MORE PICS – 10,000 Train Passengers STRANDED; Extended CRANE Fell Across TRACKS EARLY Morning at KTMB Commuter Station Section 19 SHAH ALAM

ABOVE: The crane that lost its balance and fell across the tracks, cutting off the electric supplies and it took more than 7 hours around 10.00 am to restore back the services

March 02, 2007 14:30 PM

Crane Falls On Rail Tracks, 10,000 Passengers Stranded

COLLASPED… A crane fell and landed across the railway tracks at the Shah Alam KTMB commuter station at Section 19. The incident resulted in 10,000 passengers stranded in the morning when rushing to work.

ABOVE: Three Cranes were used to rescue the fallen crane BELOW

SHAH ALAM, March 2 (Bernama) -- About 10,000 passengers in the morning rush to work were stranded and 40 commuter trips were disrupted when a crane fell and landed across the railway tracks at the Shah Alam Keretapi Tanah Melayu Bhd (KTMB) commuter station at Section 19 here early Friday.

KTMB Corporate Communication Manager Shahriza Embi (ABOVE)said the crane fell while being used for roof installation work at the platform at the station about 2.50am. However, she said work to remove the crane from across the tracks was immediately carried out as well as to repair the cables to restore the commuter service.

ABOVE: After centering and affixing the cables on the fallen one; one, two & a three, the fallen one (BELOW) was tilted back in position after a few attempts

She said three cranes were used to lift the crane from the tracks adding that KTMB contractors took about seven hours to facilitate the work and checks on its safety.
Shahriza said KTMB provided buses to transport passengers from the Padang Jawa station to the Batu Tiga station for those going to Kuala Lumpur and vice versa for those going to Port Klang this morning. She said the commuter service was restored at 10.30am today.

ABOVE & BELOW: Closed-Ups of the tilted crane

MORE PICS – BUS SLAMMED INTO TRAILER Km89.7 N-S Expressway; 2 Killed (impaled by Steel Rods) & 4 Seriously Injured; BUS 1 of 5 on Way to Langkawi

ABOVE: Right on target, when following too close, driver said after the accident; "There is nothing I can do" BELOW: Another top view; the construction steel rods impaled and pierced through the two killed sitting in the front right
GURUN, Fri.: Bus passenger Mohd Kamal Idris's decision to move to the front of the vehicle to chat with the driver proved to be fatal. The 51-year-old Kampung Kuala Sentul headman and Umno branch chairman from Maran, Pahang, was killed instantly when the bus slammed into the back of a trailer carrying a huge cache of steel rods early today. Mohd Kamil, who was seated on the steps near the driver, was pierced by the rods which crashed through the bus windscreen.

ABOVE: The broken windscreen of the bus becomes the "door" into the bus through which the dead (BELOW) wear taken out


Also killed was Maran Umno division vice chairman Datuk Saiful Bahri Mokhtar, 45, who was seated at the front seat on the left. He was also pierced by the rods. Saiful is the nephew of Pahang deputy Menteri Besar Datuk Tan Amiruddin Ishak. The victims had to be extricated from the wreckage. A huge crane was later used to pull both vehicles apart. At least two other passengers were seriously injured while 15 others were given outpatient treatment. The accident occurred at about 4.40am along Km89.7 of the North-South Expressway where the bus carrying 39 passengers was on its way to Kuala Perlis. It was part of a convoy of five chartered buses from Maran carrying 200 officials and members of the Maran Umno division to Langkawi for a three-day course over the weekend organised by Malaysian Islamiah Dakwah Foundation.

ABOVE: The inside wreckage mess and BELOW: Another injured being carried away


Also trapped in the wreckage were division office clerk Mohd Azhar Abdul Jabbar, 32, and executive secretary Nor Asmidatul Aida Nordin, 28, who were seated beside and behind Saiful respectively. Norasmidatul Aida was the first to be pulled out from the wreckage at 6.50am while Mohd Kamal's mangled body was pulled out at 8.45am. The victims' remains were flown back to Kuantan aboard an Air Force aircraft. Nor Asmidatul Aida and Mohd Azhar were warded at the Sultan Abdul Halim Hospital in Sungai Petani together with division secretary Nor Azhar Latif, 45, and Nor Azman Ismail, 40.

When met at the scene, bus driver Mahadi Akin, 44, who escaped unhurt, said Mohd Kamal was seated at the back of the bus but moved to the front after they passed through the Juru toll plaza. "He said he was bored and came to sit on the floor next to me and we started chatting." The driver said they were travelling on the left lane behind the trailer which suddenly applied the emergency brakes. "I tried to swerve to the right lane but there were a car and a bus. There was nothing I could do," he said. Mahadi who has been driving for 15 years, was later detained by police for investigation.

ABOVE: The UMNO Chief who was killed was taken by RMAF hercules C130 and taken back to Kuantan and then to hometown and after the prayers was buried (BELOW) at about 9 pm the same night

Passenger Mahadi Daud, 44, said Mohd Kamal could not sleep. "We were seated right at the back of the bus. We were chatting but I fell asleep later,” Mahadi said. "I didn’t know that he went to the front. After the collision, I assumed he had gotten out until we did a head count and somebody told me what happened. If only he had stayed put, he would've been alive today.” When met at the hospital, Mohd Azhar, who broke both his legs, said he managed to offer some comfort to Saiful while they were waiting to be rescued. "He was impaled by steel rods and was bleeding. He couldn't speak but I reminded him gently to recite the Kalimah Syahadah. "I was also in pain and I didn't realise that he was dead until somebody told me.”
= = =
March 02, 2007 16:59 PM
Two Umno Maran Leaders Killed In Road Crash
SUNGAI PETANI, March 2 (Bernama) -- Maran Umno vice chief Datuk Saiful Bahari Mokhtar and Sentul village head Mohd Kamal Idris were killed and 18 others injured, including four seriously, in a crash involving a bus and a trailer at Kilometre 89.7 of the North-South Highway (north bound) early Friday. They were in a convoy of five buses, carrying more than 200 Umno leaders from the Maran division, to Langkawi to attend a four-day course which was supposed to begin today.

Kedah Traffic Chief Supt Mah Khye Beng said the accident happened at 4.40am when one of the five buses crashed into the trailer which was laden with iron pilings????. He said Saiful Bahari and Mohd Kamal, both???? 50 years old, died at the scene. The seriously injured were Maran Umno secretary Nor Azhar Latif, 45; the division's Wanita executive secretary Nor Asnidatul Aida Nordin, 31; Nor Azhar Abdul Jabar, 32, and Nor Azman Ismail, 40. The driver of the affected bus, in his 30s and who was not injured in the crash, had been detained for investigation, he added.

Kedah Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Mahdzir Khalid and Perlis Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Shahidan Kassim were among those who visited the victims at the Sultan Abdul Halim Hospital here today. The bodies of Saiful Bahari and Mohd Kamal are expected to be flown back to Maran by a Nuri helicopter from the Royal Malaysian Air Force base in Butterworth at 2.30pm today. Meanwhile, Maran Umno Puteri Chief Datuk Shahaniza Shamsuddin said she was supposed to be on the ill-fated bus, but had hopped onto another bus when the convoy stopped at the rest area at Tapah, Perak about 1.15am. Grateful that she escaped the ordeal, Shahaniza was however saddened by the tragedy that befell Saiful Bahari and Mohd Kamal.

Following the incident, Sahaniza said the course in Langkawi had been cancelled. A passenger in the bus which crashed, Norehan Abdul Raof, 42, a staff at the Maran Umno's office, said she was jolted from her sleep when the bus over-turned after crashing into the trailer. With injuries on her face and leg, Norehan managed to get to Saiful Bahari, who was seated infront, and got him to recite some prayers before he succumbed to his injuries. The convoy left Maran about 8pm yesterday and was scheduled to be in Kuala Perlis at 10am today for the welcoming ceremony to be attended by Shahidan, which the programme, according to Shahidan's Press Secretary, Syed Omar Syed Mohamad, had been cancelled. The dead victims and the injured had been taken to the Sultan Abdul Halim Hospital here.

Malaysia's Economy 2006 Expands 5.9%;; US Slow Growth Curbs Export;. RUBBER & OIL PALM Boast Agriculture Sector; 2007 Economic growth 5.5 % Projected

This call by Opposition leader to “cushion off” the loss is a bad call on good governance on the government and should not be entertain at all. To cushion off means to compensate the investors for the loss by the taxpayers is just unthinkable. This is NOT a natural disaster like the recent floods where the government compensated those badly affected. Those who heeded the PM call went in with their eyes widely open (of course abetted by their remisers) just like the proverbial lemmings going for their migrations to be drowned (in this case “burnt”).

What is most unusual is for the government news agency Bernama to given prominence to this opposition call (and this is not found in Bernama Website, still embargo perhaps). Are there a lot of government staffs or big shots properly burned that need crutches? The scars developed will take years to heal.
Another great contradiction is the assumption that the majority of “small investors” are affected. The DAP Sec General had a press statement that “such goods news may be an inspiration to the rich and those with cash to invest but not to the many small businessmen and workers”. See H E R E.

So who got severely burnt, the affordable and the rich UMNO Greedyputras? Thy need your money to cushion their losses?

= = = = == = = == =

Opposition Wants Govt To Cushion Losses; Business; March 01, 2007 15:15 PM

(you still cannot find this news item in the Bernama's Business website) and what is the ulterior motive?

IPOH, March 1 (Bernama) -- The government should cushion the losses suffered by small-time investors arising from the RM70 billion losses in the stock exchange over the past two days, Opposition leader Lim Kit Siang said today. Lim said the unusual Cabinet meeting tomorrow should cushion the losses suffered by retail investors who acted on the Chinese New Year advice of the Prime Minister to enter the stock market to ride on the momentum to exceed 1,350 points for the Kuala Lumpur Composite Index (KLCI).

"Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi had a special Chinese New Year message for Malaysians to enter the stock market to ride on the momentum of the good economic times," he said at the Pasir Pinji DAP branch Chinese New Year gathering last night. Text of his speech was released by the Perak DAP today. According to Lim, who is also the MP for Ipoh Timur, Abdullah said the KLCI, which was at the time at a high of more than 1,258 points, could surpass the 1,350-point level following positive indicators of the country's economic growth, namely the trillion ringgit total trade last year, increasing foreign and domestic investments, and rising ringgit.

"Although there had been widespread scepticism about the slew of good economic news, the small investors cast aside their doubts when the Prime Minister openly urged Malaysians to enter the stock market," he said. "The small investors cast aside their doubts, reservations and scepticism and entered the stock market in a big way after the Chinese New Year holidays, lifting the KLCI to close at 1,283 points last Friday," he added. Lim said the KLCI then suffered its biggest drop in five years, plunging by 35.79 points to 1,237.08 on Tuesday and another 40.63 points to 1,196 points at the close of market yesterday. "The bulk of the RMRM69.45 billion losses in the past two days had been borne by the small investors," he said.
= = = == = ==
March 01, 2007 15:10 PM
Bursa Malaysia: Market Fall A 'Healthy Correction'
By Jackson Sawatan

SINGAPORE, March 1 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia's chief executive officer Datuk Yusli Mohamed Yusoff said Thursday Malaysia's economic fundamentals are intact, notwithstanding the condition of the stock market over the past few days. He described the sharp fall in Bursa Malaysia yesterday and the previous day as "quite a healthy correction" from the market. "We believe the fundamentals are intact. The results season is in full swing now and what we have read in the papers is certainly very pleasing with many companies increasing their earnings from last year," he told reporters here.

Yusli was here to give an update on the upcoming Invest Malaysia 2007, Malaysia's premier investment conference for institutional investors. "We remain very confident about the prospects of our market going forward," he added. The benchmark Kuala Lumpur Composite Index (KLCI) dropped 40.63 points, or 3.3 per ent, at 1,196.45 yesterday (28 Feb 07), extending the previous day's 2.8 per cent fall. It was the biggest one-day decline since Sept 21, 2001. Share prices on Bursa Malaysia were traded higher today, opening at 1,204.67 points and ending the morning session at 1,194.65.

"One of the core areas we are focusing on at Bursa Malaysia is to make sure that the velocity and liquidity improve as we go forward," Yusli said.Meanwhile, director and research head of RHB Research Institute Sdn Bhd, Lim Chee Sing, said the correction in the market over the last two days, which continued this morning, was not something unexpected. "We feel that correction is long overdue. But after this we will see the fundamantals coming back to drive the market to a higher level," he said. On the Invest Malaysia 2007 conference scheduled from March 21 to 23 at the Shangri-La Hotel in Kuala Lumpur, Yusli said it would serve as a platform to showcase Corporate Malaysia as well as for the government to make announcements.

"This year we hope there will be similarly significant announcements (as in the two previous conferences). We are looking forward to something significant which will help the market to develop further," he said. "At Bursa Malaysia, our major objective is to make sure that we have a developed market in the near future and for us to be able to get there, we need to get certain things in place in terms of policy," he added. Yusli said for the first time, the conference would be held on the back of strong foreign interest in the market which had seen near record volume over the last few months.

= = = = =March 01, 2007 12:06 PM

Don't Waste Time Speculating On General Election - PM
From Ahmad Kamil Tahir
SANA'A, March 1 (Bernama) -- Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi reminded all quarters especially Malaysian political parties not to be over-zealous in speculating the date of the next general election, and neglect their responsibility to the people. "Don't speculate and waste time over it," said the Prime Minister at a news conference for the Malaysian and Yemeni media Wednesday. Abdullah also hinted that the election may be held in the near term.

"What is important is to achieve what has been planned under the Ninth Malaysia Plan," he said when asked for preparations taken by leaders of political parties, including within the Barisan Nasional, to mobilise their election machinery. In anticipation of the general election, some quarters have made the necessary preparations, including training their members to be mentally equipped. Earlier, some economic experts and academicians have predicted, now was the best time to hold the general election given that the Malaysian economy was currently in a strong position, with the people growing more confident towards the government.

= = = == = = == = = == =

Malaysia's Economy Expands at Slowest Pace in a Year

Updated : 28-02-2007 Media : Bloomberg; Story By : Stephanie Phang
Feb. 28 (Bloomberg) -- Malaysia's economy grew at the slowest pace in a year in the fourth quarter as exports eased amid weaker demand for electronics from markets such as the U.S. The $147 billion economy expanded 5.7 percent from a year earlier after gaining 5.8 percent in the third quarter, the statistics department said in a faxed statement in Kuala Lumpur today. Economists expected growth of 5.6 percent. ``Growth moderated in the fourth quarter largely on the back of softer export demand,'' said Leslie Tang, an economist at UOB Kay Hian Pte in Singapore. ``It is the same symptom that exporting economies like Taiwan, South Korea and Singapore are experiencing. We are hopeful that it will be short-lived with a revival coming as soon as the second quarter of 2007.''

Slowing growth in the U.S., Malaysia's largest overseas market, is curbing demand for goods such as Intel Corp. semiconductors and Dell Inc. notebook computers that are produced in Southeast Asia's third-largest economy. The pace of expansion in the U.S. may ease to 2.7 percent this year from 3.4 percent in 2006, the White House said Feb. 5.

Cooling global growth is also hurting other Asian electronics exporters. South Korea's government expects growth to ease to 4.5 percent this year from 5 percent in 2006 due to a global slowdown. Exports, which account for about two-fifths of South Korea's economy, may rise at the slowest rate in five years in 2007, the commerce ministry said last month.

Overseas Sales
Malaysia has reported smaller gains in overseas sales and manufacturing production as faltering U.S. demand damps demand for Asian goods. In December, export growth slowed to 6.2 percent from November's 18 percent increase. Manufacturing output rose 8.8 percent in December from a year earlier, slowing from a 10.5 percent gain in November. Full-year growth was 5.9 percent, beating a Sept. 1 government forecast of 5.8 percent and accelerating from 5.2 percent in 2005, the statistics department said today. Malaysia may experience ``slightly lower growth in 2007 at 5.5 percent, characterized by slowing external demand and manufacturing but supported by government spending,'' said Saifuddin Morat, an economist at Aseambankers Malaysia Bhd. in Kuala Lumpur.

Rising investment, together with government spending, may help bolster economic growth amid slowing overseas demand for made-in-Malaysia electronics this year. Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has planned $57 billion in government spending under a five-year public development plan announced last year, which may boost construction and investment activity.

Government Projects
``For growth to be higher remains to be seen as it all depends on implementation on key government projects in the Ninth Malaysia Plan, as well as further signs of improvement in the private consumption and investment spending,'' said Wan Suhaimi Saidi, an economist at Kenanga Investment Bank Bhd. in Kuala Lumpur. ``The jury is still out there.'' Economic growth may slow to 5.5 percent this year, lower than the government's 6 percent forecast, according to the median estimate of 21 economists.

Malaysia's central bank this week kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 3.5 percent for a seventh straight meeting amid easing inflation. The central bank may cut rates in the second half of this year to ``give the economy whatever help it can get,'' Joseph Tan, an economist at Standard Chartered Bank Plc in Singapore, said on Feb. 26. Malaysia's benchmark composite index posted its biggest loss in more than five years today, following a global stock market rout triggered by a plunge in Chinese shares yesterday. The ringgit fell on speculation demand for emerging-market assets will wane.

`Bad News'

``If you're looking at it from a market perspective, I think people don't mind a slower GDP figure provided this is the last quarter of it,'' said Wong Shou Ning, who helps manage $136 million in investments at Kenanga Investment Management Sdn. in Kuala Lumpur. ``But now with the market slowdown, I don't know whether bad news will be made to look even worse.'' Manufacturing, which accounts for more than 30 percent of Malaysia's economy, expanded 4.3 percent in the three months to December, slowing from the third quarter. Manufacturing expanded 7 last year, compared with 5.1

percent in 2005. The moderation in the final quarter ``was attributed to a decline in demand for electrical and electronic products,'' the statistics department said. Exports of goods and services increased 4.1 percent, after rising 10.5 percent in the third quarter. Exports amount to more than 100 percent of gross domestic product in Malaysia, where electrical and electronics goods account for about half of overseas sales.

Manufacturing Investment

Malaysian investment grew 9.8 percent in the three months to December, after gaining 3.5 percent in the previous quarter. Investment grew 7.9 percent last year.

Approved manufacturing investment rose to a record 46 billion ringgit ($13.2 billion) last year, as higher energy prices spurred investment in petrochemical and biofuel projects and electronics makers such as Motorola Inc. planned expansions, the Malaysian Industrial Development Authority said Feb. 13.

Services grew 7 percent in the fourth quarter, according to today's report. The industry grew 6.5 last year. The agriculture industry rose 6.5 percent, helped by ``robust'' palm oil and rubber production, for a full year growth of 6.4 percent, the department said. Mining expanded 1.9 percent, after declining the previous four quarters, and fell 0.2 last year.

The construction industry gained 0.6 percent in the fourth quarter. Construction fell 0.5 last year.

= = = = =…another round of Impressive figures NOT cooked up

February 28, 2007 19:41 PM

Economy Expands By 5.9 Pct In 2006, Grows By 5.7 Pct In Q4

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 28 (Bernama) -- Malaysia's economy last year grew at 5.9 percent, beating earlier forecasts as the fourth quarter growth of 5.7 percent rounded up a year of increased activities in all major sectors. The encouraging growth figure which was higher than the government's earlier prediction of 5.8 percent compared with 5.2 percent in 2005 was marked by Malaysia's impressive trade sector which chalked up a value in excess of RM1 trillion. For this year, prospects remain favourable.

Releasing the gross domestic product figures here today, the Statistics Department said on the production side, the fourth quarter growth was boosted mainly by the sturdy growth of services and agriculture sectors. Services, underpinned by higher expansion in finance, insurance, real estate and business services sub-sectors, grew by 7.0 percent in the fourth quarter, agriculture rose by 6.5 percent, manufacturing moderated to 4.3 percent, construction rose 0.6 percent and mining 1.9 percent. Bank Negara Malaysia, in a separate statement, said the Q4 expansion was more broad-based with all sectors of the economy now recording positive growth. The central bank said it was underpinned by stronger consumer sentiment and sustained business confidence, with the private sector the main contributor to growth supported by the external and public sectors.

The department said positive growths which were recorded across all the five main sectors of the economy translated to an eight percent growth in nominal prices. In terms of final expenditure, growth was mainly driven by higher gross fixed capital formation expenditure and private consumption, the department said. Value added in the agriculture sector continued to increase further by 6.5 percent, supported by the robust performance of the oil palm and rubber production, which expanded by 10.3 percent and 7.5 percent respectively. Other activities in the agriculture sector, which includes fishing, forestry, livestock and other agriculture, collectively grew by 3.7 percent against two percent a year ago.

Higher commodity prices of oil palm from a year ago propelled the agriculture sector to attain a growth of 15.3 percent in nominal prices in the fourth quarter of last year, the department said. For the mining sector, it rebounded to a positive growth of 1.9 percent after a period of declining growth in the past four quarters, supported by higher output of crude oil and natural gas. The manufacturing sector moderated to 4.3 percent in the fourth quarter of 2006 due to a decline in demand for electrical and electronic products.

Bank Negara said the growth of the electronic and electrical (E&E) and the chemical industries moderated as external demand for laptops, computers and plastics moderated. On the other hand, strong external demand for resource-based products supported the growth of the rubber, wood and petroleum industries, it said. As for construction, it recorded a positive growth of 0.6 percent after 10 quarters

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Malaysia's economy grows 5.9% in 2006, exceeding gov't forecast

Updated : 28-02-2007 ; Media : Kyodo News; Story By : N/A ; via www.biznewsdb.com
(Kyodo) _ Malaysia's economy expanded 5.9 percent in 2006, slightly above the earlier projection of 5.8 percent, the Statistics Department said Wednesday. The figure for gross domestic product growth in 2006 was better than the 5.2 percent recorded in 2005, and was mainly boosted by high demand overseas for Malaysia's palm oil and rubber, as well as electronics and electrical products.

The department did not provide a figure for GDP itself. It said GDP for the October-December period registered growth of 5.7 percent, a slight dip from the July-September quarter growth of 5.8 percent. The economy grew 5.9 percent in the January-March period before surging upward to 6.2 percent in the second quarter.

For the whole of 2006, the robust performance of rubber and oil palm production helped enable the agriculture sector to rise by 6.4 percent compared to 2.5 percent in 2005. The manufacturing sector, which made up a third of the GDP, also went up by 7.0 percent compared with 5.1 percent the previous year. The services sector scored 6.5 percent growth. The construction and mining sectors, however, remained lackluster, posting negative 0.5 percent and 0.2 percent growth, respectively. The government is targeting growth of 6.0 percent in 2007.

= = == == = = = =What others are saying….

Malaysiakini LETTERS: Upbeat economy: Ask yourself this; Alex Ong Feb 28, 07 4:17pm

The relevant economic indicators announcement by Abdullah administration reveals the 'good times' are back for Malaysians. These impressive economic performance indicators are not artificial, but they are deceptive about the well-being of the Malaysian citizens from all walks of life. The current stock boom has caused the 10 richest Malaysians to be 44.74% richer with their combine wealth of RM103.27 billion. These 10 richest Malaysians practically own wealth equivalent to 35% of the Malaysia's foreign reserves (RM299.8 billion). This a very clear indication of the mismanagement of the nation's wealth by the BN regime where only a handful of people are controlling a majority stake of our national economy. The rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer! Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's comments over the weekend that the KLCI would reach the 1,350 level also significantly boosted retail investors' confidence. How could Abdullah make such a precise prediction?

It must be that government-owned institutional investors are obviously being roped in to boost the 'feel good' factor. Money is being pumped into the main 'Index Counters' (about 17 of them) that are heavyweights on the KLCI. If you push up these heavyweight counters, the whole KLCI will move up. The chain effect is that retail investors are lured into a frenzied buying of penny stocks that also propels Bursa Malaysia's trading volume to its highest ever of 4.7 billion shares, ignoring the fact that many second-liners are indeed on the verge of being made PN17 companies. On another front, in Malaysia, private finance initiative programmes are just the political gimmicks that transfer the wealth of the nation into the hands of few political rent seekers.

At the end of the day, the money has to come from EPF and Malaysian Pensions Fund. It would be better for government to create professionally-managed public enterprises rather than allowed rent seekers to take over the wealth of the nation or grant them licences to exploit the consumers. High toll rates and increased electricity tariffs have been very unfair to Malaysian citizen and taxpayers. The Consumer Price Index computation is also definitely a very deceiving indicator that fails to reflect the reality of life that people are facing. A simple 'economy' rice lunch in Kuala Lumpur (rice with two dishes) plus mineral water is now RM6.20. Just a year ago one could have a good lunch for under RM4.50.

The toll from Gombak to Bentong is now RM8 as compared to RM6.50 a year ago. The price of vegetables and fruits have increased more than 50% while a MAS air ticket from Kuala Lumpur to Kota Bharu is now RM245 compared to RM178 previously, an increase of 37.5%. The CPI is meaningless if the people are consistently under pressure to make ends meet. There are still more than 70% of the urban poor who cannot make ends meet and the majority of them are wage earners and civil servants. Disregarding the deceptive facts and figures, ask yourselves a simple question: How have the current economic conditions benefitted you?

1. Has your personal wealth increased by 47% like the 10 richest Malaysians?
2. Is your salary increment sufficient to cover the current rise in your cost of living?
3. Do you have extra money to spend and more to save in your bank account?
4. Are you the victim of the forced selling of your long-term investment shares in Sime Darby, Golden Hope, Southern Bank, Johor Port and Malakoff?
5. If the economy is so good, why haven't the government and private employers given big bonuses to ease the financial burden of the people who include about one million civil servants and 11 million EPF contributors?
6. If the economy is so good, why have cars sales decreased drastically and high-rise residence property market over-hanged?
7. Do you think the government has lost its sense of social responsibility as privatisation projects only benefit politically-linked personalities?

The honest answers to the above from the people at large will show that the BN government's announcement that 'good times are back' is deceptive and unaccountable for. It is a classic symptom of a coming general election. The national economy has to be supported by fundamental increases in productivity, real values and profitability. The illusion of a 'feel good' feeling created by the Abdullah administration will surely fade away.

= = = == = =

LETTERS: 'Feel good' figures all point towards a general election

Suria Kenchana Feb 28, 07 4:14pm

I refer to the letter Stock market not a yardstick for economic performance and fully agree with the writer on his views. At the same time, I will not question the statistics given by the government here. http://www.malaysiakini.com/letters/63769 The reality behind this hotly-debated subject is that the apparently strong macroeconomic aggregates and the rally in the stock market has been driven by the external sector and not by the domestic sector as is normally the case. This fluke of luck happened by default as a substantial amount of FDI and hot money has been deflected from Thailand in view of the recent political developments in that country. Strong performance of the other sectors -particularly in the prices of petroleum, palm oil and tourist arrivals - have further helped to bear the fruit. Aggressive views have also been taken by hedge funds on the exchange rate of the ringgit, up to RM3.20 against the greenback by the end of this year. The massive liquidity in the international money market only helps to fuel the inflow of short-term money into our economy even more. The fact that the total growth of loans and advances last year had been dismal is another telling indicator that the performance of the domestic economy has not been what the statistics suggest. The bottom line is that

the so- called rally in the stock market now is not likely to be sustainable. Alan Greenspan, the former US Federal Reserve chairman, has said that he would not overrule the possibility that the American economy would be moving towards recession by the third quarter of this year. This means that the Malaysia Securities Exchange Berhad (MSEB) index would slide back to about the 950 level by then. So what are the great celebration and jubilation all about? Of course, it is about setting the right tone and tempo for the next general election. The opposition parties seem to speculate that it would be soon. But the question is how soon? The right answer is probably as soon as the non-bumiputeras have sufficiently cooled down after they were insulted and provoked by the Umnoputras during their last annual conference held late last year. How long can Pak Lah wait before calling for the next general election then? Ideally, the target date should be after the celebrations of our nation's 50th anniversary but before the start of the fasting month in October. That a lot of money will be thrown around to celebrate the forthcoming National Day is a forgone conclusion. It would be done in a grand and

colourful way to entertain the tourists while at the same time wooing support from the locals for the impending general election. Meanwhile, whilst the stock market is still strong we should just ride with the tide. Reserve decision-making on your voting rights until the last moment.

KLCI Fell 8.2% - 28th Feb 2007; NOR YAKCOP: Confident of M’SIA Stock Market; No Change-Economic fundamentals; CORRECTION Due To External Factors

Bursa's Fall: No Cause For Worry Given Investor Confidence - PM

From Ahmad Kamil Tahir

SANA'A, March 1 (Bernama)--Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi says there is no need to worry over yesterday's fall on Bursa Malaysia, given the investor confidence in the local bourse.

As long as there was confidence in the Malaysian market, investors would continue to invest, he told a news conference for the Malaysian and Yemeni media here Wednesday. Malaysian and regional stock markets dipped sharply for the second day yesterday following a major sell-off in China on Tuesday which spread across markets worldwide.

As the market dived, Bursa Malaysia and Second Finance Minister Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Yakcop both moved to reassure investors that the sell-off was due to external factors while economic fundamentals in Malaysia had not changed. The benchmark Kuala Lumpur Composite Index (KLCI) dropped 40.63 points, or 3.3 per cent, at 1,196.45, extending the previous day's 2.8 per cent fall. It was its biggest one-day decline since Sept 21, 2001. The negative sentiment also hurt the ringgit, which eased 0.2 per cent to 3.5017 against the U.S. dollar, the lowest since Dec 19, last year.= = == =

UPDATE: 1st March 07 2.19am

February 28, 2007 22:17 PM
KLCI Recovers From Sharp Losses, Down Only 3.28 Pct

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 28 (Bernama) -- The local stock market closed lower for the third day in a knee-jerk reaction to the overnight sharp fall on Wall Street and following the trend in regional markets. However, after a situation described as panic selling in the morning, where the key Kuala Lumpur Composite Index (KLCI) was down by as much as 101.07 points at one stage, the market showed recovery in the afternoon.

The KLCI cut its losses and close the day 3.28 percent or 40.63 points lower at 1,196.45. Analysts said the country's economic fundamentals are still relatively strong with inflation and interest rates at a relatively low and competitive level to spur growth and further provide support to the share market. "What really happened in the market? The sharp losses were just because investors in local and regional markets overreacted to Wall Street and China. They panicked rather than looked at the situation rationally," said one of the analysts. He said that events in the past two days were the best example of the herd mentality of investors as they followed each other blindly to pull down the market and magnify the negative sentiment.

"Actually, our market fundamentals are still intact," he added. Taking a positive angle of the market, the analyst said the downturn so far this week had enabled the market to correct itself from an overbought situation built over the past few months. Another analyst agreed, saying that technically the sharp pullback had enabled the market to cool off the extremely overbought situation across the board. "The market's supply and demand factors have now almost reached equilibrium and moving forward, we expect that mild technical rebound will appear following the sharp pullback but trading is expected to be choppy," he said. According to the analysts, the current support level for the key index will be at 1,150 with resistance at 1,210.

Meanwhile, Second Finance Minister Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Yakcop said there was no need for the country to impose any capital control measures in light of developments in the stock market. Nor Mohamed said the country was not worried about the losses in the local bourse as Malaysia's economic fundamentals have not changed. "Our market has corrected somewhat but the fundamentals are strong. And I am confident about the Malaysian economy and stock market," he said. In a move to calm down jittery investors, Bursa Malaysia Bhd's chief executive officer Datuk Yusli Mohamed Yusoff also stressed that the market fundamentals remained strong. "The sharp fall in the morning session was only a knee-jerk reaction to the regional market slides caused mainly by the sharp declines of the China indices yesterday," he said.

ABOVE: Despite the fall in the last two days, YTL group of companies are holding fort, with overall improvements for POWER - UP 25%; CEMENT - UP 96%; E-SOLUTIONS - UP 536% and LAND & DEVELOPMENT - UP 67% , according to the EDGEDaily

"With regards to our market performance during the first half of today's trading, I would like to reassure investors that the fundamentals remain strong and we maintain our optimistic outlook on the market's performance over the medium term," Yusli said. Most of Southeast Asia's stocks also continued to suffer losses today with

Singapore's benchmark Strait Times Index declining by 3.96 percent at 3,104.15, Japan's Nikkei 225 Index down 2.85 percent to 17,604.12 and Hong Kong's benchmark Hang Seng index dropping 2.65 percent to 19,652.

ABOVE: Thai Stocks down 2% and BELOW: Jakarta Stocks Down 1%

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Malaysia's Nor Is “Confident” About Stock Market

Updated : 28-02-2007; Media : Bloomberg; Story By : Soraya Permatasari and Angus Whitley; via www.biznewsdb.com
Feb. 28 (Bloomberg) -- Malaysia's Second Finance Minister Nor Mohamed Yakcop said he's ``confident'' about the country's stock market after the key index fell as much as 8.2 percent.
``I am not worried because the economic fundamentals of Malaysia have not changed,'' Nor told reporters today in Putrajaya, outside Kuala Lumpur. ``They are still robust and the correction in the last two days has been due entirely to external reasons.''
Stocks and currencies across Asia slid after the biggest decline in Chinese equities in 10 years yesterday sparked a global sell-off. Malaysia's benchmark share index today headed for the biggest loss since April 2001, adding to a 2.8 percent decline yesterday.

Central bank data today will show the economy grew faster last year than the government's 5.8 percent estimate, Nor said. There is no plan to impose capital controls, he said. Bursa Malaysia Bhd., the operator of the nation's stock exchange, called the market's decline a ``knee-jerk'' reaction to regional slides.

``Our economy is stable and the outlook for 2007 remains positive,'' Bursa Chief Executive Officer Yusli Mohamed Yusoff said in a statement today. ``We maintain our optimistic outlook on our market's performance over the medium term.'' Second Finance Minister Nor also said he expects Proton Holdings Bhd., Malaysia's state-owned national carmaker, to pick a partner by the end of March.

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February 28, 2007 19:24 PM

Nor Mohamed Not Worried About Stock Mart Fall

PUTRAJAYA, Feb 28 (Bernama) -- Second Finance Minister, Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Yakcop (ABOVE) said Wednesday he is not worried about the fall in Bursa Malaysia, stressing the country's economic fundamentals have not changed. Noting that "we are still a robust economy," he said the correction over the last two days had been due entirely to external reasons. Nor Mohamed also said Malaysia would not impose any capital control measures in light of developments in the stock market.

"Our market has corrected somewhat but the fundamentals are strong. And I am confident about the Malaysian economy and stock market," he told reporters after attending a function at the Ministry of Finance here. The local bourse fell sharply on Tuesday with the market barometer Kuala Lumpur Composite Index (KLCI) down 2.81 percent following a sell-off in regional stocks triggered by a sharp fall in China stocks. At the close,

the KLCI fell 40.63 points to 1196.45, the Second Board Index was down 2.68 points to 98.05 and the FBMEmas was down 288.55 points to 7,944.23. Nor Mohamed brushed aside worries of a liquidity crisis caused by the selling.

"I don't think there will be a liquidity crisis. Certainly in our case there is no liquidity crisis," he said, ruling out any systemic risks. Asked whether state investment agencies would support the market, he said they were in the business of investing. "I am sure agencies like the Employees Provident Fund and Permodalan Nasional Bhd and the others know value when they see one. "And I think it's true they have been buying yesterday and today because the see values in the stocks," he said. Asked whether the current development in the market was temporary, Nor Mohamed said:

"I basically think that markets go up and down, there is some profit-taking, some correction along the way." But for the long term, we are very upbeat and our market is robust." He said economic figures to be released by Bank Negara Malaysia would show that growth for 2006 would exceed the 5.8 percent forecast earlier. "For 2007, the government is confident of achieving a growth target of six percent while inflation will be brought down to below three percent. "The earnings of big companies, including government-linked companies are expected to be better this year than in 2006," he said. He said the losses suffered by Proton Holdings had been expected.

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Malaysia shares dive 8 pct early on China sell-off

Updated : 28-02-2007 ; Media : Reuters ;Story By : N/A ;via www.biznewsdb.com
KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 28 (Reuters) - Malaysia's main share index fell 8.1 percent in early trade on Wednesday, extending losses after China's market crash on Tuesday. The benchmark Kuala Lumpur Composite Index <.KLSE> was down 7.44 percent at 1,145.06 percent at 0111 GMT. The index of 100 blue-chip shares had opened down 3.84 percent.
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Malaysia's Genting slides on casino concerns

Updated : 28-02-2007 ; Media : Reuters ;Story By : N/A ; via www.biznewsdb.com
KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 28 (Reuters) - Shares in Malaysian leisure and gaming group Genting Bhd (GENT.KL: Quote, Profile , Research) slumped on Wednesday on concerns about the future of its Singapore casino project.
Singapore said on Tuesday it had not yet awarded a casino licence to Genting, though the firm won a tender in December for the right to build and run a $3.4 billion resort there. Genting shares were down 9.7 percent at 35 ringgit at 0108 GMT. Shares in its subsidiary, Resorts World Bhd (RWBW.KL: Quote, Profile , Research), also slid. They were down 11.5 percent at 13.80 ringgit

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Updated : 28-02-2007 ; Media : Bloomberg ; Story By : Ian C. Sayson
via www.biznewsdb.com


Feb. 28 (Bloomberg) -- Malaysia stocks fell by the most in almost six years, sending the ringgit lower and extending a global sell-off sparked by a plunge in Chinese and U.S. shares yesterday.` `There's no way that we will be decoupled from what happens to the major markets,'' said Wong Shou Ning, who helps manage $136 million at Kenanga Investment Management Sdn. in Kuala Lumpur. ``Markets are global. It's like a tidal wave, you can't run.'
'
Tenaga Nasional Bhd. and Malayan Banking Bhd. led the decline among the nation's biggest stocks. Proton Holdings Bhd. slumped after reporting a third straight quarterly loss while Dufu Technology Corp. Bhd. gained on its first trading day. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index tumbled 74.17, or 6 percent, to 1162.91 at the 12:30 p.m. local time break, set for its biggest loss since April 4, 2001. The measure plunged as much as 8.2 percent earlier. The index dropped 2.8 percent yesterday.
``The whole market is taking a hit,'' said Scott Lim, who helps manage $400 million as chief investment officer at CMS Dresdner Asset Management Sdn. in Kuala Lumpur. ``Smart investors should be looking for bargains. This panic will ease once the market in China stabilizes.''
Malaysia's currency, the ringgit, fell 0.3 percent to 3.505 against the U.S. dollar as of 12:07 p.m. local time, the most since Dec. 19, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Among Asia's currencies, the ringgit is the second-biggest gainer against the U.S. dollar this year; it ranks fourth worldwide. ``The currency's movement is part of the panic,'' Lim said. ``There has been no change in the country's fundamentals. People are taking advantage of the situation to take profit.''

Whole Market Hit

Today's loss pared the gains in the nation's main stock index this year to 6.1 percent. The 100-member measure closed last week at its highest since Jan. 5, 1994, boosted by a 17 percent gain from end-2006. The smaller Second Board Index fell 6.9 percent to 93.78 today, while the FTSE Bursa Malaysia Emas Index declined 6.4 percent to 7703.91. Declining stocks beat gainers 1118 to 21.
Tenaga Nasional, Malaysia's biggest power producer, lost 70 sen, or 5.7 percent, to 11.50 ringgit, set for its biggest slide since May 31, 2002.

Malayan Banking Bhd., the nation's biggest lender, declined 70 sen, or 5.4 percent, to 12.30 ringgit, the lowest since Jan. 30 and shaving this year's gain to 4.2 percent.``Malaysia will probably be one of the hardest hit because it is also one of the best performers in the region this year'' said Wong, who also owns shares in Thailand, Indonesia and Singapore. ``I don't think this means the long-term end of the rally. Nothing has changed in Malaysia's economy today compared to yesterday.''

Proton Posts Loss

Telekom Malaysia Bhd., Southeast Asia's second-biggest phone company, fell 60 sen, or 5.8 percent, to 9.80 ringgit, the lowest in almost five weeks. MISC Bhd., the Malaysian shipowner of the world's biggest fleet of liquefied natural gas tankers, declined 50 sen, or 5.4 percent, to 8.80 ringgit, after slumping as much as 6.5 percent.
Proton, a Malaysian carmaker in talks to sell a stake to General Motors Corp., fell 55 sen, or 7.5 percent, to 6.75, after declining as much as 14 percent. Today's decline cut the stock's gain this year to 2.3 percent. The local carmaker said yesterday after trading closed that it posted a 281.5 million ringgit ($80 million) loss in its third-quarter ended Dec. 13, compared with an 86.5 million ringgit profit a year ago.

Dufu Technology, a Malaysian maker of precision machining components, jumped 14.5 sen, or 21 percent, to 84.5 sen, after surging as much as 36 percent earlier today. The company sold 34 million shares at 70 sen each in its initial public offering. The following stocks fell. Stock symbols are brackets after company names.
Maxis Communications Bhd. (MAXIS MK), Malaysia's biggest mobile-phone operator, fell 50 sen, or 4.2 percent, to 11.50 ringgit, trimming a loss of as much as 6.7 percent earlier.
Net income at Maxis jumped 51 percent to 642 million ringgit in the three months ended Dec. 31 from a restated 425 million a year earlier on larger sales at its Aircel Ltd. unit in India and higher earnings at its Malaysian operation. Profit beat the 481 million ringgit median estimate of 10 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg.

Malaysian Airline System Bhd. (MAS MK), the country's largest carrier, declined 40 sen, or 6.9 percent, to 5.40 ringgit, trimming this year's gain to 15 percent. Credit Suisse Group today cut its 12-month share price estimate for the airline by 1.4 percent to 7.15 ringgit.
TA Enterprise Bhd. (TAE MK), a Malaysian stockbroker and property developer, fell 26 sen, or 15 percent, to 1.52 ringgit, set for its biggest loss since Aug. 9, 1999.
The company said it hasn't made a ``firm decision'' to list its property unit on the Hong Kong or Singapore stock exchange, or to set up a property trust worth more than 1 billion ringgit. The company made the statement in response to a stock exchange query on a Feb. 26 Business Times report.

UMW Holdings Bhd. (UMWH MK), the local assembler of Toyota Motor Corp. cars, lost 35 sen, or 3.7 percent, to 9.15 ringgit, its lowest this month. The company said yesterday after trading closed that fourth-quarter profit fell 14 percent to 87 million ringgit as sales declined 7.6 percent to 2.57 billion ringgit, because it sold fewer Toyota and Perodua cars.

Unisem (M) Bhd. (UNI MK), Malaysia's second-biggest semiconductor packager, tumbled 14 sen, or 7.5 percent, to 1.74 ringgit. The manufacturer had a 29 percent increase in fourth- quarter to 15.6 million ringgit in the three months ended Dec. 3, its smallest profit in a year as its European unit reported losses.

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Malaysian Stocks Drop, Post Biggest Loss in Over Five Years
Updated : 27-02-2007 Media : Bloomberg; Story By : Ian C. Sayson

Feb. 27 (Bloomberg) -- Malaysian stocks fell, sending the index to its biggest loss in more than five years after oil prices advanced for a fifth day and following a sell-off in Chinese shares. ``The rise in oil prices and the sell-down in China is having an impact on sentiment in the region as a whole,'' said Mushtaq Ibrahim, who manages about $1.4 billion of assets at Amanah SSCM Asset Management Bhd. in Kuala Lumpur. ``This is a healthy pullback for Malaysia stocks considering the market's sharp gains.''

Tenaga Nasional Bhd. and Malayan Banking Bhd. led the decline among the nation's biggest stocks. Lion Industries Bhd., which invests in steel, property, timber and beverages, fell after profit plunged last quarter on higher taxes. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index declined 35.79, or 2.8 percent, to 1237.08 at the close of trading in Malaysia, after falling as much as 4.1 percent intraday. Today's decline may have wiped out about $7.9 billion in market capitalization. The smaller Second Board Index dropped 6.9 percent to 100.73, while the FTSE Bursa Malaysia Emas Index lost 3.3 percent to 8232.78. Losers beat gainers 1,121 to 42 as the value of today's trade reached the highest in 10 years.

Tenaga Nasional, the biggest component of Malaysia's key stock index, fell 10 sen, or 0.8 percent, to 12.20 ringgit, a six-day low. Malayan Banking, the nation's largest lender, fell 10 sen, or 0.8 percent, to 13 ringgit, trimming this year's gain to 10 percent. The main stock index had its biggest loss since a 3.5 percent decline on Sept. 21, 2001. The measure, made up of Malaysia's 100 biggest stocks, gained 13 percent this year and climbed last week to its highest since Jan. 5, 1994. The benchmark, the fourth biggest gainer in Asia this year after main stock measures in Vietnam, China and Pakistan, rose 22 percent in 2006.

`In the Money'
``If you are already in the money in a big way, which you probably are if you were in Malaysia as early as last year, it is a good time to take some of those gains,'' Ibrahim said. Telekom Malaysia Bhd., Southeast Asia's second-biggest phone company, declined 30 sen, or 2.8 percent, to 10.40 ringgit, its biggest loss since May 19. Maxis Communications Bhd., Malaysia's biggest mobile phone operator, fell 30 sen, or 2.4 percent, to 12 ringgit, trimming this year's gain to 18 percent. Sending shares lower, oil prices advanced 0.2 percent to $61.52 a barrel in after-hours electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange, extending a 5.7 percent gain in the previous four days.
In addition, China's stocks tumbled the most in 10 years as some investorsjudged record gains in key indexes as excessive. The Shanghai and Shenzhen 300 Index, which tracks yuan- denominated A shares listed on China's two exchanges, plunged 9.2 percent at the close.

Prolonged Rally
``The rally was quite prolonged, so the fall today is a little bit sharp. The market needed a breather,'' said Teng Chee Wai, who helps manage the equivalent of $533 million at Hwang- DBS Investment Management Bhd. in Kuala Lumpur. ``There are also rumors of China tightening.''

Among other declining stocks, Lion Industries tumbled 25 sen, or 15 percent, to 1.41 ringgit, its biggest lost since May and trimming this year's gain to 37 percent. Net income in the three months ended Dec. 31 fell 65 percent to12 million ringgit ($3.44 million), compared with 35 million ringgit a year earlier, the company said yesterday after trading closed.

Lion Diversified Falls
Lion Diversified Holdings Bhd. declined 45 sen, or 6.5 percent, to 6.45

ringgit, extending a three-day, 5.5 percent retreat. The company, which agreed to buy shares in Megasteel Sdn. for 338 million ringgit, saidyesterday profit for the three months ended Dec. 31 plunged 86 percent to 62 million ringgit. Megasteel is a unit of Lion Corp., which is 23 percent- owned by Lion Diversified.

Road Builder (M) Holdings Bhd., a construction company with investments in toll operations, ports and hotels, fell 32 sen, or 7 percent, to 4.24 ringgit, its biggest loss since May. UBS AG cut its rating for the stock to ``neutral'' from ``buy,'' saying it is no longer a cheap exposure to IJM Corp., which is taking over Road Builder.

IJM, which has offered to issue two of its shares for each share of RoadBuilder, fell 55 sen, or 5.9 percent, to 8.80 ringgit, its biggest decline since May 22. UBS also cut its rating for IJM to '`neutral.'' ``IJM shares have doubled over the past 12 months, in line with order book expansion,'' Ridzuan Mohamed, an analyst at UBS, said. ``However, we believe it will take two years before earnings per share growth catches up.''

Raised Forecast

Following the market's decline, Malaysian Airline System Bhd. fell 15 sen, or 2.5 percent, to 5.80 ringgit, after rising as much as 4.2 percent earlier today. The nation's largest carrier may exceed its earnings target this yearby 14-fold after cutting jobs and unprofitable routes helped it return to a 121.5 million ringgit profit in the fourth quarter, the company said yesterday after trading closed.

Malaysian Air expects a profit of between 300 million ringgit and 700 million ringgit this year, higher than its earlier 50 million ringgit target, the company's managing director, Idris Jala, said yesterday. ``The company's results are good,'' said Christopher Eng, an analyst at OSK

Research Sdn. in Kuala Lumpur. ``It shows that the airline is on target for a turnaround.'' He raised his 12-month share price estimate for the stock by 11 percent to 7.80 ringgit, indicating a 35 percent gain from today's close.

On the broader market, shares worth 4.29 billion ringgit were traded, almost three times the six-month daily average and the biggest since Feb. 26, 1997. ``Most people have looked too far ahead, this pullback will allow fundamentals to catch up,'' Amanah's Ibrahim said. Before today's decline, ``the market has performed very strong by any standards. ''The following stocks either rose or fell. Stock symbols are in brackets after company names.

AirAsia Bhd. (AIRA MK), Southeast Asia's largest discount airline, fell 6 sen, or 3.4 percent, to 1.70 ringgit, its biggest loss since July 13.Malaysia's Johor state government plans to offer landing rights at its Senai Airport to all airlines to attract more flights to the region, the Bernama

state news agency said, citing Chief Minister Abdul Ghani Othman. AirAsia is one of only two airlines that fly to the airport, Bernama said. Cahya Mata Sarawak Bhd. (CMS MK), Malaysia's sixth-biggest builder, fell 15 sen, or 7.3 percent, to 1.90 ringgit, after advancing 3.5 percent yesterday. The company plans to submit a $488 million bid for a highway project in Indonesia in a joint venture with toll-road operator PT Jasa Marga, the Business Times reported, citing people familiar with the proposal.

Courts Mammoth Bhd. (CRTM MK), a retailer of electronics and electronic appliances, fell 12 sen, or 11 percent, to 98, its biggest loss since April 4, 2006. The stock had its rating lowered to ``sell'' from ``hold'' by Deutsche Bank AG on concerns the company's credit sales will continue tosuffer should it implement a stricter credit policy, which it needs to improve the quality of its receivables.``Investors should sell the stock,'' Pauline Chong, a Deutsche analyst, said in a note today. The ``outlook remains opaque and management isn't transparent.'' Genting Bhd. (GENT MK), the owner of Malaysia's only licensed casino, fell 75 sen, or 1.9 percent, to 38.75 ringgit. The company denied a newspaper report that said it plans to sell a stake in a palm-oil producer to focus on the gaming business. On Feb. 23, the Business Times reported Genting may sell its 55 percent stake in Asiatic Development Bhd. to companies including Wilmar International Ltd. in Singapore, PPB Group Bhd. and state-owned

Permodalan Nasional Bhd. KLCC Property Holdings Bhd. (KLCC MK), the owner of the Petronas Towers and the Suria mall in Kuala Lumpur, declined 16 sen, or 4.5 percent, to 3.40 ringgit, following a two-day, 3.8 percent loss. Aun-Ling Chia, an analyst at Deutsche Bank, cut the stock's rating to ``hold'' from ``buy'' after cutting by 7 percent the 2007 profit estimate for the property company.

Utama Banking Group Bhd. (UBG MK), which owns a third of Malaysia's Rashid
Hussain Bhd. (RHB MK), fell 10 sen, or 4.5 percent, to 2.12 ringgit. Utama said talks to sell its Rashid Hussain stake to Kuwait Finance House are no longer exclusive. Rashid Hussain owns 65 percent of RHB Capital Bhd. (RHBC

MK), Malaysia's fourth-biggest bank. Rashid Hussain fell 8 sen, or 4.7 percent, to 1.63 ringgit, its lowest since Feb. 6. RHB Capital fell as much as 2 sen, or 0.5 percent, to 4.46 ringgit before trading unchanged at 4.48 ringgit. EON Capital Bhd. (EON MK), which is trying to take over Rashid Hussain, fell 5 sen, or 0.8 percent, to 6.55 ringgit, following a two-day loss. EON Capital may have to sweeten bids worth 6.4 billion ringgit for Rashid Hussain to beat Kuwait Finance, Winson Ng, an analyst at CIMB Investment Bank Bhd. in Kuala Lumpur, wrote in a report. EON will probably have to raise its offer to 1.90 ringgit for each Rashid Hussain share, compared withits 1.80 ringgit bid on Feb. 7, Ng said.____

Business; February 27, 2007 22:10 PM

KLCI Down 2.81 Pct Following Sell-Off In China Stocks

By Farazira Amira Yusof
KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 27 (Bernama) -- The local bourse fell sharply on Tuesday with the market barometer Kuala Lumpur Composite Index (KLCI) down 2.81 percent, the biggest single-day loss in two years following a sell-off in regional stocks which was triggered by sharp fall in China stocks, dealers said. The KLCI went down as much as 52.68 points to 1,220.19 intraday, before closing 35.79 points down at 1,237.08. It opened 0.56 of a point higher at 1,273.43.Declining stocks outweighed advancers by 1,123 to 42 on volume of 3.699 billion shares.

"The correction was expected after last Friday's run-up but not the big losses seen today," a dealer from one of the local brokerage said. The biggest one-day loss was recorded on Jan 12, 1994 when the key index dropped by 68.09 percent to 1,134.31. The dealer said that investors were overreacting on the sell down in China which spilled over into the regional bourses. The Shanghai stock market suffered its biggest one day fall in 10 years with the Composite Index closing 268.81 points or 8.84 percent lower. "From year-to-date, we are the third best regional performer after Shanghai and Vietnam Stock Exchange, that is why when China falls, we are badly hit," the dealer said. Meanwhile, another dealer said that there was forced selling by foreign funds in the market and lack of support as investors continued to be concerned about the performance of Wall Street which was weak following signs that the oil price was on the rise again.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down by 15.22 points to 12,632.26 as crude oil price climbed to US$61.59 per barrel. The dealer said that the cautious market could also be attributed to the settlement period or T+3 after last week's record high volume. "Actually, it was the time for investors to settle their transaction as the market had recorded a high volume of 4.782 billion shares last Thursday," said the dealer. Moving forward, the dealer said that the market will continue to see profit taking correction amid weaknesses in overseas markets.

"The market is likely to consolidate due to lack of investors interest. Perhaps, the announcement of gross domestic data (GDP) later tomorrow will provide some support to the market," the dealer said, adding that the current psychological support level will be at 1,180-1,200-points.

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IMF chief warns of yen carry trades

POSTED: 0802 GMT (1602 HKT), February 27, 2007
• Weakening yen has increased Japan's account surplus
• Depreciation of dollar could help reduce U.S. account deficit, IMF has said
• Huge deficits in U.S., surpluses elsewhere could trigger recession, IMF warns
• Japan should pursue anti-deflationary policy, Rao says

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -- The head of the International Monetary Fund warned the increasing growth of yen carry trades could deepen global economic imbalances, and he urged Japan to make clear that deflationary pressures are being rooted out. Carry trades are when investors borrow in a low-yielding currency, such as the yen, to invest in higher-yielding assets. The yen has been a popular currency to fund these trades since Japanese interest rates are just 0.5 percent and the yen is trading at a 20-year low on a trade-weighted basis.

IMF Managing Director Rodrigo Rato (ABOVE), addressing graduates from Harvard Business School in Washington Monday, said the size of the carry trades was unknown. But they were evident in capital flows into countries like Brazil and Turkey and in the growth of yen-denominated mortgages in countries ranging from South Korea to Latvia, he added. Meanwhile, capital flows out of Japan have risen, partly due to carry trades, he added. "The carry trade is not a consequence of global imbalances. Rather, it reflects globalization of financial markets and the current environment of low volatility and wide interest rate differentials," Rato said. "But it could lead to more entrenched exchange rate misalignments that worsen global imbalances," he added.A depreciation in the yen increased Japan's current account surplus to almost 4 percent of gross domestic product in 2006. The IMF has warned that huge deficits in the United States and surpluses in other countries like China, Japan and oil-rich countries needed to be reduced, or they could trigger an abrupt slide in the dollar, or even a recession. To address imbalances, the IMF has said some depreciation of the dollar will help reduce the U.S. current account deficit. He urged China, which has a fast-growing trade surplus, to allow its currency to rise against the dollar.

But Rato said developments with the yen and carry trades were new concerns that could trigger a sudden shock in financial markets. "I am concerned that investors and the countries into which funds are flowing are not sufficiently attentive to the risks," Rato said. He said there was no simple solution to the problem, noting that the Bank of Japan had increased interest rates by a quarter of one percent last week. Rato said that with Japan just emerging from years of deflation and inflation "still uncomfortably" close to zero, the Bank of Japan needed to be cautious about raising rates. "These are circumstances that will change over time as Japan is able to apply a more normal monetary policy, but it will be some time for that to happen," Rato said.

"We think Japan should pursue an anti-deflationary policy and monetary policy," he added. He said the situation had many consequences for emerging and industrial economies alike and more flexibility in the Chinese yuan, as well as structural and fiscal changes in the rest of Asia would help. Meanwhile, Rato repeated that the global economy was headed for another strong year, with growth close to 5 percent -- the strongest five-year span for the world's economy since the late 1960s. He said risks to the outlook had diminished, with worries about a downturn in the U.S. housing market now easing, oil prices lower and no evidence of sharp increases in inflation pressures.

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Nikkei tops 18,000, as yen falls
POSTED: 1520 GMT (2320 HKT), February 22, 2007

SINGAPORE (Reuters) -- Japanese stocks rose on Thursday, led by Sony and other exporters, as the yen hit a record low versus the euro and fell against the dollar after the central bank signalled future interest rate rises would be slow in coming. Gold was steady after soaring to a nine month-high on Wednesday on active fund buying in commodities as U.S. equities held near record highs, while oil hovered at $60 a barrel after jumping more than 2 percent overnight on supply disruptions. MSCI's measure of Asian stocks excluding Japan rose more than 0.5 percent to an all-time high of 413.89. Japan's Nikkei average rose more than 1 percent to top 18,000 for the first time since May 2000. "The Nikkei could aim for around 19,000 toward April, boosted by possible upward revisions of corporate earnings," said Katsuhiko Kodama, a senior strategist at Toyo Securities.

Advantest Corp. and Canon Inc. jumped about 2 percent while Sony rose 1.4 percent as the weak yen makes their exports more competitive and boosts profits when earnings are brought home. The broad TOPIX index rose almost 1 percent after earlier hitting its highest level since November 1991. The euro surged to 159.13 yen, the highest since the single currency was launched in 1999. It later eased to 158.9 yen. The dollar edged up to 121.1 yen, after climbing nearly 1 percent against the Japanese currency on Wednesday, before easing to 120.95.

"Market players feel confident that the BOJ will not hike rates for a while," said Tsutomu Soma, a senior trader at Okasan Securities. "People seem to feel absolutely no hesitation towards selling the yen." The Bank of Japan raised interest rates to 0.50 percent from 0.25 percent on Wednesday. That is the highest in over a decade, but still the lowest among wealthy countries, and Governor Toshihiko Fukui repeated on Thursday that interest rates would be raised only slowly from here. A Reuters poll taken after the BOJ decision on Wednesday showed that most market players didn't expect further tightening until the third or even the fourth quarter of 2007. Japanese government bond prices generally rose on the belief there would not be another rate rise soon.

Korean stocks hit record. Seoul shares jumped to record highs, driven by exporters such as Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. as the Korean won fell against the dollar, with dealers saying the scale of exporters' dollar sales would determine the trend. POSCO Co. Ltd. rose more than 3 percent on confidence about improving 2007 profits.

Hong Kong stocks rose 0.5 percent, as China Mobile extended gains a day after reporting strong subscriber data, while oil stocks followed crude prices higher. Australian shares rose as investors flocked to firms with strong earnings such as Seven Network, while Singapore hit another record high, led by banks and financial companies.
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Japan trade rebounds to surplus

POSTED: 0146 GMT (0946 HKT), February 21, 2007

• January exports rose 18.9 percent from year earlier
• Economists' median forecast was for a deficit
• Financial markets showed little reaction
• Nikkei tops 18,000, but traders attributed move to BOJ interest rate hike

TOKYO, Japan (Reuters) -- Japan posted a trade surplus of 4.4 billion yen ($36 million) in January, snapping back from a deficit of 354 billion yen the same month a year earlier, government data showed on Thursday. Firm exports on the back of a weak yen as well as subdued imports due to cheaper oil prices helped tip the balance back to the black. Many economists had expected a deficit as Japanese exports tend to slow in January because of New Year holidays. Economists' median forecast was for a deficit of 150 billion yen.

On a seasonally adjusted basis, the overall trade surplus rose 52.5 percent from the previous month to 1.086 trillion yen, the data showed. Financial markets showed little reaction to the data. The Nikkei share average topped 18,000 for the first time in nearly seven years, and the yen fell to a record low against the euro. But traders attributed the moves to an expected slow pace to future credit tightening by the central bank. (Asia stocks) Economists said the better-than-expected trade balance was due to special factors such as the Lunar New Year holidays in China starting later than last year. The breakdown of the data was not so positive, they said. "The pace of rises in export volume to the United States slowed sharply in January from a year earlier, a sign that a slowdown in the United States is affecting Japanese exports," said Naoki Iizuka, senior economist at Mizuho Securities.

Exports rose 18.9 percent from a year earlier to 5.9533 trillion yen, while imports were up 10.9 percent at 5.9489 trillion yen, data from the Ministry of Finance showed. Exports to the United States grew 5.5 percent from a year earlier to 1.2541 trillion yen, while those to China rose 50.8 percent to 893.5 billion yen. Many economists expect solid exports to help keep the Japanese economy expanding despite patchy domestic consumption Japan's economy logged stronger-than-expected 4.8 percent annualized growth in October-December. Growing confident of Japan's economic outlook, the BOJ on Wednesday raised rates to 0.50 percent from 0.25 percent, still the lowest among the world's industrialized countries but the highest level for Japan in more than a decade. Many economists also said the deficit in January last year -- Japan's first monthly trade deficit in five years -- was an aberration because the Lunar New Year holiday fell in January, slowing exports.

= = ====== = = 1st Mar 2007; GOTO THE LATEST POSTING H E R E ON

Malaysia's Economy 2006 Expands 5.9%; US Slow Growth Curbs Export;. RUBBER & OIL PALM Boast Agriculture Sector; 2007 Economic growth 5.5 % Projected

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SAMY VELLU– BN Fix It & Front Man Resents being labeled a “Blood Thirsty Dracula” Wanting to Jail 4 under OSA; His Lies, Half-Truths Spin after Spin

RM2 Toll through 3.8km motorway tunnel?

SAMY VELLU (the BAD BOY) Annoyed at Disclosure & Allegations Shouted:– “GO TO HELL” to PKR For Revealing the RM2 Smart STORM TUNNEL Toll Charge & SUBSEQUENT Increases; OBSCENE PROFITS & alleged discrepancies in the Project

Samy, there is no need to behave like this as a Minister, only a “BAD Boy” would make such remarks. What is there for the government to decide? His last statement, Feb 11 07 on this toll rate:

"It has not been decided yet as my ministry has to put up a paper to the cabinet. Also, I've to talk to the Economic Planning Unit in the Prime Minister's Department before I make any disclosure on the rates,"

Why this play acting and the red tape of putting up a paper?

Even if you charge RM1; the concessionaire Syarikat Konsesi Smart Sdn Bhd will still be compensated for the difference as stated in the agreement. And after all he has also revealed in the NST interview that all the 21 toll agreements would be declassify. The PKR is just kind enough to inform the public and get them prepare for the “extortion”.

Of course, the public will be given a month long “toll free” period to taste the shortened journey before the toll is actually implemented. And Samy is spinning again when he frightens the public that in lieu of the toll, motorist would take “90 minutes” to reach the city centre. In ALL previous propaganda, the time is ONLY 30 minutes. Samy get the facts right!

“the route would shorten travel time to the city centre from Sungai Besi from 30 minutes to merely five minutes”

his last statement dated 29 Jan 07 (Bernama ) see H E R E on the SMART Tunnel

= = = == = == = ==after returning from Yemen

Samy Lashes Out At Parti Keadilan Rakyat; General; March 01, 2007 15:13 PM

KUALA LUMPUR, March 1 (Bernama) -- Works Minister Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu Thursday came out guns blazing at Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) for speculating the toll rate of the newly completed Stormwater Management and Road Tunnel (Smart) project. "I congratulate them (PKR), they can set up an information centre on tolls and they can make announcements on toll rates, let them make the announcements. "The government has yet to finalise the toll rate for the Smart tunnel," he told reporters after launching MIC's national training and employment portal and series of seminars at the party headquarters here. Samy Vellu, who is also MIC president, was asked to comment on a report in an internet-based news website yesterday which quoted a PKR leader as saying, among other things, the toll for the tunnel would be RM2.

The leader also revealed certain figures, like the estimated income from the toll, and the subsequent increase of the toll rates in the future. "They (PKR) don't understand that to construct a 4-km tunnel like this cost RM600 million while to construct a 4-km road is only RM45 million," Samy Vellu added. The Smart project, costing more than RM2 billion, would connect Sungai Besi and the federal capital via a tunnel, which could also be used to flow flood water from the city centre to the outskirts. It is expected to be opened to traffic in two weeks.

"It is not mandatory for cars to use the tunnel...if you don't want to use it then you can opt for the untolled road but that would take you 90 minutes to reach your destination. Asked about the threat by certain quarters that they would lodge police reports against the Minister for alleged discrepancies in the project, including the toll fare, Samy Vellu said:" They can go to hell". "I can also make a police report saying that they are trying to pressurise me into making public the toll rate, which has yet to be announced...that they are doing this by not following the government rules and regulations," he added.

= = == and read the STAR for a guffaw on "from 90 minutes to three minutes". This is a classical case of an editor knowing not what he is editing. The 3 minutes is the time perhaps to travel through the “2-deck motorway tunnel” of 3.8 km but this will be over speeding as the prescribed speed is 60 kmh. The correct time is “, cutting travelling time from half-an-hour to five minutes” as given in the lower part of the STAR’s report.

ABOVE: Opening End of March 07, Speed limit 60kmh

Many are still confused about this tunnel. The 11.5km long 13.2m diameter tunnel will divert flood waters away from the confluence of the two rivers running through central Kuala Lumpur while its middle 3.8 km section will double up as a two-deck motorway to relieve traffic congestion at the main southern gateway into the city centre.

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Friday March 2, 2007; Smart toll not decided yet; from STAR

KUALA LUMPUR: A decision has yet to be made on the new toll rate for the RM1.9bil Stormwater Management and Road Tunnel (Smart) from Sungai Besi to Kuala Lumpur, Works Minister Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu said. Commenting on Parti Keadilan Rakyat's claim that motorists would have to pay RM2 to use the road, he said yesterday that a road through a tunnel was far more expensive than laying a road on the surface. “The people do not understand that it costs RM600mil to construct four kilometres of the tunnel while the cost for four kilometres of surface road costs only RM45mil. There is a great difference,” he told reporters after launching the MIC national training and employment portal and seminars here yesterday.

ABOVE: Star's pic; Get your facts correct Samy; stop exaggerating; 60 min to 5 mins more reasonable

Samy: ‘Travelling time cut from 90 minutes to three minutes’ He said the tunnel was constructed at a very strategic position and those who did not wish to use it could use other roads for free. Samy Vellu said motorists who use the tunnel would be able to get to the other side within three minutes while those who did not wish to pay toll would have to spend 90 minutes on the road.

The RM1.9bil project is aimed at channelling flood waters from the Klang River away from the city centre, and is an alternative route to the city centre for some 200,000 road users on the Sungai Besi highway, cutting travelling time from half-an-hour to five minutes. Three routes link to the motorway – Jalan Sungai Besi (beside the RMAF base), Jalan Sultan Ismail (beside Berjaya Times Square) and Jalan Tun Razak (in front of the RHB building).

[…]
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UPDATE: Feb 28 2007

SAMY VELLU (the BAD BOY) Challenged to BARE ALL in BORR Project – Anyone seen a Highway with 4 Traffic Lights and a Gazzetted Name Jalan Heng Choon Thean?; LDP SECRET Agreement Already out 1996; Projected RM19b Profit -15 Times Cost

MSIAKini LETTERS: Samy, you're indeed a 'bad boy'; Lim Guan Eng ; DAP secretary-general.; Feb 27, 07 3:43pm
I would like to call upon Works Minister S Samy Vellu to give a detailed breakdown on the expenditure of the RM700 million Butterworth Outer Ring Road (Borr) project and explain the difference between the original price of RM410 million in 1998 and the increase of RM290 million. In 1998, the DAP MP for Bagan Lim Hock Seng was told in Parliament that the cost of the Borr project was RM410 million. Now eight years later, the cost has risen by 71% to RM700 million and the public has a right to know the reasons for this increase.

In a press interview on Sunday, Samy Vellu denied he was a 'bad boy' and further said: 'Guan Eng does not realise that Borr is a total scheme. The privatisation part is only RM470 million. But the other part was done by the Public Works Department and it cost RM275 million'. There were also other false allegations made by Samy, which I will respond to later. What I wish to focus on now is on the need for Samy to come clean on the Borr project. I wish to remind Samy who once claimed that 'I have got the cleanest hands in the world' that he must not only be clean but he must also be seen to be clean. In the interests or accountability and transparency, he has a responsibility to justify every extra single sen of the RM700 million spent as well the amount of compensation paid by the government to the highway concessionaire for deferring collection of toll at Sungai Nyior toll plaza. Like all concession contracts, the government has to pay a compensation for deferring collection or for reducing toll hikes. Samy's refusal to come clean shows he is a 'bad boy' who is only out to extract toll on behalf of toll concessionaires. Similarly, Samy's refusal to tear down the Sungai Nyior toll plaza along the Borr shows that the deferment of toll collection is only a temporary measure to appease the people and toll will be restored after the BN scores a thumping victory in the coming general elections.

We have pressed the government to not postpone but cancel outright toll collections at the Sungai Nyior toll plaza as it is part of an existing road freely used without any toll being paid by local motorists for the past 10 years. If Samy continues to deny them this and insist that the stretch of road leading to the Sungai Nyior toll plaza is part of the Borr project and not part of the old road, then why are there as many as four traffic lights and even a gazetted road with the name of Jalan Heng Choon Thean? Probably, this is the first highway in Malaysia with traffic lights and the 'highway' even has a road name! I reiterates my challenge to Samy to hold a dialogue with the affected residents to determine who is telling the truth and whether it is justifiable to collect toll. If he wants to come clean and prove that he is not out to suck any person's blood, then he should have the political courage to face DAP and the people of Butterworth.

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Secret' was out 10 years ago

SUN; Pauline Puah Updated: 07:14PM Tue, 27 Feb 2007;

PETALING JAYA (Feb 27, 2007): A highway concessionnaire released details of its classified agreement with the government in its prospectus for institutional investors 10 years ago, it was revealed today. Lingkaran Trans Kota Holdings Bhd (Litrak), the concession holder for the Damansara-Puchong Highway, had in the prospectus given a summary of key terms of the agreement which was classified under the Official Secrets Act. DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng, who revealed the prospectus in a press conference today, questioned the motive of the government for continuing to insist the agreement was under the OSA. "The prospectus has all the details of the agreement. Works Minister Datuk S. Samy Vellu had said everything discussed in the cabinet is under the OSA. "As such, Litrak, and its two joint global lead managers, Arab-Malaysian Merchant Bank Bhd and Barclays de Zoete Wedd Ltd, should also be investigated by the police as well for revealing the content."

Last month, four opposition leaders - Parti Keadilan Rakyat information chief Tian Chua, treasurer-general Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim, PAS treasurer-general Dr Hatta Ramli and DAP non-governmental organization bureau chief Ronnie Liu - were questioned by the police for alleged violation of the OSA by revealing a copy of a concession agreement in a press conference. Samy, who initially lambasted the four for revealing "official secrets", recently said the ministry would reveal the agreement as the premier Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi had agreed to it, provided a paper was first tabled to the cabinet. He had said the concession holders had no objections to this. Lim said the government should drop its investigation against the four men and apologise to them for "selective prosecution and double standards".

Lim said the Litrak prospectus revealed the projected profit after tax of the company from 1997 to 2029 to be RM18.9 billion while the total construction cost was estimated at only RM1.327 billion, inclusive of capitalised interest of RM142.3 million. "This is at least 15 times the cost that they put in," he said. He asked whether this was why there was hesitation to make public the agreements. "Samy Vellu should be ashamed of himself for protecting the interest of the company instead of the people by not wanting people to know about the agreement even though it was already public knowledge in 1996," he added.

= = == = = == =

A perfect BN & FIX-IT Front Man that can talk in tongues with a” tongue in cheek” sometimes and very difficult BN Man to find and REPLACE A perfect Cover-UP man for ALL the Wrong doings in the Government Infrastructure projects (PROJECT DELAYS & COST OVERRUNS aka Ministry of Works) and ALL the failures of the Cronies who were awarded the projects.

You name it he has fixed it, the Matrade Building scandal; the MMR2 Cracks & Repairs Fiasco, the Tolled Highways & Concession Agreements. In ALL these NOT once he has the interest of the rakyat at heart. It is always ALL the lame excuses he proffered to justify their wrong doings with his “twist & turn” explanations and his changing facts and seeing himself can do and admit to no wrongs but ONLY a Saint all the time. Samy Vellu what have you been doing this lifetime to improve the psychic structure of your Soul?

And what about your physical structure?

This exclusive interview is just another PR exercise to redeem his rotten “bad boy” image which is totally incorrigible and completely demolished by DAP Lim Kit Siang in his entry “How Samy Vellu can transform from Dracula to saint” H E R E’ after having loosing out in the public argument for his “bloodthirstiness” in wanting the four Opposition“whistleblowers” jailed for at least one year under the OSA. He is one of the few remaining Ministers responsible for the most shameful, undemocratic, repressive, draconian and pernicious pieces of legislation in the land - the 1986 amendment to the Official Secrets Act imposing a mandatory minimum one-year jail sentence on conviction.

Samy, no one is a saint when he is born. When we are born into this world of Maya (illusion), we have to undergo all the procedures of a human being. We have to be ignorant again, we have to suffer all these illusionary desires and then the disappointment of the unfulfilled desires and all those kinds of things, until one day we have enough of it and say: “OK, that’s it; whatever I have, I have. If I don’t, I don’t” That the time you reach complete liberation. You liberate yourself from all your problems, from your own-self made prison and also your learned prejudices about who you are”

His fear of “the man sleeping beside me will stab me” shows his distrust and ridicule for people he deems as his “enemies”. Samy but do remember, it is wrong to curse a flower and wrong to curse a man. It is wrong not to hold any man in honor, and it is wrong to ridicule any man. You must honor yourselves and see within yourselves the spirit of eternal validity. If you do not do this, then you destroy what you touch. And you must honor each other individual also, because in him is the spark of eternal validity.

One commenter Jeffery in Kit’s blog entry has left a very insightful analysis of the way Samy has been using this interview to extricate himself from the corner he painted himself into and tried to worm himself out of it.

Samy Vellu in the BN government; an indispensable cover up guy hard to replace and find.

“As reported in NST Feb 25th, when asked whether he has “created a new style of approach with Indians”, Works Minister and MIC President, Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu said “Take me for instance. When I switch on my hand phone in the mornings, there will be a hundred calls from people trying to communicate their needs”.

It is true, Samy has a successful and prosperous political career for nearly 30 years in part due to his accessibility to and willingness to hear those who went to see him. The other attribute to which his political success is owed is the ability to ingratiate UMNO bigwigs.
But these two attributes – accessibility and ingratiation to which his political success is owed – are hardly a “new style” of political approach. Not that I blame him. Old patterns of behaviour, especially when they brought success, have a way of clinging stubbornly on like a weed that has taken firm root after 3 decades. You can remove the top, but the old weed will spring up again – and again. And that’s what happened when in an attempt to ingratiate UMNO Bigwigs, he went ballast on national TV to declare “I have also suggested that the Cabinet take appropriate action against the person (or persons) who had stolen and exhibited (the Litrak Concessionaire) agreement. The agreement is solely between the government and the company and it is a secret document,”

(The Sun). Knowing that the OSA is draconian and imposes mandatory jail term of 1 year, why else was he so adamant and vociferous in demanding investigation and prosecution of the 4 opposition leaders if it were not otherwise due to an attempt to ingratiate UMNO leaders? After all he cannot be blamed as privatization and concession are purely an EPU decision under the PM’s jurisdiction, which were approved by cabinet and merely taken over for implementation by the Works Ministry. That’s what earned him the rebuke from YB as being “blood thirsty”.

In his alacrity to lynch the whistleblowers, he apparently forgotten about the untenability of having commercial concessionaire agreements classified as official secrets when by their nature they have to be disseminated in the public domain to rating agencies, bankers, investing public to raise finance for the mega projects. In part, public opinion plays a major role via blogs etc to tell the government why it is untenable to classify these concessionaire agreements under OSA, recognizing which the cabinet decided to declassify them. But Samy has a problem for taking a hard public stand that has embarrassingly proven erroneous, earning him a label as a “bad boy of Tolls”! He has to contain the political fall out, minimize the costs, and preserve at all costs his infallible and competent image as a “know all minister” who is not impetuous to commit silly and basic errors.

So he resorts to the well-tried method of a political spin. Now the main purpose of a political spin is to reorient potentially embarrassing or ambiguous actions, (mis)statements, and/or circumstances in such a way as to deflect, minimize, or refute critical attention from himself – the political actor - as primary target. So he called for a Press interview, which is an appropriate stage for spin because of its reach.

He has used 2 types of strategic spins here:

(1) the Defensive Spin to recast or redefine an unfavorable set of circumstances to encourage viewing them in a more favorable (or at least more understandable and hence palatable) light as far as he is concerned. He therefore explained why he initially mistook the concessionaire agreement as coming within ambit of the OSA by saying in the interview that “Concession agreements are attached to cabinet papers. Since a cabinet paper is a classified paper, the attachment also becomes classified”. (This is of course not true. Even if cabinet minutes on why and to whom the concession is awarded are ‘classified’ under OSA, it bears no nexus to the formal agreement that is signed much later after the award!). He went on in the interview to now say “there is nothing wrong in allowing the people to look at the concession agreement”. He even painted the scenario that at his initiative “I went to the cabinet three weeks ago and asked them if we could open the concession agreements for public scrutiny” to which the “Prime Minister said ‘OK – you submit a paper” (read the cabinet decision to declassify the concession agreement is now all due to the ‘people orientated’ paper he submitted to the cabinet favoring disclosure! But this is not enough! Though this is a good ‘defense spin’ it won’t be the ‘best’ unless it is also complemented by a good offense spin, as Lee Kuan Yew is often quoted - ‘the best defense is a good offense’

(2) The Offensive Spin, which involves attacking or the strategic use of anger as a means of immobilizing specific political opponent and detractor who would otherwise be in a position to capitalize or continue to capitalize on the embarrassing circumstance to discredit him. So that’s where in the interview he has singled out YB Lim Kit Siang as a target for his ire by alleging that: -

(a) in labeling the Works Minister as “bloodthirsty”, he was imputing that he was “Dracula” since only Dracula, as vampire, “goes for blood” ; and

(b) that “a man and politician of his (LKS’s) age and experience should be more cultured when he talks about other people.

What Samy has engaged here is a fallacious form of argument popularly known as “straw man” argument. It is a logical fallacy based on (i) misrepresentation of an opponent’s position (in this case by misrepresenting and twisting the word “blood thirsty” used by YB LKS as a metaphor for “vengeful” to something else like the vampire Dracula, just because in the literal sense the vampire sucks and is thirsty for blood) (ii) , then attribute that position to the opponent (which is wrong because when LKS called him blood-thirsty, he had meant vengeful and not evil like vampire Dracula) and (iii) finally attack the opponent LKS for being uncivil for calling him a vampire! In short, Samy is engaging in a dishonest argument of attributing and extrapolating an untenable statement and position to an opponent who never in the first instance said it.What may be summarized from the analysis here? I think the following are fair:-

First, Samy is consummate politician who has been successful so far because of his attributes of being a good political actor of being accessible at all times to his constituents, yet at the same time adept at accommodating and ingratiating the egos of the UMNO’s bigwigs, and when attacked by political opponents, has an arsenal of defences and counterattacks by way of Defensive and Offensive Spins launched through the media stage;

Second, he is well aware that like other BN leaders and ministers from Dr Mahathir’s administration, he is overstaying his political career under Pak Lah’s administration. To carry on, he has to hone and sharpen more the very attributes that have helped his political career and success so far including the ability to ingratiate the UMNO bigwigs as well as launch political spins to counter public criticisms. The overzealousness in this regard has got him into trouble uninvited – as in the case of launching into a public tirade and demanding application of the OSA against the 4 opposition leaders for disclosing the Litrak Concessionaire Contract even if such contracts are rightly not blamed on him or the Works Ministry, being under purview of EPU under the PM.

Third, although he has talked about “a new style of approach” of politics, as it invariably is imperative because of changes in today’s world, he has, however, clung on stubbornly, like a weed that has taken firm root, to well tried successful formulas of the past like using political spins (both Defensive as well as Offensive in combination) to recover, if not, buttress political support perceived lost by an embarrassing circumstance of going ballast on national TV and ‘bloodthirsty’ against 4 opposition leaders over something that the latter has been able to seize a higher moral ground (ie the Litrak Concessionaire Agreement should be declassified for disclosure in public interest that cabinet decision subsequently vindicated) - which only shows that he has not adapted creatively to changes in the political environment brought on by better education and the proliferation of the Internet.

It will be recalled that it is the Internet and the Blogs therein that have played an effective role to convince the government that it is untenable to classify commercial and concessionaire agreement as secrets under the OSA. It will be further re-called that political spins whether Defensive or Offensive spins, are in today’s world of better education losing their edge and effect as people are able to see through the fallacious contents of these spins. In today’s world the watchword is transparency and accountability. To adapt and for political survival, Samy is well-advised to follow YB Kit’s advice to take the transparent approach by staging either a press conference, or a televised interview with a selected journalist with pre-screened questions to make to the public the following points: -

· That he had made a mistake in originally demanding for the 4 opposition leaders to be investigated under OSA;
· That if he had erred, he had erred mistakenly thinking that he had the law (OSA) on his side, which he now knows better he doesn’t but he should be forgiven as he is trained in architecture not law!
· That he would personally make sure the speedy declassification of the 21 concessionaire agreements and answer public queries on them if they were within the authority of his or his Ministry to explain.
In showing willingness to communicate forthrightly with the public, for a change in this manner, he will seize the initiative - whilst it is still his – to stand out as an example to other ministers of how to give effect to the Prime Minister’s platform of transparency and accountability, and in the process score more political brownie points to ensure his own longer term political survival and relevance in spite of overstaying.”

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Exclusive Sunday Times interview: 'I'm no Dracula'

By V. VASUDEVAN and RANJEETHA PAKIAM , 25 February, 2007

Works Minister Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu speaks his mind on that ‘bad boy’ outburst, toll concession agreements, the government compensating concessionaires, hiking toll rates, the threats to MIC, the general election... Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu caught many by surprise with his remark about not being the "bad boy" of tolls. It was unusual for the man who has triumphed over greater challenges to lament. During a 60-minute interview with V. VASUDEVAN and RANJEETHA PAKIAM, the colourful Samy Vellu reveals the reason for the uncharacteristic remark and talks about Dracula, why highway concession agreements are classified under the Official Secrets Act, his critics and the MIC.

Q: Your outburst about not being "the bad boy" of tolls took many by surprise. All kinds of allegations have been levelled at you over the years regarding toll hikes, so why did you react that way?

A: There’s pressure being applied now by the opposition. They were trying to paint a picture that I make all these decisions to bring hardship to road users and the people, which is not true. I had wanted to say it for a long time, so I did it on that day (Feb 11), because, the previous day, Lim Kit Siang (the Opposition leader) had used a word which was really hurtful. Lim Kit Siang said I was going for blood. He was indirectly saying I’m a Dracula. Only a Dracula goes for blood. A man and politician of his age and experience should be more cultured when he talks about other people.
Q: But it is normal for him as opposition leader to harp on the wrongs in government?

A: He has been talking and getting away with it, so he feels that he has the licence to shoot. Take the Butterworth Outer Ring Road project. His son Lim Guan Eng asked why the cost of the road had shot up from RM470 million to RM700 million. He does not realise that it is a total scheme. The privatisation part is only RM470 million. But the other part was done by the Public Works Department and it cost RM275 million. He went to Sungai Nyior, Butterworth, and said: "They have swindled the people’s money."

The opposition has been saying all sorts of things but I had kept quiet.
Q: What did your Cabinet colleagues say about the ‘bad boy’ remark?

A: (Laughs) They didn’t say anything. They were calm about it. My Cabinet colleagues are very reasonable. Every time there is discussion about a toll rise, they will ask many questions. They will want to know why it is being done and whether there are ways to avoid it or reduce it.
Q: Has any Cabinet member ever said that this is wrong?

A: (Laughs again) No, no, not them.
Q: People are confused. Why was there a need to classify the highway concession agreements under the Official Secrets Act?

A: Concession agreements are attached to Cabinet papers. Since a Cabinet paper is a classified paper, the attachment also becomes classified. Until we take it out and say this is separate, anything attached to a Cabinet paper automatically becomes classified under the OSA.
Q: So it’s not a case of you protecting the concessionaire or you simply classifying it as an OSA document?

A: No. We are servants of the Cabinet. We execute Cabinet directives. In the process of execution, we often get scolded by many people, especially if it means a fare or price hike.
Q: You have no problems with anyone in the opposition or anyone else looking at the concession agreements?

A: There is nothing wrong in allowing the people to look at the concession agreements.
I feel that it is better to allow everybody to look at the concession agreement. If they dig and find out something, let them find out. We’ll answer their questions. After the accusations that the government was trying to hide something, I went to the Cabinet three weeks ago and asked them if we could open the concession agreements for public scrutiny. The prime minister said: "OK. You submit a paper." Then we went to the Attorney-General. He said it was all right. But there is a clause in the agreement that says that if either party wants to make public the agreements, they have to seek permission from each other. So, I told the Lebuhraya Damansara Puchong management that we were going to let the public view the agreement. They had no objections.
Q: How many highway concession agreements are there in Malaysia?

A: A total of 21. Several other projects are being built. One is the Putrajaya Expressway (dedicated highway), another is the Duta Expressway, and yet another is the Kuantan-Terengganu (Second East Coast Highway).
The work has not started yet on the West Coast Highway from Taiping to Banting. The Cabinet has approved it, but the EPU (Economic Planning Unit) is still doing some studies.
Q: Are you prepared to declassify all 21?

A: Yes.
Q: How soon do you think the concession agreements can be declassified?

A: As soon as I come back (from Syria, as part of the prime minister’s delegation). Most probably before the end of March, I will get it to the Cabinet for approval.
Q: Do you think your critics will find anything?

A: Let them look at the cost. They can also look at the amount of money that has been borrowed. See, you borrow RM1 billion, you pay back RM1.2 billion as interest. So the cost becomes RM2.2 billion. In 15 years, the cost becomes even higher. (See H E RE , a not yet qualified Accountant debunking his costing theory, another Spin another lie under Samee Velooos misleading SPIN on interest costs)
Q: You think they are going to be disappointed?

A: They will be disappointed. In many of the concessions, the government paid for the acquisition of land. Now, we have decided the concessionaire should meet the cost of land acquisition. That means that this will further increase the cost and they will ask for higher tolls to be levied.
Q: Why can’t the concession agreement be extended to keep the toll down?

A: Extend the concession to 30 or 40 years? You cannot do that, the bank will not agree. The lending period for the bank is 10 years, or a maximum of 15 years. They want back the money within that period.
Q: People keep asking, how is it that you have privatisation but the government ends up compensating concessionaires? How is the agreement actually worked out? If it is privatisation, shouldn’t they be making a profit?

A: No. The company, LDP, did not make any money. Originally, LDP started from one point to another but due to traffic congestion, I proposed to the government and to the EPU that we put five interchanges in between for people to enter and exit easily.
That cost more than RM400 million. So the government told the concession company to borrow the money. The concession company borrowed from EPF and built the interchanges, resulting in smoother traffic flow and convenience to the public.
But the critics are saying the company made RM80 million profit. The RM80 million is a paper profit, not a cash profit. And it is what the government compensated the company. Otherwise, there would be no profit at all.
Q: Is it true you are working on a new way of tabulating toll figures?

A: We are working on some ideas. Say, if it’s a 30-year toll period, then perhaps toll rates can be raised once in five or seven years. Now, some of them raise toll rates once in three years. We are thinking of ways to work out the costs. We will talk to the firms and banks about how best to do this.
Q: Are you looking to other countries for better methods of doing it?

A: We can’t go to other countries as they are all very costly. We are cheaper. They’ll come to us now. (laughs).
Q: Can motorists hope for any highway in the Klang Valley to become toll-free anytime soon?

A: Yes. I think the next one to be toll-free is the North Klang Straits Bypass, in 2009. Shapadu is the concessionaire for that stretch.
Q: Will the government continue collecting toll after any concession agreement expires?

A: No. When the Jalan Kuching and Jalan Pahang concession period was about to end, there were proposals to continue collecting toll, but the Cabinet said no. A promise is a promise. We have closed the Senai toll, too. We paid RM320 million in compensation. And in Port Dickson, we have asked PLUS to buy over the Seremban-Port Dickson stretch. They call it a ‘rugi’ (loss) road — in a day you have only 300 cars using it.
Q: Coming to the MIC, recently Pas launched an Indian wing to attract Indian voters. Keadilan has brought in businessman Datuk N. Nallakarupan and is making an effort to shore up its Indian wing. Do you think this will influence the Indians and the community’s voting pattern at the next election?

A: We have seen this before. Many Opposition parties have launched their Indian wings but eventually they come to nothing. The MIC has a strong connection with the people. We care for the people because we are with them everyday. Our communication with them is direct. We have created a new style of political approach. If it is just talking on the platform and walking away, it doesn’t amount to anything. On the question of Pas opening up an Indian wing, I am amazed by it. The Barisan Nasional is so successful because it has made the people think as one, to be together while they live their own cultures. I don’t think any Pas leader has ever openly announced that it will allow others the liberty of having their own culture, their religion. And even if they say: "Yes, we will allow it," they will put a rope around it and start pulling.

Q: You don’t anticipate any problem from Pas forming an Indian wing?

A: No, I don’t think the Malaysian Indians will trust them.
Q: Do you think the DAP is a problem to the MIC?

A: Their group of Indians have reached a certain level of awareness. They know that the DAP is just about six or seven people. No other Indian can come up in the DAP. Karpal Singh is very strong, that’s how he has survived. And M. Kulasegaran (Ipoh Barat MP) is trying to catch up with Karpal. Wherever they contest, we know how to deal with them.
Q: Last year was a good year for you, you finally got a team where everyone is with you. How is your new deputy doing? Are you happy with him and the team?

A: I have a free heart now. I don’t have to keep one eye open all the time for fear that the man sleeping beside me will stab me... That is important. They are very obedient, they take directives, and they work, do their own planning and carry on with their work, which enhances my own work. My programme is large. I’ll be all over the country doing this and that. These people come and support me at all times and they themselves do a lot of work. Like (deputy MIC president Datuk G.) Palanivel, who does a lot of work on his own. At times, when I need to discuss certain things with them, with one signal and they are there. They will come out with what they have on their minds. [This was an obvious reference to his former Deputy S Subramaniam]
Q: You are happiest now as MIC president?

A: Yes. (with a big smile)
Q: On Thursday, at the Central Working Committee meeting, you talked about the coming general election. How many incumbents are you thinking of replacing?

A: I can’t tell you that. We have a majority of new fellows, except for a few veterans. I’ve contested seven times. The rest are two- or three-term representatives. Palanivel has contested since 1990.
Q: Some of the state exco members have been around for long. Why is that?

A: You see, the veterans work very fast. You tell them to do something; they can get the work done through the state government. The new ones often lack certain things. But generally, all of them co-operate very well.
Q: You said you have created a new style of approach with Indians. What is that?

A: Our communication with them is direct. Take me for instance. When I switch on my handphone in the mornings, there will be over a hundred calls from people trying to communicate their needs. When I am in the car, I am busy attending to calls and handling problems faced by ordinary people. For example, husbands running away is a common problem. If a woman is left to fend for herself, she will come to the MIC for help. These are the things that only the MIC can take to the government, can get assistance from the Welfare Department. We also provide our own assistance. One year, I think we spend nearly RM5 million on the ordinary people. And every Tuesday morning, we open our headquarters and I sit there to listen to them directly.

TNB & SIME DARBY BHD for RM10 Billion 680km Undersea Cable - Channel Power Sarawak to Peninsula with MRCB/ Sime Engineering as the Main Contractor?

Tenaga Nasional Bhd and conglomerate Sime Darby Bhd have joined hands to undertake preliminary work on the undersea cable that would link the Bakun hydro-electric dam in Sarawak with the peninsula. The utility giant's president and chief executive officer, Datuk Seri Che Khalib Mohamad Nor said among other things, the two parties were looking at locations to install the cables that would cover a distance of 670 kilometres from the Bakun power plant which was still under construction.

With the rising oil prices, it is now economically viable for the power to be transmitted to peninsula with TNB paying 15 sen and 18 sen per kilowatt-hour and so the government is considering reviving the undersea cable project to transfer electricity from Bakun to Yong Peng, Johor, where it would join TNB's national grid. Datuk Seri Che Khalib however said the government has yet to decide on the undersea transmission project. There is no choice but for the government to act NOW. If the award is not made now when the Bakun dam is completed; all its power will be wasted.
= == = ==

Friday February 9, 2007; STAR

TNB and Sime in talks on Bakun dam submarine cable; By Suraj Raj

KUALA LUMPUR: Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB) and Sime Darby Bhd are in preliminary discussions over the technical requirements for the submarine cable project linking Sarawak's Bakun hydroelectric dam to Peninsula Malaysia. "We have started talking to Sime Darby but no formal decision has been given to us by the Government yet," TNB president and chief executive officer Datuk Seri Che Khalib Mohamad Noh told reporters after the launch of TNB's 2007 Chinese New Year advertisement campaign on Friday. He said TNB was keen to assist interested parties in undertaking the power transmission project. "TNB has the technical knowledge. It is also our role to ensure that the technical requirements are clearly spelled out to them, " he said adding that many areas needed to be studied carefully with regards to the laying of the under sea cables.

"We need to determine the route and exact coordinates. Because this is a 680km undersea cable, we also need to analyse whether (tectonic) plate movements would affect it," he said citing the recent undersea earthquake in Taiwan, which severed several major under sea telecommunication lines. Rising consumer demand and decreasing power reserve margins have led the government to consider reviving the undersea cable project to transfer electricity from Bakun to Yong Peng, Johor where it would join TNB's national grid.

On the progress of the tariff increase with Thailand's Electricity Generating Authority (EGAT), Che Khalib said discussions were still ongoing.

"The review for the selling price to Thailand is due this year and we are still negotiating with them. No price has been agreed yet," he said adding that an increase would be definite
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MRCB lead contender for Bakun cable job; Jan 19 07; STAR

PETALING JAYA: Malaysian Resources Corp Bhd (MRCB) is expected to be appointed the contractor for the RM9bil undersea cable that would link the Bakun hydro-electric power plant in Sarawak with the peninsula, sources said yesterday. "The structure would be for MRCB to be the contractor for the undersea cable project and Sime Darby would own it," they added. Currently, Sarawak Hidro Sdn Bhd, a unit in the Finance Ministry, owns the Bakun project.

Sime Darby Bhd told Bursa Malaysia yesterday it had not received “official approval” on its plan to acquire a stake in Sarawak Hidro and to lead a consortium for the undersea cable project. MRCB, which is 28.3%-owned by Employees Provident Fund, has a sizeable division that installs transmission lines for Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB). These activities are managed by Transmission Technology Sdn Bhd, a subsidiary of MRCB. The company's completed projects include the 500kV transmission development system in the peninsula and the Sabah East-West 275kV grid interconnection project.

Market talk of the structure of ownership and construction contracts for the undersea cable led to active trading of MRCB shares which rose 2 sen to RM1.22 on a volume of 12.07 million shares traded yesterday. The stock had moved up from RM1.09 early this month. Energy, Water and Communications Minister Datuk Seri Dr Lim Keng Yaik told the media last week the Government was considering reviving the undersea cable project to transfer electricity from Bakun to Yong Peng, Johor, where it would join TNB's national grid.

This would cover a distance of about 670km from the Bakun power plant that is still under construction. It is understood an undersea transmission of hydro-generated electricity from Bakun to the peninsula has become economically viable now that oil prices are much higher than several years ago. In earlier years, there was much criticism from non-governmental organisations of such transmission of electricity across the South China Sea as it would not be economically feasible and impractical to do so. Overseas, there are several undersea cable networks for the transmission of electricity and more are being planned.

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[January 24, 2007]

Power cable venture: Sime, TNB seen as key stakeholders

(Business Times (Malaysia) Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge) PREPARATIONS for the creation of an entity to undertake a RM10 billion project to build submarine cables linking power supply from Sarawak's Bakun hydroelectric dam to Peninsular Malaysia are fast gaining momentum. Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB), South-East Asia's biggest publicly traded power producer, is proposing to have a 20 per cent stake in the planned transmission company, people who attended a special briefing yesterday told Business Times. The special briefing was chaired by TNB's chief executive Datuk Seri Che Khalib Mohamad Noh. Sources also said that under the plan laid out at the briefing,apart from Tenaga, the Minister of Finance Inc will also have a 20 per cent stake in the project. The remaining 60 per cent will be held by Sime Darby Bhd, one of Malaysia's oldest conglomerates. Sime Darby's engineering unit Sime Engineering Bhd will undertake the bulk of the construction works on behalf of its parent. Sime Engineering is leading a seven-member consortium to complete the building of the 2,400 megawatt Bakun hydroelectric power dam on the Balui river in Sarawak by next year. Business Times had reported last week that Sime Darby will win the project, said to be the single biggest infrastructure project in the country since the 1997 economic crisis. Sime susbsequently told Bursa Malaysia that it has yet to be officially informed by the Government.

Financing for the project could come from the Employees Provident Fund, some sources said. It is believed that cable laying for the project is set to start around 2009 and last until 2011 and it is expected to be operational from 2012. Work to prepare for the cable laying is likely to start late this year or early next year. Business Times had previously also reported that Tenaga will likely pay between 15 sen and 18 sen per kilowatt-hour for power generated by the dam. Sime previously said that it is interested in undertaking the project as well as acquiring a stake in government-owned Sarawak Hidro Sdn Bhd, the owner of the RM10 billion Bakun dam project. It is also possible that Sime Darby may be allowed to acquire a 60 per cent stake in the dam project with the Sarawak interest being reduced to 20 per cent and the Finance Ministry taking up the remaining 20 per cent, sources familiar with the project details said.

The foreign contractor for the submarine cabling project will likely be Asea Brown Boveri (ABB) Ltd, a unit of Switzerland's ABB Group, the world's biggest maker of power transformers. The undersea transmission of power supply from Sarawak to Yong Peng in Johor in the peninsula will help Malaysia cut reliance on expensive oil, gas or coal-fired means of generating power, analysts said. There will also be opportunities for Malaysia to sell excess power to neighbouring countries, thereby generating revenue, they added. The proposed undersea cable will be expanded to help transport liquefied natural gas from Sabah and Sarawak to Peninsular Malaysia.
Copyright 2007 The New Straits Times Press (Malaysia) Berhad. Source: Financial Times Information Limited - Asia Intelligence Wire

Sime believed to have won RM15b undersea cable job

By Francis Fernandez; bt@nstp.com.my; January 17 2007
CONGLOMERATE SIME Darby Bhd is believed to have won a contract valued as much as RM15 billion to build submarine cables linking Sarawak's Bakun hydroelectric dam to Peninsular Malaysia, sources involved in the negotiations say. They told Business Times yesterday that a decision to award Sime the contract was made very recently and that Sime will be informed officially soon. Top executives of power producer Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB) also met with policy- and decision-makers from the Energy Ministry late last week and early this week to discuss how much TNB would pay for power from Bakun. State-controlled TNB is likely to pay between 15 sen and 18 sen per kilowatt-hour, sources said. TNB officials did not respond for comments on the matter.

Meanwhile, Sime will partner Asea Brown Boveri (ABB) Ltd, a unit of Switzerland's ABB Group, the world's biggest maker of power transformers to undertake the undersea cable project. "It is a two-member joint venture, with no other local companies involved," said one of the sources. Sime, which currently leads a seven-member group that took over the construction of the dam, said in December that it wants to build the undersea cable as well as buy a stake in Bakun from government-owned Sarawak Hidro Sdn Bhd.

Last year, Business Times reported that Eden Enterprises (M) Bhd and Malaysian Resources Corp Bhd (MRCB) had signed rival agreements with ABB to bid for the project. ABB, which operates in around 100 countries and employs about 107,000 people, is an expert in building transmission systems for undersea cables. Its links to the RM10 billion Bakun dam date back as early as June 1996 when it won a US$5 billion (RM17.5 billion) contract to construct a 2,400-megawatt hydroelectric power plant and transmission system at Bakun on Balui River in Sarawak. However, in 1997, the Government terminated ABB's contract to focus on a fresh plan to build an aluminium smelter to take up the power generated from the yet-to-be completed dam. Early this year, the Government decided to revisit the undersea cable plan.

= = == = = ==BACKGROUND to the Bakun Dam

KUALA LUMPUR - Malaysia's huge Bakun hydro-electric dam is three-quarters complete and within four years it will drown an area of jungle the size of Singapore.

ABOVE & BELOW: The Bakun Dam still under construction and scheduled to finish in 2010

The trouble is, there is still no customer for its power, suggesting the project has only a matter of months to find one or risk sitting idle on completion in 2010. Malaysia gave the go-ahead for the dam 12 years ago, in the face of fierce environmental opposition, when the country was looking at a power shortage. Now, there is a power surplus. "The problem is timeframe," Niklas Olausson, research head of brokerage CLSA, adding that it would take around 10 more years for demand in Malaysian to catch up with supply.

There are two options for the 2,400 megawatts (MW) to be produced by the turbines at Bakun dam, at 205 metres high, under construction among the cleared rainforest of Sarawak state, on Borneo island. Originally, Bakun's power was to be taken by an undersea cable more than 500 km (300 miles) long to peninsular Malaysia, which accounts the vast majority of population and industry. Later, that option lost favour to a plan to use Bakun's power to develop an aluminium smelter in Sarawak. Now, the government is toying with both, not totally convinced of either proposal. As Energy Minister Lim Keng Yaik concedes, the cost of each plan is huge and the stakes are high. "This is because it takes four years to build whatever facilities. Even if the smelter plant project is on, it takes years to build. Even if you bring the electricity to the peninsula, it would take years to lay the cables," he said in July.

Lim's comments followed media reports that the government might call off the smelter project. Firms including Rio Tinto, Alcoa, BHP Billiton and China's State Grid Corp. are reported to have expressed interest in setting up a smelter in Sarawak to exploit Bakun's abundant, reliable and cheap power. Newspaper reports said a smelter could use about 2,000 MW, or over 80 percent of Bakun's power, but the government felt the proposals lacked sufficient local participation or had failed to make a strong economic case.

Instead, they added, the undersea cable would pump most of the power to the peninsula -- though the reports failed to point out that the peninsula was already awash with electricity.

POWER TO BURN

About 40 percent of Malaysia's total generation capacity of 18,000 MW is not used. The excess power, known as the reserve margin, is equivalent to three Bakun dams. "We don't need it now, but by 2012 we may need new power plants, because by then the reserve margin would have dropped to under 20 percent," said a power-sector analyst with a Malaysian brokerage. He declined to be named because of company policy. That is still a long way off, and in the meantime the government is being urged to consider exporting Bakun's power, once it has been brought ashore via the undersea cable.

"Assuming that the power loss (in transmission) is low, the cost is low, and assuming that the energy price environment is a long-term trend ... it offers an avenue for power exports to places like Singapore, Indonesia and Thailand," said Olausson. Swiss engineer ABB and local firms Eden Enterprises and Malaysian Resources Corp. are among those vying to build an undersea cable, media reports have said. They say it could cost up to US$2 billion to lay the cable between sparsely populated Sarawak and the peninsula. The Bakun project, originally set for completion in 2002, was approved in 1994 by then premier Mahathir Mohamad amidst an outcry that it would inundate 69,000 hectares (170,000 acres) of rainforest and displace thousands of indigenous people.

The original plan was to channel 70 percent of the dam's power across the South China Sea to peninsular Malaysia by laying 670 km (416 miles) of submarine cables, creating reputedly the world's longest undersea transmission line. A local company, Ekran Bhd., was awarded the concession to build and operate the dam. But construction was derailed by the 1997-1998 Asian financial crisis and debt problems at Ekran, forcing the government to take over the project. In 2000, the government scrapped the idea of an undersea cable but maintained the dam's planned generating capacity of 2,400 MW, confident that there would be a ready customer. A new contract to complete the dam was awarded to a seven-member consortium led by Malaysian conglomerate Sime Darby. The project still faces problems, with construction running behind schedule and incurring hefty cost overruns.

Story by Syed Azman; Date: 13/9/2006

MALAYSIA Launched RFIC Microchip (0.7mm x 0.7 mm) but at WHAT COST? Hitachi's mu-chips (0.4mm x 0.4mm) Already in Production & Developed Smaller Ones

Malaysian made and Malaysians have to pay dearly for Local Compulsory Adoption of the MM Chips -Like in Car Plates, Passports &Another New IC? and Many Many More –All in the name of Security.

UPdate: (March 18 07) If Samy Vellu has his way, he will be spying on everyone when he has these chips embedded in every vehicle and when they pass through a toll gantry, ALL these are recorded. The human rights people should take note of his statement recently on this and we MUST oppose him adopting such an intrusion. A posting of what he said will be out soon.
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The technology was bought over from Japan in 2003 by Dr Mahathir who declined to reveal the cost and now a further US50–60 Million was spend after 3 years to develop 3 versions MM1, MM2 & MM3. Many applications were touted but its great invasion on privacy was not highlighted. At a recent Japan trade show, a demonstration of RFID technology allows retailers to track the movements of a consumer in a book store. Fears are also expressed elsewhere about invasion of privacy. If all the items in a Supermarket are RFIDed, you can have the bill ready at the check out counter and the supermart can profile ALL their customers knowing what you buy .

If global users cannot be found, the “Buy Malaysia First" would help and the government would be the first to adopt these chips in all documents that could possibly be forged and the taxpayers would have to pay "through your nose". One online and approved is the CAR Number Plates with RFID chips. The price reportedly was RM80+ for a pair and if you knocked often the replacemnt would be expensive.

ABOVE: Misleading headline by Malaysiakini, many are confused by the Spin from the launch and BELOW: Even AFP was led to believe it was the smallest and the respectable PhysOrg.com carried it in their forum. Check H E R E.

Look at the banner below, it was just a launch of the MM chip and it became the "world's smallest one"

It was announced as the smallest microchip - only in Malaysia perhaps as in Japan, Hitachi's mu-chips (0.4mm x 0.4mm) are already in production and they had been used to prevent ticket forgery at last year's Aichi international technology exposition and they have developed even smaller ones (0.05mm x 0.05mm) POWDER TAGS (see below & pic) - 60 times smaller but NOT in production yet.

They might help improve the delivery system locally BUT at what cost? Security paper added extra cost and the rakyat and the taxpayers would be further burdened if RFIDs are added into security documents.

These tiny RFID tags could be worked into any product; combined with RFID readers built into doorways, theft of consumer goods would be practically impossible. These devices could also be used to identify and track people. For example, suppose you participated in some sort of protest or other organized activity. If police agencies sprinkled these tags around, every individual could be tracked and later identified at leisure, with powerful enough tag scanners.

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Malaysia launches world's smallest microchip with radio technology
Weekend . February 25, 2007

Malaysia over the weekend has launched what it said is the world's smallest microchip with radio technology in a quest to position itself as a leading high-tech chip producer for a global market. The Malaysia Microchip was released after more than two years of research and development. The smallest version measures 0.7 millimetres by 0.7 millimetres, according to officials. Costing six cents each, three versions of the chip were developed after the Malaysian government in 2003 bought the technology and the rights to design, manufacture and market the chip from Japan's FEC Inc. At the launch on Saturday, Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi lauded the chip for boosting Malaysian technological expertise.

ABOVE : is the mu-chip (0.4mm x 0.4mm) on a finger tip

"It is only through being creators of technology, and not mere users of technology, that Malaysia can move up the economic value chain and take its place among the developed countries of the world," he said in a speech Saturday. The project was announced by former premier Mahathir Mohamad just before he retired in 2003 as part of his efforts to push Malaysia into hi-tech industries and make the country an industrialised nation by 2020.T he tiny microchip holds technology which emits radio waves on multiple frequencies, which means it can be detected when embedded in paper documents such as money, or in objects or animals.

Its first commercial application in Malaysia is for tagging and identifying original versions of movies on VCDs and DVDs as part of anti-counterfeiting efforts in the country where video piracy is rampant. The chief executive of the government agency set up to develop and market the Malaysia Microchip, Ahmed Tasir Lope Pihie, told AFP Sunday that
"inquiries are coming in" from other countries about the chip. He also said Malaysia's and Hong Kong's international airports would in April or May start a pilot project using the chip to tag luggage traveling between the two airports. The chip would cut travel delays by making it easy to locate luggage that was lost or had to be removed from airplanes if passengers failed to show,or for security purposes, he said.

"It will improve tremendously the traceability elements and authentication elements," Ahmed Tasir said. Home Minister Radzi Sheikh Ahmad said the microchip was developed for some 50 to 60 million dollars, and Malaysia would use the chip to curb forgeries of documents such as passports and birth certificates. "You think about the application, it is mind-boggling because there is no limit to it," Radzi told reporters at the launch. The chip is currently being produced in Japan but the minister said there were plans to move manufacturing to Malaysia. "We will go out internationally to market it anywhere in the world," he said. - AFP
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Sunday February 25, 2007;

Malaysia Microchip has potential for wide use; By JANE RITIKOS; STAR

Different uses: Radzi showing Abdullah the variety of applications of the chip before its launch in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.
KUALA LUMPUR: After two years, the world's smallest Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) microchip with a built-in antenna has been successfully developed under the Malaysia Microchip (MM) Project. The chip, which cost US$50mil (RM180mil) to develop, uses Japanese technology and is the first with multi-band frequencies. The microchip is so tiny that it can be embedded on paper. Each chip has its own serial number. Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, who launched the microchip yesterday, said some of the applications, currently being developed, would help improve the public service delivery system. For example, he said, it could help counter the forgery of government documents, currency notes, halal certificates, medical products and compact discs.

The Home Ministry will roll out the first government application, with RFID-enabled B certificates – the holographic security labels to verify the authenticity of film discs. Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Radzi Sheikh Ahmad said detection of forged B certificates would be made easier as the chips embedded on the labels could be read using mobile handheld devices. From this year, the ministry would also embed the chips on marriage and birth certificates to counter forgery, he said, adding that other uses being studied were for foreign workers' identification cards and Malaysian passports.

Radzi said: “The applications are mind-boggling and limitless. The chip can be embedded on road tax discs, bank cheques and even university diplomas to prevent forgery. “I urge all government agencies and government-linked companies to utilise the chip, consequently helping us to promote it globally. “The MM chip is highly acclaimed to be the world's smallest RFID chip with a built-in antenna and it can operate on three bands of radio frequencies. Hence, other countries can adopt it,” he said. Another flagship application is the ongoing e-baggage management application for baggage

handling systems at airports in which traditional barcoded baggage tags would be replaced with MM chip-based tags. Radzi said the International Air Transport Authority had agreed to facilitate the usage of the tags between KL International Airport and Hong Kong Airport and the success of this application was critical in promoting it among other countries. He also announced the first MM Chip application by a public university. Universiti Teknikal Malaysia in Malacca will use it on its student IDs to monitor time and examination attendance and for its asset management system.

The technology's many uses include product authentification, asset management, container tracking, animal tagging and tracking, patient tracking, electronic toll, logistics and warehousing, healthcare management and security access. The Government embarked on the MM Chip project in 2004 to utilise the potential of RFID technology. The MM Project Committee, chaired by Abdullah with Radzi as co-chairman, was set up to monitor the progress and usage of the chip. Under the project, MM Chip series of MM1, MM2 and MM3, which vary in capacity and strategic features, are now ready for commercialisation. The Malaysian Industry-Government Group for High Technology was appointed to head the project's implementation, and for this purpose, it established a wholly-owned subsidiary, Senstech Sdn Bhd.

= = == = = = =
February 24, 2007 19:07 PM

PM Challenges Local Researchers To Develop Leading-edge Applications

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 24 (Bernama) -- Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi today challenged local researchers, scientists and engineers to demonstrate to the world that Malaysians are able to develop leading-edge applications and solutions based on the advanced technology available today. The prime minister said that only by being a creator of technology could Malaysia move up the economic value chain and take its place among the developed nations. "I have said this so many times ... that we must create our own technology and not just become efficient users," he said when launching the Malaysia Microchip Project (MM Chip Project), here.

The MM Chip Project utilises the latest `Radio Frequency Identification' (RFID) technology, where Malaysia aims to become a leading contributor to its development. Having started in 2004 using Japanese technology, Malaysia has succeeded in producing the smallest RFID chip with built-in antenna receptive to three bands of radio frequency. Stressing on this achievement, Abdullah, who is also the chairman of the MM Chip Project Committee, said he hoped that the MM chip-based application and solutions would be adopted not just by local agencies and companies but also by organisations all around the world.

"There are significant gains to be made in this field, provided that the right applications are commercialised," he said, adding that the government had a structured commercialisation plan in place for the project. Abdullah said the government, through the Malaysian Industry-Government Group for High Technology (MIGHT), had created a wholly-owned company -- Senstech Sdn Bhd -- to spearhead the development of applications for commercialisation purposes. "Nevertheless, I would also like to urge the private sector, in particular technology-based SMEs (Small and Medium Enterprises), to work closely with MIGHT and Senstech Sdn Bhd in order to develop innovative products and solutions utilising the MM chips," he said.

At present, the MM chips are utilised in the B Certificate for films approved by the Film Censorship Board, and a university in Melaka will introduce a RFID-enabled attendance system to monitor its students. Meanwhile, Home Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Radzi Sheikh Ahmad, who co-chairs the committee with Abdullah, said that for the time being they were concentrating on the local market. "We want the government agencies to use this first, our own microchips with the latest technology, before we go abroad," he said. In explaining the "beauty" of the technology in layman's terms, Mohd Radzi said the chip was so small it could be used in paper and certificates, hence the ministry's plan to use it in marriage certificates as well as passports, among others.

"Today we have too many forgery cases, so we hope by using this technology we can manage it. That's why we want our government agencies to use it," he said, adding however that the government had no plan to enforce its use. Asked on the cost of the project, Mohd Radzi said that since its establishment in 2004, the government had spent more than US$50 million (US$1 = RM3.50) on research and development alone. However, he said, the government was confident that with its vast potential the MM chip could put Malaysia on the world map as a leader in such technology as well as being competitive in the market. At present, the chip is manufactured in Japan but the government has plans to shift manufacturing to the Kulim Hi-Tech Park soon, said Mohd Radzi.

= = == =
Hitachi Shows World's Smallest RFID Chip

By Yuri Kageyama February 23, 2007 9:38AM

Shown to the public for the first time earlier this month, Hitachi's new RFID chip is an improvement on its predecessor -- the Mu-chip, which at 0.4 millimeters by 0.4 millimeters, looks about the size of the period at the end of this sentence.

ABOVE: The new radio frequency identification, or RFID, chips are placed next to a human hair (that's running horizontally) for comparison.

The latest chip, which still has no name, is 60 times smaller than the Mu-chip. Tiny computer chips used for tracking food, tickets and other items are getting even smaller. Hitachi Ltd., a Japanese electronics maker, recently showed off radio frequency identification, or RFID, chips that are just 0.05 millimeters by 0.05 millimeters and look like bits of powder. They're thin enough to be embedded in a piece of paper, company spokesman Masayuki Takeuchi said Thursday. RFID tags store data, but they need to be brought near special reading devices that beam energy to the chips, which then send information back to the readers. The technology is already widely used to track and identify items, such as monitoring the distribution of food products or guarding against forgery of concert tickets.

Shown to the public for the first time earlier this month, the new chip is an improvement on its predecessor from Hitachi -- the Mu-chip, which at 0.4 millimeters by 0.4 millimeters, looks about the size of the period at the end of this sentence. The latest chip, which still has no name, is 60 times smaller than the Mu-chip but can handle the same amount of information, which gets stored as a 38-digit number, according to Hitachi.

One catch is that the new chip needs an external antenna, unlike the Mu-chip. The smallest antennas are about 4 millimeters -- giants next to the powder-size chip. There are no plans yet to start commercial production of the new chip, Takeuchi said. Invisible tracking brings to mind science-fiction-inspired uses, or even abuses, such as unknowingly getting sprinkled with smart-tag powder for Big Brother-like monitoring. "We are not imagining such uses," Takeuchi said, adding that the latest chip is so new -- and so miniature -- Hitachi is still studying its possible uses

= == ==== =BACKGROUD to this MM Chip bought by MALAYSIA

Malaysian Microchip --Oct. 7, 2003

Silicon.com says the chip "can replace barcode tags in retail goods, and can be inserted into the human body, animals, bullets, credit cards and otheritems for verification purposes." The Malaysian Microchip is an RFIC, which stands for "radio frequency identication chip," able to use any of the different technical standards for RFICs adopted by Japan, the United States and Europe.

It was designed by the Japanese company FEC, but that company now has a joint alliance with Malaysia to develop it. The advantage to FEC is working with Malaysia is that Malaysia needs the work, has the factories, and its political situation is not conducive to the raising of objections by privacy rights specialists. Malaysia was the first country to require citizens to carry smart card I.D. cards embedded with chips, and has had them for two years.

Malaysia -- FEC chip .......Sept. 5, 2003

CYBERJAYA, Malaysia (AFP) - Malaysia has bought the rights from a Japanese firm to the world's smallest microchip that can be embedded in everything from currencies to human bodies and will boost the global anti-terror war, Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said Thursday. Mahathir said the revolutionary miniature chip, developed by Japan's FEC Inc., could be combined with current technology to "greatly prevent the possibilities of terrorist acts" as well as banknote and document counterfeiting.

The application is almost unlimited," he told a news conference after annual talks with global hi-tech chiefs at this town in Malaysia's Multimedia Super Corridor MSC), an enclave south of the capital Kuala Lumpur modeled after California's Silicon Valley. "We think this is a great breakthrough for Malaysia. It is the first in the world. No other people have come up with such a tiny microchip, particularly as it also has a built-in antenna." The veteran premier, dubbed MM or Malaysian Microchip.

= = == =a DO-IT-Yourself RFID PET reader

Open Standard Pet Microchip Reader Project
MaxMicrochip.com has a detailed, step-by-step tutorial, complete with pictures and screenshots, on building a pet id microchip reader to read all types of these chips. The project consists of parts that can be purchased at Radio Shack/ The Source, and doesn't even require a soldering iron.

= = = =from SILICON.com

Top 10: The best, worst... and craziest uses of RFID

They've put a chip where? By Gemma Simpson and Jo Best; Published: Thursday 30 November 2006

Children:
Japanese authorities decided to start chipping schoolchildren in one primary school in Osaka a couple of years ago. The kids' clothes and bags were fitted with RFID tags with readers installed in school gates and other key locations to track the minors' movements.

Legoland also introduced a similar scheme to stop children going astray by issuing RFID bracelets for the tots

Pub tables:
Thirsty students can escape the busy bar and still get a pint thanks to RFID tables that deliver orders remotely.

The high-tech bar is fitted with touchscreens so students can get a round in, order a taxi or even chat-up someone at the next table. See snaps of the RFID bar here.

Fulham Football Club:
Fulham FC has started issuing RFID-enabled smartcards to fans to cut queues at the turnstiles and increase safety around the stadium.Around 20,000 of the smartcards have been issued to mainly season ticket holders and club members and contain data on matches each cardholder has paid for. See shots of the technology around the stadium here.

Air passengers:
It was also suggested by boffins at University College London that air passengers should be RFID-tagged as they mingle in the departure lounge to improve airport security. Silicon.com's audience called the idea, amongst other things, Orwellian, intrusive and detrimental to airport security. Click here to see the Best of Reader Comments on the story.

Tanks:
RFID has also made an appearance in the army to try and reduce casualties from 'friendly fire' incidents.

Last year Nato's Operation Urgent Quest exercise tested the potential of a number of combat identity systems under battlefield conditions. See photos of RFID in action here.

Hospital in-patients:
In an effort to trim clinical errors, hospitals in New York and Germany have been tagging their patients. Visitors to the hospitals are given RFID-chipped wristbands to wear which are scanned by medical personnel to bring up their records and make sure the patients are given the correct dosages of drugs.

Blood:
The same clinic which tags its patients is also tagging blood. No vampire-pleasing effort this, rather the Klinikum Saarbruecken is using the tags to make sure the right blood reaches the right patient. Nurses will be able to scan the tags using reader-equipped PDAs or tablet PCs and check that the blood data matches the information held on an RFID-tagged bracelet worn by the patient.

The National Patient Safety Agency in the UK is also considering a similar move.

Suits:
Marks and Spencer has long been associated with being at the forefront of flogging ladies' undies. It's also now at the forefront of item-level tagging, having chipped some of its men's clothes. The retailer has avoided questions of privacy protection by attaching the tag to a label on the suit that can be cut off.

M&S has now extended the trials nationwide.

Passports:
One of the more controversial applications is soon-to-be mandatory use of RFID in passports. The US is leading the way in deployments and the UK isn't far behind.

As well as the obvious privacy fears that surround such rollouts, experts have questioned how secure the passports are with some claiming to have cracked and cloned them already.

Books:
The first item-level rollout in Europe has already taken place in Dutch book store BGN. Each of the books in BGN's Almere store is chipped and a second store, in Maastricht, will soon go the same way, allowing the retailer to track each book from its central warehouse to the shop floor.

ROBERT KUOK HOCK NIEN, Malaysian Business Top 40 Richest M’sians (SUGAR KING - Worth RM32.4b) NOT RELATED to Johore MP Datuk SHAHRIR’s Chinese Wife

More pics of these Rich men loading.... check back

February 24, 2007 19:56 PM

Shahrir Says His Wife Not Related To Robert Kuok

JOHOR BAHARU, Feb 24 (Bernama) -- Johor Baharu Member of Parliament Datuk Shahrir Abdul Samad said today his wife is not related to Malaysia's richest man Tan Sri Robert Kuok, quashing rumours to that effect. "I have a Chinese wife but she is from Ipoh, not from Johor. I am not at all related to him (Robert Kuok). I didn't marry his daughter, I didn't marry his niece and I didn't marry any Kuok. These are all rumours," he said when replying to reporters' questions. Shahrir said Kuok has no daughter and that rumours of him being related to Kuok could have come about due to him (Shahrir) being outspoken on controversial issues.

"Many people think that a politician who makes a lot of noise must be very rich, and that I, because I may have about 10 per cent of the Kuok fortune which is about RM2 billion to RM3 billion, I can afford to say anything that I like," he said after closing a forum on education organised by Johor Baharu Umno, here.

Shahrir said he has known Kuok for many years and was convinced that Johor and the Iskandar Development Region (IDR) can benefit from his wisdom and experience as a businessman. Kuok is one of five advisers of the Iskandar Development Region Authority (IDRA), which held its first meeting yesterday. Shahrir said Kuok could advise the IDRA as to how to go about attracting investment to the IDR. He also said that a local newspaper had contacted him to use his good offices to arrange for an interview with the low-profile businessman but that he would not do it. Asked whether he had been bothered by the rumours, Shahrir said he was not at all bothered by them. "I am actually bothered because I don't have any money. Even though Kuok has no daughter, I know his children. I know his nephews and there are times when I meet them. I am sorry to disappoint you all," he said.

= = == = =

Got start in 1949 trading rice, sugar and wheat flour. Today heads multinational Kuok Group. His Pacific Carriers Ltd. is a leading dry-bulk shipper in the Pacific basin; his Transmile Group, which transports freight by air, has landing rights in China and India. Also owns 10 Coca-Cola bottling plants in China.

Robert Kuok tops richest M'sian list

His wealth grew to RM32.4b on strong performance of stocks

Published February 17, 2007
(KUALA LUMPUR) Sugar king Robert Kuok Hock Nien topped the Malaysian Business magazine's 40 Richest Malaysians beating his closest rival T Ananda Krishnan. The magazine in its Feb 16 issue puts Mr Kuok's wealth at RM32.4 billion (S$14.2 billion). The Hong Kong-based tycoon added a whopping RM10.86 billion or 50.43 per cent to his vast fortune this year due to the strong performance of his stable of listed stocks.

Former oil trader's holdings include Maxis Communications, Malaysia's largest cell phone service provider; now entering Indian cell phone market with acquisition of 74% stake in Aircel Ltd. for $1.1 billion. His Tanjong Plc.'s subsidiary, Powertek Berhad, paid $300 million for three Egyptian subsidiaries of energy giant EDF in March. Also controls racetrack betting and lottery systems in Malaysia.

Mr Krishnan's fortune increased by about 80 per cent bringing his worth to RM19.7 billion while third-placed and

Heads Hong Leong Group Malaysia, a conglomerate of 14 listed companies traded on various stock exchanges. Includes Asian financial services giant Guoco Group

founder of Hong Leong Group Quek Leng Chan is worth RM10.3 billion this year. Others in the top 10 ranking are

Genting Group founder Lim Goh Tong,

Public Bank chairman Teh Hong Piow,

IOI Corporation executive chairman Lee Shin Cheng,

chairman of the Albukhary Foundation Syed Mokhtar Albukhary,

president, chairman and chief executive of Genting Group Lim Kok Thay and

founder and chairman of Rimbunan Hijau Group Tiong Hiew King.

YTL Corp patriarch Yeoh Tiong Lay is in 10th place after a one-year absence.

Among the notable new entrants was Lee Yeow Seng of IOI Group who at 28 is the youngest tycoon on the list.

The other was Mokhzani Mahathir who propelled in after successfully listing his flagship company, Kencana Petroleum Bhd on the main board of Bursa Malaysia in December 2006.

Other new faces on the list are Lee Soon Hian of Batu Kawan Bhd and

Ya'acobTunku Abdullah of MAA Holdings Bhd who is back after a year's absence. Overall, the majority of tycoons saw their paper wealth rise in 2007 due to a rebound in the stock market and rising property and commodity prices, Malaysian Business said in

a statement here yesterday.
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Thursday February 22, 2007

Five ‘giants’ to look into Johor’s IDR; STAR

AN advisory committee comprising five Malaysian “heavyweights” has been set up to look into the development of Iskandar Development Region (IDR) in Johor. IDR is the new economic growth corridor named after the Sultan of Johor. In an exclusive front-page report, Sin Chew Daily said that the five were Tan Sri Robert Kuok Hock Nien, Andrew Sheng, Tun Musa Hitam, Tan Sri Samsudin Osman and Tan Sri Kishu Tirathai. They will provide constructive views on how to lure foreign investments and turn the growth corridor into an attractive investment centre.

ABOVE: Group photo after IRD advisory Board Meeting: PM Abdullah flanked by MB Johore Ghani on his left and Tun Musa Hitam on his right. on the extreme right is Tan Sri Robert Kuok and on the extreme Left is Tan Sri Kishu Tirathai.

BELOW: Tan Sri Robert Kuok with Andrew Sheng

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi was said to have handpicked the five, who enjoy international recognition, said Sin Chew. According to the daily, the five, all Johoreans, have agreed to be on the committee. Kuok is South-East Asia’s richest man popularly known as “The Sugar King” for his early success in the sugar refinery business. Sheng was the former chairman of the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission while Musa was a former deputy Prime Minister. Samsudin is the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) board chairman while Kishu is the owner of Globe Silk Store. According to the daily, Kuok’s inclusion was vital because of his extensive global business network, especially in China.

More importantly, Kwok himself was supportive of the new committee, the daily said.
It quoted sources as saying that Abdullah wanted the five to give their honest opinions and not be mere “yes men” when asked for their views on certain policies.

= = == = =
Saturday February 24, 2007; Advisers positive about project; STAR
JOHOR BARU: The advisers to the Iskandar Development Region Authority (IDRA) – all five influential figures in the corporate world – emerged from their meeting confident about the project, but stressed that proper implementation and continuous revision were vital to its success. Describing the meeting as “fantastic”, former deputy prime minister Tun Musa Hitam said that it was important that the project avoid being Johor-centric despite its location.

“We must recognise that within the context of globalisation, at worst we should think of ourselves as a regional development project. Not in terms of the Malaysian region (alone) but a region that caters to a wider world,” he said. Former Bank Negara director Tan Sri Kishu Tirathrai said that the advisory council would strategise the project’s direction at its six-monthly meetings. He called the Iskandar Development Region (IDR) a living plan for the century. Kishu also said that the plan was to expand the Malaysian economy beyond the Klang Valley, which had led to its congestion.

Former chief secretary to the government and present chairman of the Employees Provident Fund Board and Investment Panel, Tan Sri Samsudin Osman, pledged to bring his knowledge of bureaucracy to get things moving faster. Former chairman of the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission Datuk Seri Andrew Sheng said that Malaysia was headed in the right direction, being able to tap into its relatively small population, rich natural resources and strategic location. “Although there may be bumps along the way, the opportunities for growth are very good,” he said.

The fifth member of the council is Tan Sri Robert Kuok, Asia’s richest man with an estimated net worth of US$5bil (RM17.4bil), from Johor Baru.
= = ==

Saturday February 24, 2007

PM: IDR must be competitive to draw investors
By NELSON BENJAMIN, ZAZALI MUSA and MEERA VIJAYAN

JOHOR BARU: The Iskandar Development Region (IDR), which is set to become a new global growth centre, must be prepared to be globally competitive to draw investors and businessmen. Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said the IDR has to survive on its own ability and high standards of performance based on efficiency, integrity and good governance. “There is no way to expect sympathy from anybody. “They will have to work hard to compete with everybody as competition is a challenge we must face,” he said, referring to the other global growth areas coming up around the world.

Abdullah said that networking with other global growth centres would also benefit IDR while services and work offered must also be of high quality. “We must take advantage of our low cost and the ample space that we have,” he told reporters after the launch of the inaugural Iskandar Regional Development Authority (IRDA) meeting at the Pulai Springs Resort here yesterday. “We must attract investment from everywhere including the United States, Europe and the Middle East,” he said, adding that the country was also prepared to employ international professionals with the necessary skills. The Prime Minister also witnessed the MoU signing ceremony for the building of a hotel and a resort in the development region.

As to how he would measure the success of IDR, Abdullah said: “The presence of global players and the presence of good companies including foreign managers and professionals will be a good indicator.” Initial projections showed that IDR is expected to attract a total of US$105bil (RM370bil) in 20 years. In the short term, it is supposed to attract some RM50bil in investments within five years. IRDA is the statutory body responsible for determining the direction, policies and strategies in relation to development within the IDR. Jointly headed by co-chairmen Abdullah and Johor Mentri Besar Datuk Abdul Ghani Othman, the IRDA consists of five other members. It will also have a council of five eminent persons to advise it on various matters regarding future development.

The advisory council will include five of the state’s most prominent figures – Tan Sri Robert Kuok Hock Nien, Datuk Seri Andrew Sheng, Tun Musa Hitam, Tan Sri Samsudin Osman and Tan Sri Kishu Tirathrai. On the appointment of the five, Abdullah said that he was happy to get their frank views and did not impose any restrictions or barriers to what they could bring up. “All of them agree that there is a lot of potential for this project,” he said.

= = ==
February 22, 2007 19:04 PM

Iskandar Regional Development Issues Main Focus Of PM's Visit

JOHOR BAHARU, Feb 22 (Bernama) -- Iskandar Regional Development issues are to feature prominently during Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's one day visit to Johor Friday. Soon after arrival at the Sultan Ismail International Airport in Senai at about 8.15am, Abdullah will head straight to Pulai Springs Resort to attend the Iskandar Regional Development Authority's board meeting. After the meeting, Abdullah will chair the authority's advisory council meeting and witness the signing of a memorandum of understanding at the same venue. The Iskandar Regional Development, encompassing several districts in Johor, is the southern region's development corridor which will see its transformation into an international metropolis like Hong Kong and Shenzhen in China. In the evening, Abdullah will launch the Nusajaya-Regional City at Nusajaya Centre in Nusajaya before returning to Kuala Lumpur.