the Prime Minister’s Department, here.

Najib said the country’s greatness was also evident when he delivered speeches at international forums and conferences as a representative of a successful nation.

“It is a major success which all of us can be proud of because it is not the success of mine alone but of all of us collectively,” he said.

In this context, the prime minister recorded his thanks to the public service officers who had helped the government attain the globally-recognised success, and expressed the hope that the momentum would continue.

At the same time, he said, it was hoped that the developments in Palestine would be taken as a lesson, that unless the peace and stability of a country were safeguarded well, the country might lose everything.

“It is not only that we will not be able to bring further progress, development and renewal, but whatever we have achieved and nurtured may be destroyed.

“It is also necessary to fortify our resilience against the known or unknown enemy as failure to do so may cause the country and people to become victims of those people uncomfortable with us or who have the desire to conquer or dominate us,” he said at the event where he also launched a ministry-level fund, ‘Tabung Tangisan Gaza’, to aid the Palestinians.

The prime minister also said that in international politics, the influence of a country depended on the perception of other countries as to its success.

If Malaysia wanted a higher profile, to be respected and revered by other countries, it would have to demonstrate and portray itself as an increasingly successful nation, he said. — Bernama

sumber:borneopost

DAP digesa berhenti kelirukan rakyat

SOKONGAN: Yap (duduk tengah), Ketua Wanita SUPP Tnay Li Ping (duduk kiri) dan Penasihat Undang-undang Milton Foo (duduk kanan) membenarkan rambut mereka dipotong oleh pendandan rambut sebagai tanda sokongan mereka kepada pendandan rambut di Kelantan.

KUCHING: Pemuda Parti Rakyat Bersatu Sarawak (SUPP) semalam menggesa Parti Tindakan Demokratik (DAP) untuk berhenti mengelirukan orang awam berhubung pelaksanaan undang-undang Islam ke atas bukan Islam oleh Parti Islam Semalaysia (PAS) yang diterajui Kerajaan Negeri Kelantan.

Setiausaha Agungnya Wilfred Yap berkata walaupun DAP telah berulang kali menyatakan bahawa tidak ada cara untuk undang-undang Islam akan dilaksanakan sekiranya Pakatan Rakyat (PR) mula berkuasa, insiden baru-baru ini di Kelantan menunjukkan sebaliknya.

Yap merujuk kepada kemarahan orang awam ke atas saman oleh Majlis Perbandaran Kota Bharu (MPKB) dua minggu lalu kepada pemilik salun rambut di Kelantan kerana salun rambut wanita turut memotong rambut pelanggan lelaki.

“Walaupun DAP sentiasa meminta orang ramai untuk tidak takut dan menyatakan bahawa tidak ada cara untuk undang-undang Islam dilaksanakan, kini kita boleh melihat bahawa fakta itu adalah sama sekali berbeza daripada apa yang dikatakan DAP. Jadi jangan sekali mempercayai kata-kata mereka,” katanya.

Beliau berkata demikian pada sidang akhbar sempena kempen mengutuk tindakan MPKB yang turut dihadiri oleh sekumpulan pendan-dan rambut di sini sebagai menunjukkan sokongan kepada rakan-rakan mereka di Kelantan.

Pada 27 November lepas, Presiden PAS Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang cuba melegakan kemarahan dengan menyatakan bahawa PAS percaya Kerajaan Ne-geri Kelantan tidak bermaksud untuk memperluaskan pelaksanaan mana-mana undang-undang atau undang-undang yang berkaitan dengan moral ke atas bukan Islam.

“Jadi daripada apa yang dia (Abdul Hadi) kata, ia seolah-olah bahawa dia telah membayangkan bahawa pelaksanaan undang-undang Islam yang telah dilakukan disebabkan kesilapan yang tidak disengajakan tetapi pengawasan oleh Kerajaan Negeri Kelantan pimpinan PAS?” kata Yap mempersoalkan.

Beliau menyatakan kesedihannya bahawa DAP yang merupakan sebahagian daripada PR, telah gagal mendesak Kerajaan Ne-geri Kelantan untuk mentakrifkan dengan jelas dan memasukkan dalam permulaan setiap satu undang-undang dan undang-undang kecil negeri mereka bahawa peraturan-peraturan tidak terpakai kepada orang bukan Islam.

Yap berkata, kedua-dua Parti Keadilan Rakyat dan DAP mestilah ikhlas kepada rakyat dengan tidak menyatakan apa-apa yang boleh mengelirukan rakyat hanya demi meraih undi daripada pengundi.

sumber:borneopost

Elak krisis kewangan kejayaan besar negara - PM

PUTRAJAYA 3 Dis. - Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak menyifatkan antara kejayaan paling besar dicapai negara sepanjang tahun ini ialah berjaya melindungi negara dan rakyat daripada krisis kewangan dunia.

Perdana Menteri berkata, kejayaan itu bukan sesuatu yang kecil pencapaiannya kerana banyak negara lain di dunia berada dalam keadaan tidak menentu dan ekonomi yang merudum, namun Malaysia sebaliknya berjaya mencapai kadar pertumbuhan sederhana tinggi.

"Bukan itu sahaja, banyak pengiktirafan di peringkat antarabangasa telah diperoleh...kerana dalam keadaan dunia menghadapi faktor luaran yang begitu mencengkam, kita telah mencapai pertumbuhan ekonomi yang membanggakan.

"Di samping itu proses pembangunan negara, pembelaan rakyat, sosioekonomi dan agenda transformasi negara berjalan dengan licin dan berkesan," katanya semasa berucap pada perhimpunan bulanan Jabatan Perdana Menteri (JPM) di sini hari ini.

"Kesimpulannya, itulah kejayaan besar yang boleh sama-sama kita merasa bangga kerana kejayaan itu bukan kejayaan saya seorang sahaja, tetapi kejayaan kita secara kolektif," katanya.

Sehubungan itu, Perdana Menteri turut merakamkan ucapan terima kasih kepada para pegawai kerana telah membantu kerajaan untuk mencapai kejayaan yang diiktiraf dunia dan berharap agar momentum tersebut akan berterusan.

Pada masa sama, beliau berharap apa yang berlaku di Palestin dapat dijadikan pengajaran dan iktibar kerana menurut Najib jika keamanan dan kestabilan negara tidak dipelihara dengan baik, negara mungkin kehilangan segala-galanya.

"Kita bukan sahaja tidak dapat melakukan sebarang kemajuan, pembangunan dan pembaharuan, malah apa yang telah dikecapi dan dibina selama ini mungkin akan pupus.

"Membina kekuatan untuk menghadapi musuh yang diketahui atau tidak, juga diperlukan, kegagalan berbuat demikian mungkin menyebabkan negara dan rakyat menjadi mangsa kepada musuh yang tidak senang pada kita atau mempunyai cita-cita untuk menakluki ataupun menguasai kita," katanya yang turut melancarkan Tabung Tangisan Gaza peringkat JPM.

Selain itu, Perdana Menteri berkata dalam percaturan politik antarabangsa pengaruh sesebuah negara itu bergantung kepada tanggapan negara lain terhadap kejayaan negara tersebut.

"Jika inginkan profil yang lebih tinggi, dihormati serta disegani oleh negara lain, perlu menunjukkan dan memaparkan bahawa Malaysia sebuah negara yang berjaya dan semakin berjaya," katanya. - BERNAMA

Bertenaga, cergas hadapi PRU-13

Najib Tun Razak bersama Dr. Mahathir Mohamad dan M. Kayveas menjulang tangan bersama selepas

menyampaikan ucapan perasmian Perhimpunan Agung PPP di PWTC, Kuala Lumpur, semalam. 

- UTUSAN/MOHD. NOOR MAT AMIN

KUALA LUMPUR 2 Dis. - Perdana Menteri, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak berkata, UMNO yang baru sahaja selesai menjayakan perhimpunan agung kini berada dalam keadaan cukup bertenaga dan cergas sepenuhnya untuk turun ke medan Pilihan Raya Umum Ke-13.

Katanya, hal sama juga berlaku kepada parti-parti komponen Barisan Nasional (BN) sekali gus membuktikan kesungguhan parti itu menterjemah sokongan rakyat melalui mandat besar dengan majoriti dua pertiga dalam pilihan raya umum akan datang.

Menurut Najib, UMNO dan BN sudah belajar daripada mimpi ngeri tsunami politik 2008 dan kini bangkit membuktikan kepada rakyat melalui pelbagai dasar transformasi untuk memastikan kesinambungan kerajaan sekarang kekal berterusan.

Bagaimanapun, beliau yang juga Pengerusi BN tetap memberi ingatan kepada seluruh parti komponen supaya menggunakan baki masa yang masih ada untuk memastikan 'sifar masalah' baik melibatkan isu dalaman atau masalah antara parti komponen.

"Selepas tiga hari UMNO bersidang, saya boleh laporkan bahawa UMNO merupakan parti yang sudah kembali bertenaga dan cergas sepenuhnya untuk menegakkan perjuangan kita dalam pilihan raya umum akan datang.

"Kini, parti Parti Progresif Penduduk (PPP) pula bersidang di dewan yang sama (Dewan Merdeka). Saya lihat PPP juga kembali bertenaga dan cergas dan ini ramuan yang amat penting," katanya berucap merasmikan Perhimpunan Agung PPP di Pusat Dagangan Dunia Putra (PWTC) di sini hari ini.

Yang turut hadir, bekas Perdana Menteri, Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad, Presiden PPP, Datuk Seri M. Kayveas, Setiausaha Agung BN, Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor serta pemimpin-pemimpin parti komponen BN.

Najib menambah, selaku sebuah parti dengan keluarga besar iaitu sebanyak 13 parti komponen, jumlah itu merupakan kekuatan BN yang langsung tidak mampu ditangani pembangkang serta mesti diterjemah dalam bentuk sokongan rakyat.

Sehubungan itu, beliau mahu seluruh komponen BN bergerak sebagai sebuah parti yang tersusun dengan objektif, kesepaduan serta kesefahaman jitu supaya segala dasar kerajaan dapat dipusatkan mengikut keperluan dan aspirasi rakyat yang mahu kepada transformasi.

"Kita mesti faham kehendak rakyat dan kita mesti pastikan dasar-dasar kita adalah tindak balas selari kepada keperluan serta aspirasi mereka termasuk dalam soal sistem. Kadang-kadang bukan kepimpinan yang bermasalah, tetapi bahagian pelaksana dalam sistem.

"Namun, janganlah kerana marahkan nyamuk kita bakar kelambu, jangan kerana nyamuk kita tuduh keseluruhan sistem tidak baik kerana yang penting kerajaan sekarang sedang melakukan transformasi dan perubahan itu dilakukan melalui kerajaan sedia ada," katanya.

sumber:utusanmalaysia

Tindakan cuba tukar kerajaan eksperimen berbahaya

KUALA LUMPUR 2 Dis. - Cubaan segelintir rakyat di negara ini bereksperimen menukar kerajaan merupakan tindakan berbahaya dan akan memakan diri sendiri.

Bekas Naib Pengerusi DAP, Tunku Abdul Aziz Tunku Ibrahim (gambar) berkata, tindakan itu yang dilakukan hanya kerana termakan janji manis dan fitnah pembangkang juga akan mengakibatkan kerugian dalam jangka masa amat panjang.

"Fikirkan, apakah bentuk transformasi dan kemajuan yang telah dibuat pembangkang dalam empat tahun memerintah selain daripada apa yang telah sedia ada dilakukan kerajaan terdahulu? Namakan bentuk perubahan serta kebaikan yang telah dibawa selama tempoh pemerintahan mereka?

"Antara perkara 'hebat' yang telah dibawa mereka sejak memerintah beberapa negeri hanyalah demonstrasi haram yang berakhir dengan keganasan, membakar sentimen rakyat Malaysia dalam pelbagai perkara, membenarkan campur tangan negara luar dan politik kebencian selain sering mengambil pujian terhadap usaha kerajaan Barisan Nasional," katanya ketika dihubungi Utusan Malaysia di sini semalam.

Beliau mengulas kenyataan Menteri Penerangan, Komunikasi dan Kebudayaan, Datuk Seri Dr. Rais Yatim yang menegaskan, adalah berbahaya jika rakyat melakukan eksperimen menukar kerajaan tanpa membuat pertimbangan adil dan teliti.

Menurut Tunku Abdul Aziz, sehingga kini, pembangkang bukan sahaja belum sepakat dalam memilih Perdana Menteri untuk mentadbir negara malah masih bertelingkah siapakah yang harus berkuasa jika memenangi pilihan raya umum.

"Bagaimana kita boleh bersedia menerima mereka yang hanya berminat dengan kuasa semata-mata? Sehingga hari ini masih bergaduh siapa yang layak menjadi Perdana Menteri dan jawatan-jawatan penting yang lain.

"Malaysia adalah sebuah negara kompleks yang sukar untuk ditadbir kerana dihuni oleh pelbagai kaum dan latar belakang, pengalaman apa yang mereka ada selain daripada mengkritik kerajaan selama 50 tahun," katanya.

Dalam masa sama, beliau menggesa rakyat Malaysia tidak sesekali memberi undi kepada pembangkang dalam pilihan raya umum akan datang kerana tindakan sedemikian akan membawa kehancuran kepada negara.

"Jika benar-benar cintakan keamanan dan perpaduan negara kita, usah tersilap langkah memberi mandat kepada golongan yang hanya dahagakan kuasa dan kepentingan politik.

"Jangan sesekali membiarkan pembangkang memporak-perandakan negara ini," tegasnya.

sumber:utusanmalaysia

Only BN can give people a better future, says Najib

FULL OF CONFIDENCE: Najib raises his hand during his speech. — Bernama photo

KUALA LUMPUR: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak yesterday called on the people to give their full mandate to the Barisan Nasional (BN) government for another five-year term to secure a better future for themselves and the country.

He said this was because the BN government had varied experience in administering the country since 55 years ago compared to the opposition pact which had no basic understanding in charting a good direction for the country.

Najib said the BN government was sincere in helping all citizens and that after four years (since the last general election), its success was proven with the country recording an economic growth of 5.2 per cent, increased investments from domestic and foreign investors and more than 300,000 job opportunities created.

“The future cannot be gambled away. A vote for the opposition is a vote for uncertain future. But a vote for BN is for a better, secure and prosperous future,” he said in his speech when opening the People’s Progressive Party’s (PPP) 59th Annual General Assembly at the Putra World Trade Centre, here, yesterday.

Also present were former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, PPP president Datuk M.Kayveas, its senior vice-president and Deputy Information, Communications and Culture Minister Datuk Maglin Dennis D’Cruz, BN secretary-general Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor and Dewan Negara president Tan Sri Abu Zahar Ujang.

Najib promised that as prime minister, he would do his best for the people and country, and also to govern in a fairer and more just manner in ensuring the people received the attention and benefits from BN’s policies and administration.

“As a national leader and BN chairman, I must be able to feel the pulse of the people and realise that today they have changed because of the government’s success in providing access to education and information communication technology,” he said.

The prime minister said the BN government was also aware and understood the people’s aspirations under the BN government.

Najib also reminded the 13 component parties of BN to move in one formation that was well organised and systematic towards one objective, that was, absolute unity and understanding so that BN would remain a strong party beyond compare with the opposition.

“Therefore, we must ensure zero internal problem in the party and also zero problem between the BN component parties. Without any major problem, (God willing) BN will win big in the coming general election,” he said.

Najib added that BN was determined to rise again after the ‘nightmares’ of the 12th general election and realised the message sent by the people to BN for it to bring about transformation to ensure a better future for them.

The prime minister also reminded the PPP election machinery to be always prepared and to re-energise and revitalise itself in struggling for BN in the coming elections.

A total of 4,047 party delegates attended the PPP Annual General Assembly with the theme, ‘BN Won’t Let Rakyat Down’. — Bernama

Najib targets two-thirds majority, flags General Election coming soon

Prime Minister Najib Razak signaled his party has recovered from its 2008 election setback and said the ruling coalition will be aiming to restore its two- thirds parliamentary majority when elections are held soon, Bloomberg reported.

“We will be going to the battlefield not too long from now,” said Najib, speaking at the close of the United Malays National Organisation’s annual assembly in Kuala Lumpur at the weekend. “We will have to fight the war and that means we must make sure our team is strong and united.”

The prime minister must dissolve parliament for new polls by April 28. In the last election in 2008, the opposition alliance, led by Anwar Ibrahim, secured enough seats to deny the governing National Front coalition a two-thirds majority which it had held for four decades. The opposition won five out of 13 states, though it has since lost one after several lawmakers defected to become independents.

Najib, 59, cut income taxes, boosted pay for government workers and extended handouts for the poor in his 2013 budget announced in September. While the global economy has slowed, Malaysia has maintained gross domestic product growth above 5 percent for the past five quarters and its benchmark stock index closed at a record last month.

“Najib’s tone is more confident because the general assembly is a setting where you’ll have to rally the troops before the election,” said Ong Kian Ming, a political analyst at UCSI University in Kuala Lumpur, who recently joined the opposition Democratic Action Party. “There’s no actual political reason for him to be more confident.”

Election Target

Najib’s party, which backs policies favoring Malays, has sought to boost its appeal among ethnic Chinese and Indian voters who have shifted their support to opposition parties in recent years.

The National Front has revised its election target and is now aiming to regain its two-thirds majority, the Star newspaper reported yesterday, citing Najib. The prime minister told journalists in March that winning a clear majority would be “challenging.”

The National Front coalition, known locally as Barisan Nasional, controls 137 seats in Malaysia’s 222-member parliament, with Najib’s UMNO its biggest component. Anwar Ibrahim’s three- party opposition known as the People’s Alliance holds 75 seats.

Najib, UMNO’s president, started an economic transformation program two years ago which has so far attracted 212 billion ringgit ($70 billion) of investment commitments, according to the government’s Performance Management and Development Unit, or Pemandu. This includes a mass railway in Kuala Lumpur and oil storage and petrochemicals hub in southern state of Johor.

2020 Vision

The initiative, aimed at drawing $444 billion of private sector-led investments by 2020, is intended to help the Southeast Asian country fulfill its long-term goal of achieving developed nation status by the end of this decade. This should continue irrespective of who wins the next election, said Idris Jala, Pemandu’s chief executive officer.

“There was overwhelming response from the public that these are good things for the country,” Jala, also a minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, said in a Nov. 29 interview. “Whether the new government remains the Barisan Nasional or is new, I believe both of them will favorably look at the economic transformation program.”

Najib’s approval rating fell one percentage point to 64 percent in June from a month earlier, according to a survey by the Merdeka Center for Opinion Research. The poll, the latest available, showed 66 percent of Chinese and 47 percent of Indians dissatisfied or angry with the government’s performance.

The support shown by party members at this week’s UMNO assembly indicates that it has recovered from the last general election, Bernama reported Nov. 28, citing the prime minister.

Najib’s party and the ruling coalition have faced several corruption scandals that have tainted its image over the past year. Malaysia ranked 60th out of 183 nations last year in Transparency International’s corruption perceptions index, four places lower than in 2010, when 178 countries were included.

sumber:borneopost

Masyarakat Cina hadapi cabaran besar PRU13

SIBU: Menteri Kewangan Kedua Dato Sri Wong Soon Koh berkata masyarakat Cina akan menghadapi cabaran terbesar pada Pilihan Raya Umum Ke-13 (PRU13) akan datang,harus bejak membuat keputusan untuk menentukan nasib dan masa depan mereka.

Wong menjelaskan, ini adalah satu perkara yang mereka perlu membuat keputusan secara kolektif dan beliau berharap masyarakat membincangkan isu tersebut secara le-bih serius di kalangan mereka.

“Kita mempunyai sebanyak 222 kerusi Parlimen. Daripada jumlah itu, kerusi majoriti Cina tidak mencapai 15 peratus. Jika pembangkang menang semua kerusi majoriti Cina, masyarakat akan tertinggal daripada arus perdana politik,” katanya pada Majlis Makan Malam Sambutan Ulang Tahun Ke-100 Penempatan Masyarakat Hin Hua di Bandar Sibu, di sini malam Sabtu lalu.

Wong yang juga Menteri Kerajaan Tempatan dan Kemajuan Masyarakat berkata, ini kerana tiada cara lain untuk pembangkang menggantikan kerajaan memerintah yang sedia ada.

“Seperti yang kita lihat jika anda mengundi untuk pembangkang, satu-satunya perubahan masyarakat yang akan kita lihat adalah anda berada di luar arus perdana politik.

“Maka persoalannya, kekal dalam arus perdana politik atau memilih pembangkang yang hanya bijak menunaikan janji kosong,” ujar beliau.

Wong turut menyeru generasi muda agar mencontohi sifat kegigihan nenek moyang mereka yang telah berusaha memajukan pembangunan negara.

“Oleh itu, pentingnya generasi muda menghargai dan mencontohi usaha yang dilakukan nenek moyang dan terus mengorak langkah yang lebih maju pada masa depan,” tegasnya.

Pada sambutan itu, Wong berkata nenek moyang telah meninggalkan tanah air mereka untuk belayar ke bandar ini dan memberikan sumbangan yang bermakna kepada masya-rakatnya.

“Seratus tahun lalu hingga kini, mereka (masyarakat Hin Hua) telah mengasaskan sebuah masyarakat makmur dan harmoni. Seperti yang kita lihat, bukan hanya masyarakat Hin Hua, malah masyarakat Cina yang lain,” katanya.

Hadir sama Presiden Kehormat Persatuan Hin Hua Pou Sen Sibu Vincent Goh Chung Siong dan Pengerusi Persatuan Hin Hua Pou Sen Sibu Philip Lau King Kah.



sumber:borneopost

Masing’s swipe at Taib?

Parti Rakyat Sarawak has declared itself the "true custodian" of Dayaks in Sarawak, putting a spoke perhaps in Taib's divide and rule strategy.

SIBU: Was Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) president James Masing sending out a message to Chief Minister Taib Mahmud with his speech during the party’s eight anniversary dinner here last Saturday?

Masing’s emphasis on PRS being a “truly Dayak party” and that its elected representatives were “all Dayaks” wasn’t just a frivolous statement. It was tactical.

It comes at a time of the rapid ‘Dayak awakening’ amongst the rural native communities courtesy of the alternative media, Radio Free Sarawak and a brazen opposition.

Fueling this ‘awakening’ is the floundering Barisan Nasional partners – Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party (SPDP) and Sarawak United Peoples party (SUPP) – who can’t seem to get their act together.

The only ‘water-tight’ party appears to be PRS and Taib’s PBB which incidentally is facing simmering discontent within its Bumiputera wing led by the allegedly much spineless Alfred Jabu Numpang.

The next parliamentary election which must be held by April 2013 will be a challenging one for Sarawak BN’s component parties.

Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak is desperately in need of Sarawak’s 31 seats in view of the fluid political situation in Sabah and in the peninsular.

In the last parliamentary elections in 2008, it was Sabah and Sarawak’s collective 56 seats that helped BN retain Putrajaya. Sabah and Sarawak each lost one seat to the opposition, delivering 54 seats to the federal coalition.

But the current scenario is somewhat different. The latest spin from the ground in Sabah is that the Musa Aman-led BN could lose up to 10 if not 12 of the 25 contestable parliamentary seats.

In Sarawak the seat sharing ratio stands at PPB (14), SUPP (seven) PRS (six) SPDP (4)

As it stands, speculations are rife that BN could lose up to seven seats from amongst SUPP, SPDP and PRS.

Taib, on his part, has guaranteed Najib a return on all 14 of PBB’s parliamentary seats and there’s no reason for the PM to doubt his ability especially after his performance in the last state election. Taib is not too concerned about parliament.

PRS truly represents Dayaks

Parliamentary election’s is not Taib’s top priority, but state is. Rumours are rife that he’s had a finger in the chaos within SUPP, SPDP and PRS. A divided state coalition allows him to have better control of his ‘partners’ and an increasingly empowered native community courtesy of the opposition.

Masing is said to be a thorn in Taib’s side. In the run-up to last year’s state election, Masing, unhappy with Taib constantly ignoring his proposals, met directly with Najib and in one instant managed to thwart attempts to allow an ex-PRS incumbent elected representative, Larry Sng, from contesting.

On Saturday, stamping PRS’ sway over Sarawak’s majority Dayak community, Masing said the party was the “custodian” of Dayak interest and that its elected representatives were “duty bound” to protect the race.

“For all intents and purposes, PRS is the party which truly represents rural constituencies where most of the Dayaks happen to reside.

“Therefore, we do not apologise for who we are and the basis of our political stand and struggles,” he said alluding perhaps to the known ‘issues’ between him and Taib.

Masing further warned members to be wary of “attempts” to stir discontent within the party adding that enemies and approaches came in different forms.

“There are people who are envious of our strength and will try to de-stabilise us. They maybe individuals or groups.

“They will (either) contest against us when the general election is called (or) slyly fight us by pretending to our friends or friends of the group and pull us down.

“The other way is to de-stabilise us is by picking on some of our members who exhibit certain weaknesses. This will be a subtle approach and by people who we are familiar with. Thus without realizing it, we will fall into a trap which will eventually break the party’s solidarity,” said Masing.

Stand up and fight

On a philosophical note, he said the hardest battle to win was the war within each individual.

“Unless and until we can control our (individual) wants and needs, we will become the weak link in the party.

“The battle to control our needs is a lonely battle. We have to fight it on our own. Party members will not be able to help us.

“But if we and our party ideologies and struggles are strong, we will win,” Masing said adding that members must not be afraid to fight for what is right.

“If we are too scared to fight for what we believe are right, we might as well pack our bags and go home because in the next election, the rural population will throw us out.

“When this happens, PRS will lose its seats and Barisan Nasional will lose its power to govern this country,” Masing added.

sumber: FMT

Chin: We’ll face polls as a united SUPP

SUPP has decided to field its youth chief for Stampin constituency in the coming parliamentary elections.

KUCHING: Sarawak United Peoples Party’s (SUPP) top leadership has finally put an end to weeks of speculations and accusations over its indecisiveness in regards to naming a candidate for the Stampin constituency.

Party president Peter Chin has announced that SUPP Youth secretary-general Wilfred Yap was the chosen candidate to contest in Stampin.

The party had earlier submitted two names for the constituency, namely its Kota Sentosa branch secretary Lo Khere Chiang (who is chairman of Padawan Municipal Council), and Yap, a lawyer.

Its decision to submit the two names was heavily criticised by party members who saw it as reflective of Chin’s indecisive leadership.

Yap will replace the five-term MP Yong Khoon Seng who has decided to step down.

In announcing Yap’s candidacy, Chin said: “That is our decision with regard to Stampin. Nobody can now doubt that we cannot make a decision.

“We will submit Yap’s name to the state Barisan Nasional headquarters and the federal Barisan Nasional headquarters in Kuala Lumpur.”

He said that the party’s central working committee was unanimous in agreeing to Yap as the candidate for the Stampin seat.

“I want to mention this specifically that this discussion has been very cordial on who among the two loyal party members will be the candidate.

“We are unanimous in our decision that Yap will take up this task of representing the party for the Stampin seat because we feel that it is not fair for the two of them hanging like this after we made this decision last time.

“We have agreed to make this decision even though one of them has to step aside and make way for the other. This is in the spirit for the party.

“It is indeed important that our comrades, not only the top leadership, but also the middle rung and the ground leadership, will be united,” said Chin, who is the Minister of Energy, Green Technology and Water.

Best foot forward

He said SUPP will face the next parliamentary election as a united front.

“When we go for the election we will be a united group to vie for these two seats, Bandar Kuching and Stampin.

“We have also decided the five branches in Kuching namely Batu Kawah, Kota Sentosa, Batu Lintang Padungan and Pending will together form an election committee to coordinate these two constituencies.

“I am being asked to head this committee with SUPP secretary general Dr Sim Kui Hian and Yong Khoon Seng as deputies.

“This is to show how serious we are to capture Bandar Kuching and to retain Stampin.

“Our two candidates are young and new, and we have full confidence that because of their younger age and their enthusiasm, we will be able to capture Bandar Kuching and retain Stampin,” he added.

Bandar Kuching is now in the hand of DAP.

With Yap named as the Stampin candidate, SUPP’s other candidates are Richard Riot for Serian, Tan Kai (Bandar Kuching), Ding Kuong Hiing (Sarikei), Tiong Thai King (Lanang), Vincent Lau (Sibu) and Sebastian Ting (Miri).

sumber: FMT

Murum Dam: Listen to the Penans

The Penan communities affected by the Murum Dam have shown a commitment to defend their rights and Malaysians must give them full support.

The Penans have been blockading against the construction of the 944MW Murum Dam since Sept 26, 2012. More than 1,600 Penans from eight Penan villages (including one Kenyah Badeng longhouse) are affected by the construction of the dam which is now about 70% completed.

Sarawak Energy Berhad (SEB), contractors and private companies involved in the project have been forced to use ferryboats or tugboats through the Bakun Dam reservoir to transport goods, machines, building materials etc. to the Murum Dam site.

This is a new and different factor compared to the campaign against the Bakun dam in previous years.

While we had built a campaign against the Bakun Dam in the past, there was no action by the indigenous peoples affected on a scale comparable to the Murum Dam blockade.

The Penan communities affected by the Murum Dam have shown a commitment to defend their rights and Malaysians must give them full solidarity and support their struggle in all possible ways.

The Murum Penan communities are among the poorest in Malaysia. They have traditionally been hunter-gatherers but shifted to a more settled, agriculture-based way of life approximately 40 years ago.

They rely on subsistence-based farming and hunting, fishing and gathering of forest products and the occasional sale of in-season fruit. Their livelihood has been adversely affected by low farm productivity and rapidly declining forest resources because of plantation and dam building projects.

The Bakun Dam fiasco

The Sarawak state government with federal government support, has been carrying out highly irresponsible economic projects to the detriment of the environment, the indigenous peoples’ lives and the long-term interest of the Sarawak and Malaysian tax payers.

The 2,400MW Bakun Dam project has already proven to be a major fiasco not only in terms of insufficient demand for its electricity generated but a disaster for the 10,000 indigenous peoples who were displaced from their traditional ancestral land to the slum conditions of the resettlement scheme at Sg. Asap.

Those who cherish their heritage and human rights would describe their fate as ethnocide if they have seen for themselves the conditions at Sg. Asap.

The total energy demand in the whole of Sarawak is only 1,000MW so the government has been trying to attract the biggest energy guzzlers such as aluminium smelters which happen to be the most toxic as well.

Another investment is a coal-fired power station to take up the excess energy. These environmentally polluting industries are then touted as part of the Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy (Score).

In fact, hydro-electric power dams and toxic aluminium smelters are all industries rejected by the developed countries.

None of these countries, especially Australia, wants to have toxic industries in their own backyard. But the Sarawak state government is willing to have these mega projects for rather dubious purposes.

The desperate chase for investments to take up the excess Bakun energy after the dam has been built shows a total lack of economic feasibility studies which should have been done before the dam was built.

Is it surprising therefore that many Score contracts have been given to companies owned by members of Chief Minister Taib’s family?

As if this Bakun Dam fiasco was not enough, the Sarawak state government intends to build 12 mega dams in all which will strip the state of its rainforest and displace even more indigenous communities.

Violating international standards

The Murum Dam is the first of these 12 dams. The dam construction is being supervised by China Three Gorges Corporation and built by Chinese dam builder Sinohydro.

After their massive investments in the Three Gorges project, you can be sure these Chinese companies are hungry for investments in other hydropower projects in Sarawak.

With such a large development scheme, international best practice calls for a “strategic environmental and social assessment.”

Such an assessment looks at the overall impact that a large development scheme can have as was done for the proposed “Greater Mekong Sub-region” energy network by the Asian Development Bank.

No such strategic economic, environmental and social assessment has been conducted for Score.

If the Bakun Dam project is to be any guide, the Sarawak government’s energy demand forecasts appear to be based more on nothing more than wishful thinking rather than detailed feasibility studies.

Malaysian taxpayers, be warned that all these mega projects will entail an onerous debt burden on the Sarawak and Malaysian public. You can be sure that there will be electricity tariff hikes after the 13th general election.

There are many energy alternatives for Sarawak beyond large hydroelectric power projects such as small-scale hydropower, solar and other forms of renewable energy, energy efficiency measures, more efficiently run and managed power plants, among others.

Above all, such environmentally friendly power projects respects the indigenous peoples’ lifestyles while efforts can put into helping them with better transport systems, marketing channels and other forms of development they may require.

The Murum Dam project is in violation of the international standards on indigenous rights as guaranteed in the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), of which Malaysia is a signatory.

The Murum Dam is nearing completion but the resettlement report is still being withheld.

As for the Bakun Dam, all studies related to the projects have not been transparent. The affected Penan and Kenyah have stated that they have never been asked for consent as demanded by the UNDRIP.

The project developer, Sarawak’s state-owned electricity generating company, Sarawak Energy Berhad (SEB) has not provided indigenous communities with an opportunity to grant or withhold their “free, prior and informed consent” for the project as required by UNDRIP.

Even in cases where there was agreement, however, it was neither free from coercion; the resettlement plan was not made known to the indigenous peoples prior to the start of the construction, and they were not informed by access to information about the project’s impacts.

The social and environmental impact assessment (SEIA) for the Murum project is seriously flawed.

International standards—including the Equator Principles and the IFC Performance Standards—universally require that the SEIA must be completed during the design phase, before the government approves the project and before construction begins.

This was not the case with the Murum Dam Project. The SEIA process did not even begin until after construction on the project was already underway. The Sarawak government has not yet disclosed the Murum Dam Project’s SEIA to the public or to the affected communities.

The indigenous peoples’ demands

Without transparent access to the crucial information at the centre of this project, the affected communities were placed in an unfair situation when the Sarawak government asked them to negotiate a resettlement package.

The monthly allowance to be paid after resettlement falls below the poverty level and ends after four years.

However, the state government turned down the other demands of the Penan, which included compensation of RM500,000 for each family for the loss of their customary land.

Their other demands were 30,000 hectares of land for every village, 25 hectares for every farming family, education for their children, a community development fund and rights to their land that is not submerged by the dam waters.

The indigenous communities affected by the Murum Dam project have already issued a memorandum describing how the government could still remedy the situation.

sumber: FMT

sumber: FMT

Roland Engan PKR candidate for Baram

MIRI: Lawyer Roland Engan is confirmed the state PKR choice of candidate for the Baram seat in the upcoming general election.

He was endorsed during the recent AGM of the Baram PKR branch chaired by its chairman Harrison Ngau.

Disclosing this here was the party’s Miri branch chairman Dr Michael Teo at a press conference yesterday.

Dr Teo said he threw his support behind Roland for his experience in managing the state PKR campaign in the last state election where Harrison lost by a few hundred votes to Barisan Nasional (BN) candidate Dennis Ngau in a multi-cornered fight for Telang Usan, one of state seats under Baram.

“Harrison could have won if not for the delay in announcing the candidate, thus causing confusion among the voters,” said Dr Teo who is also eyeing Miri seat this election.

Dr Teo is still sore about the way SNAP joined Pakatan Rakyat (PR) alliance, only to break away at the eleventh hour to contest on its own, and ruled out any cooperation with it.

He regretted wasting money to print banners and T-shirts promoting SNAP as a component of PR last year.

“We’re thankful that SNAP has shown its true colours – they’re there just to spoil PR’s chances,” he said.

Dr Teo stressed against repeating the same mistakes by trusting the wrong party and individuals claiming to represent PKR, especially those who defected from BN to contest in the polls.

The other contender for Baram seat is said to be former PRS founder and supreme council member, Patrick Sibat Sujang who is said to have resigned from the party this year to join PKR.

However, Roland confirmed that Patrick was not a member of PKR Baram branch, and did not have the party’s blessings to stand as the PKR candidate for Baram.

Roland, 39, a Kenyah who hails from Long Jeeh, Ulu Baram, is deputy chairman of Baram PKR branch.

He has been practising law at his own law firm in Kuala Lumpur since 2005.

sumber:borneopost