Latest on Penang mega projects
This is the latest status of all the mega projects in Penang. These remarks are based on the Prime Minister’s reply to a question raised by the Penang Chief Minister in Parliament on 20 August 2008.What the first three projects have in common is that the financial models were all messed up.My comments and recommendations, for what they are worth, are in italics.Second Penang Bridge: Federal government now studying the financial model put forward by Syarikat Jambatan Kedua Pulau Pinang Sdn Bhd, a wholly owned federal government subsidiary, based on a new bridge model. (I guess they messed up with the earlier financial model.) It is also drafting terms and conditions of a concession agreement before starting negotiations with the company. (Sounds like right hand going to negotiate with left hand.) To cut a long story short: Still under study.My recommendation: The cost has nearly doubled to RM5 billion. Turn it into a shorter rail link at a different location and allow the Penang State Government to hold a majority stake in the company. Penang Outer Ring Road (Porr): Supposed to have been built under build-operate-transfer privatisation model. But not feasible without strong federal government support or high tolls. Federal government now facing financial constraints so unable to use development expenditure under the Five-Year Malaysia Plan to implement it. But project may be considered if private companies are interested.To cut a long story short: No federal government funding.My recommendation: Scrap it because of environmental concerns and future congestion. Move away from private vehicle ownership and introduce an integrated public transport system.
200 new buses for Penang, but…
Some RM100 million has been allocated for 200 new buses for Rapid Penang, which already has 150 buses.The additional buses will slash the average waiting time from 25 minutes to 10 minutes and enable Rapid Penang to add 14 new routes to its existing 33. The target is to raise the daily passengers from 48,000 to 120,000.Rapid Penang, funded by the Ministry Of Finance Incorporated, is a subsidiary of Syarikat Rangkaian Pengangkutan Integrasi Deras Sdn Bhd (Rapid KL).From the grapevine, I understand that the 200 new buses for Rapid Penang have already been ordered: 100 buses are meant for Penang Island and 100 for Seberang Perai (mainland Penang).
Now every BN MP can fly – plus free travel tips
Seems to me that the BN MPs have caught a severe case of the jitters as 16 September approaches.So it’s just as well they are planning a long vacation, err, I mean lawatan sambil belajar. 🙂As blogger Susan Loone says, now we get to experience what the country is like without a bunch of BN MPs.Their sudden interest in agriculture is a laugh. Najib says it’s gonna be a constructive trip. Right.This excerpt from a Sun report:
Iraq War a “task that is from God”? Utter rubbish
This is the woman the US corporate media are hailing as a “star is born” – the new US vice-presidential candidate from the Republican party.This from an AP report:
ANCHORAGE, Alaska – Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin told ministry students at her former church that the United States sent troops to fight in the Iraq war on a “task that is from God.”…Palin asked the students to pray for the troops in Iraq, and noted that her eldest son, Track, was expected to be deployed there.“Our national leaders are sending them out on a task that is from God,” she said. “That’s what we have to make sure that we’re praying for, that there is a plan and that plan is God’s plan.”What utter rubbish. She should look up her bible.
What the corporate media won’t show you
Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman arrested while trying to come to the aid of her colleagues during a large anti-war protest on MondayThe corporate media are the same everywhere. Somehow there is great reluctance to highlight popular people’s protests including anti-war protests. Instead the news is invariably presented from the perspective of those in power or from the vantage point of Big Business. And war is generally good for Big Business in the United States’ media-military-industrial complex. It drives up the price of oil, promotes weapons sales, improves media ratings and boosts the popularity of “war-time” presidents, at least initially.And when independent media journalists such as Amy Goodman try to counter the propaganda, lies and spin, they are harassed, persecuted – and even arrested. (She and her colleagues were later released.)This is an account of a large anti-war protest during the Republican Convention that you wouldn’t have found reported over the major global media stations.It’s from Juan Cole’s excellent Informed Comment blog:
Thousands of protesters rallied against the Iraq War at the Republican Convention on Monday.The thousands of protesters were almost all peaceful. I had US cable news on all day off and on, and never saw anything on it about the protests. Some teenager was pregnant, which is not their business or mine, but that was what they were talking about. Protesting the Republican Party’s warmongering and lethal corruption for the past 8 years– a record that has made it impolitick for George W. Bush to attend the conference of the party he still technically leads– now that was unworthy of public comment.A few at the rally were accused of breaking windows or throwing bottles at the police. 284 arrests were made.The press accounts suggest that in some instances police acted overly aggressively (i.e. unconstitutionally), moving in on protesters who were peaceful.
“Dead” PGCC needs post-mortem; and Batu Kawan?
The Penang Global City Centre project may be dead, but what I don’t understand is why there are no calls for a full-scale inquiry into this massive stinking deal.The Chief Minister has said that the PGCC, in its original inception, is as good as dead. Notice the choice of words. Does that leave some wriggle-room for the state to consider new proposals from greedy developers or other interested parties on what was once recreational land?Let’s see who benefits in the end from the PGCC land deals.After Abad Naluri entered into an agreement in 2004 to buy the land at “recreational status” price, the previous state administration incredibly rezoned the land to new or mixed development, multiplying the land value several times over. This rezoning could land a potential profit of RM1.5 billion to Abad Naluri… RM1.5 billion! (Remember the Turf Club agreement with Abad Naluri has been extended from 2008 to 2011.)
Trams to make a comeback in Penang?
The old tram track on Penang Road
A tram expert has been spotted in Penang.Putting two and two together, I believe the proposal to bring back trams to Penang is now being given serious thought. Things seem to be moving.Najib apologises, Ahmad to face the music
It’s not often you get an apology from Najib, much less over racial remarks. But why isn’t Ahmad apologising? The next Supreme Council meeting will discuss what “appropriate action” to take against him. Don’t hold your breath. Anyway, this fiasco is not going to improve public support for the BN, is it?Reading between the lines, the devastating impact on BN component parties must have been serious enough for Najib to come out and apologise.This report from Bernama reproduced in The Star:
KUALA LUMPUR: Umno, the backbone of the ruling Barisan Nasional government, has issued a public apology over a remark made by Bukit Bendera Umno division head Datuk Ahmad Ismail during the Permatang Pauh parliamentary by-election last month.“We hope that the non-Malays will not be too disturbed with the statement and we apologise if it has incurred the sensitivities or unhappiness over the statement.“We apologise, Umno apologises although it is not our statement but it is a statement made by one of our division leaders. It is totally unwarranted and does not reflect the position and the attitude of Umno or the leadership of Umno. We regret it very much,” Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, who is also Umno deputy president, said here on Tuesday.In the run-up to the Permatang Pauh by-election, Ahmad had said at a ceramah that the Chinese community were mere “immigrants” in the country and thus were not entitled to be given equal rights in Malaysia.Contrast that with this article from Malaysian Insider and you will understand why the BN has lost so much support, even if some Malaysians may not really like Anwar:
Keng Yaik spoke too soon
In yesterday’s entry, I highlighted several quotes from an Off the Edge interview with Gerakan adviser Lim Keng Yaik, including his comment about the dubious land deals in Penang:
(Koh Tsu Koon) was not strong enough to stop the Umno fellas. Let’s see the land cases coming up; you’ll find an Umno arm all over the place. Yes, and Guan Eng is saying, “You did not stop it.”
But check out theSun online today. In an article titled ‘Public land gone!’, Terence and Nades reported:
What was supposed to be land for facilities for the people in the up-market Bandar Utama township has ended up in private hands.All it took was for the previous members of the Selangor Executive Council to agree and for the then mentri besar to alienate the land to individuals, bodies, corporations – and even political parties….All in all, seven parcels of land meant for public amenities have been misused….Political parties have also got into the action and hijacked some of them.The land on which Parti Gerakan Rakyat Malaysia (Gerakan)’s building is located was meant for a telecommunications exchange, while the Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC) now owns a parcel of land designated for a Tamil school.Ouch! Perhaps Keng Yaik would like to clarify. (As for the MIC, that’s a lost cause.)
Keng Yaik lashes out at Umno’s arrogance
Happy Merdeka Day! – though some of you may not exactly be in a celebratory mood.Anyway, if you are feeling a little bored on what is a sunny day here in Penang, why not hop over to your local news-stand and pick up a copy of Off the Edge magazine for some ‘fun’. (The magazine does not come with The Edge weekly tabloid; you have to buy the magazine separately.) This week’s cover story is a remarkably frank and hard-hitting interview with Gerakan adviser Dr Lim Keng Yaik, who even accepts partial blame for the 8 March BN setback.He is not a happy man though and, horrors, utters an expletive during the interview.I just hope interviewers Ho Kay Tat and Jason Tan were sitting a safe distance away, if you know what I mean. 🙂He says he has spoken out before – to Dr M and within BN circles, about the prevalence of money politics. (“It’s all money, money, money, money, money.”)Just to give you a flavour of the interview:Where did the BN and Umno go wrong especially in their response to Anwar’s ‘branding’ of Ketuanan Rakyat?
The more they hammer Anwar, the more they popularise him. I was also part of it, hammering Anwar, telling all the stories about Anwar.Didn’t work. [The people responded by saying], ‘Lu kong si ha mi ah? Lu boh aneh cham ah, lu boh eong eh lang, sway lang, chau lang lai.’ (In Hokkien: ‘what are you all in BN talking about? Aren’t you so bad yourself? BN is useless, a pox on the people, and a bunch of rogues.’)I blame this purely on the arrogance, abuse of power and non-transparency of Umno, the interference of the ‘Fourth Floor’ boys who think they know best, and the inability to keep the civil servants at bay….
Khairy finds himself on Raja Petra and Dr M’s side
Surprise, surprise, guess who disagrees with the move to block Malaysia Today? Khairy!Wudyabelieve it!In the latest entry on his blog he says:
In defence of those who despise meNo other website has caused me as much bad rep and deliberately destroyed my character as Raja Petra Kamaruddin’s Malaysia Today. Yet I cannot help disagreeing with the recent move by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) to block access to the site. Such blatant and crude employment of State power is inconsistent with the widening of the democratic space – an approach the current Administration adopted long before the 12th General Election…
Budget Day: Go on, change your lifestyle
Change my lifestyle? Who me? – Urban poor in a kampong in Penang Island
Here they go again, telling you to change your life-style:Malaysians Should Change Lifestyle To Manage High Oil PricesKUALA LUMPUR, Aug 29 (Bernama) — It is important for Malaysians to change their lifestyle to help bring down the consumption of non-renewable energy while measures are being implemented to alleviate the hardship arising from cost-push inflation, the Ministry of Finance (MOF) said.I am not sure what the pakciks and makciks in the kampongs, long-houses, estates, orang asli settlements, low-cost flats and urban pioneer settlements will make of this. And let’s not forget the migrant workers crammed 20-to-a-house. They are certainly not the ones cruising the roads in their Mercs or BMWs and spending RM10 on a cup of latte.Here’s a response from Justin Choo:
AnilMakciks and Pakciks, kampongs and long houses, may be far away in the rural areas. You have not mentioned the retired people like me. No more active income. Some still got to feed grandchildren. I live a very, very simple lifestyle. No smoking, no drinking, no gambling, no womanising (too old lah, and also not rich!), always stay at home, eat small breakfast, and two simple meals a day, drive an old red “taxi” Proton Saga, and wear shorts and T-shirt, and slippers. What lifestyle to change? The only change is upgrade! Eat the most sumptious cuisine in fine-dining style? Savour fine wines and caviar, birdnest soup, abalone with scallops, baked lobsters drenched in the finest red wine. Fly to New York, Paris and London for shopping, etc…. How nice.Let’s see the Ministers leading by example and dumping their petrol-guzzling cars, with all the escorts and outriders, and taking public transport everyday.
Should Gerakan pull out from BN?
Last night, Mustafa and I spoke at a Gerakan ‘teh tarik’ session on the outcome of the Permatang Pauh by-election and its implications.I was surprised to see the level of interest among those who attended, including non-Gerakan members as well. Many were keen to know whether Anwar would get his 30 MPs by 16 September.I told them I had no idea. I stressed to them the importance of institutional checks and balances. We cannot rely on a strong personality alone to bring about change. We need deeper institutional reforms – to the judiciary, police, ACA, Parliament, Election Commission and Suhakam. We also need a change in the mindset among politicians so that they really serve the rakyat and not themselves.
Anwar finally sumpahs – in Parliament
The BN has been challenging Anwar to take an oath – and he finally obliged, this morning. Only thing, it was not the sort of oath they had in mind. He was sworn in as Member of Parliament and is now Parliamentary Opposition Leader.
MPPP formally rejects Abad Naluri’s PGCC proposal
The Penang Island Municipal Council has formally rejected Abad Naluri’s mixed-development proposal for the Batu Gantung area (the Penang Global City Centre or PGCC project) at the Council’s committee meeting on 6 August.The grounds for rejection were:
- The proposal did not take into consideration the density of Taman Jesselton (6 units/acre), Scotland Road (10.2 units/acre) and Batu Gantung Road (15-30 units/acre);
- The applicant had not submitted amended plans for further consideration;
- There was no formal application to the Council and State Authorities for low- and medium-cost housing on land in Rifle Range Road belonging to the Council and state government;
Anwar re-enters Parliament as PR MPs thump approval
Heard from an eye- witness that Anwar has returned to Parliament to a rousing welcome from Pakatan MPs.Wan Azizah was seated in the VIP area of the viewing gallery to witness the proceedings this morning. Also present was Nurul Izzah.On the Umno side, Abdullah and Najib were not seen while only Nazri and a few other Umno MPs were present.
16 September beckons…
What an eventful day:
- Malaysia Today blocked – surely the government must be aware that it is futile to block sites in this day and age?
- Anwar to be sworned in, in Parliament tomorrow, and
- We have a new Parliamentary Opposition Leader
My “disgusting” coverage: Blogger crackdown looms?
Oh dear, I guess you can’t please everyone.“BN Partyman” sent in this comment, which contains a none-too-subtle threat.
Dear Anil,Your biased live coverage of the PP buy-election was disgusting to say the least. It seemed like the Barisan Nasional was non-existent in PP. The fact that more than 15,000 people voted for Arif Shah is testimony to BN’s popularity. If it were not for the rough house tactics of the PKR goons, more legitimate voters would have made it to the polling stations. You and your ilk ought to be detained under the ISA and the keys thrown away.You are partisan, unfair, biased, and a false witness to the events in PP. Like the 31,000 odd who voted for Anwar, you are ungrateful for the development and progress wrought by the BN. Honestly ask yourself: Would you even own a laptop or even know how to use the Internet if not for the education that the BN gave you? Just like the other bloggers and commentators on the blogsites, you bite the hand that feeds you. You are despicable and so is Raja Petra and the likes of him.When the BN government finally wipes out the Opposition from the face of this Earth, we’ll be coming after you and all of your ilk for the lies and ridiculous untrue propaganda that you spread to the innocent rakyat. Unfortunately it seems now that a large minority of the rakyat are stupid enough to pay attention to the lies of the Opposition. The BN will educate them very soon and I assure you it will be a painful lesson indeed.BN Sakthi!!!
It’s 81 per cent turnout, not 65 per cent
A group of kampong boys in Penanti near the tallying centre caught up in election fever after the results were announced
As some of you have pointed out, there is a discrepancy between the Election Commission’s figure for the voter turnout of 65 per cent turnout and the actual turnout, which was 81 per cent. This discrepancy created a lot of confusion.Anwar secured 31,195 votes; Ariff 15,524 votes and Akim’s Hanafi Mamat 92 votes (deposit lost). That is over 46,800 votes cast compared to the total voters of around 58,000.My math whizz friend comments, “It looks like the Election Commission can only count correctly when the BN wins.”He further analysed the results and came up with the following conclusions:- Anwar won two thirds of the votes cast.
- The support for PKR comes from all ethnic groups.
- Support for Anwar/PKR among the Malays comes in at around 60-65 per cent. Incidentally this tallies with what Din, the elderly gentleman in Kampong Petani, told me: “Out of a hundred residents here, you could say 60 to 70 support PKR.”
Polling Day: LIVE reports from Ground Zero
Hope for the future: The next generation celebrates an Anwar and Reformasi victory in a kampong in Penanti earlier this evening Send in your “citizen journalist” eye-witness reports from Permatang Pauh as it goes to the polls. Others share with us your thoughts on polling day.All eyes in Malaysia and beyond are trained on this constituency of 58,000 voters in mainland Penang, the scene of a pivotal by-election on Tuesday that could determine if an opposition alliance can press ahead with its plan to take over the federal government in the coming weeks. Check out my pre-election IPS news analysis here.The official final majority is 15,671 votes. Anwar secured 31,195 votes; Ariff 15,524 votes and Akim’s Hanafi Mamat 92 votes (deposit lost).2154: The unofficial final tally is a majority of around 16,500. On a more sobering note, the simple and friendly Malay kampong shopkeeper here says,”We don’t get anything whoever wins, you know.” Ariff, he says, is a nice guy. “He just happened to be in the wrong ‘car’ (party).”Two little Malay boys were peering into my laptop earlier, a 12-year-old and a younger boy around six. I asked the older boy what he wants to be when he grows up. “Dreber (driver),” he replied proudly. “Dreber lori.”2016: Anwar has bagged around 32,000 votes so far to Ariff’s 14,000; that’s a 17,000-18,000 majority. “He has taken on the whole BN machinery and all the resources at their disposal and come out tops,” says a lawyer.2010: TV3 confirms that Anwar has won. But counting is still in progress.1936: Out of 9,000 votes tallied, the BN has secured just over 2,000. Anwar is leading by about a 4-to-1 margin. The BN has even lost Seberang Jaya, according to my source.1905: Another police convoy, sirens blaring, passes by heading to the central counting area, this time followed by scores of motorcyclists carrying PKR flags and waving in triumph. They are already celebrating!1858: It’s a landslide for Anwar! Out of 5,000 votes counted, about 4,100 go to PKR, according to my source.1854: Police outriders, their sirens wailing, a police van and police on motorbikes beat the long queue to the counting centre. Behind them a motorcyclist follows, the pillion rider, a woman, pumps her fist in the air. More motorcylists carrying PKR flags pass by. The police chopper circles above.1852: Turnout is reportedly 65 per cent, lower than expected. (This was based on a Bernama report carried on the NST website.)1848: In the distance, I can hear kampong children, probably sensing something in the air, continually crying out “Reformasi!”1825: A convoy of bikers waving PKR flags passes by as a police chopper hovers ahead. Motorists continue to honk on the roads. Traffic on the roads here has come to a standstill. A siren wails in the distance.1800: It all points to an Anwar victory by a large majority. An elderly Malay gentleman, Din, from the kampong here ambles up to me and we exchange pleasantries. I ask him what the level of support for Anwar is in this area. “Out of a hundred residents here, you could say 60 to 70 support PKR.”1755: I have also received a report that Pakatan supporters have apprehended five buses of hantus in Seberang Jaya. But Gobalakrishnan has been arrested in the process. Motorists are honking and I can hear more cries of “Reformasi!”1750: Abdullah Badawi is said to have returned to KL. I was heading to the counting area but there’s a massive crawl from Permatang Pauh heading to the central counting area. So I have parked in a little kampong area, Kampong Petani in Penanti. It’s an amazing sight on the roads here. Children are on the roadsides, shouting Reformasi!, come of them are carrying PKR flags while others are wearing Anwar masks. The childen at least are already celebrating!1647: RPK and Mkini are both predicting a winning margin of 10,000 – but could it be more – or less, if the hantus get to work?1636: “We are witnessing a turning point in our country’s history,” a friend of mine says in a text message.1617: Hisham Rais reports that alleged hantus (phantoms) have been caught in Mengkuang Titi. What next? Check his blog for more about these mysterious hantus.
Calon PKR Anwar Ibrahim bersama dengan penyokongnya telah menangkap “hantu”.Kejadian berlaku di Mengkuang Titi. Keadaan agak tegang di sana.PEKIDA a.k.a geng adik beradik juga berada di sana untuk memanaskan keadaan. Penduduk kampung nampaknya lebih “matang” daripada PEKIDA untuk mengawal suasana.1610: Ah Singh has this update for us. Could this be true? Interesting “mental estimates”! Polling’s not yet over though… We shall see.
Anwar won already-lah. My kaki just rang me at 3.15 pm to say landslide victory for Anwar after he and some guys did some ‘mental’ estimates at the polling stations. No fight-lah. Anwar won hands down. All hail the new Prime Minister of Malaysia.1600: Bright sunshine bathes the town centre, keeping the rain away. I am now preparing to head to the central counting centre, for what should be an eventful evening. Stay tuned!1530: While having some fruit juice at a coffee-shop nearby, I notice a couple of the waiters wearing shirts/T shirts in PKR blue. I look at the Chinese waiter’s cap when she serves me my drink. It’s the same blue. I look more closely at the emblem stitched onto her cap. It is a small portrait of Anwar.A PKR man, a Chinese Malaysian, joins me at the table in the crowded shop. A party member for the last eight years, he says he has come from Ipoh because “I want to see democracy in Malaysia”.Someone has suggested there may have been cloud-seeding operations to get it to rain! But it’s not raining now, though the sky looks grey and overcast.About an hour earlier, I ran into a couple of Mafrel election observers. They told me the turnout at a Chinese school was high at lunch time – around 60 per cent. They also said they spotted three plainclothes police personnel in the compound of one polling centre and reported the matter to get them out of there.Meanwhile, the Election Commission is reported as saying that the turnout could exceed 80 per cent. A friend of mine estimates turnout of at least 75 per cent and a winning majority of 15,000. So we know turnout won’t be low, although there are unconfirmed reports that the turnout was low in a few Malay areas. But there’s still time yet.1452: Selvarajah Somiah reports on the unofficial turnout:
I have unofficial reports that the turnout at 2.00pm is at 65-70 per cent. At this rate, the voter turnout before 5.00pm should be more than 80 per cent. More people are coming out to vote now.Anwar should be winning with more than 10,000 votes if this is the trend.