By the end of 2009, total federal government debt had soared to RM362 billion – a leap of RM56 billion from the previous year.
Much of this was due to soaring domestic debt, which reached RM349 billion or 96 per cent of the total federal government debt, according to the national audit report for 2009. Total federal government debt to GDP ratio rose to 53.7 per cent – exceeding 50 per cent for the first time in recent years.
Bank Negara reports that central government debt (total current liabilities) reached RM378 billion in the first quarter of 2010 and RM388 billion in the second quarter.
1335: The MCMC concludes its questioning of Wong after over two hours. “They wanted to know about the article on Najib’s speech and who’s behind Malaysian Chronicle,” says her lawyer Latheefa.
1151: The MCMC is now interrogating Wong Choon Mei of the Malaysian Chronicle news portal. Two officers have been questioning her at the MCMC office in Cyberjaya since 11.00am.
Her lawyer, Latheefa Koya, says she was refused permission to sit with Wong in her capacity as lawyer. She is now watching from outside.
The UK National Archives has put on public display a memorandum dated 21 February 1956 by the UK ‘Secretary of State for the Colonies’ on the ‘Conference of the Constitutional Advance of Malaya’.
From the memo, you can sense the colonial anxiety that Malaya should continue to be open to and protect ‘overseas investments’ and defend the ‘Sterling Area’, which partly depended on rubber and tin for its resilience. That was probably linked to the imperative of protecting British economic interests in Malaya in the face of the rising tide of nationalism and struggle for economic sovereignty around the world. After all, the colonialists were heavily involved in the extraction of resources, especially rubber and tin, in Malaya.
Rapid Penang is working together with the Penang state government to implement its proposal for a shuttle bus service across the Penang Bridge from the mainland to the island during peak hours.
If the connections are done right with seamless ticketing, the plan could be a major boost for public transport in Penang and usher in a Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system for the state. It would also be a fine example of federal-state cooperation – though I maintain that Rapid Penang, like all other transport modes in the state, should eventually come under the state government’s purview (in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity that local affairs are best planned and implemented locally).
Middle East Catholic bishops meeting at a special synod in Rome over the last fortnight have called for Israel to end the Occupation of Palestinian territories so that a two-state solution can be found.
The bishops are the ones who are familiar with the situation on the ground.
Here is an excerpt from their final joint communique:
IV. Cooperation and Dialogue with Our Fellow-Citizens, the Jews
8. The same Scriptures unite us; the Old Testament, the Word of God is for both you and us. We believe all that God revealed there, since he called Abraham, our common father in the faith, Father of Jews, of Christians and of Muslims. We believe in the promises of God and his covenant given to Abraham and to you. We believe that the Word of God is eternal.
Smelters are set to sprout in Sarawak to guzzle the energy that is expected to be produced by Bakun Dam, now that the government appears to have given up on the submarine cables.
This is the situation at the moment:
Press Metal Sarawak Sdn Bhd-Sumitomo Corp
Current capacity – 60,000 tonnes.
First phase – 120,000 tonnes.
Second phase – 240,000 tonnes.
Salco: Cahya Mata Sarawak (CMS)-Rio Tinto Alcan
Planned capacity – 720,000 tonnes. This would make it one of the largest in the world.
GIIG Holdings Sdn Bhd-Aluminium Corp of China Ltd (Chalco)
Planned capacity – 330,000 tonnes.
More than 116,000 folks have already “liked” the 1M Malaysians Reject 100-storey Mega Tower Facebook page.
And the number opposing the RM5 billion 100-storey tower is rising by the minute. Have a look here.
How times have changed. It was not so long ago that the National Union of Journalists seemed mainly concerned about collective bargaining to secure the best terms of employment for its members.
Now, the new NUJ president, Hata Wahari, has joined civil society in articulating the call for greater press freedom.
The recent logjam on the Rajang River was a natural disaster caused by heavy downpour and not by over-logging or impoundment of the Bakun Dam – so says an initial report by the Sarawak Forestry Corporation.This photo taken on Wed morning at 8 am ... a general view of Kapit water front ... the Kapit/Sibu jetty at far end - Photo credit: Borneo Post.The edge of the river, which had about 2m of water (inset) is now little more than a muddy bank - Photo credit: The Star.
Sarawak Forestry CEO Len Talif Salleh was reported by Bernama as saying that a ‘3D Airborne Hyperspectral Sensor’ taken on 15 October showed that the area was still covered by forest but traces of landslides could be seen due to heavy downpour at the Ulu Sungai Melatai catchment area. “We want to clarify the misconception and nonsense from an overseas source that the logjam was caused by over-logging or impoundment of Bakun Dam.” Over-logging was not an issue, he said, because there was no logging activity on both sides of Melatai River since 2006.
Some questions and concerns:
While the controversy over the megalomaniacal 100-storey tower is still swirling, many seem to be unaware of two other massive property development projects in the pipeline.
1MDB is bringing in Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Development Co to jointly develop a RM26 billion financial district on a 36ha plot in Jalan Tun Razak.
1MDB will also partner Qatar Investment Authority in another huge project on the present RMAF Sungai Besi land.
The Penang state government may be interested in promoting the state as a centre for meetings and conventions – but the state already has a reputation for being a hub for civil society activities, not just nationally but globally as well.
Over the weekend, two global forums were held – the Friends of the Earth International Asia Pacific forum “Ecological equity: Sharing the stories, reclaiming our rights” and the World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action’s Global Breastfeeding Partners Forum.
I dropped by to find out what was being said at each forum. At Waba’s forum, delegates were pleased to hear that the maternity leave for Malaysian civil servants would be extended to 90 days (which is 12 weeks, still well short of the ILO target of 40 weeks.) And what about private sector employees? Still 60 days? Shouldn’t the 90-day maternity leave be included in our labour laws?
If you thought Malaysia’s press freedom ranking was already bad, think again.
Singapore has surpassed Malaysia in the latest RSF global ranking for 2010. Singapore! Now Singapore may have made great strides in terms of material progress but press freedom is not exactly its forte.
Singapore is now ranked 136th (133rd in 2009) – ahead of Malaysia’s 141st (131st in 2009). That’s about the same as our football Fifa ranking of 144th place! What else do you expect when even a cartoonist can be arrested?
The ‘democratic’ nation of Brunei, at 142nd, is now breathing down our necks.
Can we look forward to more affordable housing in Penang?
The Penang Chief Minister has announced a Penang Housing Board Bill – “next State Assembly by Housing Exco Wong Hon Wai,” tweeted Kit Siang last night.
No approval has been given so far for a high-rise condominium project on the green stretch opposite Shamrock Beach in Batu Feringghi.
But residents are worried that the council may eventually approve the project. Following howls of protest, the project was scaled down from 37 storeys to 22 storeys.
Since about a year back, the Botanic Garden has been regularly invaded by wild boars, according to a source.
These wild boars have destroyed most of the aroids (common name for members of the Araceae family of plants) in the Aroid Walk and the lawns.
Civil society groups under the umbrella of Penang Forum 3 are inviting the public to participate in elections on 14 November to determine their nominees to serve as MPPP and MPSP councillors in 2011.
These pilot elections are a small first step in the journey towards the full restoration of local council elections in the future. Although many shortcomings in the process leading up to 14 November will inevitably crop up (given the constraints Penang Forum is operating under), the aim is to get the public used to the idea of having elections at the municipal council level.
Not all ‘NGOs’ are public interest groups. Groups such as Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers and the various Chambers of Commerce are more like lobby groups representing the interests of their members.
On the other hand, the civil society groups that are under the Penang Forum (such as Suaram, Aliran, Sembang-Sembang, PHT, and Malaysian Nature Society) advocate issues that are of concern to the wider public i.e. public interest issues.
Penang is to follow Selangor and introduce a Freedom of Information Act.
The Bill will be tabled in the Penang State Assembly next week. This was announced by the Penang Chief Minister at a DAP fund-raising dinner tonight, according to a tweet by Lim Kit Siang.
Deputy CM Ramasamy headed the committee that drafted the Bill.
This move is to be welcomed, of course – but we should hold back on the standing ovation until we examine the contents of the Bill.
The Rajang River water level reportedly has dropped after flooding began at the Bakun Dam. Already the express boat between Kapit and Belaga has been suspended. Rajang River water level drops - Photo credit: Borneo Post
Will Kapit now be cut off from vital river transport? What about the area’s future water and energy supply?
Now this might or might not be the solution to overcoming bottlenecks that reduce the speed of buses. But it does show the sort of thinking and creativity that others are already putting in to improve public transport.
How about us? Can we think beyond highway tolls and Protons?
