Pakatan supporters held simultaneous protests in Penang, Perak, Selangor, Terengganu and Negri Sembilan against the federal government’s decision to issue a licence for sports betting in the country.
Photo courtesy of Wartawan Rasmi Laman Reformasi
The protest in Penang, led by Penang Pas youth leaders took place after Friday prayers at the Kampung Permatang Jangus mosque in Permatang Pauh on the mainland.
We often hear politicians accusing each other of corruption. Those accusations may be genuine, but sometimes they paper over deeper structural problems in the economy which are less sensational but which may have an even greater impact on the poor.
First, let me say that most Malaysians correctly recognise that the billions of ringgit lost through corruption and wastage and rent-seeking could have been used to provide more budget allocations to assist the poor.
Tanjung Bunga state assembly member Teh Yew Cheu has written to the Penang Municipal Council on the Bolton Surin project.
Rock blasting at the Bolton Surin project site in Tanjung Bunga is unnerving residents in nearby Chee Seng Gardens.
One of the rocks from the blasts and a damaged roof-tile
This has prompted Tanjung Bunga Residents Association president George Aeria to once again write to leaders of the Penang state government and Penang Municipal Council:
Today (19 May 2010) again, Bolton Surin carried out their usual blasting and this time a large rock flew further than my house i.e. a full 500 feet, (my house is @ 400 feet from the blast site) hit the roof of my neighbour and broke it….
Think twice before you go for plastic surgery for reasons of vanity (apart from disfigurement).
We all know about Michael Jackson, but here are a couple more examples if you are not convinced.
In Sibu, the DAP team had to struggle long and hard for the postal votes when they were being tallied. It’s time we take a long hard look at postal votes during elections.
Even in other countries, postal voting has been open to electoral abuse. In Birmingham, a judge found rogue Labour activists and candidates tampered with forms.
In the Malaysian context, postal voting certainly doesn’t inspire public confidence in the electoral process.
I am not a fan of billionaire Warren Buffett. But his son Peter could be on to something.
Why don’t I like Warren or rather what he is saying and doing? Look at how he defends Goldman Sachs. What’s more, his investment giant Berthshire Hathaway holds a large stake in Walmart, a company which has been the target of criticism from unions and a whole range of community, grassroots, religious and environmental groups. Check out Wake Up, Walmart.
Mystery surrounds the RM1.75 million in grants to four churches in Sibu – which could change the whole face of the controversy.
What prompted the federal government to award the grants to these churches during the campaign? (The churches had reportedly applied for the grants quite some time ago.) Did government officials actually meet the leaders of these churches during the campaign before deciding to award the grants? If there was such a meeting, was there an unsolicited government offer to award these grants during the campaign? Or more seriously, did the churches press for the funds to be granted?
Most news reports are talking about a lower voter turnout in Sibu. But actually, the turnout was higher than 2008.
In 2008, the turnout was 67 per cent. But this time around, 70 per cent (or more accurately 69 per cent) of voters cast their ballots.