
More Barisan Nasional (BN) | Pakatan Rakyat (PR) | Sociopolitics Plus |
Today's Zaman,
06 Jul 2012
ISTANBUL, Jul 6: Turkey's Religious Affairs Directorate president Mehmet Grmez paid a visit to Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew we upon Thursday at a stanbul-based Fener Greek Orthodox Patriarchate.
ONE GOD Mehmet Grmez presents a present bearing a 'Allah' calligraphy to primogenitor Bartholomew I
Grmez thanked a primogenitor for a comfortable welcome as well as said followers of both religions have lived together for centuries. The Muslim leader additionally voiced a instruct for comfortable relations between all segments of society.
Bartholomew additionally voiced his best wishes to Muslims upon a Night of Forgiveness (Berat Kandili in Turkish or 'Nisfu Sha'aban') as well as for Ramadan as well as Eid al-Fitr in allege of a holiday for Muslims opposite a world.
The assembly is deliberate generally critical as Grmez is usually a second conduct of a Religious Affairs Directorate to visit Greek Orthodox Patriarch Bartholomew. The primogenitor had congratulated Grmez upon his appointment as chief of a directorate in 2011 as well as invited him to a patriarchate.
Be a initial to similar to this.
July 8, 2012
by Joceline Tan@www.thestar.com.my
PENANG island is carrying the bumper season for "designer durians" as good as tourists as good as locals alike have been creation their way up the mountainous country of Balik Pulau to feast upon the fruit. It has been the sweet season in truth for farmers of the thorny fruit.
But elsewhere upon the island, it is the season for an additional kind of thorns, namely, the thorny emanate of growth as good as the side effects.
The hot-button emanate in Penang currently is as well many development, for wish of the better word. This is quite an irony since the singular of the reasons why Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon was shown the door in 2008 was since Penang folk thought there was not sufficient growth in Penang.
As the well-connected developer Tan Sri Tan Kok Ping had claimed of Dr Koh during an interview, "18 years as good as zero to show", by way of observant which Dr Koh could have finished some-more for developers in Penang.
Dr Koh was not well known to be pro-developer as good as the integrate of big developers were so cheesed off with his policies they left Penang as good as returned only after Lim Guan Eng came to power.
It is the different situation today. Entire neighbourhoods have been worried about the pace as good as sort of growth taking place. Guan Eng, similar to it or not, has acquired the reputation as being as well pro-developer.
"In new years as good as some-mo! re so in new months, there has been the spate of protests from indignant residents in various tools of Penang island over what is function in their communities.
"This is not an isolated incident. It is quite widespread," pronounced city councillor Dr Lim Mah Hui.
The curious thing is which the protests have been taking place in upscale areas similar to Pulau Tikus, Tanjung Bungah as good as Sungai Ara. Middle-class folk have been entrance out with handcrafted placards to protest conflicting projects which have been affecting the peculiarity of life in their neighbourhoods.
Last week, residents in Pulau Tikus protested conflicting skeleton for the 27-storey commercial block where the limit height is only six storeys. The residents were all appalled since Pulau Tikus is already tormented by trade jams as good as parking woes. They bombarded their assemblyman Koay Teng Hai with all sorts of questions.All these, pronounced Mah Hui, have been signals which "something is not quite right".
In new days, pamphlets of "before" as good as "after" Google Earth images of the famed Batu Ferringhi seashore have been drifting about. The pictures show how immature mountainous country have turn petrify as good as tarmac. The "after" images were antiquated around 2010, ensuing in DAP claiming which the images were digitally tampered with. The fight over growth has escalated.
Guan Eng has, as usual, blamed the prior supervision for the state of affairs. He has regularly pronounced which his administration department department has not authorized the singular plan upon top of 76m except for immature areas similar to the park. He repeated all which last week during the press discussion alongside Penang Island City Council (MPPP) president Patahiyah Ismail.
Patahiyah, upon her part, released det! ails of 37 projects upon top of 76m which were authorized in in between 1985 as good as Mar 2008 underneath Dr Koh's supervision yes, Dr Koh was guilty as charged.
However, Patahiyah also handed out papers display which in in between Apr 2008 as good as May 2012, the sum of nineteen projects upon land upon top of 76m were since formulation capitulation by the MPPP; which would fall precisely underneath Guan Eng's tenure.
It left many reporters scratching their heads since the Chief Minister as good as Patahiyah were observant conflicting things about the same matter. Guan Eng pronounced there was no capitulation of projects upon top of 76m after 2008, though Patahiyah pronounced nineteen projects were approved.
They had contradicted each other during the same press discussion as good as they appear to have gotten away with it! It was pretty amazing.
To add to this, Ong Eu Soon, the social activist mostly quoted upon growth issues in Penang, has disputed Guan Eng's claim which his supervision has not authorized the singular growth which is upon top of 76m.
Ong did his own investigation as good as he has insisted which the high-rise common ownership plan in the Air Itam area was authorized in 2009 as good as it is sitting good over 76m upon top of sea level. The plan is upon the pleasing mountain well known as Bukit Hijau as good as is currently underneath construction.
According to Ong, the project, listed underneath the anxiety series of MPPP/OSC/PB(1963)/09, was authorized upon Apr 30, 2009. The developer then applied to amend the plan from the 29-storey unit plan to 38 storeys. The legislative addition got the immature light from MPPP upon Oct 14, 2009.
"The plan is definitely some-more than 76m tall since the finished plan upon the slant below was personal ! as upon top of 76m. The finished plan was authorized by the Barisan Nasional supervision though the brand new the singular was authorized by Guan Eng's government.
"I live inside of upon foot stretch of the two projects. Guan Eng should stop observant he has not authorized any growth aloft than 76m since this is only the singular case. we have some-more information upon this sort of projects which were authorized after Mar 2008," pronounced Ong who also contributes articles to Malaysian Insider as good as Malaysiakini.
It has been all as well convenient for Guan Eng to censure the prior supervision for all which goes wrong in Penang. After 4 years in power, Guan Eng should stop pointing as good as blaming as good as start seeking during his own administration.
He is the chairman of two of the many powerful committees in the state, namely, the State Planning Committee as good as the State Land Committee. He should provide some answers about his MPPP president's acknowledgment which nineteen projects upon top of 76m were authorized after 2008.
Governing Penang, as many politicians have learnt, is similar to opening the durian. It is the tasty ripened offspring though the thorns can hurt. It has to be handled with care.
July 8, 2012
Bernama reports:
The 13-year jail sentence as well as excellent of some-more than RM2 million meted out by a Sessions Court on a Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Assistant Superintendent for crime proves which a elect does not strengthen any one who has committed an offence.
MACC Chief Commissioner Datuk Seri Abu Kassim Mohamed pronounced by virtue of a fact which a box was investigated as well as prosecuted by officers from a elect additionally valid which a elect is not biased.
"I want to make it clear which you have 0 tolerance towards corruption. (MACC) officers, no make a difference how great they are, if they have been involved in counts inspiring integrity, generally corruption, you will take action.
"MACC regards this box as really serious. we hope it can give a vigilance to all government officers, together with in MACC, to not be involved with corruption," he told reporters here.
Earlier, Abu Kassim opened a bowling tournament in between MACC as well as a Singapore Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB) in Seri Kembangan nearby here.
Yesterday, MACC Assistant Superintendent M. Mohan (right), 39, was condemned to 13 years' jail time as well as fined RM2.275 million by a Shah Alam Sessions Court after he was found guilty of three counts of crime three years ago.
Abu Kassim pronounced a sentence which was meted out was a many severe since a enforcem! ent of a MACC Act 2009 which transposed a Anti-Corruption Act 1997.
Read More @ SourceThese 'pests' have been silenced since a open didn't tumble for their lies. Najib Rajak
SHARE
AND
DISCUSS
Francine Siddaway wore her "trademark Egyptian-style" make-up to her interview 3 years ago. She also had no complaints from staff or patients, The Sun reported.
She pronounced the Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge sacked her after the sanatorium executive pronounced she refused the "reasonable management request in the form of toning down or dismissal of make-up".
Siddaway is deliberation legal action, as well as pronounced bosses were looking for excuses to cut costs.
She pronounced the move came after 600 staff at the sanatorium were told in May to take the compensate cut or lose their jobs.
"I feel I've been victimised as well as treated appallingly. It is viewable because they've now motionless they have the problem," Siddaway was quoted as observant by The Sun.
The sanatorium executive pronounced the skirt code was "designed to foster the veteran appearance as well as comply with health as well as safety", as well as the sanatorium pronounced all staff members pointer the fo! rm to ad mit receipt of the uniform policy.
Unison, Britain's biggest open zone trade kinship with some-more than 1.3 million members, pronounced it would back Siddaway's fight.
SHARE
AND
DISCUSS
Girls wearing all-leather sado-masochist bodysuits tottered by a sight car, followed by masculine models wearing zero though ornamental lead sculptures around their groin. Models in neon tulle dangled from a subway poles.
Around 600 people showed up for " Underground Catwalk", a ticketed uncover during Berlin Fashion Week that took place entirely upon a sight using underneath a city.
"Because of a special location, models flattering most travel across people's laps. There's shrill music blasting, it's flattering furious and colourful," event director Alexander outpost Hessen told Reuters.
Micaela Schaefer, a German being TV star well known for her self-professed 'fabric allergy' and near-nude appearances, done tabloid headlines by performing in a uncover as a mime Marilyn Monroe in a costume done entirely of artificial blonde hair.
!But " Underground Catwalk" is additionally a forum for young Berlin designers to uncover more classic couture fare without profitable a cost for a conform tent show, pronounced outpost Hessen.
Berlin's conform week, that ends this a weekend, is no showcase for haute couture upon a scale of Paris or Milan.
Though a strong host of young internal designers have significantly lifted Berlin's conform profile in new years, a culture of a conform week remains pick and less focused upon disdainful engineer goods.
"We ! are a pick to Berlin Fashion Week," pronounced von Hessen. "You wouldn't drink champagne here, though beer or whisky."
July 8, 2012
(07-07-12)@www.malaysiakini.com
COMMENT: "Confusing" substantially describes many of our primary attempts to get to the bottom of what the deal was between Talam Corporation as well as Selangor.
With the small diligence, transparent thinking as well as attention to item however, many mysteries can be giveaway as well as articulated efficiently.
This essay attempts to explain in easy to assimilate terms the credentials as well as context of this issue, how Selangor recovered the debt due to it by Talam, as well as how this debt liberation differs from the bailouts you have seen during the sovereign level.
In the Beginning
The story starts in the late eighties as well as early nineties, with an operative and project physical education instructor who worked in Selangor state auxiliary PKNS the singular Chan Ah Chye (right).
This man after goes upon to form Talam Corporation, as well as before prolonged presumably due to close connectors with the statute elite in Selangor, then headed by BN Menteri Besar Muhammad Muhammad Taib he becomes the vital player in the Selangor skill as well as growth scene.
Over time, an intensely vast volume of state land is alienated to Talam, who fundamentally gets it for free. A strong imagination is not compulsory to speculate in whose pockets any ensuing distinction in the future ends up.
Talam's! modus o perandi seems to be to oath this land to the bank in exchange for outrageous loans, which they then make use of to financial their growth as well as distinction creation projects. In essence, since they got the land free, they have successfully completed income for nothing (it is uncertain as to whether "chicks for free" were involved).
The 'wise' businessmen of which era believed in the decree of never using your own income when you can make use of someone else's. This difficult lending the singular after an additional to characterize Talam's commercial operation approach, as well as their loans consistently kept removing bigger as well as bigger.
Tumbling down
Of course, no student of brand new economic trends is unfamiliar with the concept of the bursting bubble.
The financial collapse of the late nineties brings Talam's debt-ridden house of cards crashing down. An overgearing of loans as well as inability to use them halts assorted half-completed projects, rendering them idle, half-built ruins.Incredibly however, this does not forestall Talam as well as their domestic patrons from altering their elementary modus operandi.
In 2001, underneath BN Menteri Besar Khir Toyo (left), 3 parcels of land have been alienated by Selangor to Talam around their auxiliary Maxisegar Sdn Bhd, who undertakes to erect Unisel's campus during an estimated cost of RM750 million.
It will substantially come as no warn which Talam failed to finish this project. By September 2006, the association had been classified as an influenced association underneath Practice Note seventeen (PN 17), indicating dire financial straits.
New Sheriff in town
In 2008, when Khalid Ibrahim assumes the Mente! ri Besar 's post, he inherits the situation in which Talam owes the state of Selangor as well as the subsidiaries (among alternative creditors), the good deal of money.
Urban fable has it which when Talam was called in to explain why they have never endeavoured to pay their debts, the humble reply since was, "No the singular ever asked us to."
Thankfully for the citizens of Selangor, there was the brand new policeman in town.
Corporate financial is not usually an area of expertise for Khalid (left) it is the passion. With good gusto, he set out to compromise this problem, as well as recover which which was due by Talam to the people of Selangor.
The complaint was positively challenging, but after the small work as well as clever strategising, the plan was set in to motion.The finish idea was simple: to leverage the resources still held by Talam to pay off the debt Talam due to the Selangor as well as the state subsidiaries.
The technical nitty-gritty
Making this happen was the technically difficult routine which compulsory substantial financial acumen.
The outline is this: firstly, the debts which were due by Talam to Selangor state subsidiaries were scrupulously requisitioned as well as accounted for something that, very suspiciously, had not been finished before. Once these debts were acknowledged by all parties, the debts were combined as well as eliminated to the singular state auxiliary Menteri Besar Incorporated (MBI), which was then obliged for pciking up the debts from Talam in the form of land as well as cash.
The rest of this territory explains how this was done.
It is the tedious as well as formidable explanation, but I list it here for the record as well as for those interested.
Talam due RM392 million to 3 Selangor state subsidiaries: KHSB, PIYSB, as well as PNSB. After acknowledging as well as engagement these debts, the subsequent step was to have an additional state subsidiary, Selangor Industrial Corporation (SIC), squeeze these debts from the alternative 3 companies.
A loan from CIMB Bank of RM 392 million was since to SIC to finish this purchase. In November 2009, the state exco as well as legislative assembly both approved the accede to of RM392 million to MBI, which then used the supports to squeeze the strange combined debt from SIC. SIC then uses those supports to pay off their CIMB loan.
The finish result is as elementary as the contract itself is formidable but any vital or excessive transactional expenses, Talam right away owes the same volume of income to just the singular state subsidiary, instead of the strange three.
Restructuring as well as successful collection
It is important to note which during no point have been supports eliminated from taxpayer monies to Talam. Funds have instead usually been eliminated from the singular pocket of the state to another.
This differs wildly from sovereign bailouts of corporations similar to Indah Water Konsortium, MAS, or the Putra/Star LRT, where taxpayer income was injected directly in to companies which had substantially lost untold amounts around mismanagement, corruption as well as plundering.
The transfers in the Talam debt restructuring allowed for the make up in which there is the transparent confirmation as well as accounting for the RM392 million due by Talam, as well as the singular association for them to pay it to.
The story does not finish there.Another intensely important milestone in this story i! s which MBI has in fact already succeeded in recovering all RM392 million in debt due by Talam.
For those who would similar to to keep score, this liberation came in dual forms. RM340.88 million was recovered around acquisition of land as well as assets: 1,322 acres of land in Bukit Beruntung value RM150.28 million, 2,264 acres of land in Bestari Jaya value RM105.3 million, 400 acres of land in Ulu Yam as well as 60% equity in Ulu Yam Golf & Country Resort value RM22.2 million, 134 acres of land in Danau Putra value RM52.1 million as well as five bureau units in Menara Pandan value RM11.1 million.
The superfluous RM51.12 million was collected in cash: RM12 million from sales of land in Puncak Jalil, RM5 million in income assignments from EON, RM7.68 million in payments by Unisel for earthworks, RM9.04 million from the sale of 25.94 acres of land in Bukit Beruntung, as well as RM17.4 million from sales of 218 acres of land in Bestari Jaya.
Go ahead, equate it it's all there.
Facts trump hype again
How can you summarize this? For some-more than the decade underneath BN, the singular house due the state hundreds of millions of ringgits.
Within the year or dual of taking over, Khalid managed to pick up upon these debts, now augmenting the volume of income accessible to spend upon gratification programmes throughout Selangor.
Scandal?
Yes, it's the scandal which Talam was allowed to get the giveaway lunch it did underneath BN, as well as it's the scandal which it took this prolonged for to emanate the shift in government which succeeded in cleaning up the mess.
It would be scornful to indicate which this essay is patrician privately in the hopes which Chua Tee Yong (left) wo uld take the time to carefully peruse the contribution within. Nevertheless, maybe he might find the exercise profitable in his longer tenure efforts to maintain what small credit he has left.
Said credit is shrinking during about the same rate during which he is shortening the volume of income claimed to be 'misused' by Selangor from RM1 billion, to RM260 million, to RM42 million. Before long, he might have to magnitude in sen instead.
Perhaps Chua fancies himself the Rafizi Ramli. What he fails to assimilate however, is which Rafizi's exposes have been not just all about 'glamorous' press conferences as well as big numbers. Behind each display is the ton of tough work as well as solid research.
Behind Chua appears usually to be blind aspiration which extends distant over ability, as well as the shameful mainstream media which think which hype can overturn facts.
Read More @ SourceVery really happy over a visualisation today. And intensely happy which full trial brought forward to 21 March.The good do always eventually win.
Very very happy over a visualisation today. And intensely happy which full trial brought forward to 21 March.The great do regularly eventually win.