community February 3 — 5, 2012/ issue 59

Water taxis for PJ?

p 2 p 6

Running out of space

p 12 & 13

FPMPAM president Dr Steven Chow (left) and Patient Health and Citizen Healthcare Coalition spokesperson Dr T Jayabalan explaining the 1Care 1Malaysia system in Petaling Jaya yesterday.

festival of vows, foRgiveness

By gan pei ling

petaling JaYa: Putrajaya’s healthcare reform plan – 1Care for 1Malaysia – is getting the thumbs down from doctors who are warning that the scheme will be a bane to the public.

Citizen Healthcare Coalition (CHC) spokesperson Dr T Jayabalan said that under 1Care, the public would be required to contribute nearly 10% of their gross income to an insurance fund.

“You’ve to pay more, yet you’ll lose your choice to pick your own doctor, can only see your government-assigned doctor six times a year and get the cheapest medicine,” said Dr Jayabalan at a press conference on Thursday.

He added that Malaysians cannot opt out of 1Care and would have to fork out their own money to see another doctor or get better medicine if they are dissatisfied with the services provided.

Dr Jayabalan said 1Care is expected to be launched this year as the blueprint for its implementation is almost ready.

As a result, 17 non-governmental organisations and con-cerned citizens set up CHC and launched its Tak Nak 1Care social media campaign on Facebook and Twitter recently.

He said the coalition is against 1Care as the scheme benefits a few individuals and companies at the public’s expense.

He claimed that a National Healthcare Financing Authority, likely to be a government-linked company, will manage the health insurance scheme.

“The government is outsourcing healthcare services and pass-ing the buck [of financing it] to the people,” said Dr Jayabalan.

He said Putrajaya should increase its limited budget for healthcare to improve the quality and delivery of public medical services instead.

The Association for Private Medical Practitioners in KL/Se-langor, made up of 900 members, is also urging the government to conduct thorough public consultations before implementing 1Care.

Its president Dr Steven Chow said many members of the pub-lic, including doctors themselves, remain ignorant of the impli-cations of 1Care.

“The government should learn from Hong Kong which un-derwent a similar healthcare reform (a few years ago). Its govern-ment consulted the public on each and every detail of the re-form,” said Chow.

CHC is organising a series of forums to raise public awareness on 1Care. The first one will be held on Feb 12 (3pm) at the Global Business and Convention Centre in Petaling Jaya.

Invited speakers include representatives from the Health Ministry, Federation of Private Medical Practitioners Associa-tion and the Selangor government.

Similar forums will be organised in Ipoh on Feb 18 and Kuan-tan on March 4.

Visit www.facebook.com/taknak1care or www.twitter.com/taknak1care for more information.

Docs up in arms over 1Care

phone (603) 5510 4566fax (603) 5523 1188

email editor@selangortimes.com

EDITORIALCHIEF EDITOR KL Chan

COMMUNITY EDITOR Neville SpykermanPRODUCTION EDITOR C Gunasegaran

WRITERS Tang Hui Koon, Chong Loo Wah, Gan Pei Ling, Basil Foo, Alvin Yap, Gho Chee Yuan, Brenda Ch’ng

COPY EDITOR James AngDESIGNERS Jimmy C. S. Lim, Chin Man Yen

ADVERTISING Timothy Loh, Samantha Sim, Ivan Looi, Tony Kee, ADVISORS Faekah Husin, Arfa’eza Abdul Aziz

2 February 3 — 5, 2012

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By Basil Foo

SHAH ALAM: Putrajaya has been taken to task for raising sugar subsi-dies despite a member of Parliament claiming global prices have fallen.

“Global sugar prices over the past six months since the last price hike in May 2011 have in fact declined sig-nificantly,” said Petaling Jaya Utara MP Tony Pua on Jan 29..

Pua was responding to Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumer-ism Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s statement that the govern-ment will spend RM567 million in sugar subsidies this year.

The increase from 20 sen to 54 sen per kg is apparently to maintain the price of sugar, a price-controlled item, at RM2.30 per kg.

Ismail said the increase was due to the global price increase with natural disasters like drought affecting global

food production.“Is lsmail Sabri

trying to pull a fast one by claiming Malaysia has in-creased its sugar subsidy because global prices have increased despite the opposite being true?” asked Pua.

Pua, who is DAP national publicity secretary, said global prices p e a ke d a t US$0.2947 per pound last July and dropped to a low of US$0.2342 last December.

He added that despite the ringgit’s depreciation against the US dollar at 7 per cent

from last July to December, global price of sugar declined by 13.5 per cent in ringgit terms.

Not that sweet a deal

By Alvin Yap

PETALING JAYA: Water taxis along rivers in the city are among proposals mooted under the Petaling Jaya Special Area Draft Plan 2020 to reduce traffic snarls and pollution.  

Under the plan, boats and hovercrafts will ferry passengers from jetties built along Sun-gai  Damansara, Sungai   Kayu Ara, Sungai Penchala, Sungai Tambul and Sungai Payong.

If the proposal by the Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) is ac-cepted, RM5million will be spent in two phases until 2020 to facilitate the move.

The allocation includes con-structing water locks to keep the water level constant at certain parts of the rivers.

The concession will likely be given to the private sector, ac-

cording to the draft plan.  MBPJ also proposes to build

bicycle lanes linking neighbour-hoods to schools and public transportation hubs such as Light Rail Transit stations.

The proposal will cost RM5 million and will include bicy-cle  parking lots to cater to up-surge in riders.

MBPJ plans to spend RM30 million to convert road and street  shoulders in the city into pedestrian walkways.

The money will also be used to build more speed breakers to slow traffic in order to make Pet-aling Jaya more pedestrian-friendly.

The draft is a short-term devel-opment plan to build roads, highways and public amenities.

It was launched at Royale Bin-tang Hotel on Monday by MBPJ Mayor Datuk Roslan Sakiman

Water taxis in PJ by 2015

and state executive councillor Is-kandar  Samad.

Roslan said the draft local plans are aimed at creating a better living environment in the city, adding that the people should engage MBPJ on the plans during forums.

“All constructive suggestions and objections would be considered. MBPJ’s ultimate goal is to engage all the residents to build a better city,” he said.

Iskandar directed MBPJ to dis-

play the  draft plan at all places of worship.

“Places of worship are an excel-lent focal point to encourage  par-ticipation of local residents,” he said.

He added hat MBPJ must enlist the assistance of mosques, churches and temples to have the plans dis-played at their premises.

The plans can be viewed at MB-PJ’s headquarters at New Town un-til Feb 28, and residents have until

Feb 29 to object to the proposals.“Once MBPJ’s planning depart-

ment has examined the feedback, a public hearing will be held,” he said.

The feedback will be presented to the state planning committee before it is gazetted.

Residents can get the plan at MBPJ’s Planning Department, 2nd Floor Jalan Yong Shook Lin or call 03-7956 3544 ext 353/ 411 (Faiwos Abdul Hamid or Nurli Darni Mus-leh).

MBPJ Mayor Datuk Roslan Sakiman (second from left) state executive councillor Iskandar Samad, MBPJ Deputy Mayor Puasa Mohd Taib (right) and other officers at the launch of the Special Area Draft Plan (RKK) 2020.

SELANGOR TIMES ⁄ february 3 – 5, 2012 ⁄ 3

4 February 3 — 5, 2012

NEWS

Stop politicking for students’ sake

EvEnts

Lee (third left), Kok, Gobind, Fong and Chong (second right) with SMJK Katholik and SJK(C) Yak Chee members at the press conference on Monday.

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Charity climbShelter Home For Children, which cares for abused, abandoned and neglected children, will organise an fundraising adventure climb to Mount Kinabalu from April 25-28. The climb is only open to the first 30 registrants. However, those who wish to contribute can do so at the shelter. For details, call 012-2574305 (Edwin Jalleh), 03-79550663 (Brian), fax 03-79563940 or visit www.shelterhome.org.

Dance performanceHands, Asia’s first modern dance company, will be celebrating their 15th anniversary by bringing in a renowned dance troupe from Taiwan called Cloud Gate. For two nights, they will be performing a choreographed Chinese dance centred on Buddha’s trip to Bodh Gaya. Audiences will be entertained with a 90-minute long show from Feb 16-17 at 8.30pm at Istana Budaya Kuala Lumpur. Tickets are priced between RM68-RM368. To purchase, call 03-4147 8600 or visit www.ticket2u.biz.

Yoga for healthDivine Life Society, a non-profit organisation, will hold a Hatha Yoga course for beginners on Feb 12 (3.30pm), Feb 13 (7pm) and March 3 (4.30pm). For those yearning to break away from the stresses in life, do spend one hour and join the class under experienced instructors at 16, Jalan 18/16 Taman Kanagapuram. For details, call 017-8810848 or 019-2406784.

Buddhism courseThe Subang Jaya Buddhist Association will hold an Introduction to Buddhism course for beginners every Friday from 8.30pm-10pm. The course will be conducted at their temple located at Jalan Kewajipan SS13 Subang Jaya. It will run for eight consecutive weeks starting Feb 17 until April 6. Registration is not required. For details, call 03-56348181 (Lily).

Majestic Rising at Pyramid Visit Sunway Pyramid shopping centre this weekend and stroll around the concourse area to see cherry blossom trees and a huge golden dragon among tall mountains. The 30-ft high dragon emits smoke via its nostrils at certain hours of the day. Patrons can also make a wish at the Pond of Furtune, be entertained by dragon dance performances, and meet Leo the Lion. Shoppers who spend more than RM150 in up to two receipts will be rewarded with dragon red packets. Those spending more than RM800 will receive a Dragon thumbdrive. Shoppers can also win Dragon pendants and a grand prize worth RM33,888. Log on to www.sunwaypyramid.com or call 03-74943100 for details.

By Basil Foo

SHAH ALAM: Selangor is urging the Education Ministry to stop  victimising schools and students by withholding ap-proval for the building of new schools in the state.

“Schools and its students...merely want a chance to enjoy a comfortable environ-ment... and meet the needs of the increas-ing volume of students enrolling,” said state executive councillor Teresa Kok, in a state-ment yesterday (Feb 2).

Kok was speaking in response to claims by Deputy Minister Datuk Dr Wee Ka Siong that Selangor merely gave support letters and not land to SMJK Katholik and SJK(C) Yak Chee to build branches for their schools.

Representatives from both schools held a joint press conference with Kok on Mon-day to voice their disappointment after their applications for setting up branches were rejected by the Ministry of Education (MOE).

Due to space constraints after years of

overwhelming enrolment, SMJK Katholik and SJK(C) Yak Chee applied for the construction of additional branches last year. SMJK Katholik has about 3,400 students while SJK(C)Yak Chee has an enrolment of over 4,000.

The schools turned to the Selangor state government after their applications were rejected by the Ministry of Education (MOE) and the state had approved land for the two schools to establish their branches in Taman Tasik Prima on Sept 23.

Selangor then submitted the applica-tion for SJK(C) Yak Chee (2) and SMJK Katholik (2) to MOE on Sept 30.

However, in a letter dated Nov 25, MOE rejected the application and said the 5.26 hectare school reserve land would be retained for national schools.

“The construction of a branch would have been good as we currently turn away hun-dreds of students each year,” said SMJK Katholik board of governors member Chong Fat Leong at the meeting on Monday.

Chong added that the MOE’s rejection of their application was wrong and unfair

as no in-depth study of their case had been carried out.

SJK(C) Yak Chee Parent-Teacher As-sociation chairperson Lai Kok Hwa added that the construction of a branch for his school would help students from all races.

He said Yak Chee recorded an enroll-ment of about 50 non-Chinese Year One students for their 2012 intake.

In a letter from the state quoting MOE sources, the number of Bumiputera stu-dents in Chinese-medium primary schools in Selangor is 4,863 (4.14%) compared to 117,585 non-Bumiputera students.

“Additional Chinese schools are needed urgently in the Petaling district as the cur-rent ones are overpopulated,” said Petaling Chinese School development committee deputy chairperson Lee Kim Chuan.

He added that it was illogical for schools to have 4,000 students and recommended a maximum of 1,500 students per school.

Also present at the press conference were Bukit Bintang and Puchong members of Parliament Fong Kui Lun and Gobind Singh.

Status quo on Langat IIBy Brenda Ch’ng

SHAH ALAM: Selangor is standing by its decision that approval for the Langat II Water Treatment Plant will only be given once the water services industry in the state is restructured.

The treatment plant is vital to the Pah-ang-Selangor Interstate Water Transfer Project which will channel water from Pahang to the state. 

“What’s more important is restructur-ing which will allow the state to lower

water tariffs as opposed to the 37 per cent increase which is being proposed by the concessionaire,” said state executive coun-cillor Dr Xavier Jayakumar. 

Dr Xavier was responding to Putrajaya’s claim that Selangor would soon face water shortages if Langat II was not built im-mediately.

Energy, Green technology and Water Minister Datuk Seri Peter Chin Fah Kui claims that water  reserves in Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya have dropped drastically due to high demand for water

during Chinese New Year. But the state rebutted this as there has

been heavy rain.“It’s impossible for us to run out of

water because we collect an average of 250 millimetres of water a year,” said Dr Xavier, whose portfolio includes health, plantation workers and pov-erty.

He added that the building of Langat II will not solve existing problems or im-prove the poor management and services by water concessionaires.

SELANGOR TIMES ⁄ February 3 – 5, 2012 ⁄ 5

6 February 3 — 5, 2012

NEWS

A festival of vows, blessings and forgiveness

By Alvin Yap

SELAYANG: For K Logenthiran, Thaipusam is an opportunity to seek bless-ings as he starts his studies at a private col-lege in the city.

Besides looking forward to the new year, the 17-year-old will also be giving thanks for last year’s blessings.

“Thaipusam is a month that coincides with the new year, and it’s the time to make our resolutions,” said Logenthiran.

He explained that the holy month of Thai, between January and February, and Thaipusam on Tuesday is especially sig-nificant for devotees who will be asking deity Lord Murugan for life-changing blessings.

Logenthiran aims to score well in his examinations this year to make his family proud.

“I don’t come from a well-to-do family. It’s my mother’s dream that I make some-thing out of my life,” he added.

Preparations for Thaipusam, especially for those with special requests and those carrying the kavadi, begin 48 days before the festival on Feb 7.

Preparations for Logenthiran’s family of four, who live in Desa Petaling,  began on Dec 26.

Devotees maintain a strict vegetarian diet, pray in the morning and evening, as well as go to temples as a sign of faith.

Vegetables, beancurd and mock-meat vegetarian dishes make up the daily meals.

“Before our breakfast, we clean ourselves with a bath, then go for our prayers,” Lo-genthiran said.

Similarly in the evening, Hindus try to get home before sundown to take a bath and pray.

He said devotees fast, pray and go on a vegetarian diet to atone for their wrongdo-ings and to cleanse themselves spiritually to ask for blessings.

Last year, he came to Batu Caves to ask for good scores in his PMR exams.

“The prayers came though as I received 4 B’s and 3 C’s,” said Logenthiran.

He admitting leaving the studying for the examination too late, but prayed for good results to enter college.

But he’s also asking for forgiveness this year - especially from his mother, a single parent who raised him and his siblings on her own after their father died when Logen-thiran was still a child.

“I want to atone for my behaviour as a son and start anew again this year,” he said.

This year - like the year before - he is going to walk in the 25-km procession from the Sri Mariamman Petaling Street temple to Batu Caves.

The gruelling 18-hour journey allows devotees show their faith by giving out food, drinks and clothing to the poor who line up the procession route.

“When we give, we receive blessings,” he said.

When met at the temple premises, he had just come down from the Batu Caves shrine where he offered a container of milk to the priests.

Carrying the Paal Kudam, or “milk

container”, on one’s head is an act of seeking forgiveness.

Logenthiran, who is also training to be a temple priest at the Sri Maha Kaliamman temple in Jalan Chan Sow Lin, said the holy men then chant and pray in Sanskrit.

“It’s meaningful to receive the prayers,” he said.

During the interview, Logenthiran was also wearing a Hindu prayer robe, a sign that he was following the full Thaipusam ritual.

“People see us and will give way to us because they know we’re on a special faith journey,” he said.

Meanwhile, university lecturer ST Lin-gam, 60, took his wife and their son to Batu Caves to ask for blessings and pray that the latter performs well in his medical examina-tions.

Kuhan Lingam, 25, a final-year medical student at the International Medical Uni-versity, said: “I really want to ace my ex-aminations. It’s a tough exam, with theory and practical parts in it.”

He appreciates the sacrifices of his fam-ily, referring to the substantial financial obligation his family has to undertake to see him graduate.

“If you want something, and I want to be a doctor, for example, I will devote time to come to the temple,” he said.

His father agreed, saying that Thaipusam is about fulfilling vows.

“If you’ve experienced a lucky break, and want to say thank you to Lord Murugan, or if you want to ask for forgiveness, then Thaipusam is for devotees to do so,” said Lingam.

The academician said that sincerity is what mattered when carrying out acts of faith.

Pointing to the smaller milk container that his son was carrying in his hand, Lin-gam said devotees need not bring large urns of milk to show their devotion.

“It’s from the heart,” he added.Among the many devotees at Batu Caves

were T Krishnan, 33, and his wife M San-danasamy, 27, who made a slow walk up the 246 steps to the temple shrines.

At times, when his wife was seen to falter, Krishnan gently nudged her up the flight of steps.

They were at Batu Caves to give thanks for a new addition to the family, three-month-old Thavendran.

Last year, the couple came to the temple to ask priests to bless them and pray for Sanda to conceive.

“We were having problems having a child, so we came to ask for prayers. We asked for Sanda to conceive,” said Krish-nan.

The couple’s family and relatives will attend this special occasion on Friday when they present their baby to the priests.

They will place Thavendran on a baby carriage decorated with sugarcane, symbol-ising life in Hinduism, and let the priests pray and bless the baby.

“We are here to fulfil our vows that we took last year when we asked for a child. It’s been answered and so we are here as a fam-ily,” said Krishnan.

A family asking for blessings from a temple priest at Batu Caves on Wednesday.

Krishnan nudging his wife Sanda up the stairs at Batu Caves to the temple shrine devoted to Lord Murugan.

ST Lingam (right) and his son Kuhan who wants to do well in his final year medical examinations.

7February 3 — 5, 2012

news

Devotees give thumbs up to MPS alcohol ban

By Lee Choon Fai and Chong Loo Wah

SELAYANG: Hindu devotees and local councillors are applauding the Selayang Mu-nicipal Council’s (MPS)s move to bar tem-porary traders at Batu Caves from selling li-quor during Thaipusam.

A Rathimalar, 37, welcomed the ban as she had witnessed several incidents caused by drunkenness during Thaipusam before.

“These drunkards use bad words and ha-rass other devotees, sometimes fights are started because of their harassment,” said the 37-year-old who visits Batu Caves every year.

Batu Caves shopkeeper V Santhi also agreed with MPS’s ban.

“Even we (shopkeepers and restaurants operators) don’t sell cigarettes and alcohol, it’s a holy place.”

Hundreds of temporary traders have been prohibited from selling liquor from Feb 5 to

Feb 8.Thaipusam falls on Feb 7 and more than

one million visitors areexpected to throng Batu Caves to offer their prayers or witness the procession.

MPS president Datuk Zainal Abidin Aala said the ban is to prevent untoward incidents at the sacred site.

MPS councillor A Murugeshu said al-though alcohol is prohibited at the temples, there have been reports of drunks entering the temples and causing nuisances.

“On one side you’ve got the religious people, who fast days before and come to show their faith and devotion. On the other side, you’ve drunks starting fights and making a mockery out of Thaipusam!” said Muruge-shu.

Such disrespectful conduct also gives a bad image to the country as Hindus from around the world visit Batu Caves during the festival.

MPS would be working with the police to ensure that temporary traders complied with the alcohol ban.

In addition, MPS also advises shops lo-cated within 1km of Batu Caves to avoid selling alcohol during the four days (Feb 5-8).

Councillor RG Gunarajah said the stores can help prevent trouble by refraining from selling liquor for the four-day period.

The move to outlaw the sale of alcohol along the roads of the chariots and the ka-vadi procession during Thaipusam was first mooted by the Consumers Association of Penang and other non-governmental on Jan 28.

Mammoth task for authoritiesSELAYANG: One and half million expected visitors will again stretch Batu Cave’s facilities next Tuesday and authorities have an uphill task to ensure hygiene, safety  and comfort of devotees.

The Selanyang Municipal Council (MPS) will be in the forefront in the battle to tackle the thousands of tons garbage generated by visitors and  temporary stalls.  

A contractor has been hired from from Feb 4 to Feb 11 to keep Batu Caves as clean as pos-sible.

“There will be a lot of food during the festi-val that comes with Styrofoam, and these will be scattered about after people finish their food,” said MPS councillor RG Gunarajah.

He said non-governmental organisations (NGOs) will also be distributing approxi-mately 100,000 free meals and drinks for the devotees. 

In addition, stalls and restaurants will also be open to sell their own food and drinks, which creates even more garbage.

The MPS contractor will be tasked to clear rubbish bins in Batu Caves and its surrounding areas every hour in order to prevent garbage from overflowing.

Gunarajah said the temple has already built more than 200 toilets within its compound while the municipality will be bringing in about 40 more mobile toilets for visitors to use. 

S Ashwini, a 23 year-old university student, agreed that cleanliness should be given top priority during the festival as it gets very dirty in the area.

She also thinks it would help to expand the Batu Caves compounds further to ease crowd congestion, especially the lower areas and en-trances since the temples themselves cannot be expanded.

“The last time I was there, there was still a huge crowd even though it’s two days after Thaipusam,” she said.

K Devi, a henna artist working within the Batu Caves compound, said the temples’ man-agement has already done their part to cater to the huge crowds.

“I am quite satisfied with the temples’ man-agement in terms of facilities, restaurants, and people even get free food there, all that can be done has already been done, I’m satisfied,” said Devi.

The 40 year-old added that public transpor-tation in the area is adequate since there is now a KTM station just next to the Batu Caves temples, and also bus services that leads di-rectly to Batu Caves from several areas.

MPS councillor A Murugeshu is also urged the public not to drive and park their vehicles in the area as it would cause severe congestion and use the public transport available instead.

He also said that MPS enforcement au-thorities and Police officers will be stationed there to ensure a smooth flow of traffic and prevent anyone from double and triple parking in the areas nearby.Ashwini

A Rathimalar (left) and her four-year-old son G Vishal, her mother M Shanta (centre) and sister-in-law Maslya Mohd Rashid get an early start to Batu Caves ahead of the crowds on Wednesday.

SELAYANG: The Selayang Municipal Council (MPS) will offer rewards to the public to help check the rat population in the municipality.

MPS president Datuk Zainal Abidin said the council will begin the offer once the incentive scheme is finalised this month.

“We have to discuss the scheme further and develop a mechanism to prevent abuses,” said Zainal at the full board meeting on Tuesday.

The council originally planned to pay

RM2 for each rat caught, but the MPS health department is wary because of re-ports of people abusing the scheme in Penang.

It is believed that unscrupulous people have resorted to breeding rats to claim the RM1 bounty offered per rat by the Penang Municipal Council.

Despite that, Zainal said the council would iron out the details and begin the project by this month in order to achieve its target of catching 2,000 rats this year.

Bounty for rats in Selayang

8 February 3 — 5, 2012

News

No takers for council’s holiday homesBy Brenda Ch’ng

SUBANG JAYA: Two holiday homes in Port Dickson have turned out to be proverbial white elephants for the council and efforts to sell them have also come to naught.

“It’s not doing really well as the apartments are too far away from the beach, which is inconvenient,” said Subang Jaya Municipal (MPSJ) councillor Ng Sze Han.

Currently, the units, purchased during the previous state adminis-tration, are only being rented out to

MPSJ staff twice a month compared to the year-round booking for the council’s other holiday homes in Cameron Highlands.

Ng said after the council’s full board meeting on Tuesday that the PD units, priced at RM80,000 each, have been on the market for close to a year.

“We will be engaging a local property agent to help us speed up the sale of both units,” said Ng.

He added that the price of the apartments will be reevaluated and revised based on the current market

value.MPSJ had proposed, during the

full board meeting in November, to purchase two new apartment units in Langkawi for the staff.

But this drew the ire of some coun-cillors who pointed out that the coun-cil was willing to spend RM530,000 for the units while not having an al-location to repair potholes.

They also called on MPSJ to prioritise the needs of rate payers.

“I’m all for looking after the wel-fare of the staff, but when basic in-frastructure can’t even be met, I

don’t see how acquiring these homes will help anyone,” said Subang Jaya assemblyperson Hannah Yeoh at that time.

Others had expressed fears that buying the units in Langkawi would be a mistake as it might end up being more of a liability rather than an asset to the council.

“If the condominium is in a bad condition and MPSJ still buys it without getting a second opinion, then it wouldn’t be a good move in the long run,” said Kelana Jaya Mem-ber of Parliament Loh Gwo Burne.

Council wants contractors to use quality partsSUBANG JAYA: From this month, contractors maintaining streetlights here will be required to purchase bulbs and parts from reputable suppliers shortlisted by the council.  

“We need to ensure contractors use only the best products to pre-vent streetlights from breaking down so often,” said Subang Jaya Municipal Council (MPSJ) presi-dent Datuk Asmawi Kasbi.

The new rule was announced at the council’s full board meeting on Tuesday following numerous com-plaints about faulty lights despite repairs being done.

“In SS14 and SS16 alone, there have been many reports about the lights not working most of the time,” said councillor Dr Loi Kheng Min.

His concern was reiterated by fellow councillors who faced the same problem in their  areas.

MPSJ may extend the require-ment for its other contractors to use only council sanctioned suppliers if the move proves to be successful.

Errant operator told to pay up or get out

MPSJ offers anniversary perksSUBANG JAYA: Rebates, dis-counts and gifts will be extended to ratepayers here in conjunction with the Subang Jaya Municipal Council’s (MPSJ) 15th anniversary which fell on Jan 2.

Among the benefits are a RM20 flat rate for traffic summonses for one month in February along with a five per cent rebate for assessment rates paid online in July and August.

“Those who pay their rates online will also stand a chance to win lucky draw prizes like an iPad, handphone and television,” said MPSJ president Datuk Asmawi Kasbi.

The council is also considering offering cash prizes for the lucky draw.

Meanwhile, residents who choose

to settle their rates at one of three kiosks inside the council headquar-ters this month will be given fruit saplings to plant at home.

“The landscape department has already bought 20,000 saplings. Residents can collect them from the department after settling their rates,” said Asmawi.

The public will also be allowed to use MPSJ’s sport facilities, including badminton courts and football fields, at no charge throughout March.

However, each resident is only limited to three free bookings a week.

In addition, MPSJ will be organ-ising free public cooking and sewing classes twice a month, from April.

SUBANG JAYA: Hawkers at two food courts here may be given a chance to manage them-selves if the current operator fails to settle RM114,000 in arrears.

Subang Jaya Municipal Coun-cil (MPSJ) councillor Pooi Weng Keong made the proposal for the council to deal directly with hawkers and collect payments from them directly.

The operator, who manages both food courts at Puchong Jaya and Serdang, has not   paid the council rental and utility bills for six months.

“The hawkers have been pay-ing the operator but we have not been receiving anything from them for months,” said councillor Pooi Weng Keong.

MPSJ had issued a notice in December reminding the opera-tor to pay up by this month but had received no response.

“I hope the council will take this more seriously and consider terminating the current opera-tor’s contracts if they still don’t pay by this week,” said Pooi.

Council president Datuk As-mawi Kasbi said the council will issue a final notice before taking more drastic action.

“If they don’t pay by this week, we will cut them off immediate-ly,” he said.

He added that the council’s finance committee will decide on who should manage the food courts.

More than enough budget hotels in SS15SUBANG JAYA: No additional budget hotels will be approved in SS15 as the existing number is more than adequate to cater to demand.

“There are already six hotels in SS15 and I think it’s more than enough. We will not be approving any more hotel licences there,” said Subang Jaya Municipal Council (MPSJ) president Datuk Asmawi Kasbi at a full board meeting on Tuesday.

He was responding to MPSJ councillor Dr Loi Kheng Min’s query on the status of a budget hotel in front of Taylors College, which has been operating illegally for about two weeks in SS15.

“I just want to know if this hotel has the necessary planning permits and building plans. Also, if their licence will be approved by the coun-cil,” he said.

Last week, the hotel was raided by MPSJ officers and later shut down following the owner’s failure to produce an operational licence. However, Tuesday’s meeting decided that the hotel will be given a chance to legalise its operations.

9February 3 — 5, 2012

news

Councillors give to worthy causesBy Alvin Yap

PETALING JAYA: Non-gov-ernmental organisations and a school received financial aid from city councillors here on Tuesday.

Susanna Saw, 37, re ceive d RM2,500 on behalf of The Young Ch ora l Aca d emy wh i c h s h e founded in 2008.

The musically-trained Penang-ite said the funds would be used to produce two upcoming musi-cals this year, namely the ‘Popzical’ concert featuring popular and jazz songs.

SK Methodist Parent-Teacher Association (PIBG) chairperson Chandra Rajan, 44, also received RM2,500 to improve facilities in the primary school in Section 5, Petaling Jaya.

He said the school, which has 428 students, was embarking on a project to make it more condu-cive to learning.

“We’ll use the money to rebuild the toilets, rewire the electrical points and also repaint the fa-cade,” he said.

Yew Lip Sin, 44, also received an allocation of RM1,500 to run community programmes at his Seventh-Day Adventist church at Section 6.

“We’ll use the money to run health and cooking classes at our community hall,” he said.

MBPJ council lors Richard Yeoh and Terence Tan handed out the donations from their council allocations.

“I still have surplus from MBPJ allocations for non-governmental organisations and social groups. I want to give it away to groups that are carr ying out so cia l pro -grammes,” said Tan.

PETALING JAYA: An addi-tional RM5 million has been al-located by the city council this year to cope with public cleaning and solid waste management services.

“We’ve allocated additional funds to purchase new equip-ment. We have to rebuild our capacity,” said Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) mayor Datuk Roslan Sakiman.

These services were previously managed by solid waste conces-sionaire Alam Flora Sdn Bhd.

Roslan said MBPJ will spend a total of RM57 million for solid waste collection and public clean-ing this year.

This is inclusive of the RM500,000 set aside to purchase Roll On-Roll Off bins and other equipment.

He said the city council was also taking delivery of two trash

compactor lorries to back up its contractors.

When Alam Flora Sdn Bhd took over garbage collection in 2007, local governments had sur-rendered all their equipment and other assets to the solid waste management concessionaire.

“The extra amount (RM5 mil-lion) is to help improve and provide more efficient services,” he said.

He said the allocations would also be used to train staff to audit waste management contractors.

Despite the increased alloca-tion for cleaning and waste col-lection, Roslan pointed out that MBPJ’s RM281 million overall budget remains unchanged from last year.

The city council will reduce expenditure for other services and use the money for waste manage-ment.

Chandra, Saw and Yew display their cheques from MBPJ as Yeoh (second from right) and Tan (red tie) look on.

MBPJ to spend more on garbage collection

RM10,000 reward for info on Rawang culpritBy Brenda Ch’ng

SHAH ALAM: A RM10,000 re-ward is being offered to anyone with information that leads to the arrest of those responsible for desecrating the Nurul Iman Mosque in Rawang with a pig head early Tuesday morning.

”We will only be giving it to those

who can provide us with valid infor-mation to aid the police in their investigations,” said state executive councillor Rodziah Ismail.

She told reporters during a press conference after the state exco meet-ing that the informant will be re-warded once the accused is charged and found guilty in court.

“I hope the public will not make a sensitive issue out of this and just provide us with the necessary infor-mation to solve this case quickly,” said Rodziah.

She also pointed out that this is not the first case of attacks on places of worship, as churches have been attacked in the past too.

“All these attacks should be stopped and those responsible ar-rested soon,” she said.

Rodziah also urged the public not to speculate on the incident but let the authorities get to the bottom of it.

Those with information are urged to call 1800 888 2824.

Displaced residents victimised furtherSHAH ALAM: Efforts to revive a project to provide homes for resi-dents of Kampung Bungaraya are being hampered due to Putrajaya’s reluctance to lift its abandoned sta-tus.

The residents, living in long-houses after being displaced under Dr Mohd Khir Toyo’s zero squatters policy in 1994, have been waiting for low-cost units promised to them at Jalan Pluto U5/138.

Kota Damansara assemblyperson Dr Nasir Hashim said a new devel-oper had been identified to complete the project but residents cannot obtain loans because of the project’s status, which is under the purview of the Housing and Local Govern-ment Ministry.

“The negative impact from a housing project being classified as abandoned or stalled is that banks are unwilling to finance the housing loan,” he said on Wednesday.

The project is one of the oldest

abandoned projects around and Dr Nasir called on all relevant agencies to meet and settle the issue which has plagued the unfortunate resi-dents.

He also called on Selangor to get the Federal ministry to gazette the project as “on-going” besides facili-tating a meeting with banks and purchasers.

The lawmaker also wants the state to waive the land premium on the six-acre land as well as other assess-ment rates as to make it more afford-able for the people to purchase the houses.

“This is the least we can do, to make up for the long wait,” he said.

The low-cost flats in Shah Alam were supposed to have been com-pleted between 1996-1997, but were delayed after the first developer faced financial constraints.

The current white knight, ECL Management Sdn Bhd is tasked with continuing with the low-cost proj-

ect, and has already completed some 80 per cent of one of the three blocks there.

According to the company’s gen-eral manager, V. Ragu, the cost of each unit has been maintained at the original price of RM42,000.

However, he was concerned that some residents will not qualify loans due to the project’s “abandoned” status.

“We’re on schedule. We started in July 2011 and will finish this project by early 2013. But can the purchasers get the loan, that is the question,” he said.

He said the ministry should monitor the project and see for itself that the 875 low-cost units will be ready by next year before reclassify-ing the development as “ongoing”.

Subang member of Parliament RSivarasa said the issue affected some 168 households, as their loan applications were rejected because of the project’s status.

10 February 3 — 5, 2012

News

Valentine’s offer for early birds

By Gan Pei Ling

KLANG: Motorists who settle their traffic compounds by Valentine’s Day need only to pay a flat rate of RM10.

The Klang Municipal Council is making the offer in a bid to collect arrears accumulated from Nov 2001 until last October.

Most fines range from RM50 to RM300, depending on the offences.

“The public can check their status on the spot and settle all the arrears at a flat rate once and for all,” said MPK acting president Ikhsan Mukri.

After the Feb 14 deadline, the rate will be increased to RM20 from Feb 15-29.

MPK is also setting up special counters at shopping malls like Giant and Jaya Jusco at Bukit Tinggi during weekends to allow the public to pay their fines.

Special counters will be opened from 10am to 10pm at Bukit Tinggi Giant from Feb 4-6 and Bukit Tinggi Jaya Jusco from Feb 11-12.

Mobile counters will also be set up at Bandar Bukit Tinggi 2 in front of CIMB Bank on Feb 9 (Thursday) from 10am to 3pm.

MPK special counters will move to Batu Belah Carrefour on Feb 18 and 19, followed by Bukit Raja Jaya Jusco on Feb 25 and 26.

The mobile counters can also be found in front of Port Klang’s Affin Bank on Feb 16 and RHB Bank in Bandar Baru Klang on Feb 23 from 10am-3pm.

Disaster response team for Klang

By Brenda Ch’ng

KLANG: The Klang Municipal Council (MPK) has identified potential dengue hotspots.

“We hope residents living in these areas will be cautious and take immediate action to clean up their areas,” said MPK communications and public complaints department director Norfiza Mahfiz.

North Klang, Bandar Baru Klang Condominium, Taman Eng Ann, Taman Klang Utama (Kapar) and Taman Bayu Meru have been identified as high risk areas.

She added that residents in Pulau Ketam, Bandar Armada Putra, Pekan Pandamaran and Pandamaran Jaya should also be vigilant.

High risk areas in South Klang include Taman Bayu Perdana, Palma Flats, Bandar Botanik, Taman Sentosa and Prima Bayu flats.

MPK will carry out more checks on shop houses, construction sites, schools and factories located at these hotspots.

KLANG: A disaster response team is being set up by the Klang Municipal Council (MPK) to provide emergency relief services in the event of flash floods and other calamities.

The Smart Service Squad (3S) will also assist in managing flood relief centres, food preparation, cleaning buildings and sites.

“We’re setting it up as soon as possible. We’ll work together with government agencies like the Fire and Rescue Department, Rela and the police during disasters,” said MPK acting president Ikhsan Mukri.

He mooted the idea to set up 3S in early December after the Kajang flash floods, which damaged properties and vehicles, to ensure MPK is not caught unprepared in the event a similar disaster happens here.

Members of 3S will include personnel from six departments – Environmental Services, Health, Engineering, Enforcement, Parks and Recreation and Corporate Communication.

Ikhsan said the council will also work together with the Department of Irrigation and Drainage, Public Works Department, the Klang District Office and other relevant government bodies.

In addition, MPK has identified flood-prone areas such as Taman Chi Liung, Pandamaran, Teluk Gong and community halls that could be used as relief centres throughout the municipality.

During the monthly full board meeting, councillor Lim Lip Suan noted that some disasters were caused by bad planning and drainage.

“Prevention is better than cure. Proper town planning will help to reduce man-made disasters,” said Lim.

Councillor Yew Boon Lye also urged MPK to take action against irresponsible developers who do not abide by the council’s development guidelines.

Residents at dengue hotspots urged to be vigilant

Norfiza Mahfiz

Motorists with outstanding traffic compounds are already taking advantage of the Klang council’s offer

By Alvin Yap

PETALING JAYA: The city council says annual rental rates for hawkers are reason-able and will not revise the RM208 fee for each lot.

“It’s cheap and they’re making a profit with the rates we set,” said Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) Mayor Datuk Roslan Saki-man at a press conference after the council’s full board meeting on Tuesday.

He said that to revert to the old RM185 rate set two years ago will only confuse op-erators.

MBPJ Health and Environment director Dr V Chitra said that the council had to hire contractors to clean the streets at morning and night markets after trading hours.

“It’s a massive job to clean up the mess and the rubbish. The rental goes into pay-ing the contractors,” she said.

They were responding to Petaling Jaya Selatan Member of Parliament Hee Loy Sian’s call to reduce rental fees for traders.

“During the current economic hardship, MBPJ should lower the fees. Hawkers are making a loss these days,” said Hee.

He added that the city council could af-ford to reduce the rental rates as it was doing well financially.

“MBPJ doesn’t need the extra revenue from charging RM208 per lot. Reduce it to the amount before the hike,” he said.

He also called for MBPJ to waive the RM50 penalty for traders who renewed their licences after Dec 31.

“Waive the fine. It’s not like you need the money,” he said.

Status quo on hawker fees

11February 3 — 5, 2012

Views

Just selangorTricia Yeoh

Politics vs Policy: How do people really vote?H ow do people evaluate their leaders in

government, through their satisfaction with policies, or based on emotional

tags linked to the personalities of politicians? When voting, do they think of the impacts felt on a daily basis, or are they reminded of the candidates’ antics as portrayed in the media?

Perhaps there was a collective sigh of relief (or horror, depending on which side one was on) after the verdict of Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s sodomy case was announced. There was certainly a tension that had been built up in the preceding weeks, with members of his party making preparations for a worst-case scenario.

The decision was predicted to have coloured the political fabric for the year ahead, giving pundits some indication as to when polls may be called. Predictions vary for the elections to be held any time between June to March 2013, the latter being the full term of five years. Malaysians have been sitting on the edge of their seats for at least two years already, waiting for the big game to begin.

Politics does have the tendency to transform Malaysians into wild things who channel all energies into anticipating a single event. Press conferences, finger-pointing, scandalous revelations and the like are geared toward the likelihood (or not) of a particular party winning in the elections.

What often goes swept under the carpet is

the arduous task of policy-making. This ought to be the bread and butter of g o v e r n m e n t s , w h e r e positions taken by federal, state and local governments, then translated into programmes and projects, are evaluated and scrutinised by citizens. Surely the socio-economic philosophy behind a certain party should influence how people feel towards them.

However, this requires a more educated society. When I went to the United States to observe the 2008 presidential elections, I was surprised at the detail that the average American voter was expected to know when voting. There, you are not merely voting for the president, senator, congressman or local councillor; depending on the state and municipality, you are also expected to vote for specific legislation. For example, Californians were able to vote on whether to ban same-sex marriages in the state.

In such a situation, numerous civil society groups and non-governmental organisations publish information in little booklets to educate the public, conduct seminars and campaigns for or against a certain legislation being voted upon. This of course requires an educated public and an environment conducive to promoting freedom of speech and expression.

We have not gone down that route yet,

where Malaysians only vo t e f o r t wo p u b l i c representatives: their state a s s e m b l y p e r s o n a n d Member of Parliament.

These elected individuals are then expected to represent their constituents’ views in making policy decisions. By right, these leaders should therefore be judged according to their policies and actions, since we have given over the right to decide on what’s best for us to them.

Let’s face it. Elections are a popularity contest, and numerous factors come into play, not necessarily reflecting how wise the candidate has been in executing the best safety, health or public transport policies. The media also contributes to playing up issues: the question thereby arises on whether the supply of political gossip precedes its demand, or vice versa.

That being said, Malaysians are maturing as a voting society. Take Bersih 2.0 as an example, where people root for what is essentially a policy change. In this respect, the policy of electoral reform precedes the personality of a leader. Whichever political leader who is able to demonstrate his affinity to the reform demands would be seen as favourable in the court of public opinion.

And this is surely the route to take if we want to develop an advanced democracy. Sure, Malaysia is still very much a rural polity, and

sure, the national education system has not necessarily produced critically thinking individuals. But we cannot wait for that to take place. Already, heated discussions ensue on important policy issues facing the country: budget deficits, economic sustainability, national bankruptcy, urban poverty, and so on.

As we find ourselves facing an upcoming election year (whether or not the elections are actually called this year, politicians will surely act as if it will), it is important that Malaysians stay focused on what will most impact society and the country. It is often easy to be distracted by reports on sodomy, party-hopping , traitorous behaviour, and so on.

Evaluating our leaders based on their performances, how they have handled their budgets, and positions taken on everyday affairs, say, violence against women or traffic jams, should be considered important indicators of effective leadership.

This piece argues for greater consideration of policy decisions and their implementation when observing politicians. However, the reality is that how people vote will be an amalgamation of their perceptions both emotional and rational: the fine interplay between politics and policy. Research into this area would surely offer a rich understanding of voters’ behaviour, expectations and how these values influence their final mark on the ballot.

going the distanceAzmi ShArom

When silence implies consentO n Jan 21, a mob of supposedly Umno supporters

attacked a forum organised by Hindraf and the group calling itself ABU (Anything But Umno). From the

videos posted online, it is clear that this was an unprovoked attack. Unless you take the police line which said that the forum was organised in a Malay area and therefore such an attack was to be expected. An odd logic since many of the organisers and speakers were Malay.

Be that as it may, there are also accusations that the police did not act in an impartial way and did not do enough to stop those who instigated this attack. Well, if this is true, it does not come as much of a surprise. Any group which gathers and is seen to be in favour of Umno (I would say the BN but I can’t think of any examples of a BN mob), seems to be treated with kid gloves.

A few weeks ago a group of rotund men made a video where they threatened to commit battery on a university student for daring to take down a flag of their dear leader Datuk Seri Najib Razak. As far as I know, no action was taken against them. 

Now, I wonder if these kinds of thuggish behaviour will actually turn people against the BN. For those who are directly involved, it most certainly will. But for those who were not at these places and did not get hurt by these thugs, I really do wonder. 

After all, the BN is busy right now spreading goodies all over the place. They promise that they are going to fix Tamil schools, build houses for the Orang Asli and there’s cash being handed out left, right and centre (unfortunately, not in my direction). 

So does the electorate care that in this country, mob behaviour is practically condoned? Should they care? 

Of course I can write on about justice, rule of law and might not being right. But as much as I believe in these ideals, the Malaysian mind being what it is, a more pragmatic

approach is required. What then are the pragmatic consequences that spring from having a government that is not willing to come out and condemn such behaviour?

The most obvious concern would be the hindrance to free speech and expression. Free speech and expression, as the government is so fond of saying, does not include violent behaviour. How correct they are. Threatening and hurting another person cannot be seen as a legitimate form of expression. If a group of morons on motorbikes can storm a hall and get away scot free, then naturally people will be afraid to express themselves, or to even come and listen to others expressing themselves.

Without open and free expression, then a country can be run into the ground by the corrupt and inept without the people knowing about it. In other words, if we want to be successful and prosperous, we need to have free speech. We need differing opinions so that we can be informed and act accordingly. 

The second pragmatic concern is that if our law enforcement agencies are not going to clamp down on such behaviour, then really, what are they there for? Their motto is currently “firm, fair and prudent”. Firm with whom, fair to whom and prudent in what is the question to be asked? Any gathering organised by people not from or sympathetic to the ruling party will get the police knickers in a collective

twist because they are always spouting on and on about public safety. Well then, I would have thought that when public safety was actually threatened they would jump at the chance to show off their prowess. It does not look like it. However at the time of writing a man has been brought in for questioning by our boys in blue, so I am hoping they will prove me wrong.

The final concern is simply this, if a leadership is not willing to say outright that mob violence is wrong, even when that mob seems to be supporting their agenda, then it means that this is a government for whom the ends justifies the means. This means that we the people cannot be safe for they are leading not with any principle but by pure pragmatism and when that happens, anything can happen.

12 february 3 — 5, 2012InsIght

By Gan Pei Ling 

Every time a garbage truck drives past, most of us would hold our breath, but have you stopped and wondered where the truck delivers the rubbish to? And did you

know that local governments spend millions annually to transport waste collected from households and traders to landfills throughout Selangor?

People in Selangor and Kuala Lumpur jointly throw away an average of 7,375 tonnes of trash a day – equivalent to the weight of at least 1,400 Borneo pygmy elephants. These include recyclables and organic waste that the public has yet to get used to separating.

In addition, the amount of domestic waste we generate is expected to increase at an annual rate of 2%, but our landfills have a finite life span and land in Selangor is running scarce.

How long can our landfills last and what happens when the state runs out of places to bury our trash? Selangor Times spoke to landfill operators and state executive councillor for local government Ronnie Liu to find out.

Millions spent to manage “trash”Selangor spends RM300 million to RM400 million annu-

ally to collect and transport domestic waste to landfills. This does not include the tipping fee local councils pay to operators to bury and treat rubbish.

The bulk of our domestic waste goes to three sanitary landfills – Bukit Tagar in Hulu Selangor, Jeram in Kuala Sel-angor, and Tanjung Duabelas in Kuala Langat.

Only sanitary landfills are equipped with proper facilities to treat landfill gas and prevent leachate from contaminating groundwater and rivers.

Bukit Tagar is the largest sanitary landfill in Selangor. It deals with 2,500 tonnes of garbage from Kuala Lumpur, Se-layang and private waste collectors daily.

Operated by KUB-Berjaya Enviro since April 2005, the site processes domestic waste at a cost of RM28.80 to RM49 per tonne, says its managing director Chock Eng Tah.

Spread over 700 acres of land with the capacity to bury 120 million metric tonnes of waste, it has a life span of 50 to 60 years.

Meanwhile, Jeram takes in around 2,000 tonnes of waste a day from six local authorities – Petaling Jaya City Council, Shah Alam City Council, Subang Jaya Municipal Council, Klang Municipal Council, Ampang Jaya Municipal Council and Kuala Selangor District Council – and private waste collectors.

The landfill is managed by Worldwide Holdings Bhd (WHB), a subsidiary of state investment arm Selangor Devel-opment Corporation.

WHD environment division head Zamri Abdul Rahman says local councils pay the company a tipping fee of RM36 per tonne while private waste collectors are charged RM50 per tonne.

Originally, the Jeram landfill was expected to last 16 years with its capacity to bury eight million tonnes cubic metre worth of trash.

“However, we’ve filled up 3.5 million tonnes cubic metre air space since 2007. It probably can only last another five to six years,” says the environmental engineer.

Zamri adds that while its workers do try to recover recycla-bles sent to its landfill, they can only recover around one per cent from the waste due to limited resources.

“Recyclables like plastic bottles take up a lot of landfill space, our workers do try to separate them but it’s more efficient if the public practise recy-cling at home,” he says.

The recycling rate among local councils varies. The Subang Jaya Municipal Council, for example, recycled a quarter of its waste in 2010, but others like Petaling Jaya City Council and Ampang Jaya Municipal Council do not keep a record.

Once the landfill in Jeram is full, transportation costs are expected to rise as the six local authorities will either have to send their waste further up north to the Bukit Tagar landfill or down south to Kuala Langat.

WHB operates another sanitary landfill in Tanjung Dua

Belas, Kuala Langat.It handles rubbish collected

from the Sepang Municipal Council, Kuala Langat District Council, Perbadanan Putra-jaya, Kuala Lumpur Interna-tional Airport and private waste collectors currently.

O p en e d in Januar y 2010, Zamri says Tanjung Duabelas still has plenty of air space as less than half a million tonne is filled out of its 9.2 million cubic metre capacity.

A few local authorities like the Sabak Bernam Dis-trict Council and Hulu Selangor District Council also operate their own land-fills.

Alternatives to land-fills

Nonetheless, landfills are not a permanent solu-tion to escalating rubbish woes as we do not have in-finite land to bury our waste.

Singapore used to rely on landfills in the 1960s and 1970s to bury their solid waste, but due to space constraints the island has built four incinerators or waste-to-energy plants over the years to reduce its waste volume.

In 2001, Putrajaya pro-posed to build a RM1.5 billion ringgit incinerator in Broga, but concerned over the public health and environmental risks in-volved, residents took the government to court. The project was eventually called off in 2007.

State executive council-lor Ronnie Liu tells Selan-gor Times the state is study-ing solid waste manage-ment strategies and tech-nologies employed in other countries such as Singapore, Japan and China.

But he says Selangor is unlikely to emulate Singapore as its incinerators do not single out the recyclables.

“We’re looking for the most economical and environmen-tally-friendly technologies. For waste-to-energy plant, we’re

more inclined towards those that separate the recyclables before in-cineration,” says Liu.

Examples he cites include those in Japan and China, where gar-bage is separated into recyclable, burnable a n d n o n-b urna b l e items.

The Klang Munici-pal Council visited one of the cleanest cities in China, Xiamen, last December and is look-ing into building a RM150 million incin-erator.

Zamri says Selangor will probably have to employ a combination of methods, in-cluding composting organic waste, recycling and waste-to-energy plants to handle domestic waste in future.

“The state has commissioned us to do preliminary studies on the alternatives available and we’ve briefed them on the cost and feasibility of each option,” he says.

The waste management expert notes that landfill is still the cheapest means of disposing of waste at RM36 per tonne

Space running out for

Weighbridge station at Jeram sanitary landfill in Kuala Selangor.

Aerial view of leachate treatment plant at Jeram sanitary landfill, Kuala Selangor.

Space running out for Where does our rubbish go to? Before sanitary landfills came along, local councils used to dump collected waste at sites that lack proper

facilities to contain leachate and landfill gases such as methane (flammable), carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulphide.

As a result, groundwater and rivers were contaminated by pollutants including heavy metals as toxic wastes are not separated and dumped into landfills indiscriminately.

Selangor has been closing down non-sanitary landfills throughout the state and most of our domestic waste goes to three sanitary landfills in Selangor now.

Operator Landfill Source of Capacity Area Opened Est. life span waste (acre) in (year)

KUB- BukitTagar, •KualaLumpur 120 700 2005 50–60BerjayaEnviro HuluSelangor •MPS million SdnBhd •Privatewaste metric collectors tonne

Worldwide Jeram, •MBPJ 8million 160 2007 16Holdings KualaSelangor •MBSA cubicmetreBhd •MPSJ •MPK •MPAJ •MDKS •Privatewaste collectors

TanjungDua KualaLangat •MDKL 9.2million 160 2010 20Belas, •MPSepang cubicmetre •Perbadanan Putrajaya •KLIA •Privatewaste collectors

Sanitarylandfillscanonlyacceptnon-hazardouswaste.Inaddition,theworkdoesnotstopwhenthesitesare closed. They need to be maintained and monitored to avoid soil erosion and groundwater contamination.

OperatedbyWorldwideHoldingsBhd,theAirHitamsanitarylandfillinPuchongwasclosedin2006andwas only reopened last year as a recreational park.

comparedtoincineration,whichmaycostRM200pertonne.Inaddition,landfillisstillneededtoburytheash,butthe

process of combustion will reduce the volume of waste dra-maticallyby95percent.

When asked about the release of toxic gases such as dioxin from incinerators, Zamri says it can be mitigated by high-temperature burning.

“Landfillsorincinerators,anywastedisposalmethodcomeswithenvironmentalrisks.Landfillswithoutproperfacilitiesmay leak leachate underground and contaminate groundwater. Illegaldumpsitesoftencatchfire[duetothereleaseofmethanegas from the rotting waste].

“But all this can be prevented with proper engineering methods,” he says.

As the population in Selan-gor, especially Klang Valley, rises, Zamri says the amount of waste we generate is projected to increase at an annual rate of two per cent.

For now, Selangor can at-tempt to prolong the life span of existing landfills by encour-aging the public to recycle and compost their organic waste. But if the current trend of indiscriminate dumping were to continue, the state would have to make the call sooner wheth-er to build incinerators to dispose of our mounting garbage

Ultimately, it is in the ratepayers’ own interests to recycle,

compost organic waste and reduce the amount of trash they throw away daily, or they would have to pay an increasing amount of money for local councils to handle their waste.

Daily cover activity.

Leachate treatment plant in Jeram.

 

  

JSL  Jeram Sanitary Landfill 

TG12SL  Tg. Duabelas Sanitary Landfill 

SKIWL  Sg. Kertas Inert Waste Landfill 

DIWL  Dengkil Inert Waste Landfill 

KIWL  Kuang Inert Waste Landfill 

B.TGR  Bukit Tagar Sanitary Landfill 

HSL  Hulu Selangor Landfill 

TBTS  Taman beringin Transfer Station 

SATS  Shah Alam Transfer Station 

P.Badena  Pancang Badena Landfill 

RDF  Refuse‐Derived Fuel Plant 

JSL

P.Badena

SATS

B.TGR

SKIWL KIWL

TG12SL

DIWL

TBTS

HSL

RDF

Location of transfer stations and landfills.

• turn to PAGE 14

14 february 3 — 5, 2012

insight

What can we do with landfills after they are filled to the brim? Most are turned into recreational parks as decades would have to pass before the land is

suitable for major construction.An example is the former Air Hitam sanitary landfill in

Puchong, which was closed in 2006 and rehabilitated to a green lung complete with a jogging track, gazebo and play-ground. Managed by state subsidiary Worldwide Holdings Bhd, the landfill-turned-park is now open to the public.

The 100-acre site also contained a two-megawatt landfill gas power plant that provided electricity for around 2,000 households since 2004.

 Landfill gas / biogas power plants

The biogas power plant in Air Hitam produces energy by trapping and burning a by-product of decaying waste – methane gas.

It is the first plant in the country to generate electricity using landfill gas according to the Malaysia Book of Records.

In 2009, the Bukit Tagar sanitary landfill in Hulu Selan-gor, also the largest in Selangor, started operating a 1.2-mega-watt power plant using landfill gas as well.

Operated by KUB-Berjaya Sdn Bhd, the plant is con-nected to the national grid and the electricity is sold to Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB).

Worldwide Holdings Bhd environment division head Zamri Abdul Rahman said the company is building another biogas power plant at the 160-acre Jeram sanitary landfill in Kuala Selangor.

“We’re in the process of procurement. It’ll start with producing one megawatt (of electricity), but at its peak we es-timate it can produce up to five to six megawatt,” said Zamri.

He added that the plant is expected to be up and running by the last quarter of the year.

 Solar farms

Apart from producing power from methane gas, operators are also exploring the possibility of turning closed landfills into solar farms with the federal government’s introduction of the feed-in-tariff.

Through the feed-in-tariff, home or commercial owners can sell electricity produced from renewable sources such as solar photovoltaic and landfill gas at a higher rate than traditional power producers to TNB.

“Without the feed-in-tariff, it wouldn’t be economically-viable to run solar farms [due to the capital costs involved in installing the panels],” Zamri noted.

The environmental engineer added that even with the feed-in-tariff system, it would take eight to 10 years to recover the investment costs for solar power producers.

Worldwide Holdings Bhd had proposed to Selangor to turn the closed-and-rehabilitated Sungai Kembong Dump-site in Hulu Langat into a five-megawatt solar farm.

“The area is relatively flat and open, so it’s very suitable [for solar power production],” Zamri said.

However, the project is still pending approval from the state.

Meanwhile, Cypark Resources Bhd is spending RM94 million to build a renewable energy park at the closed Pajam landfill in Nilai, Negeri Sembilan.

The 30-acre renewable energy park is set to have an eight-megawatt solar power plant and a two-megawatt biogas plant, which are expected to start operations in the middle of the year.

If the project is successful, Cypark plans to turn another 16 landfills in Johor, Pahang, Terengganu and Perlis into

renewable energy parks as well to generate between 30 to 50 megawatt of renewable energy.

From dumpsites to green energy producers

Incinerators / Waste-to-energy plants The construction of incinerators is often a thorny subject. Residents

do not want it near their neighbourhoods while environmentalists are concerned with air pollution.

Not all incinerators are designed to generate electricity from combus-tion except for waste-to-energy plants.

European countries like Denmark, Sweden and Germany as well as Asian countries like Japan and Singapore have adopted waste-to-energy plants to handle domestic waste and produce power.

However, these countries implement strict regulations to compel o p e r a t o r s t o eliminate public health and envi-ronmental risks such as the re-l e a s e o f t ox i c gases.

Like landfills, incinerators have a l i m i t e d l i f e span. Depending on model, it can run for 15 to 30 years.

Advantages Disadvantages

• Savelandspace •Costly• Cangenerateelectricity •Releasecarbondioxide(1tonneofsolidwaste• Reducewastevolumeby95percent producesaround1tonneofcarbondioxide)• Reducethereleaseofmethane(inlandfills) •Producefineparticles• Savetransportationcost(incineratorscan (butcanberemovedwithfilters) bebuiltinindustrialareas;landfillshavetobe •Oldermodelsofincineratorsreleasetoxicgases remote from population) such as dioxin and furan• Caneliminatemedicalandhazardouswaste •Ashmayincludeheavymetalsandchemicals with high-temperature combustion to be disposed of at special landfills.

In Malaysia, the RM1.5 billion proposed incinerator in Broga was cancelled in 2007 due to opposition from local communities.

Nevertheless, the Housing and Local Government Ministry has built a RM68 million incinerator in Langkawi, Kedah, which is capable of processing 100 tonnes of waste per day to generate 1MW of electricity.

Another four have also been or are being built in Pulau Pangkor, Perak, Cameron Highlands and Pulau Tioman, Pahang, and Labuan but these four would not be producing power.

• FROM PAGE 13

Landfill compactor in Jeram.

Jeram landfill.

15february 3 — 5, 2012

views

Ask Lord Bobo is a weekly column by LoyarBurok (www.loyarburok.com) where all your profound, ab-struse, erudite, hermetic, recondite, sagacious, and other thaesaurus-described queries are answered!I read that the Prime Minister has threatened to unleash

the forces of darkness on anyone who dares make trouble. Should I be afraid? Che Banana, via email

You must be re-ferring to Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s s t a t e m e n t t h a t “when the chips are down, Rela will be with this govern-ment to defend the country,” and his warning to “not cause havoc in this country because the 2.8 mill ion Rela members will not

stand idly by and watch the country descend into chaos.” This is consistent with his rallying cry some months ago to “defend Putrajaya at all costs”.

Lord Bobo finds all of this quite puzzling. It’s as though these statements are being made against another nation with which Malaysia is at war. But no, they are being made against, and about, Malaysian citizens. His Supreme Eminenceness wonders whether the Prime Minister realises that he is – or rather, he is supposed to be – the Prime Minister for all Malaysians, not just those who vote for his party.

Lord Bobo, I’ve been hearing about “1Care” which is supposed to be some reform of Malaysia’s healthcare system. What do you think about it? Dr Quek, via

email

This 1Care plan has been mentioned quite regularly in 2011 amongst those in the medical industry or policy-making circles. 1Care has been highly-praised and lauded by many as revolutionary and a vast improvement of the existing healthcare system. The reason for this praise bewil-ders Lord Bobo, as there are not many details that have been made publicly available. It is officially described as a “restruc-tured national health system that is responsive and provides choice of quality health care, ensuring universal coverage for the health care needs of the population based on the spirit of solidarity and equity.”

There are some key features which seem to have been accepted as confirmed. Firstly, the new 1Care system will be run by a national healthcare financing authority, and includes an insurance-based funding system. The system will be funded by your taxes – it is rumoured that anything between 9-10% of household incomes will be taxed to-wards this, and it will be compulsory. 1Care will then provide basic healthcare needs (you still have to pay for any additional services), and doctors and clinics will have to be part of the 1Care system if they want to treat patients under the 1Care scheme.

There are many, many more intricacies and resultant outcomes out of the 1Care system. In essence, the govern-ment will take over the funding of healthcare. His Supreme Eminenceness is concerned that it seems to be on the way

to implementation in 2012 without all interested parties having been allowed to have an open consultation about it. How exactly is the money going to be spent? What guarantees are there that the new system will be better than the existing one? Is the existing system really so far beyond repair that we need to introduce such a dras-tic change? Who loses out? Who gains?

The government has asked Malaysians not to speculate about 1Care, and reserve judgment for when the system has been given a chance to develop. This is surely not the way to go about this. The importance of this matter cannot be overstated – it is a wholesale reform of the nation’s healthcare system, and will likely be funded by 9-10% of every citizen’s income. Surely we have a right to be consulted as part of the process, instead of being told to sit down and wait quietly for the government to tell us what is best.

On a related note, Lord Bobo continues to be baffled by this fixation with “1” that the government has adopted, pos-sibly on the advice of some overpaid PR strategist. 1Malay-sia we could handle, then came BR1M, SR1M, 1Care and the like. A foreigner reading any of our English media surely cannot be faulted for wondering whether we have our own rules of grammar. But, names aside, what’s important is that all these fancy schemes and programs are planned, and implemented, with the best interests of the country in mind.

I wanna sue someone for defamation. How do I decide how much to sue for? A million bucks sounds nice. Kiasu Sue, via email

Let’s read the words of the bestest most human rightsiest judge Malaysia has ever known. This is of course the great and wonderful Justice Datuk Seri Gopal Sri Ram, who is widely acknowledged as having made very wide pronounce-ments advancing the cause of human rights.

Of course, he also allowed the Bakun Dam project to tell the Orang Asli to go drown themselves. He is also the one who increased the sentence of then MP Lim Guan Eng for publishing false news – saying mangsa “dipenjarakan” rather than “ditahan” was apparently jail-worthy.

But it was in a claim for defamation against lawyer Tommy Thomas and his then firm Skrine & Co in 1998 that Justice Sri Ram really showed his human rights champion side, when he said that MBf was permitted to quantify the figure of damages they were claiming against Tommy Thomas and Skrine & Co. The late Raja Aziz Addruse acted for Skrine & Co., whilst Datuk VK Lingam acted for MBf (or at least it looked like him, sounded like him but might not have been him). Here’s what our human rights cham-pion judge said:

“We are unable to agree with Raja Aziz’s submission that there was once a practice of quantifying general damages but that it has since fallen into disuse and that it would be quite wrong to reinstate it. In our judgment, there is no rule of practice going either way.

“We now turn to the second ground advanced by Raja Aziz. It is that the quantification of general damages in large amounts has the effect of curbing freedom of speech which is a guaranteed fundamental liberty under art 10(1)(a) of the Federal Constitution. Counsel has sought to argue that the restriction in favour of defamation provided in art 10(2)(a) of the supreme law will over-shadow or eclipse to the point of extinction the liberty fundamentally guaranteed by art 10(1)(a) if plaintiffs are permitted to threaten defendants in defamation cases with multi-million dollar claims.

“With respect, we do not agree. [F]reedom of speech is not absolute, and we would add that the reputation of an individual or even a company is as precious as free speech itself. To the argument by counsel that the freedom to criticise which is the quintessential of human rights necessary for the development of an intellectual mind will be stemmed and gagged by a decision of this court in favour of quantifi-cation of damages, we would say this: freedom of speech does not include the right to publish lies that injure reputa-tion. Any decision of this court which has the effect of ensur-ing truth in publication, written or oral, is, in our view, to be welcomed. Parliament has by enacting s 8A of the Print-ing Presses and Publications Act 1984 made it clear that there should be truth in journalism. In our judgment, courts must keep in tandem with the legislature. We do that by ensuring truth in publication at common law which will be encouraged by permitting the quantification of damages and thereby stop in their tracks would be publishers of false information.”

The amount of damages in question? RM60 million was claimed! And the libel? Well, we can’t tell you that since our courts found it was libelous, and the Selangor Times doesn’t have RM60 million in the petty cash box. But you can read the judgment and find out for yourself. Lord Bobo will give you a clue – let’s just say that allegations of judicial corrup-tion did not first arise in 2008.

And of course, our dear Human Rights champion Sri Ram in another case very much later said that judgments for libel must be much reduced. Nowadays, you only get about RM100,000 unless you’re a Minister and the defendant has said really naughty things about you, and then when sued maintained that he was right and you were the one lying. You can of course decide to sue for RM10 million if you want to make a strong statement towards how innocent you are – or look silly, depends.

Happy suing! Malaysia Boleh Sue!

Najib vs Malaysia, 1Care and Defamation

16 February 3 — 5, 2012

NEWS

TI-M: Unprecedented burden on MalaysiansBy Basil Foo

SHAH ALAM: Transparency Interna-tional Malaysia (TI-M) has warned that the lack of transparency in awarding the West Coast Expressway (WCE) contract will burden the public.

In a statement on Monday, the anti-cor-ruption watchdog balked at the project’s “unprecedented 60-year toll concession that the public will have to bear”.

The RM7.07 billion project will be boost-

ed with a RM2.24 billion federal soft loan and a payment of RM980 million for land acqui-sition, also borne by the government.

“Given the public funding and long conces-sion period, there should have been proper governance and transparency in the award through an open, transparent and competitive procurement process and public disclosure of the terms and conditions of the contract,”  said TI-M president Datuk Paul Low.

TI-M also called for a public disclosure of the terms and conditions of the contract,

along with details of the procurement pro-cess.

Low pointed out that the move could allay public concerns about a lack of informa-tion and show the government’s commit-ment to tackling graft in the country.

“A mega project of this size and impact on the public is an ideal candidate for imple-menting the Integrity Pact (IP),” he sug-gested.

 IPs are a tool for curbing corruption risks in public contracting projects, he said.

Low said the government recognised the potential benefits of IPs in a Treasury circu-lar two years ago which outlined guidelines for applying IPs in government procurement.

“Furthermore, MRT Corp, the govern-ment-linked company tasked with carrying out the MRT project, has agreed to incorpo-rate the IP in its procurement exercises,” he added.

Public-listed company Kumpulan Euro-plus Berhad (KEuro) announced last week that they were awarded the WCE project.

Ikhsan (centre) trying out the kiosk, located at the MPK’s building compound.

I-Kiosk booth for easy paymentsBy Brenda Ch’ng

KLANG: Rate payers can say goodbye to long queues at the Klang Municipal Council (MPK) counters and pay their assessment dues quickly at the new I-Ki-osk booths.

The two Express Micro Bill Payment System were installed at MPK’s headquar-ters last month and are open to the public 24 hours a day.

“It’s fitted with quality safety features and the records of rate payers are updated

regularly,” said MPK’s acting president Ikhsan Mukri.

MPK has so far received positive re-sponse for the kiosks as they no longer have to wait for hours to make payment at the counters.

“The kiosk’s accepts payments in the form of cash, cheque, credit cards and debit cards,” he said in a statement issued by the council.

Clear instructions are available at the booths to help rate payers conduct their transactions.

Surau committee wins award, cash for recycling

By Gan Pei Ling

SHAH ALAM: Surau Al-Husna in Section 20 here bagged the city council’s inaugural Smart Community Award for its successful cooking oil recycling programme which started in 2005.

Led by Ustaz Mohd Takiyuddin Ibrahim, the surau committee received RM5,000 and its zone (Majlis Per-wakilan Penduduk Zon 7) was awarded a RM20,000 de-velopment grant.

The Smart Community Award aims to reward com-munities that fulfil the social, economic or environment component in Local Agenda 21 that strives to promote sustainable development.

In second place was Taman Setia Warisan Residents’ Association, which won RM3,000 and a development grant of RM10,000 for its distinguished community spirit.

The community in Shah Alam U6 would get together to cook in the event of a wedding or festive season instead of catering.

Jalan Sastera 8 & 11 TTDI Jaya Residents’ Association finished third for its efforts in turning an idle land into a community-run fish pond and vegetable farm.

The association received RM2,000 and a RM7,000 development grant for its zone.

Meanwhile, Rukun Tetangga Taman Subang Perdana 2 bagged the special prize in social programme, Bukit Jelo-tung Residents’ Association won the special prize in eco-nomic programme while Taman Alam Megah Jalan 28/18, 28/19 and 28/20 won the special prize in environment programme.

Each received RM500.Menteri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim presented the

mock cheques to the winners at Wisma MBSA, on Tuesday night.

Shah Alam mayor Datuk Mohd Jaafar Mohd Atan, state executive councillors Ronnie Liu, Rodziah Ismail and Yaakob Sapari as well as Shah Alam MP Khalid Samad also attended the prize-giving ceremony. (From left) Mohd Jaafar, Liu and Khalid with grand prize winners.

17february 3 — 5, 2012

news

By Brenda Ch’ng

AMPANG: The developer responsible for helping squatters rebuild new homes at Kampung Berembang will be penalised if construction is not completed by March 1.

“They will be fined based on how late they are and will also be judged on their workmanship,” said executive councillor for housing Iskandar Abdul Samad.

He told reporters during a press conference on Monday that he was not satisfied with the quality of work done at the two blocks of apartment units.

These apartments, which cost over RM40 million, are fully funded by Acmar International as part of their low-cost project to give squatters a new home.

Iskandar also pointed out that the project, which was scheduled for completion last year, has already been delayed for a few years, since 2006.

The project, which will consist of 694 units, will be sold to squatters who have been evicted from their homes all over Ampang.

Among the squatters who will be buying the units for RM35,000 each are villagers of Kampung Berembang who were evicted by the former state government in 2004.

All the homes there were demolished to make way for the then government’s squatter resettlement project which aimed to achieve a zero squatter policy Selangor.

The Kampung Berembang villagers were provided with alternative housing either at Puchong or Jinjang, while some were offered RM7,200 as compensation.

Due to the inadequate compensation, some of the villagers used up the RM7,200 for rental expenses and ran out of money. These villagers subsequently moved back to the village. Their shelters were subsequently torn down by authorities four times between 2004 and 2007.

Selangor is now pushing for the apartment units to be built by March 1 so that the 694 families do not have to squat any-more.

“Everything is already in place. The families have already

been allotted their respective units and are just waiting to move in,” said Iskandar.

He hopes all families will be able to move in by April 1.“I don’t see any delays with the project as the painting and

infrastructure is already more then 90 per cent complete,” said the project developer’s executive director, Johnson Tee.

Tee said he was confident the project will be completed as scheduled and that the squatters will be able to enjoy the fa-cilities like basketball court, badminton court, located on the top floors.

Commercial shops like grocery stalls and restaurants will also be housed on the ground floor.

March 1 deadline for Kg Berembang developer

Tee (left) with Iskandar checking the construction on Monday

By Chong Loo Wah 

SHAH ALAM: The Shah Alam City Council (MBSA) is starting a pioneer project to collect food waste and use it to make eco-friendly effective micro-organism (EM) this year.

Forty families at Section 4 Shah Alam were selected to take part in this green project, said executive council-lor for natural resources Yaakob Sapari on Sunday.

Each family was given a barrel consisting of enzyme-making materials to transform kitchen waste, via fer-mentation, into organic household cleaning liquid and fertiliser.

Costing RM140 per barrel, Yaakob said an addi-tional 500 individual ratepayers can apply to the city

council to join the programme.Yaakob said MBSA is expected to expand the pro-

gramme to other areas in Shah Alam in an effort to reduce trash and save landfill space in Selangor.

Shah Alam mayor Datuk Mohd Jaafar Mohd Atan said a person throws away an average of 800g of rubbish daily, amounting to 40 tonnes of waste, including food waste and recyclables daily.

As such, the city council spends millions annually to collect, transport and treat the waste at landfills.

Mohd Jaafar said members of the public should contact their councillors to launch this recycling food waste programme in their neighourhoods.

He also encouraged businesses, especially restaurants and pubs, to join the project.

Shah Alam’s pioneer eco project How to make organic household cleaner from kitchen waste

 Prepare one part brown/black sugar, three parts kitchen waste (only fruit and vegetables) and 10 parts water.

Mix the sugar with water in a plastic container before adding in the waste.

Leave some space at the top of the container for the microorganism to breathe.

Store in a cool dry place at room temperature for three to six months.Release the gases formed monthly and cap the container tightly.The final solution should be dark brown and may have a white, black

or brown layer on top.Worms may appear if your container is not properly sealed. Add a

handful of sugar, mix well and cap the container tightly to dissolve them.

Avoid using cooked food, fish, meat, dairy products and durian; they will make the solution smell bad. These kitchen wastes can be used as garden compost material instead.

The final solution can be used as a household cleaner and air puri-fier. For more information, visit http://bit.ly/zuRXuC.

Yaakob giving out barrels of enzyme-making materials to 40 families selected by MBSA to take part in its pioneer project.

18 February 3 — 5, 2012

NEWS

Be a forest guardian with Google EarthBy Gan Pei Ling

SUBANG JAYA: A new website which will enable the public to report illegal deforestation throughout Malaysia was launched by Transpar-ency International Malaysia (TI-M) on Wednes-day.

“The public can become the eyes and ears of our forests,” said TI-M deputy president Datuk Mohamad Ali Hasan at the launch on Wednes-day at Sunway Pyramid.

Using real-time satellite imagery and aerial photography, the public can log on to www.ti-malalysia-forestwatch.org.my any time and use Google Earth to monitor forest cover through-out Malaysia.

The project aims to enhance public participa-tion in forest conservation and promote envi-ronmental stewardship among Malaysians.

TI-M president Datuk Paul Low said an expert monitoring team will verify information on suspicious activities provided by the public.

He added that relevant information will be shared with relevant agencies such as the For-estry Department and Malaysian Anti-Corrup-tion Commission (MACC).

Low said the three-year project is part of the corruption watchdog’s Forest Governance In-tegrity Programme to strengthen forest manage-ment in the country.

He said that TI-M planned to introduce the project in Sabah and Sarawak too, where defor-

estation is more rampant compared to Penin-sular Malaysia.

Meanwhile, MACC director of investigation Datuk Mustafar Ali, who was also present at the launch, said the commission would act against illegal loggers.

“People always complain that we only go after the “small fish”. I must stress again that we don’t care who they are, as long as they’re fishes, big or small, we’ll go after them,” said Mustafar.

He added that MACC received 88 com-plaints related to corruption in logging activities last year.

He urged the public to provide substanti-ated information and evidence as it is difficult for the commission to act on wild claims.

Mohamad Ali Hasan

Taxi drivers want end to coupon systemKUALA LUMPUR: Klang Valley taxi driv-ers want the Land Public Transport Commis-sion (SPAD) to abolish the coupon system that reduces their profits while making taxi rides more expensive.

Some 30 taxi drivers gathered at Bangsar on Sunday to highlight the issue which includes a near-monopoly on designated pick-up areas and a steep membership fee to operate from the locations.

“Only members who pay the RM100 monthly fee can operate from designated areas outside shopping malls and tourist attractions,” said taxi driver Amran Jan, 48, during a press conference.

He explained that under the coupon system, cab drivers have to pay the amount in order to pick up passengers from hot spot areas such as Kuala Lumpur City Centre (KLCC), Sunway Pyramid and KL Sentral, among other areas.

Calling it a membership fee, Amran said the system pointed to a monopoly and added that it was locking out other taxi drivers who could not afford the additional cost.

“Only those who sign up and pay the RM100 fee are allowed to queue up for pas-sengers. This clearly points to a monopoly,” he added.

He said under the coupon system, taxi driv-

ers are wasting too much time queuing to pick up passengers.

“Sometimes, it takes up to 45 minutes to reach our turn, and we could have picked up passengers from other areas in that time,” he said.

Amran is the spokesperson for a larger group of 200 cab drivers who want SPAD to revert to the old system where passengers are charged by the meter.

“The meter we have is good enough. Revert to it,” he said.

The coupon system was instituted by SPAD to prevent rampant overcharging by taxi drivers but the latter claim that it is a burden to driver and passenger alike.

Agreeing with Amran, Zaki Bashir said the system was making it difficult for taxi drivers in the city to make ends meet, while at the same time overcharging passengers.

He added that the coupon fare was also ar-bitrarily set, adding that the fare from KL Sentral to LCCT (Low Cost Carrier Terminal) is fixed at RM90, while the trip from LCCT to KL Sentral is RM75.

Zaki, 56, said the coupon operators skimmed off as much as 20 per cent from the fare and left the taxi drivers with very little revenue margin.

“(We drivers) have to earn a living too. We

have families to feed,” the father-of-four said.The taxi drivers were joined by  Batu mem-

ber of Parliament Chua Tian Chang and Lembah Pantai MP Nurul Izzah Anwar.

Both lawmakers said the issue would be

brought up in a meeting between SPAD, cou-pon operators and the concerned taxi drivers.

“We hope to have the meeting soon,” said Nurul Izzah, adding that the matter would also be brought up in Parliament at the earliest date.

Tian Chua (second from left) and Nurul Izzah holding the complaint letter to SPAD while Amran and Zaki (both holding envelopes) and other taxi drivers look on.

SUBANG JAYA: Two construction companies and a director received light fines after pleading guilty for failing to ensure workers’ safety dur-ing Jaya Supermarket’s demolition.

“The penalties aren’t high – RM37,000 in total for the three charges, but they’ve been convicted,” said Selangor Department of Occupa-tional Safety and Health (DOSH) director Zahrim Osman.

Main contractor CW Yap Sdn Bhd was fined RM20,000 while subcontractor Lian Hup Earth Work & Construction Sdn Bhd was fined RM12,000 by the the Petaling Jaya Sessions Court in November.

CW Yap Sdn Bhd was convicted under Section 17(1) of the Occu-pational Safety and Health Act 1994 while Liap Hup Earth & Construc-tion was charged under Section 15(1) of the same Act.

In addition, Judge Hayatul Akmal Abdul Aziz fined CW Yap Sdn Bhd’s director Yap Choon Wai RM5,000 for exposing his workers to safety risks, violating Section 17(1) of the Act, on Tuesday ( Jan 31).

The collapse of Jaya Supermarket on May 28, 2009 caused seven deaths and injured three. The deceased included three Indonesians and one Malaysian worker along with three members of the public.

Zahrim announced the court’s decision at a press conference at the department’s secretariat in Subang Jaya on Wednesday. He said Selangor DOSH during investigations found that the construction companies were negligent and subsequently filed the three suits.

Companies fined for Jaya Supermarket deaths

Mustafar

19february 3 — 5, 2012

news

By Brenda Ch’ng

SUBANG JAYA: A reward of RM500 will be given to anyone who reports acts of illegal dumping around the area, to the Subang Jaya Munici-pal Council (MPSJ).

To qualify for the reward, reports must be accompanied with evidence of the illegal dumping, along with a picture or valid information on the illegal dumpers.

“If MPSJ successfully catches the illegal dumpers reported, a RM1,000 summons will also be issued,” said Subang Jaya assemblyperson Hannah Yeoh last week.

She said there had been an increase of illegal dumping recently, as resi-dents do not know where to dump their unwant-ed furniture after spring cleaning their homes during the festive seasons.

Some even dump their bulky items at play-grounds near their homes and along main roads all over Subang Jaya, she said.

“I hope residents will cooperate and not throw garden and bulk wastes everywhere,” said Yeoh.

She further urged the public to report sightings of illegal dumping to the council, or call their rubbish hotline at 03-80267431, if they need their bulk waste collected.

Last year, the council recorded and collected 44 tons of garden and bulk waste, which were dumped illegally around Subang Jaya.

As a solution to illegal dumping, MPSJ will be carrying out their pilot project this month, by placing four rubbish containers around USJ2.

These containers will be placed in the neigh-bourhood every Friday and Saturday evening for those who wish to dispose of bulky items like furniture or garden waste.

Collections will then be made by the council every Saturday and Sunday morning.

“MPSJ will be monitoring the project to see if it is cost effective in the long run, before moving on to other areas,” said Yeoh.

Meanwhile, new MPSJ cleaning contractors started work on Feb 1 while new domestic waste contractors will only start work on Mar 1.

RM500 reward for reports on illegal dumping

An illegal rubbish dump in USJ11.

Yeoh (right) looking at the dump in USJ11.

SHAH ALAM: Selangor Pas is content with the youth and sports portfolio, which was taken over by recently appointed Selangor executive councillor

member Dr Ahmad Yunus Hairi.“Even though we are not holding the Islamic affairs

portfolio, it will not affect us as in any way. “We can now prove to the people that our party is

capable of handling other things as well,” said Selan-gor Pas deputy commissioner Khalid Samad.

He told reporters during a press conference at his office last Friday that he is confident the Menteri Besar would still consult Pas on Islamic matters.

Sijangkang assemblyperson Ahmad Yunus stepped in after the seat was left vacant by former executive council member and Pas commissioner Datuk Dr Hassan Ali, whose portfolio was in Islamic affairs.

Ahmad Yunus took over the Menteri Besar’s youth and sports portfolio, while Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim moved in to handle the Islamic affairs portfolio.

Meanwhile, Selangor Pas commissioner Dr Abdul Rani Osman said that it was normal for the Menteri Besar to take over the Islamic affairs portfolio when an executive councillor is let go.

During the press conference, Dr Abdul Rani also stressed that he had not been slighted and his prior-ity had always been towards his party and the upcom-ing general elections.

“If I had been slighted, I wouldn’t even have at-tended and stood by his (Ahmad Yunus) side during the swearing-in ceremony. But I was there,” he said.

Also present at the press conference was Selangor Pas secretary Mohd Khairuddin Othman who said the party remains unaffected with Hassan Ali’s depar-ture.

“I’ve received reports from 22 Selangor Pas divi-sions and they have all assured me that the party is stable and geared up for the upcoming elections,” he said.

Party not disappointed over losing Islamic affairs portfolio

Dr Rani (left) with Mohd Khairuddin.

I’VE read the middle-spread article entitled “MPs and Councillors”. It was indeed an interesting and relevant ar-ticle at this time of the year when most councillors are due for re-appoint-ment, I believe. 

I’m a long-time resident of Petaling Jaya and have communicated with a

couple of councillors in my area since 2008.The purpose was to seek their help to get some improvements

done to my residential area with safety of the people in mind.One councillor acted promptly to upgrade an uneven road

shoulder in a busy commercial area which posed a danger. However, I’m disappointed with another councillor and also his

predecessor for they wasted a lot of my time and effort since they did little to address the problems.

In the newspaper article, some councillors expressed dissatisfac-tion over the RM750 allowance they receive monthly. But the fact remains most of them hold permanent jobs. Being a councillor is a part-time job.

Therefore, an increase in allowance is fair for only full-time councillors who have set up service centres.

At the same time, councillors should be required to submit a quarterly account of all the services they have provided for the area under their jurisdiction.

This information (services provided or complaints attended to by councillors) should also be circulated to households in the respec-tive areas.

In short, residents should have a say in determining or endorsing the services provided by the respective councillors. This is to ensure no councillor occupies the post without doing anything significant for the area they are assigned to.

S. Ragunathan, AMNSection SS3, Petaling Jaya.

Allowance hike only for the deserving

20 february 3 — 5, 2012

media

By Basil Foo

SHAH ALAM: Termite infestation jeopardises both the prices of property and those living in it.

Termites eat and hollow out channels inside of wood which leave the outside looking intact in appearance but often only paper thin.

Wooden floor skirting, door frames, window frames, and other wooden areas can collapse if a termite invasion is not detected early.

Some of the signs which would manifest in the wake of a termite attack are mud tubes or termite trails which can be found on walls or at gaps in wooden areas.

These tubes, which are one of the most common ways to detect termites, are pencil-sized and can be tested to see if it is actively being used.

To carry out the test, scrape away a one to two inch segment in the middle of the mud tube. If it is active, it will be rebuilt quickly – anywhere within a few hours to two days.

The presence of termites will also cause cracked, holey and hollowed out wooden areas.

Hollowed out wood can be detected by knocking ran-domly at a few spots using a screw driver and listening for hollowness – if the termite infestation is advanced in the area, the wood will crush in.

Termites also produce vibrations or sound when tearing and breaking wood fibres which can be another way to detect infestation.

While keeping your ears open, keep in mind that these acoustic signals can also be generated by other wood destroy-ing insects like bark beetles and carpenter ants.

To be doubly sure that termites are causing the sound, make a small hole at the suspected area of infestation to see if live termites come out of their hiding place.

Often the first signs of infestation are flying winged termites which appear during the onset of warm weather.

Look for them on windowsills or in basements. Other signs are discarded wings lying on a windowsill or in a window well.

Once one or more of these signs are found, do not spray aerosol or any liquid and do not vacuum, wipe, or clean off the mud traces.

Seal the hole or crack with cellophane tape and request a pest management advisor from Ridpest to come by and do a free 20-point comprehensive termite inspection.

Killing termites where they are found may sound simple and logical but eliminating them at the place where they live is the ultimate solution to your problem.

To eliminate the termite colony, the services of a profes-sional termite specialist such as Ridpest are certainly needed.

Call RIDPEST at 03-9059 1777 today for a FREE termite inspection by their friendly pest management advisor.

Don’t let termites eat you out

KLANG: Children and senior citizens at Pandamaran received angpows from state officials and were enter-tained with traditional dragon dance last Sunday.

Menteri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim and execu-tive councillor Ronnie Liu joined in the dragon dance and led nine teams of performers to entertain the crowd.

Khalid also wrote calligraphy for the first time to launch the celebration of the festive season at SJK (C) Pandamaran A.

Liu, who is also Pandamaran assemblyperson, said he invited the dragon performers as this lunar year is the Water Dragon Year.

Khalid and Liu distributed angpows to kids and citizens above the age of 60 subsequently.

Also present at the event were Khalid’s wife Puan Seri Salbiah Tunut, Klang member of Parliament Charles Santiago, Kelana Jaya MP Loh Gwo-Burne, Klang Municipal Council acting president Ikhsan Mukri.

Selangor celebrates Dragon CNY in Pandamaran

Ikhsan (left), Salbiah (fourth left), Khalid, Liu and Santiago wishing the crowd at Pandamaran last Sunday.

21february 3 — 5, 2012

food

It would be nice if we could all have our favourite hawker stalls near our homes. Unfortunately, most of the time we can

only have a taste of the old favourites during the rare trips back to our hometowns.

The Indian mee goreng has been the sub-ject of debate among Penangites and others for decades. Rarely do we get to sample the “real” Penang Indian mee goreng in Kuala Lumpur.

However, there is a shop that has been operating quietly for years in KL that is fa-mous for its Penang mamak mee goreng. Many years ago, a friend told me that there was a shop that was the real deal as far as Penang Indian mee was concerned. At that time it was located in SS3 Petaling Jaya.

The proprietor comes from the family that runs the mamak mee goreng stall in Bangkok Lane, Penang.

Ameen has settled down in KL while his brother still runs the stall in Penang. Both speak excellent Hokkien.

Ameen, who was the boss of the Shauiya Curry House in SS3 for years, suddenly packed up and moved away some years ago. He literally disappeared from my food radar and I wandered for years in the Indian mee goreng limbo.

Then about three years ago, on the first day of Chinese New Year when I visited a relative in Taman Desa Danau, off the KL-Seremban Highway, I accidentally spotted the Shauiya Curry House.

It was a fortuitous and happy reunion for Ameen and I. He told me he shifted to the present location some time ago.

Naturally, our meeting concluded in an Indian mee goreng session that brought back lots of wonderful memories. Since Ameen is the man who knows the taste of Penangites, we insisted he handled the wok.

And Ameen did not disappoint us as the mee goreng under his capable hands was al-

most second to none. Anyway, the first day of the recent Chinese

New Year found me scouring for food again because the usual restaurants were closed. Shauiya was one of the few that was open for business.

However, my old friend Ameen wasn’t around. A worker said his boss was currently running a similar eatery in Sri Petaling.

The “secret” in-gredients of the Pen-ang mee goreng that separate it from the others are the slivers of dried cut-tlefish, deep-fried bean-curd in cubes, hard-boiled egg and a generous dose of squeezed lemon juice.

I have had several argu-ments with friends in the past who are familiar with the Bangkok Lane Indian mee goreng and I always insisted the piece de resistance is the sotong gravy that is added to the mee as it is being twirled around in the hot wok.

The Bangkok Lane chap who constantly rotates the wok as he fries the mee also ham-mers the steel ladle on the side of the wok to

give the fried mee a good shake.

But if you happen to be at the stall in Bangkok Lane, keep a sharp look-out for the wok with the distinctive warped edge due to years of constant knocking.

The mee goreng which I tasted at the Taman Desa Danau Shauiya Curry House recently is remark-ably similar in taste to the one sold in Seng Lee Cof-feeshop in Bangkok Lane.

However, the mee rebus did not have the oomph that’s reflective of the dish over in Pulau Tikus, Penang.

But we were naturally glad that the old-time favourite, the Penang Indian mee goreng, has resurfaced and within “striking distance” too.

Klang Valley residents not familiar with the type of Indian mamak mee goreng that made Penang famous among certain social circles are often puzzled why ex-residents of the island are always praising their own “mamak mee”.

Being from the island, it is not unusual to develop some culinary longing for food that has been ingrained in our psyche during our formative years.

The Shauiya Curry House is five genera-tions old. The Bangkok Lane stall at the corner

coffeeshop reportedly has been around for about 80 years.

So, it is evident that its special brand of mamak mee goreng and mee rebus have stood the test of time. Considering how fussy Penangites are in their selection of hawker food, Shauiya Curry House and its Penang delicacies are truly representative of what Penang is.

Although Shauiya Curry House is not ex-actly a hop-skip-and-jump away from my home, there are times when I feel an urge to drive to the other side of KL for a quick bite of an old island favourite.

There are some things in life that never fail to bring a smile to my face. The taste, the fla-vour, the smells all contribute to that gentle stroll down memory lane.

These are some of the best things in life that money can buy, and they don’t cost much.

Shauiya Curry House is located in Jalan 5/109F, Taman Desa Danau.

Indian fried mee, or mamak mee goreng, has long been a favourite among many Malaysians. LIN ZHENYUAN revisits an authentic Indian mee goreng outlet during the recent Chinese New Year.

‘Real deal’ Penang Indian mee

The Bangkok Lane coffeeshop in Penang where the mamak mee goreng stall is located.

The mamak mee goreng stall in Bangkok Lane, Penang.

A plate of sumptuous

mamak mee goreng at the

Shauiya Curry House in Taman Desa Danau.

Mee rebus distinctly Penang is another

popular dish.

The selection of curry dishes in the Shauiya Curry House.

The Shauiya Curry House in Jalan 5/109F, Taman Desa Danau.

22 february 3 — 5, 2012

Gallery

Selangor executive councillor Iskandar Samad speaking to some of the villagers from Kampung Berembang after inspecting low-cost apartments in Ampang on Monday. The apartments are scheduled to be ready by March 1.

Hulu Kelang assemblyperson Saari Sungib and his wife Aliza Jaafar watch a reflexology session conducted at Kg Melayu Sg Sering community hall last Sunday. The free reflexology session was for women only and attracted 25 people.

Meru assemblyperson Dr Abdul Rani Osman (left) and Kapar member of Parliament S. Manikavasagam distributing red packets and oranges to traders at the Pasar Besar Meru, Klang recently.

Members of the public trying out Transparency International Malaysia’s newly launched website www.timalaysia-forestwatch.org.my to monitor illegal logging via Google Earth during the website launch at Sunway Pyramid on Wednesday.

SMK (P) Sri Aman students at the launch of the Interschool Anti Aedes Rangers Competition 2012 on Feb 1. The launch was officiated by the Director General of Health Datuk Seri Dr Hassan Abdul Rahman and SC Johnson & Son general manager Ramon Daez. The competition which will involve 2,000 secondary students from 100 schools is sponsored by SC Johnson which distributes Ridsect.

23february 3 — 5, 2012

culture

By Dominic Luk

AT A Plank Bridge was staged at KLPAC’s Pentas 2, and ended it’s five-day run on Jan 21. Written and directed by Kannan Menon and produced by Datuk Faridah Merican, the play starred Mano Maniam and Ming Lee, both outstanding theatre veterans.

This one-act play had a simple yet multifaceted storyline. Set against the backdrop of the Japanese withdrawal from Malaya during the Second World War, two men form a relationship that is twisted and somewhat fated. They start off by being cautious about each other, unaware of each other’s motives and agendas. The plot then thickens with themes of trust, betrayal, disagreements, and the struggle to uphold their own personal philosophies.

The two men, Fook Leong and Chandran, meet by chance (or perhaps it was fate) along a deserted country road where the entire play takes place. The set was simple: a bench and a handcart. Yet the storyline and dialogue were nothing but simple. The audience is transported into the complexities of war-stricken Malaya. Although both men are bound for Singapore, they have very different reasons to get there.

Chandran has witnessed f i r s t - h a n d t h e v i c t i m s captured and to r t u red by the Japanese, and keeps the names of those who have died i n h i s l i t t l e n o t e b o o k s . Fook Leong, a history teacher, has many dark secrets that he i s eager to forget and never revisit. We think we know him, but the plot takes several twists as we keep finding out more about his past.

What I love about the story was that it was rich with history, and for those of us who did not live through the tragic years of the Japanese occupation of Malaya, it was informative, and it definitely put what we learnt during our history lessons into perspective.

I was somehow drawn to the names of victims that Chandran kept in his notebooks. It was a gloomy reminder of how many people suffered during the war. Every one of these victims had a name, yet no one bothered to remember them and let their names live on.

I enjoyed Maniam’s performance as Chandran, because it was simply and beautifully emotional. Chandran speaks about his dreadful encounters during the war, and displays his eagerness to meet his family in Singapore even though they may have moved on and forgotten about him. He plans to go to Singapore while dragging his heavy handcart, which is loaded with bags of his personal belongings and countless notebooks.

The handca r t , i nd i rec t l y symbolising his burdens and the stories of the past that he plans to bring with him to his future, shows just how difficult it must be for someone during the war to want a better life and still carry the bitter past with them.

Right before the play ends, Ming Lee, thinking that he can display his bravery by shooting the driver of a passing truck, gets shot at a plank bridge nearby and dies.

It was a successful play, with no unnecessary props

or sets. It had just the right amount of everything. And that made the story shine on its own without having to be bothered about complicated staging and lighting.

The audience was also given the opportunity to focus on the dialogue, and to be drawn into the story as we began to think of what would happen if we were in these two men’s shoes.

The only things that bothered me slightly were the transitions be tween each cha rac te r ’s monologues and how the story bounced back and forth between them. It felt a bit unnatural and awkward how they took turns to tell their stories. Still, because of the grasping script and the depth of the plot, I was thrilled by the entire performance.

I went back reflecting on how we carry our own dirty laundry and get burdened by our dark secrets, hoping that our guilt will drift away as we look for something better in our lives.

Do we face the filthy past? Or do we ignore everything that

has happened and let ourselves get killed at a plank bridge?

CaLeNDarHistory, Destiny, and a Plank Bridge

ParahTheatre: Feb 1-3 (8.30pm), Feb 4-5 (3pm, 8.30pm); Pentas 2, Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre, KL; 03-40479000; www.klpac.org; RM38-RM48.

Inspired by Yasmin Ahmad’s final film, Talentime, and Abdullah Hussain’s novel, Interlok, Parah is a timely exploration of how identities are contested in a young pluralistic country. Funny, provocative and moving, Parah asks the urgent questions about love, home and belonging.

Three And A Half MenComedy: Feb 7-10 (9pm), Feb 11-12 (5pm, 9pm); PJ Live Arts Theatre, Jaya One, PJ; www.pjla.com.my; RM30-RM50.

The Malaysian Association of Chinese Comedians (MACC) is back with the Chinese New Year instalment of “THREE and a half MEN”. The original run, which was staged in August, sold out two weeks in advance. The main draw are seasoned comedians Douglas Lim, Kuah Jenhan, Phoon Chi Ho and Dr Jason.

Switch OnPerformance: Feb 3 (8.30pm); Indicine, Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre, KL; 03-40479000; www.klpac.org; Free.

Switch On is a monthly electronic sound and arts series since March 2009. The event compiles live concert, DVD screening and artist sharing. This issue will feature Marc Behrens whose recent activities include field recording trips to remote western China and the Amazon rainforest.

Short film casting callFilm: Feb 2-4; SE4-14 (Yellow Room), Level 4, South Building, Sunway University; 012-2795555.

Sunway University is currently working on a collaborative screen project and will be producing three short films – “Do You Want Some Sweet?”, “Kiamat Belum Sampai” and “Herbal Soup”. The Department of Performance & Media will be holding auditions for roles in the films. The production is scheduled for Feb 20-Mar 1, 2012. For further enquiries contact Mark Chang 012-2795555.

All photos taken by Kelab Shashin Fotografi KL

Published by Selangor State Government and printed by Dasar Cetak (M) Sdn Bhd No. 7, Persiaran Selangor, Seksyen 15, 40000, Shah Alam, Selangor Darul Ehsan.