Crowd of several thousand at centre. Chopper overhead.
Just walked past a second road…
Just walked past a second road block. Passed small DAP contingent.
Walking to nomination centre …
Walking to nomination centre in Penanti. Live coverage begins at 8.45am.
After a downpour in Tanjong Bunga…
This is what happened after a downpour around the Persiaran Tanjong Bunga area recently.
Will Umno contest in Manek Urai by-election in Kelantan?
Just when Umno is dreading more by-elections, another one is in the pipeline with the passing of Manek Urai state assembly member Ismail Yaacob at dawn today after a long illness.
Expansion of medical tourism will hurt general hospitals
Business Times reports that Sime Darby Healthcare, the healthcare arm of Sime Darby, has teamed up with Medilink Network (PVT) Ltd of Bangladesh and Medilink (Beijing) TPA Services Co Ltd to promote medical travel from Bangladesh and China to Malaysia.
The expansion of lucrative, profit-oriented medical tourism will hurt the government-owned general hospitals, which are already experiencing a critical shortage of specialists. It will further contribute to the exodus of specialists to private hospitals from the overstretched public sector.
Obama in the Notre Dame University controversy
Obama’s controversial speech at a Catholic university. Parts 2, 3 and 4 below. Full text here.
The US president pleads for open hearts, open minds and fair-minded words over some of the bitter debates that divide American society. See also ‘The real scandal of Notre Dame‘ by the head of a Catholic university.
Obama, however, doesn’t touch on the US military adventures in Afghanistan (and the rising death toll) and Pakistan and the US Occupation of Iraq. Neither does he mention the massive and scandalous Wall Street bailouts – the result of easy and uncontrolled credit and financial deregulation and liberalisation.
11 arrested at vigil, including 2 DAP reps
Eleven people mourning the demise of democracy in Perak were arrested during a vigil in front of Seputeh MP Teresa Kok’s office tonight.
Churches + Land matters = Controversy
The Anglican Church reportedly has sold the St Mark’s Secondary School field in Butterworth to a developer much to the dismay of the school’s PTA/PIBG
Long-time residents of a century-old kampung in the St Francis Xavier Catholic Church premises within George Town’s world heritage zone look on as a contractor illegally demolishes one of the houses in the village on 8 May
It seems that controversy is never far away when the churches in Malaysia get involved in land deals involving tracts of land that were originally allocated to them for religious, social, community, educational or health care use.
This is not the first time that the churches in Penang have courted unwanted publicity over such land deals.
Now the latest controversies:
Why is Umno/BN not contesting in Penanti?
Well, apart from the obvious answer, allow me to suggest a few possible reasons:
- After what happened in Perak, Umno and the BN are not in the mood for elections anywhere. If they were to contest, they could be in for a drubbing after what they have done in Perak.
- Even if Najib’s Perak adventure had not occurred, it is unlikely that Umno could win in Penanti given the erosion in support for the BN since the last general election (even though Malay support for the party may have increased).
- The number four is bad luck for the Chinese! If Umno contests and loses Penanti, that would be its fourth straight by-election defeat since the last general election – a thoroughly demoralising prospect for its leaders and supporters.