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EU-Malaysia FTA: ‘Trade invaders’

Anil Netto
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Negotiations between the Malaysia and the European Union for a free trade agreement (FTA) are expected to begin in Brussels next week. But most Malaysians are being left in the dark about what this means for Malaysia while Parliament is not even looking at this seriously.

The way I see it, the EU-Malaysia FTA aims to prise open the Malaysian market for large European firms – in the same way that these firms are eyeing the vast Indian market under the EU-India FTA and the Asean market under the EU-Asean FTA. That’s the main agenda of Corporate Europe.

These large European firms or BusinessEurope are working very closely with EU Commission negotiators to secure the best possible outcome for themselves. What are they looking for? We can get a pretty good idea of what they want by looking at the negotiations for the EU-India FTA.

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S’wak White Paper on ‘naughty people’

Anil Netto
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The Sarawak State Assembly has tabled and passed a White Paper to ‘prevent the escalation of dangerous politics employed by outsiders, especially politicians’.

The state’s Cabinet will decide at its meeting next Thursday whether to come up with legislation based on the White Paper.

The Taib Mahmud administration appears to be feeling the heat after all the damaging allegations of corrupt practices, shady deals and cases of obvious conflict of interest.

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Penang port: Why MCA; why Soi Lek?

Anil Netto
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The appointment of Chua Soi Lek as Penang Port Commission chairperson comes at a crucial time for the port.

One of the prime rules of journalism is, always follow the money. Where the money is, that’s where things happen. Two major factors could explain the relatively high-level appointment of an MCA leader to head the Penang ports’ regulatory authority:

1) Privatisation of Penang port and wharves’ operations could be on the cards. The politically well-connected Syed Mokhtar Al-Bukhary’s name has been mentioned in various reports. Penang Port Sdn Bhd CEO Ahmad Ibni Hajar was reported in September as saying they were also awaiting the government’s approval on plans to list the company. Big money stakes will be up for grabs if the listing does proceed. (I maintain that Penang Port should remain in government hands. Preferably it should come under the state government’s purview.)

2) And let’s not forget that major expansion and upgrading work is in store for the Penang piers, deep water wharves, container terminals and ferry operations.

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Soi Lek, PPC and centralisation

Anil Netto
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I just wrote something for Aliran on Chua Soi Lek’s appointment as Penang Port Commission chairman. I used that as a peg to show just how centralised our federal government has become – and the process continues.

Already there has been much debate online about the appointment of Chua Soi Lek as the Penang Port Commission chairperson.

Penang Port Commission (PPC) was established on 1 January 1956 under the Penang Port Commission Act, 1955. PPC is a statutory body under the Transport Ministry tasked with providing, maintaining and upgrading port and ferry services in Penang Port.

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Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-11-28

Anil Netto
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  • How's this for real gratitude? Trapped whale winks and nuzzles up to divers after they freed her. True story: h… http://y.ahoo.it/kTJvXfFN #

Shocking revelation in Sarawak

Anil Netto
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Sarawak Report has come up with a stunning revelation exposing who it claims owns Royal Mulu Resort.

See the report here.

Meanwhile Baru Bian, the State Liaison Chief for PKR Sarawak, has brought the revelation to the attention of MACC Sarawak.

Baru, Baru, don’t waste your time with the MACC.

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Sarawak: Poverty and opulence

Anil Netto
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There are two opposite extremes in Sarawak that are worlds apart.

First, an example of the harsh reality that faces the marginalised:

Hishamuddin’s aide falls into Sarawakian marsh
November 21, 2010

KUCHING, Nov 21 — Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein was today shocked to see his special officer Datuk Firdaus Ismail fall into a marsh when a wooden bridge leading to the dilapidated home of an elderly villager in Kampung Gersik, here, collapsed. (From a Bernama report in Malaysian Insider)

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Learning tree-planting from Singapore?

Anil Netto
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A delegation from Putrajaya is planning a two-day study trip to Singapore next month to learn more about tree-planting.

Huh? Read this Malaysian Insider report.

A blog reader visited Singapore earlier this month and snapped a few pictures.

Surprisingly, I noticed that trees and plants at public places, by the roadside, at HDB condos etc are in better shape than those at private premises/condos. Can’t even find old sick trees or a branch of brown foliage, serious no exaggeration!

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Missing fountain and Ipoh’s heritage

Anil Netto
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The Perak government is desperately trying to promote heritage tourism, but as one writer observes, there is no evidence that this “top down, bottom up” approach, requiring love and respect for our heritage, exists anywhere in Ipoh.

Saw this piece by Ian Anderson in the Ipoh Echo:

Once there was a beautiful Italian marble fountain on this site (in Little India). It was put there not by government, but by the businessmen of Ipoh in memory of the 8th British Adviser, E W Birch, who unlike his father had been good to Ipoh and Perak during his tenure. Indeed without his assistance, New Town would not have been built. However in the 1980s the memorial was removed by the City Council in the name of development.

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Chong Eu: A chequered legacy

Anil Netto
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The late Tun Dr Lim Chong Eu will be remembered as a leader who left his imprint on Penang during a time of turbulence and ferment in Malaysia’s post-independence years.

His experiment with multi-ethnic politics with Gerakan – in its initial years at least – fired the imagination of many Penangites and other Malaysians.

His economic policy of promoting export-oriented, foreign investor-driven development – the standard World Bank model in support of MNCs – gave birth to the electronics industry and the Free Trade Zone in Penang. It compensated somewhat for the loss of Penang’s duty-free status.

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