young professionals night’08 - "purity of heart, clarity of future"

Howdy, people!! It’s just a month away! Hope you’re anticipating the event as much as we are! ^__^

The 3rd Young Professionals Night’08 - a charity dinner jointly organized by the Malaysian Pharmaceutical Society-Young Pharmacists Chapter and Young MAICSA Group in aid of MAKNA (National Cancer Council of Malaysia) - will be held at the Canopy Club, Setia Eco Park on 15 November 2008 (6.30pm – 11.00pm).

Tickets are priced at RM50 and proceeds from the dinner will be channelled to MAKNA. Raffle tickets are sold at RM5 each. Psst…did I mention that chances of winning terrific prizes at this poolside party increase with the number of tickets you buy? ;)

So, come dressed in your sweetest or flashiest pink and white in tandem with the night’s colour code to join in the fun!

To get your tickets or for further enquiries, contact:

Audrey at 019-214 1115 / snufflepaegus@yahoo.co.uk
Jason at 016-477 3570 / jcheng53@hotmail.com


Phuar Hsiao Ling
MPS-YPC

YPN (15 Nov 2008), Canopy Club @ Setia Eco Park, Shah Alam

Greetings, everyone! How have all of you been doing since we first released our announcement on the YPN? We certainly hope that everything's well on your side and that you're excited for more news from us!

For those who have marked 15 November 2008 on their daily planner, you may now add Canopy Club @ Setia Eco Park, Shah Alam, to that because that's where you'll be on that day for YPN! With direct linkage to the NKVE expressway, you can get there in 10 minutes from Damansara, 8 minutes from Subang and just 20 minutes from Jalan Duta!

We are pleased to announce that we will be working with MAKNA (National Cancer Council of Malaysia) by raising funds and spreading awareness of cancer.

Also, while shopping for something to wear for the YPN during the sales season now, think pink and white! The theme for YPN is Purity of Heart, Clarity of Future. Purity is symbolized by WHITE and our ever beating heart that keeps us alive is RED. Mix white and red together and you get PINK. So, that explains why the colour code for YPN is pink and white!

Tickets for fun and charity will cost RM50 each. And did I mention that we are gearing for a poolside party?

We'll be back with more tidings the next time!

Phuar Hsiao Ling
MPS-YPC

First Announcement of the Young Professionals Night (15 November 2008)

Hi, people!! Before you continue reading this, I request you to do one thing first. No, it’s not a reminder to hug your loved ones today but just reach out to the daily planner sitting on your table right now, uncap your pen and put a mark on 15 November 2008. And now you’ve got to keep that day (or more specifically, that night) free.

What’s so special about this date (though you now have a reason to not meet with your tiresome relatives or friends) until you have to upturn books and files and mess up your workplace in search for a pen?

Well, I’m proud to inform you that the Malaysian Pharmaceutical Society-Young Pharmacists Chapter (MPS-YPC) and the Young MAICSA Group will be hosting the third Young Professionals Night.

For the uninitiated who’s going like, “the third Young Professionals Night?” Relax, my friend. Here’s a recap of what you’ve been missing thus far, no need for you to frantically google the first and second Young Professionals Night.

The Institution of Engineers, Malaysia-Young Engineers Section (IEM-YES), then-known as IEM-Graduate & Student Section, brought forth the first Young Professionals Night at the MySciFiFan Outpost, Cineleisure Damansara, on 27 January 2007. If you came for the event, remember receiving a stack of business cards, shaking lots of hands and smiling throughout the night as hi’s and nice-to-meet-you’s and keep-in-touch’s were exchanged?

Next, the Young Lawyers Committee and the Pupils Welfare Committee of the KL Bar organized the second Young Professionals Night on 17 November 2007. Over 180 people witnessed the official launch of the Young Professionals Alliance at the Si Khiong Star Mercedes Benz showroom, Jalan Sultan Ismail.

And thus, a year later, the time is certainly ripe for another gathering of the young professionals.

So, now you’re thinking, “What can I expect from joining the Young Professionals Night?” as you ignore your tidy-freak colleague saying, “Tsk, tsk,” while he walks away from your cubicle.

Here’s what you’ll get to experience - a chance to mingle with chartered secretaries and administrators, engineers, lawyers, pharmacists and other young professionals and a chance to serve the community. We are currently in talks with MAKNA (National Cancer Council of Malaysia) to assist in their mission by raising funds for their good work and elevating the awareness of cancer among professionals and the public. And definitely, a chance to let your hair down and paint the gathering place red.

Whether you have been waiting in anticipation for the next Young Professionals event or if you have been missing all the action all this while, the opportunity has come for you to flash your million-watts smile (again) during the third Young Professionals Night this 15 November 2008. All the details will be revealed with time. Do watch out for future announcements and now you can e-mail your relatives or friends, stating that you’re booked that night for social networking.

Till the next post, take care.

Phuar Hsiao Ling
MPS-YPC

No-confidence motion rejected, opposition stages walkout

Dewan Rakyat Speaker Pandikar Amin Mulia today disallowed a no-confidence debate against Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, resulting in a walk-out by opposition Pakatan Rakyat MPs.

Pandikar rejected the emergency motion filed by Opposition Leader Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail on Friday on the grounds that the issue had already been debated last month.

According to the Speaker, the debate on the oil price hike filed by Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister Shahrir Abdul Samad on June 23 was a no-confidence motion.

In that motion, the government won with a vote of 129 against 78.

At noon, Wan Azizah stood up in the Dewan Rakyat to ask the Speaker to reconsider his decision against allowing the no-confidence debate.

However, Pandikar refused to entertain the request.

"I do not even need to give a reason for rejecting a motion. I have read the motion and it asks for a resolution and that does not fall under Standing Order 18(1) in which it is filed under."

"How can I allow something that does not fall within this SO (standing orders)? If I allowed it, the whole world will look at me and see if I make a stupid decision or not," he said.

Shouting match

This led to a shouting match with BN MPs telling their opposition counterparts to sit while a visibly agitated Pandikar Amin hammered his gavel several times demanding for order.

Around 12.20pm, Wan Azizah then announced that Pakatan Rakyat MPs would walk out since they were not given the opportunity to carry the voice of the public to the August House.

Outside the hall, the PKR president told reporters that she was unhappy with the way the emergency motion was dealt with by both the Speaker and the police.

"I want to know why was the motion rejected. This is the government's reaction to us because we wanted to debate a motion democratically in Parliament.

"We're disappointed and we regret that this has happened. Is this a siege? What is there to it? The Speaker only needs to give 30 minutes for us to speak and another 30 for the government to speak.

"This is why we walked out. They disrespect the rules and the voice of the people that we carry into the house," she said.She said the opposition will also boycott the rest of today's proceedings to protest against the police action today in turning Parliament into a "war zone".

There was a heavy police presence in Parliament as roadblocks were mounted along major roads leading to the building causing massive traffic jams.

Why bar Anwar?

The roadblocks are in anticipation of a protest ahead of the possible no-confidence debate.
However, the opposition denied calling for a rally and the police yesterday obtained a court order barring PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim from the vicinity.

Commenting on this, Wan Azizah expressed amazement at the overreaction by various parties over Anwar's interest in attending Parliament.

"He expressed his interest to attend parliament to hear the motion and that triggered such an amazing reaction.

"How can an individual be barred from entering if he is a guest of mine? Until there is a directive that any guest of the MP is not allowed in. I don't understand.

"I want the inspector-general of police to explain why is there this (overblown) reaction," she said, adding that it gives the impression that Malaysia is a police state.

On whether Pakatan will file a similar motion in future, Wan Azizah said the parties will discuss to see what to do next.

Not the right order

At a separate press conference, Pandikar Amin said the opposition MPs had a right to stage a walkout but declined to comment on it.

He also explained the reason why he wrote to Wan Azizah this morning - before Parliament began - to reject the emergency motion in chambers.

According to him, the opposition had filed their emergency motion for a resolution under Standing Orders 18 but that standing order only allows for debates.

"It is not the proper standing order. SO 18(1) and (2) does not allow for vote of no-confidence to be carried out. It is like a person who had committed raped but was charged for murder. You cannot do that," he said.

He explained that the emergency motion requesting for a resolution which leads to voting should be filed under SO 27.

Pandikar Amin also said that the debate on the security and leadership has already been discussed on June 23 during Shahrir's emergency motion debate on the fuel price hike and the mid-term review of the 9th Malaysian Plan.

"If I had allowed the motion, I will be seen as the most stupid Speaker in the world for allowing a motion filed under the wrong SO to be debated.

"I will not allow them to drag the Speaker into their politics. I will let the people decide whether they were right to walk out and whether I was right in rejecting their motion," he said.

MV Agusta: Proton sells for RM5, Harley buys for RM350 mil

Harley Davidson Inc has agreed to purchase Italian motorcycle manufacturer MV Agusta, once owned by Proton Holdings Bhd, for US$109 million (RM352 million).

According to an Associated Press report, the deal will help Harley-Davidson expand into the European market as sales slump in the US, where consumers are pulling back on spending.

In 2006, Proton Holdings had sold the company, which it bought for RM368 million, for one euro (RM5), a deal which raised many eyebrows and drew flak from various quarters.

Among those who criticised the 'firesale' were former premier and Proton adviser Dr Mahathir Mohamad and the company’s former chief executive officer Tengku Mahaleel Arif.

In a news report then, Mahathir said: "As the two people (Mahathir and Mahaleel) most involved in the purchase of MV Agusta, our credibility and honesty are at stake."

Mahathir said there was no urgent need to sell the stake in the Italian motorcycle company as its debts had been frozen.

In defending the sale, Proton had said here were no synergies between the motorcycle maker and Proton as a carmaker.

"There were no operational, engineering, and technological synergies between Agusta and Proton. This has been independently confirmed by Proton’s appointed advisers.

"Proton manufactures cars for the masses while Agusta manufactures motorcycle," the company had said in a statement.

Careful consideration

Proton bought a 57.75 percent stake in MV Agusta in December 2004 for 70 million euro (RM367.6 million).

The current management sold the stake to Italy’s GEVI Spa, which also assumed the motorcycle maker’s 107 million euro debt.

Proton said the entire purchase consideration of RM367.6 million was treated as goodwill and written off in the financial year ended March 31, 2005.

The additional provisions relating to MV Agusta in the accounts of the Proton group for the financial year ended March 31, 2006, amounted to RM136.2 million.

The company also reiterated that the decision to dispose the stake in MV Agusta was after careful consideration of the financial and operational implications to the Proton group, both in the immediate as well as the long term.

Meanwhile, Harley Davidson is expected to seal the deal in several weeks. It will be paid for through euro-denominated debt, said the American motorcycle manufacturer.

The purchase price includes Harley-Davidson assuming MV Agusta's existing bank debt of about US$70 million.

MV Agusta is privately held, and the Castiglioni family owns 95 percent of its shares.

Under the agreement, Harley-Davidson will pay Claudio Castiglioni, who will continue to serve as chairman, additional payments in 2016 if certain financial targets are met.

MV Agusta will keep operating from its headquarters in Varese, Italy. Harley-Davidson will appoint a new managing director once the deal closes.

The Xie Xingxing murder trial: Azura threatened to kill Xie, London court told

MALAYSIAN Noor Azura Mohd Yusoff, on trial at the Old Bailey for the brutal decapitation of a Chinese student whose hands were also chopped off, was a prostitute, prosecutors claimed.

Prosecutors said that Noor Azura, 22, also known as 'Princess', was a hooker, was "possessive", and also jealous of the relationships her Belfast-born boyfriend of Vietnamese origin, 26-year-old Trach Lon Gian, had with other women.

Noor Azura was also alleged to have issued a death threat to Xie Xingxing days before the victim's remains were found floating in a bag in a south London dock.

In court yesterday, Xie's flatmate, Rui Li, said Xie, known as Evelyn to her friends, told her that Noor Azura had called and threatened to kill her.

Speaking in Mandarin via an interpreter, Li said, "She (Noor Azura) was asking about the relationship between Evelyn and her boyfriend, and also if Evelyn had any relationship with her boyfriend she would not have treated it kindly.

"Later on, Evelyn told me that she had threatened her and said she would kill her."
Li said even she (Li) was not spared a warning as Noor Azura had texted her phone with a message which read: "Leave my boyfriend alone, stay away from him."

Trach, from Deptford, south London, is also accused of the crime. Both he and Noor Azura have denied murdering Xie. Li, who worked with Xie in a karaoke bar, said that prior to the murder she had attended a party at a Greenwich hotel.

However, she left when the party continued at the home of Noor Azura and Trach in Knoyle Street, New Cross, south-east London.

Noor Azura, the court was told, wasn't present at the house during the party.

Li said Trach told her he did not "love her (Noor Azura) as much as he used to but he will still be responsible for her".

Another Vietnamese man, Chanh Ngo, whom the authorities believed was involved in the murder but has since fled Britain, was also present at the party, she said.

Xie was believed to have been killed two weeks after the party.

On Wednesday, the prosecution argued that evidence pointed to the murder having been committed in the couple's flat.

Brian Altman, appearing for the prosecution, said traces of Xie's blood were found in the flat.

The odds that the blood wasn't hers, Altman, said, were a billion to one. The property, he said, had been cleaned by the time police searched it. However, cops discovered swabs of blood matching Xie's on the bathroom door and on the shower head in the bath.

"The probability of obtaining matching DNA profiles if the blood had come from someone else was in the order of one in a billion," he said.

The prosecution also said that there was "very strong" evidence that a bedsheet found with Xie's body had been in contact with the beige carpet at the house.

Her decapitated body, minus hands, were fished out of the river on April 19 by a couple living in a boathouse in the marina. Seven weeks later, a decapitated head wrapped in a bin bag washed up close by.

Jurors were also told that there was "moderate support" for saying the plastic bags used to wrap the head were from a roll found at the address.

Her hands have never been found.

The case continues today.

ACA quizzes IGP Musa, AG Gani

Anti-Corruption Agency (ACA) has summoned inspector-general of police Musa Hassan and attorney-general Abdul Gani Patail for questioning on the allegation that they were involved in fabricating evidence in former deputy premier Anwar Ibrahim's black eye incident.

Musa arrived at the ACA headquarters in Putrajaya at 8.20am wearing a grey suit with a polka-dot tie. He smiled to journalists before entering the building. Meanwhile, Gani arrived at 9.50am.

Both Musa and Gani did not stop to talk to the media after their separate sessions with the ACA.Gani, who was first to come out of the meeting at about 11.30am, walked past the horde of waiting reporters without saying a word.Musa came out of the ACA headquarters at about 1.05pm and similarly broke through the media cordon."I have nothing to say. Thank you," said Musa as he evaded answering questions from reporters who had been waiting since early morning to get comments from both the IGP and the AG."They recorded my statement. That's all," Musa said before speeding off in his official car.

Last Tuesday, PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim lodged a police report against Musa and Gani for allegedly fabricating evidence in his trials 10 years ago.At that time, Musa was the investigating officer of the charges against Anwar while AG Gani was the chief prosecutor. When Anwar was arrested on Sept 20, 1999, he was brought to the national police headquarters in Bukit Aman where the former deputy premier was beaten by then police chief Abdul Rahim Noor, resulting in a black eye and injuries to other parts of his body.

Original medical reports ignored

Anwar said that the original medical reports done by a number of doctors were ignored.

"The medical reports concluded that the injury inflicted on me was consistent with an assault," said Anwar in his police report.However, Anwar claimed that instead of accepting the report and proceeded to prosecute his assailant, then attorney-general Mokhtar Abdullah - in collusion with Gani - asked another doctor, Dr Abdul Rahman Yusof, to allegedly fabricate a second medical report.

Anwar said he believed both Musa and Gani were present in Bukit Aman on the night he was assaulted by Rahim Noor and that both had "concealed" the assault."I believe both Musa and Gani Patail were actively involved in the procuring of the second undated report by Dr Rahman..." he said.Anwar called for a fresh investigation into the alleged fabrication of evidence, which is an offence punishable by up to 7 years' imprisonment.

The ACA has stepped in to investigate the allegation as both the police and Attorney-General's Chambers are implicated in the matter.

'Dismayed' by Thai, Malaysian problems (The Straits Time Singapore)

In remarks on recent developments in Thailand and Malaysia, MM Lee said - in response to a question on the future of the Asian region - that he is filled with 'dismay' that these two countries have run into severe problems:'It fills me with dismay because these were potentially promising countries, promising economies, but now they've run into some very severe problems.

Why? Because in Thailand, they say corruption. So to stop the corruption, they have a coup. Then they have another election. But the election does not solve the problem of getting (former) prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra's influence removed. So they have all kinds of new rules and laws to disqualify his party or the new party...So as a consequence, you look at the stock markets, it's gone down. The economy is sound, the politics is a problem.

You look at Malaysia. The economy. It is one of the wealthiest countries in the region. It's got oil, it's got gas, it's got palm oil. All the commodities it has. It's also got a manufacturing sector.But suddenly, it's trapped in some political-cum-personal difficulties of charges and counter-charges which can only be bad for the economy. I think the KL Stock Exchange has gone down by some 20 per cent. I don't track it, but I know it's down.If you have confidence that this will be resolved in six months or one year, then you buy. If it's not resolved and it goes down another 20 per cent, then you've lost...But I see all these problems as man-made. It's not economics. It is lack of a certain integrity in the system that you are entrusted with and you therefore run it properly.

People can say anything they like: Singapore is undemocratic, we trip our opposition down, this, that and the other. But if you say that this Government is corrupt or has mismanaged the country's resources, I'll sue you!And they still do that.

And the Western press supports the people who say that because they want to see us down.But because we sue them again and again, nobody in Singapore believes that anybody is doing anything that's criminal, corrupt or improper. So we can make a mistake - and everybody knows you can't be 100 per cent right every time - but nobody has profited from that mistake.'

LexisNexis-KL Bar Treasure Hunt 2008

The KL Bar Social, Arts and Culture Committee is once again co-organizing the annual LexisNexis - KL Bar Treasure Hunt. The event this year will be held on the 9th August 2008 covering an area within the Klang Valley. The organisers appeal to members of the Bar and pupils-in-chambers to participate in this event which offers prizes worth more than RM 20,000.

The Hunt involves participants solving riddles and identifying “treasures” based on clues provided. All you need to do is to gather a team of 4 members (1 driver, 1 navigator and 2 “treasure-hunters”) to take part. You don’t have to be exceptionally smart – all you need is an IQ of a competent LLB graduate. That makes it so much easier doesn’t it? Useful tips will be given at a briefing session prior to the Hunt.

All participants will be given a t-shirt, a bag of fantastic goodies and will be served mouth-watering high-tea at the prize-giving ceremony.

Categories

Open - members of the public

Closed - members of the Malaysian Bar and staff of LexisNexisEntry

Fee

Open - RM90.00 per person

Closed - RM70.00 per person

Click here for the Flyer and Entry Form that contain more information about the Hunt.The KL Bar’s share of the proceeds this year will go directly either to charitable organizations or to fund a social or community development project undertaken by the KLBC. Let's get together for a day of fun and comradeship and at the same time to support a noble cause!

Lai Chee Hoe

Chair

Social, Arts & Culture Committee

Will the 'lone ranger' ride to the top?

Known as the "politician with a different voice," MCA vice-president Ong Tee Keat is also dubbed as the "lone ranger" within party circles.

Many outside the party circles look up to the 52-year-old politician for his eloquence especially his outspokenness on matters of public interests. The reading community also notes that Tee Keat continues to be a columnist for a Chinese daily (Sin Chew Jit Poh).

Will these characteristics and "intangible assets" of Tee Keat fade off as he climbs higher up the political ladder?

In fact, Tee Keat's political career spanning some two decades, his readiness to speak out and to call "a spade a spade," have never endeared him to any incumbent leadership particularly when traditional partisanship or factionalism occurs during a leadership crisis.

Strong political convictions

Perceptively, it is therefore a paradox that Tee Keat, the lone ranger did survive all these decades since he launched his political career as political secretary to Lee Kim Sai who was former labour minister in 1986.

Or was it pure coincidence that Tee Keat had his political humble beginnings serving Kim Sai (in Cantonese, meaning "golden lion") during that time, who was also known for his often frank, straightforward views against those of Umno.

Both men are known to have strong political convictions and "doing politics differently" during their respective times when traditional models of participation seemed to be running out of steam.

Some close associates believe that Tee Keat's character had much bearing during his childhood days. Raised in a fishmonger family (Hainanese clan), his father passed away when he was in Form One. Almost ending up as a school dropout, the young Tee Keat aged 13 pursued a career in engineering instead. That was after his mother reversed her earlier decision by not sending her son to become a car mechanic apprentice. It was a destiny and gratitude he treasures up to this day, for his mother.

After graduating in engineering (B. Engineering-Mechanic, Hon) in 1981, Tee Keat worked in various sales and marketing positions in the engineering field.

1n 1989, he contested the Ampang parliamentary seat after having served three years as political secretary to Kim Sai.

In his life, Tee Keat was never handed things on a "silver platter." Even in his political career, he admitted it as being a roller coaster ride. At times his outspokenness invited political "hiccups" as in the case of him being accused of lying over the "misuse of repair fund" relating to the SJKC Kung Yu school in Muar, Johor.

Some of his political rivals once described Tee Keat as a stubborn man, a "law unto himself." Yet, many who have known him in their political journey are beginning to understand him and his way of "doing politics differently."

Choosing sides

Malaysian Business' M Shanmugam who wrote a piece on Tee Keat (who was then MCA Youth leader) in 2001, said, "Tee Keat always has to fight his way to the top."

"Tee Keat is on unfamiliar turf. For once in his political career, he has forged an alliance-even if only with those opposed to party president Ling Liong Sik. In his 15 years of active party politics, Tee Keat was known to be a lone ranger ... not affiliated to any particular party leader nor is he known to have a passion for sycophancy politics."

"However, Tee Keat has a large following among the youth wing, evident by his election as secretary-general (of the wing) for three terms between 1990 and 1999."

Tee Keat had his fair share of controversies for his "straight-jacket talking," and sticking to facts instead of rhetoric. For instance, in 2005, Tee Keat caught many by surprise, coming out in the open denying the "caption" bestowed by his critics, calling him the "lone ranger."

Saying it was time to clarify, "Lone rangers cannot survive in MCA and I am not one. It is time for certain quarters to forget this unfairly perceived notion."

Perhaps, the best and bitter lessons Tee Keat learnt was during the Ling (Liong Sik) - Lim (Ah Lek) crisis. Tee Keat's allegiance to Team B (led by former deputy president Lim Ah Lek) virtually made him a target in the infamous "MCA Youth chair-throwing fracas incident" in 2001.

Tee Keat earned the wrath of Ling's supporters for his stand insisting that the former president Ling apologise for implicitly re-instating two youth leaders (both aligned to Team A) who were "sacked" during the youth assembly (after the chair-throwing incident).

Recalling that "team A outnumbered those in faction B," Ling at a central committee meeting held on Dec 20, 2001 "bull-dozed" a resolution with a specific hidden agenda to accept a "political solution" (to resolve the infamous incident) by "suspending the youth wing."

The greatest injustice was not bringing to book those culprits directly involved in the chair throwing. Ironically, it was supposedly to "bring back order and dignity" into the MCA youth movement.

It was a "bullying tactic" that Tee Keat would not probably forget in his political career.
Tee Keat was even labelled by some rival faction within his party as "Ong-Sama", (which sounded like the terrorist Osama bin Laden), a joke he laughed off with some foreign visitors at a dinner in 2007.

Going for the top?

In recent weeks, Tee Keat has been the subject of widespread speculation that he has been eyed to be the next party president, a post which the incumbent Ong Ka Ting had publicly declared he would not be contesting in the October 2008 elections.

Many questions are rising, for instance, the Chinese idiom, "Jie shi huan hun," (literally meaning "borrowing the corpse to regain the soul") - suggesting will the incumbent president Ka Ting assists his elder brother Ka Chuan to contest a top post?

The stage is set for the divisional elections on July 27 and moving forward to the battle-line of the October 2008 event. Will a re-visiting of the "ghosts" (factionalism involving Team A and B) take place? What will be the likely scenario on the outcome of the candidates' line-up for the contests?

Tee Keat may not have the answers to all these questions but one thing is for sure, he is in the spotlight and the road ahead may be no different from the one he has walked for the past 22 years.

Tee Keat was appointed transport minister, soon after he won the Pandan parliamentary seat in the March 8 general election under the MCA-BN ticket, defeating his political rival, a high profile PKR candidate Syed Shahrir Syed Mohamud (who is MTUC president).

Private investigator's statutory declaration in full

The following is the full 16-page statutory declaration sign by Abdul Razak Baginda's private investigor P Balasubramaniam on July 1.

I, Balasubramaniam a/l Perumal ... do solemly and sincerely declare as follows:

1. I have been a police officer with the Royal Malaysian Police Force, having joined as a constable in 1981 attached to the police field force. I was then promoted to the rank of lance corporal and finally resigned from the police force in 1998 when I was with the Special Branch.

2. I have been working as a freelance private investigator since I left the police force.

3. Sometime in June or July 2006, I was employed by Abdul Razak Baginda for a period of 10 days to look after him at his office at the Bangunan Getah Asli, Jalan Ampang between the hours of 8am to 5pm each working day as apparently he was experiencing disturbances from a third party.

4. I resigned from this job after 2½ days as I was not receiving any proper instructions.

5. I was however re-employed by Abdul Razak Baginda on the Oct 5, 2006 as he had apparently received a harassing phone call from a Chinese man calling himself ASP Tan who had threatened him to pay his debts. I later found out this gentleman was in fact a private investigator called Ang who was employed by a Mongolian woman called Altantuya Shaaribuu.

6. Abdul Razak Baginda was concerned that a person by the name of Altantuya Shaaribuu, a Mongolian woman, was behind this threat and that she would be arriving in Malaysia very soon to try and contact him.

7. Abdul Razak Baginda informed me that he was concerned by this as he had been advised that Altantuya Shaaribuu had been given some powers by a Mongolian ‘bomoh’ and that he could never look her in the face because of this.

8. When I enquired as to who this Mongolian woman was, Abdul Razak Baginda informed me that she was a friend of his who had been introduced to him by a VIP and who asked him to look after her financially.

9. I advised him to lodge a police report concerning the threatening phone call he had received from the Chinese man known as ASP Tan but he refused to do so as he informed me there were some high-profile people involved.

10. Abdul Razak Baginda further told me that Altantuya Shaaribuu was a great liar and good in convincing people. She was supposed to have been very demanding financially and that he had even financed a property for her in Mongolia.

11. Abdul Razak Baginda then let me listen to some voice messages on his handphone asking him to pay what was due otherwise he would be harmed and his daughter harassed.

12. I was therefore supposed to protect his daughter Rowena as well.

13. On Oct 9, 2006 I received a phone call from Abdul Razak Baginda at about 9.30am informing me that Altantuya was in his office and he wanted me there immediately. As I was in the midst of a surveillance, I sent my assistant Suras to Abdul Razak Baginda’s office and I followed a little later. Suras managed to control the situation and had persuaded Altantuya and her two friends to leave the premises. However Altantuya left a note written on some Hotel Malaya notepaper, in English, asking Abdul Razak Baginda to call her on her handphone (number given) and wrote down her room number as well.

14. Altantuya had introduced herself to Suras as ‘Aminah’ and had informed Suras she was there to see her boyfriend Abdul Razak Baginda.

15. These three Mongolian girls however returned to Abdul Razak Baginda’s office at the Bangunan Getah Asli, Jalan Ampang again, the next day at about 12 noon. They did not enter the building but again informed Suras that they wanted to meet Aminah’s boyfriend, Abdul Razak Baginda.

16. On Oct 11, 2006, Aminah returned to Abdul Razak Baginda’s office on her own and gave me a note to pass to him, which I did. Abdul Razak Baginda showed me the note which basically asked him to call her urgently.

17. I suggested to Abdul Razak Baginda that perhaps it may be wise to arrange for Aminah to be arrested if she harassed him further, but he declined as he felt she would have to return to Mongolia as soon as her cash ran out.

18. In the meantime, I had arranged for Suras to perform surveillance on Hotel Malaya to monitor the movements of these three Mongolian girls, but they recognised him. Apparently they become friends with Suras after that and he ended up spending a few nights in their hotel room.

19. When Abdul Razak Baginda discovered Suras was becoming close to Aminah he asked me to pull him out from Hotel Malaya.

20. On the Oct 14, 2006, Aminah turned up at Abdul Razak Baginda’s house in Damansara Heights when I was not there. Abdul Razak Baginda called me on my handphone to inform me of this so I rushed back to his house. As I arrived, I noticed Aminah outside the front gates shouting “Razak, bastard, come out from the house”. I tried to calm her down but couldn’t, so I called the police who arrived in two patrol cars. I explained the situation to the police, who took her away to the Brickfields police station.

21. I followed the patrol cars to Brickfields police station in a taxi. I called Abdul Razak Baginda and his lawyer Dirren to lodge a police report but they refused.

22. When I was at the Brickfields police station, Aminah’s own private investigator, one Mr Ang arrived and we had a discussion. I was told to deliver a demand to Abdul Razak Baginda for US$500,000 and three tickets to Mongolia, apparently as commission owed to Aminah from a deal in Paris.

23. As Aminah had calmed down at this stage, a policewoman at the Brickfields police station advised me to leave and settle the matter amicably.

24. I duly informed Abdul Razak Baginda of the demands Aminah had made and told him I was disappointed that no one wanted to back me up in lodging a police report. We had a long discussion about the situation when I expressed a desire to pull out of this assignment.

25. During this discussion and in an attempt to persuade me to continue my employment with him, Abdul Razak Baginda informed me that:

1) He had been introduced to Aminah by Najib Razak at a diamond exhibition in Singapore.
2) Najib Razak informed Abdul Razak Baginda that he had a sexual relationship with Aminah and that she was susceptible to anal intercourse.
3) Najib Razak wanted Abdul Razak Baginda to look after Aminah as he did not want her to harass him since he was now the deputy prime minister.
4) Najib Razak, Abdul Razak Baginda and Aminah had all been together at a dinner in Paris.
5) Aminah wanted money from him as she felt she was entitled to a US$500,000 commission on a submarine deal she assisted with in Paris.

26. On Oct 19, 2006, I arrived at Abdul Razak Baginda’s house in Damansara Heights to begin my night duty. I had parked my car outside as usual. I saw a yellow Proton Perdana taxi pass by with three ladies inside, one of whom was Aminah. The taxi did a U-turn and stopped in front of the house where these ladies rolled down the window and wished me ‘Happy Deepavali’. The taxi then left.

27. About 20 minutes later the taxi returned with only Aminah in it. She got out of the taxi and walked towards me and started talking to me. I sent an SMS to Abdul Razak Baginda informing him “Aminah was here”. I received an SMS from Razak instructing me “to delay her until my man comes”.

28. Whist I was talking to Aminah, she informed me of the following:

1) That she met Abdul Razak Baginda in Singapore with Najib Razak.
2) That she had also met Abdul Razak Baginda and Najib Razak at a dinner in Paris.
3) That she was promised a sum of US$500,000.00 as commission for assisting in a submarine deal in Paris.
4) That Abdul Razak Baginda had bought her a house in Mongolia but her brother had refinanced it and she needed money to redeem it.
5) That her mother was ill and she needed money to pay for her treatment.
6) That Abdul Razak Baginda had married her in Korea as her mother is Korean whilst her father was a Mongolian/Chinese mix.
7) That if I wouldn’t allow her to see Abdul Razak Baginda, would I be able to arrange for her to see Najib Razak.

29. After talking to Aminah for about 15 minutes, a red Proton Aeroback arrived with a woman and two men. I now know the woman to be lance corporal Rohaniza and the men, Azilah Hadri and Sirul Azahar. They were all in plainclothes. Azilah walked towards me while the other two stayed in the car.

30. Azilah asked me whether the woman was Aminah and I said “Yes”. He then walked off and made a few calls on his handphone. After 10 minutes another vehicle, a blue Proton Saga, driven by a Malay man, passed by slowly. The drivers window had been wound down and the driver was looking at us.

31. Azilah then informed me they would be taking Aminah away. I informed Aminah they were arresting her. The other two persons then got out of the red Proton and exchanged seats so that lance corporal Rohaniza and Aminah were in the back while the two men were in the front. They drove off and that is the last I ever saw of Aminah.

32. Abdul Razak Baginda was not at home when all this occurred.

33. After Oct 19, 2006, I continued to work for Abdul Razak Baginda at his house in Damansara Heights from 7pm to 8am the next morning, as he had been receiving threatening text messages from a woman called ‘Amy’ who was apparently ‘Aminah’s’ cousin in Mongolia.

34. On the night of Oct 20, 2006, both of Aminah’s girlfriends turned up at Abdul Razak Baginda’s house enquiring where Aminah was. I informed them she had been arrested the night before.

35. A couple of nights later, these two Mongolian girls, Mr Ang and another Mongolian girl called ‘Amy’ turned up at Abdul Razak Baginda’s house looking for Aminah as they appeared to be convinced she was being held in the house.

36. A commotion began so I called the police who arrived shortly thereafter in a patrol car. Another patrol car arrived a short while later in which was the investigating officer from the Dang Wangi police station who was in charge of the missing persons report lodged by one of the Mongolians girls, I believe was Amy.

37. I called Abdul Razak Baginda who was at home to inform him of the events taking place at his front gate. He then called DSP Musa Safri and called me back informing me that Musa Safri would be calling handphone and I was to pass the phone to the inspector from Dang Wangi police station.

38. I then received a call on my handphone from Musa Safri and duly handed the phone to the Dang Wangi inspector. The conversation lasted 3-4 minutes after which he told the girls to disperse and to go to see him the next day.

39. On or about Oct 24, 2006, Abdul Razak Baginda instructed me to accompany him to the Brickfields police station as he had been advised to lodge a police report about the harassment he was receiving from these Mongolian girls.

40. Before this, Amy had sent me an SMS informing me she was going to Thailand to lodge a report with the Mongolian consulate there regarding Aminah’s disappearance. Apparently she had sent the same SMS to Abdul Razak Baginda. This is why he told me he had been advised to lodge a police report.

41. Abdul Razak Baginda informed me that DPS Musa Safri had introduced him to one DSP Idris, the head of the criminal division, Brickfields police station, and that Idris had referred him to ASP Tonny.

42. When Abdul Razak Baginda had lodged his police report at Brickfields police station, in front of ASP Tonny, he was asked to make a statement but he refused as he said he was leaving for overseas. He did however promise to prepare a statement and hand ASP Tonny a thumbdrive. I know that this was not done as ASP Tonny told me.

43. However ASP Tonny asked me the next day to provide my statement instead and so I did.

44. I stopped working for Abdul Razak Baginda on Oct 26, 2006 as this was the day he left for Hong Kong on his own.

45. In mid-November 2006, I received a phone call from ASP Tonny from the IPK Jalan Hang Tuah asking me to see him regarding Aminah’s case. When I arrived there I was immediately arrested under Section 506 of the Penal Code for criminal intimidation.

46. I was then placed in the lock up and remanded for five days. On the third day, I was released on police bail.

47. At the end of November 2006, the D9 department of the IPK sent a detective to my house to escort me to the IPK Jalan Hang Tuah. When I arrived, I was told I was being arrested under Section 302 of the Penal Code for murder. I was put in the lock up and remanded for seven days.

48. I was transported to Bukit Aman where I was interrogated and questioned about an SMS I had received from Abdul Razak Baginda on Oct 19, 2006 which read “delay her until my man arrives”. They had apparently retrieved this message from Abdul Razak Baginda’s handphone.

49. They then proceeded to record my statement from 8.30 am to 6pm everyday for seven consecutive days. I told them all I knew including everything Abdul Razak Baginda and Aminah had told me about their relationships with Najib Razak but when I came to sign my statement, these details had been left out.

50. I have given evidence in the trial of Azilah, Sirul and Abdul Razak Baginda at the Shah Alam High Court. The prosecutor did not ask me any questions in respect of Aminah’s relationship with Najib Razak or of the phone call I received from DSP Musa Safri, whom I believe was the ADC for Najib Razak and/or his wife.

51. On the day Abdul Razak Baginda was arrested, I was with him at his lawyers office at 6.30am. Abdul Razak Baginda informed us that he had sent Najib Razak an SMS the evening before as he refused to believe he was to be arrested, but had not received a response.

52. Shortly thereafter, at about 7.30am, Abdul Razak Baginda received an SMS from Najib Razak and showed, this message to both myself and his lawyer. This message read as follows: “ I am seeing IGP at 11am today … matter will be solved … be cool”.

53. I have been made to understand that Abdul Razak Baginda was arrested the same morning at his office in the Bangunan Getah Asli, Jalan Ampang.

54. The purpose of this Statutory declaration is to:

1) State my disappointment at the standard of investigations conducted by the authorities into the circumstances surrounding the murder of Altantuya Shaaribuu.
2) Bring to the notice of the relevant authorities the strong possibility that there are individuals other than the three accused who must have played a role in the murder of Altantuya Shaaribuu.
3) Persuade the relevant authorities to reopen their investigations into this case immediately so that any fresh evidence may be presented to the court prior to submissions at the end of the prosecutions case.
4) Emphasise the fact that having been a member of the Royal Malaysian Police Force for 17 years, I am absolutely certain no police officer would shoot someone in the head and blow up their body without receiving specific instructions from their superiors first.
5) Express my concern that should the defence not be called in the said murder trial, the accused, Azilah and Sirul will not have to swear on oath and testify as to the instructions they received and from whom they were given.

55. And I make this solemn declaration conscientiously believing the same be true and by virtue of the provisions of the Statutory Declaration Act 1960.
Balasubramaniam a/l Perumal July 1, 2008

Saiful's 'I quit' mail to Anwar

Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan had purportedly resigned as PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim’s aide after much "reflection and contemplation" just a day before lodging a police report against his ex-boss.

An email believed to be from Saiful was made available to malaysiakini, in which he reveals his decision to quit.

Dated June 27, the email was sent to Anwar and PKR chief of staff Ibrahim Yaacob from Saiful’s Blackberry mobile phone at 3.01am.

The mail reads:

Nobody know (sic) what God decides for us. People come and go. After seeing the new office, I felt a sense of worry and repentance in me.

I’ve been reflecting upon myself in the past few weeks. This is the conclusion from my reflections of myself.

1. Indiscipline. Not punctual.

2. Unqualified. It will make it easier for your enemies to attack you and tarnish your image.

For the sake of your well being and the party’s, I regret to inform you that I am submitting my resignation as your private assistant effective today.

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to work. All the knowledge that you’ve bestowed upon me will be used as best as possible.

Anwar sent a reply at 6.28am which stated:

Thank you for continuing your services and (good luck with) your university education. You have served with sincerity, loyalty and commitment.

There is more knowledge to be gained. Haha.

Ibrahim will coordinate your tasks after this as best as he can.

'Not his style'

According to Ibrahim, the email address belongs to Saiful but the former is sceptical as to whether the resignation letter was actually written by him.

"I received that email that day and I could tell that it is not his style. It could have been authored by somebody else," he told Malaysiakini.

Last Saturday, Saiful caused a stir when he lodged a police report alleging that Anwar had sodomised him.

Anwar had dismissed this as a "complete fabrication" and sought refuge in the Turkish Embassy on grounds that he feared for his life after the allegations surfaced.

However, he has since returned to his home after getting assurances for his safety from three ministers - Home Minister Syed Hamid Albar, Foreign Minister Dr Rais Yatim and Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak.

Meanwhile, Saiful was sent to Hospital Kuala Lumpur for a medical examination and is believed to be awaiting the results.

The police are expected to question Anwar soon as investigations are underway.

It is learnt that Saiful began working for Anwar’s office one week before the March 8 general elections.

He was then assisting Rahimi Osman, also a former aide of Anwar, in coordinating the former deputy prime minister’s election schedule and programme.

After elections ended, he was retained as Anwar’s private assistant. Rahimi subsequently resigned from Anwar’s office 3-4 weeks ago and the work was absorbed by Ibrahim, then assisted by Saiful.

Saiful's character had been the subject of much heated debate on the Internet with at least two bloggers through their site claiming to know him personally.

A visit to his home in Bandar Utama affirmed further that Saiful's whereabouts are presently unknown.

Anwar to file report against IGP, AG

A police report is expected to be lodged against the police chief Musa Hassan and attorney-general A Gani Patail this morning over their alleged misconduct during Anwar Ibrahim's trials in 1998-1999.

Lawyers acting for the PKR de facto leader are expected to lodge the report.Yesterday Anwar had said that he had evidence implicating inspector-general of police Musa and AG Abdul Gani Patail in misconduct, including fabrication of evidence in the cases launched against him after his sacking from the government in 1998.He added that a fresh police report lodged against him for sodomy was a result of "interested parties to attack me in retaliation" over this evidence in his possession.

The report alleging sodomy was filed by Anwar's aide, 23-year-old Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan, yesterday.Anwar claimed that the accusation against him was a "complete fabrication". PKR also said that Saiful was arrested and forced by the police to lodge such a report against Anwar.

Wan Azizah: Aide was volunteer staff

This morning party president Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail said that Saiful was a volunteer who joined to help the party during the general election period three months ago.She added that little was known of him and that no background check was done on him as he was just a volunteer. He later become a special assistant to Anwar. Saiful is a former student leader at the Universiti Tenaga Nasional.

Wan Azizah also added that Anwar "was taking it well" with the latest happening.Anwar's lawyers are expected to hold a press conference at about 12 noon today, to be followed by one held by Anwar himself.The police have denied that Saiful was arrested and forced to fabricate evidence as claimed by PKR.

Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has also denied that the government was behind the new allegation against Anwar and he would let the police to investigate the matter and take necessary action.Meanwhile, Anwar's supporters have started gathering at the Quality Hotel in Shah Alam in anticipation of a police action against the politician.Many had was there overnight to monitor the situation and protect Anwar, who is at staying at a hotel to attend a two-day PKR workshop with all its elected representatives.This morning there were two police patrol vehicles outside the hotel.

Ka Ting out of presidential race

Two-term MCA president Ong Ka Ting has announced that he would not be defending his post in the upcoming party polls, paving the way for a new leadership to take over.

“After three months of deep consideration, I have decided that in the October party election, I will not defend my post,” he announced at a press statement this evening.Meanwhile, party deputy president Chan Kong Choy has also stated that he will not defend his post.With Ka Ting and Chan both bowing out, the race to helm MCA has been left wide open with vice-president Ong Tee Keat and secretary-general Ong Ka Chuan as likely front runners.

Other likely contenders include two former MCA vice-presidents - Chua Jui Meng and Dr Chua Soi Lek. Of late, the duo have sought to make a comeback and had won elections at the party's branch level.

Transition period

Explaining his move, Ka Ting said that he had initially considered resigning as MCA president following the MCA’s dismal performance in the March 8 general election. However, he decided to hold on to the post and ensure that MCA is given adequate representation in the cabinet first. “The party grassroots generally understand the current political situation and trends. They want to see a transition and strategy change in MCA in light of the current difficult challenges ahead.“This (party election) is the starting point for the transition,” added the former local goverment and housing minister. Ka Ting’s decision to quit comes as a shock to political observers even though there had been small pockets of dissenters in the party clamouring for his removal.

‘Healthy political culture’

Ka Ting’s legacy in MCA includes his “healthy political culture” campaign and a provision in the party constitution which limits members from holding party and government positions to only three terms.Having already served two terms as president, Ka Ting had the option of defending his post for a final three-year term.

At 52, Ka Ting is considered relatively young to retire from politics but he also started young in politics. He joined MCA in 1979 when he was 23.Ka Ting had previously served as a teacher before embarking on his political career as press secretary and later, political secretary to then transport minister Dr Ling Liong Sik. His rise up the ranks in the party has been rapid.He was elected MP of Pontian (later renamed Tanjung Piai) in 1990, which he held in the March 8 general election.

Following the tumultuous ‘Team A - Team B’ split from 1999-2002, Ka Ting was appointed party president in 2003 after then prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad brokered a peace plan.

His presidency was legitimised in the 2005 party election when he defeated sole challenger Chua Jui Meng for the post.

Meanwhile, MCA deputy-president Chan Kong Choy is also expected to announce his retirement plans soon, starting with not defending the deputy presidency in October.

Najib: Cops took statement from Rosmah

Deputy Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak today denied that his wife, Rosmah Mansor, was involved in the killing of Altantuya Shaariibuu as claimed by blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin.

Najib also said Rosmah had been called in by the police to have her statement recorded following fresh allegations made by Raja Petra in his statutory declaration last Wednesday.“Yes, my wife has given her statement. Everybody will make their statement including the prime minister (Abdullah Ahmad Badawi),” he told a press conference in Parliament after a chairing a cabinet committee meeting on the illegal immigrants in Sabah.

He however did not disclose when her statement had been recorded. Najib and Rosmah have repeatedly denied involvement in the high-profile murder, describing these as nothing more than slander and a concocted story.Asked about the allegations again at today’s press conference, the deputy premier’s immediate response was: “Why are you (media) interested in garbage?”“Everything that is written and claimed is a total lie and fabricated. It’s total garbage. That’s all I want to say, it’s total garbage,” he said.

Asked to comment on the motive behind Raja Petra’s move, Najib replied: “I have no other conclusion except (to say that this) is a desperate and pathetic attempt to discredit and taint my political image.”On whether it might be politically-motivated, he said: “I can’t see any other reason.”The deputy premier welcomed the police probe and hoped that it will be concluded soon.

Raja Petra’s claims

Raja Petra has alleged that Rosmah was among three individuals who were at the scene when the Mongolian national was murdered on Oct 19, 2006.He named the two others as acting colonel Aziz Buyong, who is described as ‘a C4 expert’ and the latter’s wife, known only as Norhayati, who is also said to be Rosmah’s aide de camp.

Raja Petra further alleged that Abdullah, his son-in-law Khairy Jamaluddin and a Malay ruler have been briefed on the matter and are fully aware of the allegation against Rosmah.He alleged that Abdullah has handed over a written report from military intelligence on the matter to Khairy for "safekeeping".Abdullah denied yesterday that he had received any military intelligence report over Rosmah’s alleged involvement in the murder, as claimed by Raja Petra in the legal document.Altantuya's body is alleged to have been blown up with C4 explosives at a secondary forest in Puncak Alam, Shah Alam.

Raja Petra has said he is ready to be investigated after the police launched a probe on his claims. Under Section 203 of the Penal Code, he could be charged with spreading false information and is liable, upon conviction, of being jailed up to two years or fined or both.He has already been charged with sedition over an earlier article he wrote on his Malaysia Today website, linking Najib and Rosmah to the murder. If convicted, he faces three years in jail.

Police visited Khairy too

Meanwhile, Umno Youth deputy chief and Rembau MP Khairy Jamaluddin said the police have also recorded a statement from him last night in the ongoing probe into Raja Petra's claims."I have told the police that I never received any military intelligence report from the prime minister or any other party," he said on the claim that he was holding the report for "safekeeping".

"I told the police that the statutory declaration, its content and allegations against me were made in bad faith," he told a press conference at the Parliament lobby this afternoon.According to him, the statement was recorded at Putrajaya last night and the process lasted about an hour. Khairy said he will discuss with his lawyer whether to take action against Raja Petra."I don't know what his motive is but this matter is based on hearsay and sources. (However,) it was turned into a statutory declaration straightaway (when it involves) such a sensitive case, there is no truth.

"Definitely when there is no truth, it tarnishes my credibility. I see this action as mala fide," said Khairy, whose name was being implicated in the high-profile murder case for the first time.Asked whether he was surprised with the claim, he answered: "Well, from the publisher of The Khairy Chronicle, I'm not surprised."When asked whether the police have also recorded a statement from his father-in-law Abdullah, Khairy said the question should be directed to the premier.Khairy Chronicle refers to a long-running series published in Raja Petra's Malaysia Today in the rise of Khairy.

Media boycott over Parliament access

More than 100 journalists are staging a boycott after the Parliament administration cut media access to the building’s lobby and barricaded the area.

In protest, journalists from all print, online and electronic media have decided to only cover the proceedings in the Dewan Rakyat and boycott all press conferences or events held outside of the chamber.The journalists were outraged and stunned by the latest ruling which has resulted in the entire lobby being cordoned off, apparently on security grounds.Security guards were stationed in the area to ensure the journalists would not enter the ‘prohibited area’, which has been fenced off with a red-tape barrier.

The barricades have restricted the journalists from moving around freely in the lobby to interview parliamentarians.The lobby is used by MPs as a meeting point and they often call impromptu press conferences in the area.This is the first time that Parliament has enforced such a ruling, and so far there has not been any official explanation for the unprecedented move.

Expect fewer reports from journalistsThis ruling came in the wake of another controversial decision setting a limit on the number of journalists covering Parliament.Last Friday, the Parliament administration issued a notice to all media organisations informing them that they could only send no more than five journalists to cover the ongoing session. [See full letter]The letter explained that the decision was due to concern over security.This has upset a number big media companies which have deployed up to a dozen of reporters each, including editors, in Parliament.

After the March 8 election where the ruling BN suffered its worst electoral outing, an average of 100 journalists have been covering the daily parliamentary proceedings. This was in light of a dramatic increase in opposition MPs as well as the unusual presence of almost all ministers or deputies in the House.

English-language daily Star assistant news editor Lee Yuk Peng slammed the ruling, saying that the journalists should be able to move freely in Parliament to perform their duties.“We should be the last group to be linked with security concerns,” said Lee, who started covering the parliament beat in 1997.“(The impact is) there will be fewer stories. It takes two hands to clap - many ministers can’t wait to talk to the journalists or give them stories,” she added.

Chinese daily Nanyang Siang Pau journalist Kam Choy Wan pointed out that newspapers have sent more reporters to cover Parliament to ensure the debate in the House is given due prominence.“This ruling definitely affected our job as it is our duty as journalists to approach government leaders in order to get their comments on current issues or government policies.
“The Parliament administrators are going after the wrong target (if the concern is over security),” she added.Even MPs not happy with the banMeanwhile, the matter was also brought up by opposition MPs in the House who protested the ruling and argued that this was tantamount to a clampdown on press freedom.

"There is no justification whatsoever for restricting reporters to a small corner as if they pose a grave danger to security and a threat to the safety of parliamentarians," said Lim Guan Eng (DAP-Bagan) in the House.

"No MP has ever suffered personal injury or threats from reporters accredited to cover the Parliament," he said.

"By imposing such restrictions merely for the personal comfort and conveniences of certain individuals would contravene the basic spirit of democracy and respect the sanctity of Parliament where reporters can carry out their duties to communicate debate on policy in an accurate and professional manner," he added.Lim Kit Siang (DAP-Ipoh Timur) also joined his son in calling for the ban to be withdrawn.“The journalists have been treated as wild and dangerous animals that so much so they have to be caged,” said the veteran politician, adding that the ruling will become a laughing stock in the eyes of the world.

Deputy speaker Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar, who was presiding over the parliamentary sitting this morning, said the decision had been made by the speaker Pandikar Amin Mulia and another deputy speaker Ronald Kiandee collectively. He added that based on his visits to parliaments abroad such as in the United Kingdom and Australia, he had never seen a parliament so “chaotic” and “swarmed with reporters” as the one in Malaysia.

BN MPs 'tear down' barricades

However, the decision did not go down well with even government parliamentarians.At about 2.15pm, several backbenchers led by Bung Moktar Radin (BN-Kinabatangan) took direct action in physically removing the barricadesThe journalists however decided to continue the boycott since there was no official revocation of the ruling from the Parliament administration.When the matter was brought up again by Fong Po Kuan (DAP-Batu Gajah) during the afternoon debate, speaker Pandikar Amin stood his ground and ticked off the opposition MPs for raising the issue.“Since when Bagan (Guan Eng) and Batu Gajah (Fong) are interested to become the editors?” he asked. “How do we know whether those showing the press tag are indeed journalists?”

According to the speaker, he is awaiting a response from media organisations over his ‘enquiry’ on whether it was appropriate to enforce the ‘five journalists only’ rule.Pandikar Amin said he will make a final decision after receiving feedback from the media.However, according to a copy of the notice sent to media organisations last week, it was clearly stated that the Parliament “has decided” that each paper could only send five journalists.Apart from journalists, aides and press secretaries to MPs have also been subjected to stringent security rule - they are no longer allowed to distribute their bosses’ press statements in the media room, where journalists use to file their reports.

Only MPs will be allowed to do so, according to Guan Eng’s aide Lim Swee Kuan who was asked to leave the media room by security personnel around noon today.PM, DPM, opposition functions affectedThe protest by the journalists has affected scheduled press conferences called by the Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, Deputy Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak and Pakatan Rakyat MPs from Kuala Lumpur.Abdullah was slated to chair a cabinet committee meeting on the competitiveness of palm oil in Parliament while Najib will chair two meetings - one of which is the Umno management committee meeting.Whereas the Pakatan MPs from Kuala Lumpur had planned to call a press conference on the Draft KL City Plan.

However, all the press conferences were boycotted by journalists. Only state-owned news agency Bernama sent its representatives to cover the events.On hearing the ban, the Pakatan MPs went to the media centre for their press conference but were told by journalists they would not be reporting anything apart from the debates in the House’s chamber.A scheduled launching of the official government’s weblog by Information Minister Ahmad Shabery Cheek, initially slated for tomorrow at Parliament, has been postponed to another date as a result of the boycott.Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Mohd Nazri Abdul Aziz, when asked, refused to comment.“

I am only the intermediary between the executives and the legislature. I’m not involved in this,” said the normally outspoken minister who oversees parliamentary affairs.

NUJ: Ruling puzzling

Meanwhile the National Union of Journalists called for media restriction to be lifted and freedom of movement of journalists on Parliament beat restored.NUJ Norila Mohd Daud said the union viewed the restriction as a move that would be counterproductive, and leading to the media not being able to give full coverage of the Parliament."

The action is unprecedented and appears to be an affront which will hinder journalists and media practitioners from carrying out their journalistic duties," she said in a statement today.Norila said the ruling appeared puzzling and irrational as "Parliament is the symbol of democracy".

Shahrir's motion: 129 yes, 78 no

The government today won a crucial vote in Parliament supporting its fuel price hike, which the opposition had hoped to turn it into a no-confidence vote against Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister Shahrir Abdul Samad kicked off the debate by tabling the motion this morning seeking support for, among others, the slashing of oil subsidies.
Coming on the heels of the 40 percent oil hike announced on June 4, the motion was hotly debated by members of parliament on both sides of the House before it went for a vote.

There are no surprises when it was put to vote at 7.10pm after six hours of debate - no BN parliamentarians voted against the government.The final result: 129 in favour, 78 against. The motion was passed.

BN has a total of 140 members - including two Dewan Rakyat deputy speakers - in the House, of which eleven were absent today from voting while the Pakatan Rakyat has a total of 82 MPs.Among the BN absentees were the two MPs from Sabah Progressive Party (Sapp), a coalition member that dropped a bombshell last week when it called for the no-confidence vote. They were absent from Parliament after saying they had received threats.

Met at the lobby later, Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Mohd Nazri Abdul Aziz said that the success of the motion indicated that BN backbenchers remained united."The opposition wanted to turn this into a motion of no-confidence against the prime minister but BN stayed united. There is no question of BN MPs wanting to jump to the other side," he told reporters.

The 11 BN absenteesPKR vice president and Gombak MP Azmin Ali however claimed that it was a "major success" for the opposition alliance."(BN) ‘lost' 11 votes. I know because some of them contacted me and said they will not be physically present as they don't want to be part of the motion," claimed Azmin.Of the 11 BN MPs who were not present, three were Sabahan MPs - Chua Soon Bui (Sapp-Tawau) and Eric Enchin Majimbun (Sapp-Sepanggar), as well as Raime Unggi (Umno-Tenom).Two Sarawakian MPs - James Dawos Mamit (PBB-Mambong) and Tiong Thai King (Supp-Lanang) were also absent.The remaining were ministers Zulhasnan Rafique (Umno-Setiawangsa), Ahmad Zahid Hamidi (Umno-Bagan Datoh) and Dr Rais Yatim (Umno-Jelebu), ex-ministers Rafidah Aziz (Umno-Kuala Kangsar) and Radzi Sheikh Ahmad (Umno-Kangar), and ex-deputy minister Tengku Azlan Abu Bakar (Umno-Jerantut),On the Pakatan's front, those who could not make it in time for the voting were Nurul Izzah Anwar (PKR-Lembah Pantai), Gobind Singh Deo (DAP-Puchong) and Chow Kon Yeow (DAP-Tanjong). The fourth Pakatan MP who was not present could not be ascertained immediately.

Shahrir moved the motion

Earlier in the day, the government's motion moved by Shahrir was the first order of business on the first day of the second parliamentary sitting after a three-week break.

The motion stated that the price increases were part of "a global phenomenon outside the control of the government" and cannot be delayed due to the continuously rising prices globally of oil.The restructuring of oil and gas subsidies was aimed at lessening their impact on the national economy, relieving the burden on the government's financial position, and allocating subsidies more fairly to those in need, said Shahrir.

"For example, pumped petrol and diesel subsidies are expected to increase from RM8.8 billion in 2007 to RM27 billion in 2008. This is a heavy burden that the government can no longer bear," said Shahrir in his speech.He also noted that while Petronas' contributions to the government was 35 percent of the government's budget for 2007, its subsidies to the energy and non-energy sectors came up to RM15.6 billion.Despite the increasing challenges at the global environment, the government has resolved to take steps to increase economic growth and "advance the national development agenda", he added.

Reject demonstrations, protests

Despite knowing the move to increase oil and diesel prices will be an unpopular move, the government has acted responsibly by not passing that responsibility to future generations, he added.Shahrir then reiterated some of the steps taken by the government to alleviate the problems arising from dearer oil and diesel prices - cash rebates for those with low-capacity cars and motorcycles, the maintenance of diesel prices for public transport operators with ‘fleetcards' as well as electricity tariffs for households consuming less than RM43.60 worth of electricity per month.

Shahrir also said that while businesses should not worsen the situation by arbitrarily raising the prices of their goods or services to the detriment of the people, the people should reject demonstrations and public protests over the crisis of inflation."Demonstrations and protests will not benefit anybody, but will only erode confidence if economic activities and foreign investments are hindered as a result of the ensuing instability."Aware of the need to prepare in the event of a future economic recession, the government was also taking steps towards prudent spending and "calls on all quarters and the public at large to take the same steps", said Shahrir.

Giving APs to everyone

Supporting the motion, Razali Ibrahim (BN-Muar) commended the government for re-structuring its subsidies to ensure it efficiently and effectively reached the poor and others who qualified as opposed to high-income earners and foreigners.He however suggested some changes in policies, such as in the issuance of Approved Permits (APs) as to benefit the people in general instead of private individuals.He proposed that the APs are issued to governmental agencies as the Commercial Vehicle Licensing Board (CVLB), the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) and governmental investment firm Permodalan Nasional Bhd to be redistributed equally.Opposing the motion, Lim Guan Eng (DAP-Bagan) said the government had resulted in Malaysia gaining the dubious reputation of having increased fuel prices by more than any other government.Lim also questioned the government's seriousness in cutting costs when national petroleum firm Petronas continued to give as much as RM10 billion in subsidies to independent power producers (IPP)."The government has guaranteed billions of ringgit in profit to IPPs while the people continue to suffer," said Lim.He also said Petronas' profits of more than RM80 billion was more than enough to channel as much as RM6,000 for every household in Malaysia to ease their burdens as a result of the price hike.

Khairy riles up Pakatan MPs

In his speech debating the motion, Khairy Jamaluddin (BN-Rembau) took the opportunity not only to shoot down the points raised by Pakatan Rakyat MPs but to take jabs at component party PKR's de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim.Azmin Ali (PKR-Gombak) had earlier cited the allegation that the government had used Petronas' profits to save Bumiputera Bank.Petronas had also been made to bail out shipping company Konsortium Perkapalan Bhd (KPB), in which former Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad's son Mirzan had a majority stake, Azmin claimed.

Khairy, however, turned the tables on PKR by noting that Anwar was the finance minister during the KPB bailout."Don't you know he was also part of the government back then? Of course, he knew where the money went," said Khairy."When he got sacked, (only) now he's speaking up. What a hypocrite!" added Khairy, resulting in several minutes of pandemonium in the House.

Describing Pakatan MPs' proposals in relation to Petronas as "simplistic and childish", he did not let up but upped the ante in levelling his attacks on Anwar.Accusing him of being a "puppet" for the International Monetary Fund (IMF), he concluded by saying that Pakatan should ask the latter for help."(Perhaps) they should ask for International Monetary Fund (IMF)'s help as they are "international loan shark and Anwar is a puppet for them," said Khairy,It led to several minutes of pandemonium as Pakatan MPs stood up in protest and loudly, but vainly, demanded a retraction.

PKR MPs cycle to Parliament as mark of protest

KUALA LUMPUR: Four Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) MPs - Tian Chua (Batu), Hee Loy Sian (PJ Selatan), N. Gobalakrishnan (Padang Serai) and Zulkifli Nordin (Kulim Bandar Baru) - cycled to Parliament Monday as a mark of protest against the recent fuel hike.

Tian Chua said move was also to "appeal to the Cabinet Ministers to understand the difficulty in using bicycles or public transport" in the country. "Changing of lifestyles is not as easy as what the Government claims," he told reporters.

He said that he and the three others had taken about 20 minutes to cycle from Bank Negara to the Dewan Rakyat.

"It's a difficult task because the road transport system here is not designed for bicycle use and cyclists will face problems cruising around town," he said.

Asked if they would cycle to Parliament again, he said the MPs would discuss it further.

"Today, because of the debate on petrol price hike, we rode our bicycles here to make a point," he said.

Shahrir's motion on price hikes tabled

Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister Shahrir Abdul Samad has tabled a motion in Parliament seeking support for the government's measures over food, oil and commodities price increases, including the reduction of oil subsidies.

Coming on the heels of the 40 percent oil hike announced on June 4, the motion is expected to be hotly debated by members of parliament on both sides of the House.DAP leader Lim Kit Siang (DAP-Ipoh Timur), in a statement on Friday said Shahrir's motion can be turned into a no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi if there are enough numbers in Parliament to defeat it.However, the two Sabah Progressive Party MPs are missing from the Parliament today in the wake of their party's move for a motion of no-confidence against the prime minister.The government's motion moved by Shahrir is the first order of business on the first day of the second parliamentary sitting after a three-week break.

The motion stated that the price increases were part of "a global phenomenon outside the control of the government" and cannot be delayed due to the continuously rising prices globally of oil.The restructuring of oil and gas subsidies is aimed at lessening their impact on the national economy, relieving the burden on the government's financial position, and allocating subsidies more fairly to those in need, said Shahrir.Despite the increasing challenges at the global environment, the government has resolved to take steps to increase economic growth and "advance the national development agenda", he added.All Malaysians, therefore, are called upon to "to be more resilient and united in together facing the global challenges and foster peace, stability and harmony".

New date, venue for huge anti-price hike rally

Organisers have made changes to the date and venue of the planned mammoth anti-fuel price hike rally which was planned to be held in Kuala Lumpur on July 5.

The rally will instead now take place the following day, July 6, a Sunday, at the Jalan Timur field in Petaling Jaya. This is the second change in date for the rally. It was first planned to have been held on July 12.

Making the announcement today at the PAS headquarters, Dr Hatta Ramly of the Anti-fuel Price Hike Protest Coalition (Protes) said the changes were to encourage more people to participate.

It would also not disrupt businesses at KLCC, a well-known shopping and commercial area at the heart of Kuala Lumpur, added the PAS Kuala Krai MP.

"There is a wide vacant field at Jalan Timur and it would be apt for the rally to be held there so that traffic congestion can be avoided as well to provide sufficient security for the participants.

"It is also a strategic and convenient location for those using the federal highway and it is also close to an LRT station," said Hatta (right).

Hatta said that he anticipates rally participants to start congregating at 10 am for various activities that the organisers have planned including talks by leaders from Pakatan Rakyat.

He also said that Protes will not be applying for a police permit claiming that they do not need to do so as ‘the gathering is a peaceful one’.

The police, nevertheless, have been informed of Protes’ plans and he expressed hope that police would provide help in controlling the traffic situation.

"We will also have our own people on stand by to help ease the anticipated traffic situation on that day," said Hatta.

Youth urged to join

PKR Youth chief Shamsul Iskandar Md Akin, who was present at the press conference, asked young members of the public to join in the rally.

He said that it was important for them to join as the issue of the fuel price hike was a matter that affected everyone and that included the youth.

Protes has in the past organised numerous rallies to protest against the government’s decision to increase the price of fuel.

Past gatherings, however, would be considered small when compared to the one planned for July 6.

Last week, Protest organised a peaceful anti-fuel price hike rally at Kampung Baru which saw some 2,000 people participating (left). The march ended without any untoward incident.

That rally and several to be held before and on July 6 are to protest the recent whopping 41 percent hike in fuel prices by the government resulting in pump prices hitting RM2.70 per litre from RM1.92 previously.