M’sia-Brunei deal: Make Cabinet minutes public
Abdullah Badawi says he obtained Cabinet approval before going ahead with the deal with Brunei. So the government should now make public the minutes of the Cabinet discussion and decision.
Abdullah also needs to explain why this matter was not brought to Parliament for a thorough debate as this involves a question of sovereignty and energy supply.
Najib too has to clarify and explain the rationale for the deal. After all, he was Number Two to Abdullah back then and on the threshold of becoming premier. Was he among those in the Cabinet who approved the deal? If, as he says, both countries are still negotiating, why have the two blocks already been given up?
Sibu by-election: Bloopers and blunders
Politicians are already gearing up for the Sibu by-election, but if they think they can follow the same pattern of campaigning in Sarawak as they are accustomed to in the peninsula, they are mistaken.
Already some blunders and oversights are apparent and politicians and campaigners from the peninsula will do well to learn from them.
Ngu Ik Tien reports for Aliran after attending PKR and DAP dinners in Sibu:
I received a free ticket to attend ‘the DAP night’ from a friend of my friend working as a reporter with the local Chinese press. Some Chinese newspapers described the dinner as “a show of strength (造势大会)”. Another purpose of the dinner was to announce the candidate for the by-election of Sibu. Though Wong Ho Leng had mentioned to the press more than once that he recommended Alice Lau to be the candidate, the Sibu folks seemed to disregard the suggestion. “Must be him-lah,” they said.
Workers gather at Dataran to say NO to GST
For many of us Workers’ Day is just another public holiday. But for workers at the raw end of development, it is a day to reflect on their rights as workers and their collective strength.
Even as I write, workers are gathering in Dataran Merdeka to commemorate the occasion.
What do they want? This year their principal demand is No Goods and Services Tax. They point out that Najib’s New Economic Model recognises that the gap between the rich and the poor is wide, and the country needs to move away from a low-income model. If that’s the case, why are there plans to introduce a regressive tax like the GST which will burden the poor the most, they ask.
The full list of demands in the May Day declaration endorsed by dozens of Malaysian civil society groups:
1. RAKYAT MALAYSIA BANTAH CUKAI GST. CUKAI GST MEMISKINKAN RAKYAT! Di samping itu, tuntutan-tuntutan lain kaum pekerja ialah: 2. Kekalkan Cukai Korporat di tahap 27 peratus. Pengurangan cukai ini akan menyebabkan pengalihan beban cukai kepada rakyat biasa melalui Cukai GST 3. Gubal Akta Gaji Minima untuk semua pekerja dan mansuhkan polisi gaji murah
Abdullah’s denial raises more questions
Former premier Abdullah Badawi has denied giving up the oil rights in Blocks L and M – but his response raises more questions.
In remarks published by the Malaysian Insider, he said Blocks L and Block M would be jointly developed by Malaysia and Brunei over 40 years. He added:
The financial and operational modalities for giving effect to this arrangement will be further discussed by the two sides. This means that in so far as the oil and gas resources are concerned, the agreement is not a loss for Malaysia…
Limbang, Blocks L and M: Tell us the real deal
More questions have been raised on the reported surrender of Blocks L and M to Brunei during the Abdullah Badawi administration.
Source: rigzone.com
Blocks L and M, not far from the Sabah coast, are reportedly referred to in Brunei as Blocks J and K or there is some kind of overlap in the Exclusive Economic Zone. This Block J alone is projected to produce more than 150,000 to 200,000 barrels per day, which could double Brunei’s oil production.
Essentially, Brunei appears to have awarded the two blocks to Total and Shell prospectors while Malaysia awarded the same or overlapping blocks to Petronas Carigali and Murphy Oil. Murphy held a 60 per cent stake in Block L and a 70 per cent stake in Block M.
The two blocks, about 1.5 million acres each with water depths of 2,700-9,300 feet, lie next to the oil-rich 4 million acre-Block K, which was awarded in 1999 to Murphy (80 per cent) and Petronas Carigali. Murphy had reported that drilling in the Kikeh oil field in the southern part of Block K had yielded a “very significant oil discovery”. One report said it could reach 125,000 barrels per day.
Source: thestar.com.my
Source: rigzone.com
Blocks L and M, not far from the Sabah coast, are reportedly referred to in Brunei as Blocks J and K or there is some kind of overlap in the Exclusive Economic Zone. This Block J alone is projected to produce more than 150,000 to 200,000 barrels per day, which could double Brunei’s oil production.
Essentially, Brunei appears to have awarded the two blocks to Total and Shell prospectors while Malaysia awarded the same or overlapping blocks to Petronas Carigali and Murphy Oil. Murphy held a 60 per cent stake in Block L and a 70 per cent stake in Block M.
The two blocks, about 1.5 million acres each with water depths of 2,700-9,300 feet, lie next to the oil-rich 4 million acre-Block K, which was awarded in 1999 to Murphy (80 per cent) and Petronas Carigali. Murphy had reported that drilling in the Kikeh oil field in the southern part of Block K had yielded a “very significant oil discovery”. One report said it could reach 125,000 barrels per day.
Source: thestar.com.my
Murphy Oil’s interests terminated
Reports say that Petronas has terminated production sharing contracts in two blocks as the areas are “no longer a part of Malaysia”.
See a Reuters report here and an Edge report here.
Murphy Oil was informed by Petronas that the two blocks are no longer a part of the country following an agreement between Malaysia and Brunei, according to the Oil and Gas Journal.
Large anti-nuclear power protests in Germany
While we were pre-occupied with the Hulu Selangor by-election, some 120,000 people attended demonstrations in Germany on Saturday to protest their government’s plans to extend the life-spans of the country’s nuclear power plants.
The demonstrators formed a 120-km human chain stretching across several states. This report is from dw-world.de
Opponents of nuclear power joined hands to form a 120-kilometer human chain across northern Germany. They were protesting Chancellor Angela Merkel’s decision to revoke a law that would shut down nuclear plants by 2020.
As expected, no undersea cables from Bakun
Just as I thought, there are not going to be any submarine cables from the Bakun Dam to the peninsula.
Check out this Edge report here.
It was always going to be a risky and expensive proposition to lay submarine cables across the South China Sea even though the technology is there. The project, had it gone ahead, would have been the world’s longest undersea power transmission link; it would have entered uncharted territory, an expensive journey into the unknown.
The whole rationale, during the Mahathir administration, for building this jinxed dam was to supply power to the peninsula.
Now that the original justification for the dam is no longer there, what are they going to do with all the power from the Bakun Dam? Has Tenaga now realised that Bakun could be choked with sedimentation in a few years? Check out the warnings here. And look at this lamentation from Belaga over the social and environmental cost of Bakun.
Hulu Selangor by-election afterthoughts
For the BN, nothing to be proud about winning in this way. The means are just as important as the ends.
It was always going to be close, either way. In the end, it was 52:48 in the BN’s favour.
A political economist friend of mine was right when he told me to listen to the Pas campaigner I referred to a number of times in this blog (even though I did get a bit swayed by the large turnout at the PKR ceramah on the eve of polling).
This Pas campaigner was accurate in his prediction of a 54:46 outcome (plus/minus 2 per cent margin of error) in favour of the BN, which he consistently stuck to throughout the campaign and polling day itself. He had campaigned for Pakatan across Hulu Selangor and developed a gut feel for the area, especially the kampungs and Felda settlements. He felt Pakatan could have received around 35 per cent support (“not more than 40 per cent”) in these areas. This seems consistent with a Pas MP who predicted 36 per cent support in these areas.
And the award goes to … Rosmah
In case you missed it during the thick of the Hulu Selangor by-election campaign, Rosmah has clinched the inaugural “International Peace and Harmony Award” in recognition of her “extensive charitable work and to celebrate the important links between Malaysia and the US”.
The award was presented at a dinner in New York hosted by the United States Sports Academy and the Business Council for International Understanding.
Rosmah and Najib joined in with American celebrities in a rendition of “We are the world”. Among those attending the gala event at St Regis Hotel on 16 April were Jamie Foxx, Robert de Niro and Paris Hilton’s parents.
Live – Hulu Selangor polling day and results
Who’s it going to be – Zaid or Kamalanathan, PKR or BN? All the action from polling day at Hulu Selangor and live coverage and discussion of the results.
Live – Hulu Selangor by-election eve
Live discussion in the final hours before the Hulu Selangor by-election.
10,000 ceramah crowd boosts Pakatan hopes
LIVE discussion on this blog today from 4.00pm to 5.00pm
Some 10,000 people turned up for a PKR ceramah at Sungai Buaya in Hulu Selangor last night, seemingly supporting the optimism in some PKR circles of a favourable result.
The crowd packed an area the size of a football field. For details, go here.
Another 2,000 turned up for a PKR Chinese dinner in Rasa last night.
A PKR MP told me he was confident of a positive result. “On paper, there is no way we can lose.” But he cautioned a lot would depend on how smooth polling day is tomorrow, especially if the 13,000 voters, whose polling stations have been changed, can find their correct polling centres.
BN holds edge; Pakatan builds momentum
LIVE discussion on this blog tomorrow from 4.00pm to 5.00pm
A Pas grassroots source tells me that he feels the odds in Hulu Selangor are 46:54 in the BN’s favour, with a margin of error of plus/minus 2 per cent. (I asked him how come his instincts are so precise!)
Niz Aziz having dinner with Zaid Ibrahim tonight before hitting the ceramah circuit. They will attend a PKR Chinese dinner in Rasa at 9.30pm attended by 2,000 people. Nik Aziz will also be speaking at a DAP ceramah in Asam Kumbang and a PKR ceramah in Batang Kali – Photo courtesy of Fahmi Fadzil
Another Pas source, an MP, who has campaigned in Hulu Selangor, concedes that Felda areas are proving “difficult to penetrate”. All the top guns will be descending there in the next couple of days. Najib, for instance, has reportedly distributed RM50,000 each to 100 Felda settlers and promised more money. (How blatant can you get! – and this was aired over television news at 8.00pm.)
Niz Aziz having dinner with Zaid Ibrahim tonight before hitting the ceramah circuit. They will attend a PKR Chinese dinner in Rasa at 9.30pm attended by 2,000 people. Nik Aziz will also be speaking at a DAP ceramah in Asam Kumbang and a PKR ceramah in Batang Kali – Photo courtesy of Fahmi Fadzil
Another Pas source, an MP, who has campaigned in Hulu Selangor, concedes that Felda areas are proving “difficult to penetrate”. All the top guns will be descending there in the next couple of days. Najib, for instance, has reportedly distributed RM50,000 each to 100 Felda settlers and promised more money. (How blatant can you get! – and this was aired over television news at 8.00pm.)
Penang Botanic Garden can learn from Thais
Have a look at what could have been possible instead of the ugly concrete structures in the Penang Botanic Garden.
This is the concrete office block sprouting up along the road near the Penang Botanic Garden
And this is some sort of research and coordinating outpost set up by the Thai government up in the mountains in the north of Thailand near the Burma border. The outpost, which blends with the environment, aims to help the many village councils engage in agriculture, farming, orchards and animal husbandry on the mountainous slopes so that they can be self-sustaining in food and generate some income by selling any surplus.
This is the concrete office block sprouting up along the road near the Penang Botanic Garden
And this is some sort of research and coordinating outpost set up by the Thai government up in the mountains in the north of Thailand near the Burma border. The outpost, which blends with the environment, aims to help the many village councils engage in agriculture, farming, orchards and animal husbandry on the mountainous slopes so that they can be self-sustaining in food and generate some income by selling any surplus.
Pas goes on all-out ceramah blitz
Pas is stepping up the pace with a gruelling ceramah schedule tonight, working its way deep into the estates and kampungs of Hulu Selangor.
The party has lined up a total of 16 ceramahs tonight, according to a circular sent out.
Mat Sabu heads the cast of speakers in Hulu Bernam, which has seven Pas ceramahs in various kampungs and estates.
Hulu Selangor: Cops haul up 7
2330: All seven have now been released on bail.
1909: Seven people, including six political science students from a local university, have been hauled up for questioning.
The six were being taken around Hulu Selangor to observe proceedings by a PKR party worker when they were stopped, according to lawyer Latheefa Koya. Apparently, the vehicle contained PKR campaign material.
Watch out, Zaid; Rosmah enters the fray
First it was Najib who was entering the fray. Then Mahathir. And now Rosmah.
Mahathir’s involvement in the Bukit Gantang by-election did not really help as Nizar coasted to victory. Neither did it help in Bukit Selambau.
I don’t know about you, but somehow I don’t think Rosmah campaigning for Kamalanathan is going to help the BN cause.
It might actually work in Zaid’s favour!
More seriously, what’s all this about? Has Santa come to town?
Kamalanathan listed on Edith Cowan website
UPDATED: P Kamalanathan is listed on the Edith Cowan University website.
He has also displayed his certificate on his own website. The certificate states he was awarded a Bachelor of Communications from the University on 23 January 1994 2004.
He has also displayed his certificate on his own website. The certificate states he was awarded a Bachelor of Communications from the University on 23 January 1994 2004.