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Why I am against the Penang convention centre

Anil Netto
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72

The proposal for a Penang International Convention Centre is already moving, but I dare say a large majority of Penangites are unaware of it.

This artist impression of the convention centre doesn’t show how close it will be to the existing Penang International Sports Arena (Pisa).

In fact, the public have been given until 8 January 2010 to submit their opinions and views – and that’s it for the consultation.

The Bayan Baru Residents Association has already registered its objection in a letter to the press. You can submit your views to the Penang Municipal Council or you can email your views to riduan@mppp.gov.my before the deadline expires.

Personally, I am against the project, which is expected to cost RM50 million (and that’s just an estimate). The money is expected to come out of the precious funds of the Council, which has budgeted a deficit of RM40 million in 2010 on the back of revenue of RM230 million (two thirds of which is raised from assessments/taxes). The Council has allocated RM30 million for the convention centre in 2010 and a further RM20 million is expected to be incurred in 2011.

Why Penang doesn’t need a convention centre like this built with public funds:

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Avatar: Beyond the 3-D, another dimension

Anil Netto
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This post is dedicated to blogger Antares, who I understand is seriously ill with a malaria infection. Antares knows all about the inter-connectedness of Nature that the movie Avatar depicts so beautifully. Wishing him a speedy recovery.

A couple of days ago, I thought I would check out the movie Avatar after a couple of friends tipped me off about the story line.

Of course, the special effects in this movie by the directors of Titanic are spectacular and the unorthodox love story, compelling. But looking beyond these, I was pleasantly surprised by the powerful and rich underlying messages in the movie.

In the movie, the earth is dying as humanity has destroyed the environment. Humans are colonising another planet to extract minerals and other raw materials from a site where an alien tribe lives. Corporate greed is alive, this time focused on exploiting the untapped resources of the alien planet, while science is being used to serve the corporate agenda.

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Vegetables: Just grow them … the natural way!

Anil Netto
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Concerned about expensive vegetables? Why not do something about it…

Blog reader Anthony Louis comments from afar:

Hello Malaysians,

I live in Germany. You guys will be surprised how many people grow their own veges in their homes and then share them with their neighbours.

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A RM17 million price tag

Anil Netto
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12

On 4 December 2009, Sime Darby Bhd, through its plantation arm, Sime Darby Plantation Sdn Bhd, bought the entire issued and paid-up capital (50,000 shares of RM1 each) of an obscure new company, Nature Ambience Sdn Bhd, for RM16.8 million.

What makes Nature Ambience, which was incorporated only a year ago (on 12 December 2008), so special? Although it will become an oil palm plantation firm, a company search reveals its nature of business to be “general trading”.

On 2 October 2009, the Ministry of Land Development, Sarawak granted Nature Ambience approval to be the investor/developer for 26,211ha of Native Customary Rights land in Kapit and Julau, Sarawak. This was reportedly in line with the Sarawak state government’s “new concept of development on NCR land”. The Ministry is headed by James Masing, who is also the state assembly member for Balleh, one of the constituencies in Kapit.

With its purchase of Nature Ambience, Sime Darby will now be allowed to develop oil palm plantations in the Sarawak NCR development scheme.

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This Christmas, give them hope…

Anil Netto
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9

If you are wondering how you can make the year-end extra meaningful, why not think of the Monfort Youth Centre in Malacca.


The students of the Monfort Youth Centre


Help the Centre give hope to the young: An artist’s impression of the proposed double-storey building – Images courtesy of Monfort Youth Centre

First of all, I want to say thank you for your support this year with this blog. Some of the discussions and debates we have had here have been priceless. We have witnessed many things together in the struggle for justice and freedom – sometimes “live” as news breaks. At other times, we have been aghast at the environmental and human price some of us have paid for unsustainable development. And if we start to talk about corruption, oppression and exploitation, we could be here all day…

The year end is also a time for us to reflect on our lives, our priorities and what our role is in the larger scheme of things. Jesus himself was born in poverty. He constantly identified with the poor and those whom society often shunned. He empowered them and gave them hope.

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Jomo’s warning and a film in Papan

Anil Netto
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4

Listen to what UN Assistant Secretary-General K S Jomo, an economist from Malaysia, has to say about the perils of financial liberalisation, as reported in theSun:

A bigger crisis awaits Malaysia if we continue on the path of financial liberalisation and fail to learn the right lessons from the last economic downturn in the late 1990s, warns an economist.

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The RM1.20 tomato

Anil Netto
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74

Friend of mine bought a tomato for RM1.20 at the Tanjung Bunga market.

Now you would think a RM1.20 tomato would have to be pretty special.

No, this was just a little tomato, not even big and juicy.

Unlike ordinary tomatoes that would rot in a few days if left in the open, this one could keep for a while. Makes you wonder.

If a tomato could cost RM1.20, imagine the prices of other fruit and vegetables. The question is, how are the lower-income group coping? As food prices soar, as real wages remain stagnant and as overtime pay is slashed, many among the working class are struggling to put food on the table for their families – while some of our leaders squander our nation’s resources and their spouses go on shopping sprees abroad.

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Bad news from Copenhagen; Vroom! in Malaysia

Anil Netto
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19

Folks, it’s bad news from the UN climate change summit in Copenhagen as the nations of the world failed to agree on a common platform to reduce the threat.

There is no Copenhagen climate treaty. History was not made; no deal was sealed. This is the grim situation, at a glance:

Najib has committed Malaysia to a 40 per cent cut (compared to the 2005 level) in emissions by 2020. The Pakatan parties, on the other hand, unveiled their common policy framework, which promised to “reduce carbon emission rate to conform with international standards” and to build the foundation for a smooth transition to alternative energy resources.

But in the same week they pledged all this, the deputy sports minister, representing Najib, unveiled the Malaysian-backed Lotus Team drivers for the coming high-octane Formula One season, while over in Penang, street circuit races were revived with the holding of the Petronas Cub Prix at the Esplanade over the weekend. Are these politicians for real? It is as if Malaysians live on a different planet, where rhetoric and reality never meet, where climate chaos will never encroach into our comfort zones.

Part of the problem is that we have been kept in the dark on the key issues surrounding climate change, while a small minority are in denial mode. The other reason is that many of us seem to value unsustainable corporate-led economic growth above environmental protection. This is a piece I wrote for IPS:

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Second bridge concession period not yet decided

Anil Netto
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3

It looks as if the concession period for the second Penang bridge hasn’t been decided; it will only be finalised in the first quarter of 2010, says Nor Yakcop.

In that case, why did the Malaysian Highway Authority state it to be 45 years in its Annual Report for 2008?

Keep an eye out for this and monitor the total cost carefully. It has already escalated from the time it was first announced in the media. In this era of climate chaos and concern over greenhouse gas emissions, it is also not the most environmentally friendly project around.

Bernama carries the following report:

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Second Penang bridge concession is 45 years

Anil Netto
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7

The concession period for the controversial 17-km second Penang bridge is a staggering 45 years, according to a reliable source.

File picture of second Penang Bridge construction site at Batu Kawan – Photo by Anil

And what is this reliable source? None other than the Malaysian Highway Authority’s Annual Report for 2008 – although it doesn’t indicate when the concession period will begin.

At 45 years, the project is the highest among nine highways listed as under construction. Of the remaining eight, two are for 40 years each, and the rest 33-34 years. So why is the second bridge so special to warrant 45 years?

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