Earlier this evening, Deputy Inspector-General of Police Datuk Khalid Abu Bakar disclosed that a request had been made to the visiting blogger after Raja Petra’s Malaysian Civil Liberties Movement (MCLM) announced the Malaysia Today portal editor had been asked to give a statement.

Khalid did not divulge the nature of the meeting with Raja Petra but it is understood the statement is connected to the blogger’s statutory declaration made on June 18, 2008 over the Altantuya Shaariibuu murder case.

The MCLM had said embassy officials spoke to Raja Petra in person this afternoon before the group’s launch.

“They told him to head to the Malaysian embassy immediately after the talk. However, he was not arrested,” MCLM said in a statement.

The group added that Raja Petra was initially scheduled to give his statement at 8pm Thai time, or 9pm Malaysian time tonight.

However, the date, time and location of the meeting was changed at the request of Raja Petra under advisement of his lawyers.

It is understood that he has suggested meeting the Bukit Aman officers tomorrow at his hotel instead and is waiting to hear from embassy officials as to whether his request will be granted.

Raja Petra is in Bangkok with MCLM president Haris Ibrahim.

The Malaysia Today news portal editor hit the headlines a week ago when Umno-linked TV3 television station ran a series of interviews with him over his statutory declaration that linked Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak and family to the murder of Mongolian Altantuya Shaariibuu in 2007.

Najib has denied any links and Raja Petra told TV3 that he never alleged such linkages but asked the police to investigate a military intelligence officer’s assertion about the case.

Raja Petra’s television interview has launched another police investigation into the sworn statement. Police have questioned several people named by Raja Petra over the allegations.

Those named by Raja Petra were Nik Azmi Nik Daud, blogger Din Merican, John Pang and military intelligence officer Lt-Col Azmi Zainal Abidn.

The Ministry of Defence has said Azmi has been suspended from duties pending an internal investigation.

The blogger slipped out of Malaysia in 2009 and remains in self-exile, mainly in the United Kingdom.

Source.

He said that in a bid to be more transparent, motorists will be warned about speed traps.

“We should not be hiding behind bushes. We should come out in the open and enforce the law,” he told reporters at a community function called “A Day with the Police”.

Since September 2009, police have issued summons to over 2.5 million motorists, mainly through speed traps and speed cameras mounted along major highways and city streets.

The police and the Road Transport Department have the power to blacklist motorists three months after summonses are issued under the Road Transport Act, which will allow the authorities to either suspend their driving licence or refuse road tax renewal for their vehicles.

But blacklisting of car owners was deferred until the end of February and then extended until March 10 as the police offered discounts to those who settled their summonses.

About 10 million such summonses have reportedly been issued since 2000.

Transport Minister Datuk Seri Kong Cho Ha had said the amendments to the Road Transport Act (RTA) effective February 1, enables the authorities to use snapshots from the speed camera system, which is known as the Automated Enforcement System (AES), as court evidence to punish motorists for traffic offences.

It is reported that outstanding summonses have reached a total of RM2 billion from the year 2000 to 2008.

Source: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/

The Rembau MP questioned the validity of the official’s statement, made on radio station BFM yesterday, pointing out that Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak had already declared that the project was a private initiative.

Claiming he was “defending” Najib, Khairy said on his Twitter feed, “Why is everyone saying Govt will have to pay 50sen for each email sent from 1Msia email? PM has already said private initiative/investment.”

He then added, “Apparently this is what some Pemandu guy said on @BFMradio. Doubt he knows what he’s talking about. PM already said no govt funds used.”

During the radio interview yesterday, business services NKEA communications content and infrastructure director, Dr Fadhlullah Suhaimi Abdul Malek, had said the government would pay concessionaire Tricubes Bhd about 50 sen per e-mail for the project.

Fadhlullah, who is also the general manager of TM Net’s corporate and strategy services, reasoned that the fee was cheaper than the RM1 printing, stationery, postage and dispatch cost of sending a regular letter, adding that the cost of regular mail could even double to RM2 if a misaddressed letter was sent back on the taxpayer’s dime.

“The poor taxpayer, without realising, is actually allowing wastage of RM2 per post that goes out,” Fadhlullah had said.

Khairy’s words on the microblogging site this evening triggered several responses from other Twitter users, who questioned if the Umno leader was discrediting the statement.

A user with the Twitter handle “Aisehman” said, “so you saying he’s not telling the truth? read the story here -> http://bit.ly/fT9v8K.” The link directs users to The Malaysian Insider’s article on the interview with Fadhlullah published yesterday.

In response, Khairy retorted, “@Aisehman Apa dia tau? PM dah kata no govt money. Dia Little Napoleon kot.” (What does he know? PM has already said no govt money. He is a little Napoleon)

Another user, “abooarif”, tried to reason with Khairy by pointing out that government agencies currently pay POS Malaysia to deliver documents and would now just have to pay Tricubes for the e-mailed documents.

“@Khairykj So PM is right that Tricubes will have to market that service to govt agencies & the people coz it’s not compulsory for them to use.

“@Khairykj the 100% utilisation by 2015 KPI set on Tricubes does not make it compulsory. It just means if they don’t meet it they lose money,” said abboarif in two separate tweets.

But Khairy rebutted this, saying that documents delivered via the email service should be free. “Doesn’t make sense,” he added.

Abooarif proceeded then to explain that the payment was likely because the 1 Malaysia e-mail service was not an open system for universal users.

In response, Khairy said, “@abooarif Reason it out all you want, this one is as good as dead.”

He said the government merely needed to get Malaysians to register online with their existing emails and IC numbers, adding, “This is just stupid”.

Internet users nationwide expressed their disdain for the administration’s latest plan to reach out to Malaysians through the e-mail service the moment it was announced on Monday.

The hashtag “#1malaysiaemail” became the third most popular topic among Malaysian users on the network as of 5pm that day, with many users arguing that the government should put its time and money to better use.

Both the Prime Minister and Pemandu even had to clarify within 24 hours that the e-mail service would not involve public funds as it was a private initiative proposed by Tricubes.

Today, Najib said the government would leave it to Tricubes to sell the email service to the public as his government is not in the business of promoting the private initiative.

Source: Malaysia Yahoo News

The two countries exchanged heavy weapons fire for a second straight day on their disputed jungle frontier, the scene of a series of deadly gunbattles in recent years.

Three Cambodian troops and one Thai soldier were killed Saturday, according to officials in the two countries, a day after three soldiers died on each side.

Cambodia accused Thailand of using 75mm and 105mm "heavy guns loaded with poisonous gas" and said in a defence ministry statement that Thai military aircraft flew "deep into Cambodia's airspace".

Thailand denied the claims, which could not be independently verified.

Timeline of the Thai-Cambodian border dispute

A Cambodian field commander, Suos Sothea, said the gas caused some soldiers who inhaled it to feel weak but did not cause serious injury. He also accused Thailand of using cluster bombs.

Thailand recently admitted using controversial Dual Purpose Improved Conventional Munitions during the February fighting but insisted it did not classify them as cluster munitions.

Thousands of villagers been have evacuated from nearby areas on both sides since the latest violence broke out.

"Most of the people in my village have fled their homes because many Thai artillery shells landed nearby," 29-year-old farmer Has Pov told AFP at a pagoda complex where he took refugee with his wife and two children in the Cambodian town of Samrong about 40 kilometres (25 miles) from the fighting.

"I'm really scared by the shelling," he added.

Villages close to the Cambodian side of the border were emptied as people fled with their belongings.

An AFP photographer saw a house apparently damaged by shelling in a Cambodian village more than 10 kilometres from the area where the main fighting occurred.

As usual, the two countries accused each other of starting the clashes.

"All of sudden they fired at us," Thai Defence Minister General Prawit Wongsuwon told AFP.

"It could be that they wanted to internationalise the situation to attract a third country (to intervene). We do not want to fight but have to retaliate when they fire at us," he said, calling for the resumption of bilateral talks to resolve the territorial dispute.

"We have to put pressure on them to go back to the meeting table," he said.

It is the first serious outbreak of hostilities since February when 10 people were killed in clashes near the 900-year-old Hindu temple Preah Vihear, prompting UN Security Council members to call for a lasting ceasefire.

Phnom Penh has called for outside mediation to help end the standoff, but Thailand opposes third-party intervention.

The two countries agreed in late February to allow Indonesian observers in the area near Preah Vihear, but the Thai military has since said they are not welcome and they have yet to be deployed.

The latest clashes, which saw several hours of fighting on both Friday and Saturday, have taken place near a different group of temples over 100 kilometres away from Preah Vihear.

Indonesia, which holds the rotating chairmanship of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) regional bloc, has called for an immediate end to the violence. Vietnam urged "maximum restraint".

Ties between the neighbours have been strained since Preah Vihear -- the most celebrated example of ancient Khmer architecture outside Cambodia's Angkor -- was granted UN World Heritage status in July 2008.

The World Court ruled in 1962 that the temple belonged to Cambodia, but both countries claim ownership of a 4.6 square kilometre (1.8 square mile) surrounding area.

Source: Yahoo News

The DAP leader (picture) compared Najib to the country’s fifth prime minister, Tun Abdullah Badawi, who has often been described as weak and unable to control his own men in Umno.

“Is Najib becoming another Pak Lah – a prime minister whose writ does not run in Umno?” Lim asked in a statement today.

“This question has become more pronounced after Najib’s meek and completely unacceptable stance over Utusan Malaysia’s ‘1Melayu, 1Bumi’ call,” he said.

When responding to the matter yesterday, Najib had distanced his administration from the daily’s suggestion by saying that it had been made by a columnist and was the writer’s personal opinion.

“Najib’s excuse might be acceptable if Utusan Melayu is not the official organ of Umno, whose columns represent the mainstream opinion and demands of the Umno leadership in government,” Lim pointed out.

Utusan Malaysia’s assistant chief editor Datuk Zaini Hassan had recently called on the daily’s owners Umno to spearhead a “1Melayu, 1Bumi movement” involving all Malay parties, claiming that the DAP was intent on toppling the country’s Malay leadership.

The columnist opined that the Malay community needed to aggressively move to unite and strengthen itself, claiming that the Chinese were already a united force in the country.

The suggestion came following the Sarawak polls, where the DAP snapped up 12 of the 15 mainly Chinese-majority seats it had contested, spurring groups to claim that the pact was intent on destroying the Malay leadership by appealing to the Chinese vote.

Lim also argued that Najib’s “meek stance” was unacceptable as the “1Melayu, 1Bumi” movement was clearly an affront to his 1 Malaysia policy, which calls for inclusiveness among all races.

“It is tantamount to an open slap in the face of the prime minister’s signature concept,” he said.

The Ipoh Timor MP predicted that if any Chinese daily had suggested a “1Chinese” campaign, it would have been shut down immediately and its editor slapped with a sedition charge.

“Why the double standards in the case of Utusan Malaysia?” he said.

Lim called on the Cabinet during its next meeting to repudiate and condemn Utusan Malaysia’s call as “irresponsible, seditious and a subtle attempt to destroy 1 Malaysia”.

Najib, he said, should also prove his disapproval by revamping the daily to ensure that it stopped its anti-national campaign.

“If the Cabinet is silent on Utusan Malaysia’s ‘1Melayu, 1Bumi’, it could only mean that Najib’s 1 Malaysia policy is sheer hypocrisy and chicanery costing Malaysian taxpayers RM70 million for APCO to package it as the greatest gift by Najib to Malaysians,” he said.

Source: Yahoo News

He said the assurance had come from Energy, Green Technology and Water Minister Datuk Seri Peter Chin in his letter to the state government on Wednesday.

In his letter, Chin stressed that should the government make its final decision to construct the plants, it would have to abide by the regulatory guidelines set by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and other experienced nations to ensure the people’s safety.

One of the guidelines from IAEA, he added, was that such a plant could not be built in densely populated areas.

“With Penang’s high population, it is unlikely to be sited there,” Chin wrote in the letter made available to The Malaysian Insider.

The minister was replying to a letter from Lim on March 21, telling the federal government to scrap its plan entirely and explore alternative energy sources.

Lim had pledged to stop the federal government from setting up any such plants in the state.
Under the Economic Transformation Programme (ETP), a twin-unit nuclear power plant generating up to two gigawatts, costing a total of RM21.3 billion, has been proposed.

Chin also reminded Lim in his letter that the government was yet to make its final decision on the project and was planning to first conduct an in-depth study on the construction of such a plant.

“A study perhaps on project aspects like human capital, legal considerations, technology, the industry and others.

“An education programme and public awareness campaigns will also be held, which will indirectly provide room for further discussions with relevant parties,” he said.

Chin added the nuclear power option should not be quickly disregarded as it has the potential to become a long-term alternative power source for the country, especially during the 2020 era.

“Its capacity to generate large quantities of electricity continuously to fulfil base-load needs can guarantee our energy security and ensure that all users will continue to receive sufficient and cost-effective energy,” he said.

He also denied Lim’s claim that countries like Germany and China had cancelled their nuclear power plant plans amid the current scare in Japan.

“On the contrary, Germany only ordered seven of its 17 nuclear plants (which have been in operation since 1980) to be temporarily stopped to undergo safety checks.

“At the same time, Germany is also importing electricity from other European nations like France, where a large portion of its energy supply comes from such power plants.

“China, on the other hand, is still operating its 27 power plants and only the new projects and those still in the planning stages were put off temporarily,” he explained.

In his letter, Lim had said Malaysia should scrap its plans to construct the plants considering the government’s poor track record in some of its projects.

The Bagan MP also said the plan should be cancelled in light of the most serious nuclear crisis in world history since the Chernobyl disaster 25 years ago that Japan was now facing given its expertise and very advanced and progressive technology.

“It should be noted nuclear fusion technology in our country is limited compared to Japan’s expertise. Moreover, developed countries with high technology, such as Germany and China, the world’s second largest economy, have already cancelled plans to build nuclear plants in their countries,” he said in a press statement.

Lim added that public confidence was still in question after the Terengganu stadium roof collapse in 2009.
“How can we be confident about the safety and soundness of a nuclear plant given its high risk and danger?” he asked.

Chin recently said that Cabinet approval was still pending for the controversial local nuclear plants as it awaits Malaysia Nuclear Power Corporation reports.

The corporation was formed in January to lead the country’s push for nuclear energy, with Dr Mohd Zamzam Jaafar named as CEO.

Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin has also been non-committal about the nuclear push.
“In this matter, we have an agency that is responsible and they know what they are doing and we are confident that they will implement what is the best,” he has said.

The announcement to build two 1,000-megawatt nuclear power plants in Malaysia by 2022 to counter an “imbalance” in its energy supplies came late last year.

The nuclear power plan has been attacked by environmental activists, who say the government has not thoroughly considered other forms of energy generation, such as solar, hydroelectric and wind power.
State energy firm Tenaga Nasiona Berhad has said it could construct the first nuclear power plant at a cost of US$3.1 billion (RM9.3 billion).

The Malaysian Insider reported in May last year that Putrajaya had identified Pahang, Johor and Terengganu as possible states for a proposed nuclear power plant due to availability of remote locations that are close to water sources, in line with international rules.

Malaysia is the first country in Southeast Asia to announce a nuclear power plant, a sensitive matter in the Asean grouping which has always espoused a nuclear-free zone.

Source: Yahoo News

Mihas 2011 attracts more corporate buyers
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's annual halal trade fair, Mihas 2011, is drawing more corporate buyers this year as halal products continue to gain more acceptance worldwide. Malaysia External Trade Development Corp (Matrade) chief executive officer Datuk Noharuddin Nordin said there is a 21 per cent rise in the number of foreign companies joining the event. "There will be 357 international companies ...
Read more on Business Times

Short video on KLCC

*Airlines 101* (See the Set Airliners 101)

Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malaysia_airlines
Website: www.malaysiaairlines.com
Name: (MH) Malaysia Airlines
Region: Asia
Founded: 1947
Based in: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Hubs: Kuala Lumpur,
Type: Global inter-continental airline & flag carrier for Malaysia
Alliance Membership: None
Note: One of the world's most highly respected carriers.

Poor showing on leaked best airport list
Australian airports have ranked poorly in a confidential report ranking consumer satisfaction.
Read more on Sydney Morning Herald

Munich Franz Josef Strauss Airport (IATA: MUC, ICAO: EDDM) (German: Flughafen München-Franz Josef Strauß), is located 28.5 km (17.7 mi) northeast of Munich, Germany, and is a hub for Lufthansa and Star Alliance partner airlines. It lies in direct proximity to the old city of Freising and is named in memory of politician Franz Josef Strauss. The airport is located on the territory of three different municipalities: Oberding (location of the terminals; district of Erding), Hallbergmoos and Marzling (district of Freising). Between 1995 and 2006 passenger numbers doubled from under 15 million per annum to over 30 million, despite the impact of '9/11' in 2001 and 2002. In 1996 it overtook Düsseldorf as Germany's second busiest airport and now handles almost twice as many passengers as the country's third busiest airport and is Lufthansa's second base in Germany after Frankfurt. Munich Airport is the second busiest airport in Germany in terms of passenger traffic (34.73 million in 2008), behind Frankfurt Airport while it is the world's 14th busiest airport in terms of international passenger traffic, behind Kuala Lumpur International Airport and the 27th busiest airport in the world. In 2009 it was named the 2nd Best Airport in Europe and fifth-best in the world by Skytrax, the air transport research company. Most of the airport's facilities are located in the area between the two runways. The approach road and railway divide the west part into a southern half, which contains ...
Video Rating: 5 / 5