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Central govt debt balloons to RM388bn

Anil Netto
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32

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.

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MCMC interrogates Wong Choon Mei

Anil Netto
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17

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.

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Colonial memo on pre-Merdeka talks

Anil Netto
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11

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.

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Bridge Express Shuttle Transit (Best)

Anil Netto
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9

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).

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End the Occupation: Mid-East bishops

Anil Netto
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14

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.

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Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-10-24

Anil Netto
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0

Now here come the smelters…

Anil Netto
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5

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.

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No-tower Facebook page: 116,000 ‘likes’

Anil Netto
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19

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.

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NUJ president calls for press freedom

Anil Netto
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0

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.

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Rajang River silap mata

Anil Netto
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9

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:

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