Some Memories

It's important to improve public transport then before even considering ACP. Bumpy road before a smooth drive A recently-tabled bill makes it possible for a congestion charge to be implemented for cars entering Kuala Lumpur's city centre. But critics say a reliable and efficient public transport system needs to be in place first. WITH the tabling of the Land Public Transport (LPT) Bill in Parliament recently, Malaysia has taken the first step towards the introduction of an area congestion pricing (ACP) scheme in traffic-snarled cities around the country. This congestion toll system, similar to the Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) in Singapore, and the Congestion Charge (CC) in London, England, makes users pay to use roads in the city centre to reduce traffic jams and to promote more efficient use of roads. This Bill goes hand in hand with another, the Suruhanjaya Pengangkutan Awam Darat Bill (Land Public Transport Commission, SPAD) which empowers the formation of an authority in ...

Good initiative but hope it won't cause massive jam around Bukit Jalil and MRR2. Terminal may be ready by middle of this year KUALA LUMPUR: The Southern Integrated Transportation Terminal in Bandar Tasik Selatan could be ready by July, said Transport Minister Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat. He said the developer hinted that there could be an early completion for the project by middle this year. The project was originally scheduled to be completed in November this year. "The terminal will cater to all types of transportation. We will have the bus services, taxi and rail services including the light rail transit, Keretapi Tanah Melayu's commuter train service and Express Rail Link under one roof. "This terminal is also connected to the Sungai Besi Highway, Kuala Lumpur Seremban Highway, and the Middle Ring Road II," he told newsmen after visiting the project site in Bandar Tasik Selatan here Monday. The RM570mil terminal is located on 19.8ha site adjacent to the Tasik ...

Kamalanathan beats Zaid to recapture Hulu Selangor The Barisan Nasional has recaptured the Hulu Selangor parliamentary seat which was won by PKR in 2008. Its candidate, MIC information chief P. Kamalanathan, beat PKR candidate Datuk Zaid Ibrahim by 1,725 votes. Source: The Star

Must really practise healthy lifestyle ... Cancer to hit more women By FLORENCE A. SAMY newsdesk@thestar.com.my KUALA LUMPUR: The common types of cancer in men are those affecting the large bowel, lung, nasopharynx, prostate and liver. For women, they were prone to breast cancer, followed by large bowel, cervix, ovarian and thyroid, said Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai. Almost 32,000 new cancer cases were expected to be detected this year with females making up 53.7% of them, he added. Liow said the figures were based on the expected 28.9 million population for this year. “Based on the latest National Cancer Regis-try Report 2006, cancer incidence for males was 99.8 per 100,000 population and for females it was 120 per 100,000 people. “Cancer prevalence is highest among the Chinese (161 per 100,000 population), followed by Indians (93) and Malays (72),” he said yesterday before launching a book on cancer and healthy lifestyle. Liow said leukaemia was the mo...

Sounds interesting ... plan to watch .... Award-winning series debuts on Bernama TV KUALA LUMPUR: The award- winning television series Words of Peace featuring renowned international speaker Prem Rawat recently made its debut on Bernama TV on Astro Channel 502. The half-hour programme, which broadcasts the worldwide addresses of Rawat, presents a unique perspective on the quest for personal peace and contentment in one's life. With down-to-earth wisdom and humour, he addresses the challenges of leading life as a human being. The first part of the series aired on April 14. The second part will be aired today at 7.30pm, with repeats on Friday at 7.30pm and Saturday at 1.30pm. — Bernama Source: The Star

I loud this move! And of course looking forward to work from home someday soon! Work at home saves RM500 KUALA LUMPUR: The Works Ministry's work-from-home programme has helped its employees save up to RM500 a month. Minister Datuk Shaziman Abu Mansor said the 39 staff members who participated in the three-month programme were able to save on transportation and food expenses since the programme was launched on Jan 1. "They are able to save money on toll, petrol and also maintenance for their cars. Since they are working from home, they don't need to face the rush hour traffic before and after work. "Their satisfaction lies in not only saving in costs but also in avoiding the commute from home to office and back, which may take up at least three hours a day if they don't have their own cars," said Shaziman. Data from the programme revealed that 33 participants were happy and satisfied with the scheme while six others were unhappy with it because they felt ...

I guess the government is trying hard to sell AS1M :) PNB, CIMB Unveils Online Funds Top Up Service At MSAM 2010 KUCHING, April 20 (Bernama) -- Permodalan Nasional Bhd and CIMB Bank on Tuesday unveiled CIMB Clicks Amanah Saham Nasional Bhd (ASNB) Funds Top Up Facility at the 11th Minggu Saham Amanah Malaysia (MSAM) here. The online facility allows all registered ASNB investors, who have a CIMB Clicks account to make additional investments in five fixed-price unit trust funds managed by ASNB. The five funds are Amanah Saham Bumiputera (ASB), Amanah Saham Malaysia (ASM) , Amanah Saham Didik (ASD), Amanah Saham Wawasan 2020 (ASW2020) and Amanah Saham 1Malaysia (AS 1Malaysia). "As the ASNB funds are very well received by the public, including many of CIMB customers. The bank feels that it can provide more value-added services to its customers by offering hassle-free online investment top up facility," PNB President and Group Chief Executive Tan Sri Hamad Kama ...

BUILDING THE RIGHT ATTITUDE The Peak, Vol 15, No 1 To mark the association The Peak and the Young Entrepreneurs' Organization (YEO), a lively forum was held to discuss the role of entrepreneurship. Members of the YEO argued various issues in this inaugural session held at morton's of Chicago, at The Oriental, Singapore. Sometimes, it's not the kill, but the thrill of the chase, when it comes to the entrepreneurial spirit. At a gathering of members of the Young entrepreneurs' Organization (YEO) at the inaugural The Peak – YEO Forum, views were presented and argued in a lively session covering a variety of entrepreneurial issues. The boardroom – like setting of Morton's at The Oriental Singapore, served as a suitable venue, with rounds of coffee, tea and sandwiches serving as fuel to fire up the adrenalised emotions and drive of the participants. Why be an entrepreneur? For many a...

The Iceland volcano eruptions, causing cloud ash has led to many flights cancellation. Details on the eruptions here .

The tax relief on housing loan interest is restricted to a maximum of RM10,000, the Internal Revenue Board (IRB) said. In a statement, the IRB said the amount was deductible for each basis year for a period of three consecutive years of assessment from the date when the interest was first expended. To be eligible for the tax relief, an individual must be a Malaysian citizen and resident, the purchase of the residential property is limited to only one unit, the sale and purchase agreement executed between March 10 last year and Dec 31 this year and that the house must not be rented out. If there are more than one person registered as buyers of the house, the application for exemption can be made jointly but subject to a total limit of RM10,000. Further information can be obtained from the IRB website www.hasil.gov.my or its service centre at 1-300-88-3010. - Bernama Via MalaysiaKini

Telco industry shocked at Digi official's quitting Why did Johan Dennelind quit since he was doing well at DiGi? T hat is the question being asked around at many lunch tables on Thursday IT has come as a big shock to the industry that Johan Dennelind has called it a day at DiGi.Com Bhd. That means those who are used to this soft-spoken man will miss him. He is the sort that would not kill an ant. But why did he quit since he was doing well at DiGi? That is the question being asked around at many lunch tables yesterday. Has it anything to do with Telenor's 49% stake in DiGi or was it about career advancement? Whatever, he has chosen to remain silent and is away on holiday with his family. May 17 is his last day at DiGi after clocking in two years. Dennelind has done a lot in the past two years while at the helm of DiGi. He is credited for the operational efficiency, something needed since margins in the cellular business is thinning. He also was instrumental in cha...

The long-anticipated Whistleblower Protection Bill 2010 was tabled for first reading in Dewan Rakyat today, aimed at curbing corruption and malpractice in both the public and private sectors. Deputy minister in the Prime Minister's Department, Liew Vui Keong, tabled the Bill, which contains 27 clauses and seven parts.However, the efficacy of the draft law has been immediately called into question by a caveat under Section 6(1) that disclosures should not be specifically prohibited by any written law. This appears to mean that information protected by the repressive Official Secrets Act, for example, cannot be revealed. The Bill is intended to: - combat corruption and other wrongdoing by encouraging and facilitating disclosures of improper conduct in the public and private sector; - protect persons making those disclosures from detrimental action; and - provide for the disclosures to be investigated and dealt with. Opposition parties and many civil society groups have long urged t...

I don't see the reason given which is lack of mails is justifiable for the price increase. Less mails = less works = less workforce required = cost still the same. I see the issue lies at maintaining the workforce thus public has to pay the price? Then this is not fair. Pos Malaysia revises price of stamps from July PETALING JAYA: Pos Malaysia will revise the price of its domestic postage stamps for the first time – 18 years after being corporatised. On July 1, the price of stamps for the standard mail weighing up to 20g will be revised from 30sen to 60sen. For those weighing up to 50g, the price will be 70sen, up from the current 40sen. Group managing director and chief executive officer Datuk Syed Faisal Albar said in a statement yesterday that the decline in mail volume over the past years prompted Pos Malaysia to take measures to contain costs while maintaining productivity. "This has also affected our ability to adjust the low salaries of postmen and counter clerks, w...

Download it from here Parliament: Personal Data Protection Bill passed KUALA LUMPUR: Parliament passed the Personal Data Protection Bill 2009 that seeks to protect personal data belonging to the public from being misused through commercial transactions. Information, Communications, Culture and Arts Minister Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim, in his winding-up speech, said the bill placed high importance on the protection of sensitive personal data, such as a person's information on his health, physical attributes, mental status and his religious preferences from being misused. "A personal data protection commissioner will be appointed and an advisory committee created to advise the commissioner on the enforcement of the Bill. "Their jobs will be to monitor the activities of commercial transaction of information, such as the Credit Tip Off Service Sdn Bhd (CTOS) in putting such information into their database," he added. Rais said a personal data user who is found to have a...

Meanwhile, Shaziman said six new expressways under construction nationwide were expected to be completed by the middle of 2012, costing almost RM10 billion in total. They are the Kemuning-Shah Alam Expressway (LKSA), South Klang Valley Expressway (SKVE), Senai-Desaru Expressway (SDE), Kuala Lumpur-Kuala Selangor Expressway (KLKS), East Coast Expressway Phase 2 (LPT2) and the Eastern Dispersal Link (EDL). Source: MalaysiaKini

SEPANG: Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel (Germany) has won the Petronas 2010 Malaysian F1 Grand Prix at the Sepang International Circuit on Sunday. Another Red Bull driver Mark Webber (Australia) clinched the second place.Nico Rosberg (Germany) of Mercedes GP Petronas took the third spot. - Bernama Source: The Star

EAC says in 2008 some 350,000 Malaysians were working abroad, over half of which had tertiary education. Malaysia is losing its skilled talent which it needs to drive future growth as many are leaving to seek better opportunities elsewhere, the National Economic Advisory Council (NEAC) says. Quoting an estimate by the Ministry of Human Resources, the NEAC says in 2008 some 350,000 Malaysians were working abroad, over half of which had tertiary education. The exodus of talented Malaysia is further compounded by the fact that the education system, despite high capital outlays through several reform efforts, is not effectively delivering the skills needed, the NEAC says in the New Economic Model for Malaysia Part 1 Report released here today. "We are not developing talent and what we have is leaving," the NEAC says. The report says industry players often lament the absence of right skills in the market, suggesting mismatch between the skills provided by the education s...

Interesting read. Absence of private investment, difficulties in doing business, low value-added industries, low-skilled jobs and low wages were among the factors identified that contributed to the country's sluggish growth since the 1997-1998 Asian financial crisis. world stock market forex 141008 03Stagnating productivity growth, insufficient innovation and creativity as well as lack of appropriately skilled human capital were also slowing economic growth, the National Economic Advisory Council (NEAC) says in the New Economic Model (NEM) for Malaysia Part 1 Report released today. The council says the Asian financial crisis caused significant outflows of foreign portfolio investments and foreign direct investment (FDI) as well as a fall in overall investment which has not recovered. "The crisis was a watershed in Malaysia's growth. Since the crisis, Malaysia's position as an economic leader in the region has steadily eroded," it says. The NEAC also says...

EPF to launch new housing loan scheme soon KUALA LUMPUR: EPF contributors should hold off using the money in their Account II to buy a house until the new scheme which would enable them to obtain a higher housing loan is implemented. Chief executive officer Tan Sri Azlan Zainol said while EPF was keen to launch the scheme as soon as possible it had to wait until the banks were ready to implement it. Source: The Star

Check out for the new portal for government tenders at http://myprocurement.treasury.gov.my/ Bidding of govt contracts to be made public via MyProcurement PUTRAJAYA: Details of bids for government tenders will now be open for public viewing via the Govern­ment's tender portal known as MyProcurement. Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak who launched the portal here yesterday said: "The move is to boost transparency and to prevent any corrupt practices in the awarding of projects and procurement." The portal will comprise tender advertisements and the names of successful bidders will be uploaded on an hourly basis to ensure "real-time" information is disseminated. To further boost government integri­ty, bidders will from now on have to pledge their commitment to ensure projects awarded to them are executed responsibly and are "graft-free". Najib said that effective yesterday, bidders would have to sign a declaration letter upon submitting their bid...