Sabah's poverty rate 68%

http://www.theborneopost.com/2011/12/30/sabah-has-most-welfare-recipients-dept/

Sabah has most welfare recipients – dept

Posted on December 30, 2011, Friday

KOTA KINABALU: Sabah has recorded the biggest number of welfare assistance recipients in the country at 72,600, according to Jais Asri, the senior assistant director of Welfare Services Department.
He said it is not a good sign to have the highest number of welfare recipients as it shows that many people in the state are still living under the poverty line.
Jais said that in Sabah, those with an income of less than RM960 are categorised as poor and based on the record, 68 per cent of Sabahans are earning less than that amount.
He said the department is receiving about 500 welfare assistance cases daily or about 20 cases from each district in the state.
With only 88 case workers, the department is unable to study the huge number of cases speedily, thus it is currently assisted by 106 temporary workers, he said.
Asri said there are 278,000 senior citizens in Sabah and 47,000 of them are currently receiving the senior citizen assistance.
He said the senior citizens must report to the department every four months to ensure they continue to receive the assistance.
Meanwhile, deputy director of Welfare Services Department, Said Sidup, announced that the department will set up a ‘Desa Bina Diri’ under the Destitute Persons Act 1977 (Act 183) to shelter homeless people soon.
He said the local authorities will carry out operations to identify thee homeless people in the state.

Read more: http://www.theborneopost.com/2011/12/30/sabah-has-most-welfare-recipients-dept/#ixzz1hzBGMAbX

Razaleigh already inside plane and strapped but Harris invited him out!

Why didn't Harris invited Razaleigh much earlier, before Razaleigh was inside the plane that crashed and killed the Sabah's Chief Minister and his strongmen?

It smells fishy!



http://www.dailyexpress.com.my/news.cfm?NewsID=79836

Razaleigh's revelation merits probe, says former State Sec

Published on: Thursday, November 24, 2011

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Kota Kinabalu: The High Court here heard the revelation by Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah that the then Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Harris Mohd Salleh's last moment invitation to him to leave the plane saved his life, merits an investigation.

Tan Sri Simon Sipaun, 73, a former State Secretary, suggested this to the court when he testified before Judge Dato' Abdul Rahman Sebli.

Sipaun also said that based on the new fact he felt that a re-investigation would help determine the truth behind the tragedy that killed Tun Fuad Stephens and all those on board the Nomad aircraft on June 6, 1976.

He agreed with the defendants' counsel that the best way to find out the truth is to have a tribunal to investigate into the causes of the air crash if it is one of the possible means of knowing the truth.

Sipaun was testifying as the defendants' fourth witness during re-examination in the hearing of a suit against Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) and its President Datuk Yong Teck Lee which was brought by former Chief Minister Tan Sri Harris Salleh against the defendants for insinuating that he was involved in causing the Double Six tragedy on June 6, 1976.

Harris is claiming general damages, aggravated and exemplary damages of not less than RM50 million from Yong, who he named as first defendant and SAPP as second defendant, for libel.

He is represented by counsel Yunof Maringking and Trevor Kenneth Maringking, while Yong and SAPP are represented by counsel Datuk Simon Shim and Flora Dius.

Earlier, in his examination-in-chief, Sipaun told the court that on April 2, 2010 he had chaired a forum in which Razaleigh was the speaker on the topic of "Minyak Sabah Siapa Punya".

He said Razaleigh basically gave some background and information leading to the formation of Petronas and the Petroleum Development Act 1974 and that something in the course of the latter's speech caught his attention.

"It was his opening remarks where he told the audience that every time he comes to Sabah, he is reminded of the June 6, 1976 tragedy.

"However, what struck me most was when he said that he was already inside the plane together with the late Tun Fuad about to fly to Kota Kinabalu from Labuan when Harris came inside the plane and invited him to join him and go to Banggi, Kudat instead and to him that's how his life was saved because of the invitation.

"Personally, I found this revelation by Tengku most significant because this was the first time that I heard it happened that way," he said, adding the said revelation is a very important piece of information and that up to now he still does not know the real causes of the accident.

He also agreed with the first defendant's call for re-investigation into the air crash.

Sipaun, who was Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Communication and Works at the time of the air crash, said he had never seen any official report on the cause of the accident or the report of the coroner regarding the accident or any official information regarding the accident or the cause of accident.

Meanwhile, during cross-examination by the plaintiff's counsel, Sipaun said he could not recall whether there was an investigation or no investigation on the air crash.

To a question, Sipaun said the gist of the new development to the story was the fact that Razaleigh was already inside the plane, all strapped up ready to depart but invited at the last minute to go elsewhere.

Counsel: Do you agree that your support for the call for re-investigation on the incident because of Tengku Razaleigh's revelation that the plaintiff's last moment invitation to him to leave the plane saved his life?

Sipaun: I am supportive of the case being revisited on the ground that new information which has not been available before has become available.

Counsel: Can you be specific what you meant by new information, which has not been available before becoming available?

Sipaun: The fact that Razaleigh was already seated in the plane together with the late Tun Fuad Stephen and the rest, and was asked to get off the plane at the last minute. This is something I have never heard before.

The trial will continue on Dec 5, 6, 21 and 22.

Sabah State budget of 4Billion and yet only 4% 2010 GDP growth!

Malaysia was 10%, whereas Singapore 14%, which means,
West Malaysia is 12%, making Sabah GDP growth of only 1/3 of West Malaysia.

This is on the background of more than 2 Billion RM State budget, whereas Selangor's state budget had been less than 2 billion RM.

In 1994, Sabah's PBS budget was 2 billion RM a figure that UMNO's budget didn't achieve until a few years ago.

Check you facts and figures before you believe this lying reporter.

http://www.nst.com.my/opinion/columnist/rm4-billion-sabah-budget-surprise-1.14236

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03 December 2011 | Last updated at 12:41AM
RM4 billion Sabah budget surprise
By Joniston Bangkuai
jon@nst.com.my | 0 comments
State leadership proves it can deliver more development for the people

IT must have been music to the ears of Sabahans when Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman unveiled a whopping RM4.04 billion State Budget for next year, the largest ever in Sabah's 48-year history.

The people of Sabah have every reason to rejoice as the big budget means that more development programmes would be implemented for their benefit.

It is a holistic budget aimed at ensuring a balanced development of infrastructure and amenities between the rural and urban areas.

Themed "Accelerating the state's well-being and prosperity", the budget provides large funds to boost the state economy and improve the people's livelihood.

While the people are delighted with the huge budget, it is regrettable that the opposition has chosen to belittle it by questioning the ability of the state government to come up with the RM4.04 billion.

Having constantly labelled Sabah as one of the poorest in Malaysia, the opposition may have been taken by surprise with the huge budget.

To leaders of the Barisan Nasional, it was a perfect answer to quell the critics, especially the opposition, who have often described the state as one of the least developed.

It must be noted that despite uncertainties in the global economy and the fluctuating prices of oil, gas and commodities such as palm oil and timber, Sabah's economic fundamentals have remained strong because it is blessed with rich natural resources.

Most important is the proven capability of the state government, under the able leadership of the chief minister to efficiently and prudently manage its finances and resources.

Sabah has been among the top states that have achieved sound financial management, with giving it a clean bill by the Auditor-General for the last 11 consecutive years.

The state also received the highest rating of "AAA" by RAM Rating Services for the last three years for its strong fiscal position as a result of a series of surpluses and accumulation of strong reserves.

It has also obtained ISO certification from Moody International for efficiency and proper state budget management for three consecutive years. It must also be noted that the auditor-general's report for this year showed several actual figures that reflected the state's excellent financial achievements.

Among them was that the state reserves had exceeded RM3 billion, its revenue surpassing RM4 billion, actual surplus amounting to RM730 million, development expenditure at RM1.17 billion and it has no arrears on federal loans.

Perhaps, those who have often belittled the tireless efforts taken by the Sabah leadership to improve the state's economy and finances should compare the budget with that of Pakatan Rakyat-ruled states, like Selangor.

Despite being a more advanced and developed state, Selangor's budget for next year is only RM1.6 billion, while its reserves are about RM1 billion.

Musa, when tabling the budget at the State Assembly on Nov 18, expressed confidence in the ability of the state to deliver the RM4 billion budget, although its forecast revenue for next year is only RM3.6 billion. His optimism was based on the state's strong financial position and consistent actual surpluses, especially this year, where it recorded a surplus of RM730 million.

Musa, who is also State Finance Minister, said that Sabah's revised revenue for this year was about RM3.8 billion, an increase of more than RM1 billion or 39 per cent compared to the original estimate of RM2.4 billion.

About 80 per cent of its revenue for next year will come from crude palm oil sales tax, petroleum royalty, proceeds and interests from investments, land and forestry.

The bulk of next year's budget will be for special expenditures totalling RM2.3 billion, followed by RM1.1 billion for recurrent expenditures and RM623 million for emoluments.

A sum of RM881 million will be spent on development with focus on programmes and activities that will spur economic growth.

Emphasis is also given to the chief minister's three-prong Halatuju development strategy for agriculture, tourism and manufacturing as the state's main economic catalyst.

Special priority is also given to the eradication of poverty, creation of more jobs and providing skills training for the people.

With Sabah's economy growing rapidly and its finances in a strong footing, the state's budget for next year is a realistic one that took into account the state's development needs for the betterment of the people.

However, the huge budget would be meaningless if the targeted group did not benefit from the various development programmes that would be implemented.

As emphasised by the chief minister, elected representatives and government officers must constantly go to the ground to ensure the speedy and successful completion of projects.

The opposition may see it as an election budget, but to many in Sabah, it is a budget that would solve many of the state's development issues.

The big budget should erase the perception that Sabah is a poor and under-developed state.

Read more: RM4 billion Sabah budget surprise - Columnist - New Straits Times http://www.nst.com.my/opinion/columnist/rm4-billion-sabah-budget-surprise-1.14236#ixzz1fTYGVraf

Interesting comment from an Old man

http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/2011/11/09/racist-evil-federal-leaders-duping-sabahans/

Take note that the poorest are not the Dusuns but Suluk/Orang Sungai Muslims. Refer to UNHDP data in 2006 and the latest World Bank poverty report in 2011.


Racist, evil’ federal leaders duping Sabahans
Luke Rintod
| November 9, 2011

Where has the billions of ringgit which the federal government claims was spent on Sabah infrastructure gone?

PENAMPANG: Billions of ringgit have been spent on infrastructure projects in Sabah but there is little to show for it, especially in rural areas.

This has prompted a veteran political operative in Sabah to accuse federal government leaders of having an “evil” and “racist” attitude towards Sabah and Sarawak.

Fredoline Edwin Lojingki, 71, claims that by denying the two states similar infrastructure enjoyed in the peninsula, the federal government has kept the people in two states impoverished and deficient.

Lojingki, once an activist in the defunct United Kadazan National Organisation (Unko) and now a coordinator in Borneo Heritage Foundation (BHF), said each year both the federal and state governments trumpeted that hundreds of millions of ringgits would be spent on Sabah alone for rural development but it was astonishing that little is accomplished.

“Each year billions of ringgits are allocated for infrastructure with a focus on basic infrastructure.

“What astonishes me is that little is felt here in many rural areas in Sabah.

‘I have travelled to many parts of Sabah in recent times and I found it scary to claim that those billions were ever spent in Sabah.

“Not even small bridges or roads have been built in many of those places I visited. Even in Penampang, Inanam, Papar, Kota Belud, Keningau, Tambunan, Kudat, not to mention Nabawan, Sook, Banggi and some of the remote places in Ranau, Pitas, Kota Marudu.

“Very little has been done to upgrade public amenities like kampung roads and tracks, pedestrian bridges and even small wooden bridges have been left to rot.

“Don’t talk about drainage in the kampungs … it is almost non-existent,” he said.

Endangering lives

Lojingki said Chief Minister Musa Aman and his deputy Joseph Pairin Kitingan must explain why thousands of suspension bridges in the rural areas, especially in Kadazandusun-Murut kampungs are left unattended for decades.

He said the failure to ensure such facilities are safe was endangering the lives of many, especially schoolchildren who used them on a daily basis to get to and from school.

“I pity our people being taken for granted so easily and cheaply, duped into believing they are well taken care off by the governments who pour in billions of ringgits every year.

“In reality, the situations in the rural has become relatively worse in term of development now compared to the 1970s and even 80s, when not as much money was spent on Sabah by the federal government.

“Those younger people must raise their voice and learn to be bold to demand from their YBs, the district officers and all the top civil servants who are in the decision-making team.

“They must ask why their roads are not tarred or upgraded, or why their balai rayas are dilapidated, why no new infrastructure has been provided?

‘They should demand to see how the district office and YBs spent their allocation?” he said.

Sabahans can issue ultimatum

As citizens, he said, Sabahans can issue an ultimatum to the government and political parties that their support is not a given one and they can reshape the political landscape any time.

“There is no point in the Auditor-General stating every year that money has been misspent when the people, the real beneficiaries of this public money, are denied the right to participate, plan and monitor how the yearly allocation are being spent in each district or constituency,” Lojingki said.

The lack infrastructure in the state has been an unending lament for decades.

The issue is only hurriedly addressed prior to an election when roads are given a new layer of asphalt whether they need it or not, drains cleared and a dash of paint applied.

Indeed, rural folk mock that an election must be around the corner whenever they notice some maintenance or development taking place.

The government, on the other hand, makes no effort to hide the fact that the people should in fact be happy that they are noticed.

Many note that preferential treatment is given to some communities, pointing out that infrastructure development in those areas they reside are far ahead of those dominated by communities not on the ‘A’ list.

This imbalance has caused political and social friction in the state and further divided an already fractured society.

[Photo from insightsabah.gov.my]

Penjajahan Sabah dalam Malaysia dijelaskan oleh Prof Abdul Aziz Bari

http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/bahasa/article/aziz-bari-secara-teknikal-tidak-pada-hakikat-british-jajah-kita/

Aziz Bari: ‘Secara teknikal tidak, pada hakikat British jajah kita’
Oleh G Manimaran
September 06, 2011
KUALA LUMPUR, 6 Sept — Pakar perlembangaan Prof Abdul Aziz Bari berkata meskipun negeri-negeri Melayu bukan atau tidak pernah dijajah oleh British, tetapi pada hakikatnya telah “dijajah kerana pentadbiran negeri dikawal” oleh kuasa Eropah itu sehingga negara merdeka lima dekad lalu.

“Pendeknya dari segi teknikal memang negeri-negeri Melayu bukan atau tidak pernah dijajah... hatta pentadbiran agama pun dipantau oleh British,” kata beliau dalam reaksi kepada The Malaysian Insider hari ini.

“Secara teknikal memang betul bahawa kita tak pernah dijajah; negeri-negeri Melayu hanya negeri lindungan. Hanya Melaka, Pulau Pinang, Sabah dan Sarawak yang pernah dijajah,” kata beliau.

Bagaimanapun menurut ahli akademik ini, negeri-negeri Melayu bukan negeri yang bebas dan berdaulat kerana mereka tidak bebas mengadakan hubungan luar.

“Raja-raja, contohnya, dipaksa menerima kejatuhan Empayar Uthmaniah yang dihancurkan oleh British dan sekutu-sekutunya pada 1924. Ini semua berlaku kerana Raja-raja di bawah tangan British meskipun mereka tidak dijajah.

“Selain itu meskipun di sisi undang-undang, yakni secara teknikalnya, mereka berdaulat kita semua tahu dasar dan undang-undang semuanya ditentukan oleh British,” kata beliau sambil menambah, Prof Emeritus Tan Sri Dr Khoo Kay Kim tidak harus membesar-besarkan kedudukan teknikal itu sehingga menafikan hakikat yang berlaku ketika itu.

Aziz (gambar) mengulas mengenai kritikan beberapa pihak ekoran pandangan tokoh sejarah itu bahawa negara ini sebenarnya tidak pernah dijajah oleh British, sebaliknya berada di bawah naungan negara Eropah itu.

Khoo melahirkan pandangan itu dalam satu temu bual dengan akhbar arus perdana kelmarin ketika kontroversi berkaitan kenyataan Timbalan Presiden PAS Mohamad Sabu hangat diperkatakan sehingga ada yang mahu fakta sejarah diteliti semula.

Negara akan menyambut ulang tahun kemerdekaan ke-54 bersama hari pembentukan Malaysia — buat julung kali pada 16 September ini.

Menjawab soalan mengenai kenyataan Mohamad bahawa Allaharham Datuk Onn Jaafar dan Almarhum Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj bukan pejuang kemerdekaan sebenar kerana mereka pegawai British, Khoo berkata: “Mereka tidak pernah bekerja dengan British. Kerajaan Melayu tidak pernah menjadi jajahan British. Kerajaan Melayu dulu secara rasmi dikenali sebagai Negeri Melayu Naungan iaitu di bawah perlindungan British, tetapi tetap diperintah oleh Raja.”

Katanya, kehadiran British adalah berasaskan perjanjian dengan raja setiap kerajaan dan pegawai British ditugaskan menjalankan pentadbiran, kedaulatan tetap pada raja.

“Maksudnya dari segi undang-undang, British tidak pernah menjajah kerajaan Melayu, hanya Negeri-Negeri Selat yang dikenali sebagai Tanah Jajahan Mahkota British. Pegawai British utama di Negeri-Negeri Selat dikenali sebagai gabenor, padahal kedudukan pegawai yang sama di kerajaan Melayu dikenali sebagai Pesuruhjaya Tinggi. Gabenor Hugh Clifford dalam ucapannya kepada Majlis Persekutuan pada Januari 1949 mengatakan apabila beliau merujuk kepada kerajaan Melayu: ‘They were, they are and they must remain Malay states. These states were when our cooperation in government was first invited Mohamedan monarchies. And such they are today. We have neither the right nor the desire to vary the system of government’,” katanya lagi.

Kata beliau, dalam undang-undang ada dua keadaan iaitu ‘de jure’ dan ‘de facto’.

“Datuk Onn mula-mula bekerja dengan kerajaan Johor dan Tunku dengan kerajaan Kedah. Mereka bekerja di negeri yang dianggap Negeri Melayu Tidak Bersekutu iaitu Raja masih ada banyak autonomi.

“Selepas perang, mula-mula Datuk Onn kemudian Tunku diterima oleh British sebagai presiden Umno yang diakui British sebagai parti politik orang Melayu. Oleh sebab orang Melayu menentang Malayan Union, British tidak melaksanakan Malayan Union. British selanjutnya berunding dengan Raja-Raja juga Umno untuk menentukan sistem lebih sesuai,” kata Khoo lagi dan menambah, “akibatnya pada Februari 1948, Persekutuan Tanah Melayu diwujudkan.”

Mengulas lanjut, Aziz berkata, Khoo perlu faham beza antara kedudukan teknikal dan formal dengan kenyataan atau hakikat, yakni sesuatu yang benar-benar berlaku.

“Sama seperti hari ini, Raja-raja adalah ketua agama. Soalnya apakah mereka benar-benar ketua agama dalam erti kata yang sebenar? Tidakkah pentadbiran agama dijalankan oleh kerajaan?” kata beliau lagi.

Sabah is cursed by its resources

A good lesson for Sabah's resource curse

http://edition.cnn.com/2011/BUSINESS/09/05/libya.oil.resource.curse/

The 'resource curse': An Alaskan solution for Libya?
By Kevin Voigt, CNN
September 6, 2011 -- Updated 0158 GMT (0958 HKT)
Small boats of Libyan rebels escort an oil tanker, laden with 73,000 tons of petrol, as it docks in the Benghazi harbor on August 5.
Small boats of Libyan rebels escort an oil tanker, laden with 73,000 tons of petrol, as it docks in the Benghazi harbor on August 5.
STORY HIGHLIGHTS

'Resource curse' hits economies depend on oil, gas or other natural resource exports
'Paradox of plenty' can prop up weak or corrupt leaders at expense of economic growth
Some economists believe countries like Libya could reform through sharing oil wealth
Many countries, such as Botswana and Norway, have avoided the 'resource curse'

(CNN) -- In the aftermath of the 42-year rule of Moammar Gadhafi, the world is left wondering whether the bloodiest conflict in the popular unrest that has swept the Arab World will signal the rise of democracy in Libya or a descent into chaos.

A group of economists is proposing one solution to help a strong Libya emerge from the smoldering ruins of civil war: Give all Libyans direct annual payments from oil revenue.

Call it the 'Alaska solution.'

"In 1982 then-governor Jay Hammond of Alaska said, 'Look, there is no check or balance on our use (of state oil revenue)," said Todd Moss, a senior fellow at the Center for Global Development in Washington. Hammond started a program to give residents annual checks from the state's petroleum fund. "That held Hammond and all his successors into account."
Economy expanding in Mongolia
Rebels anxious to avoid bloodshed

Libya is a textbook example, Moss said, of what is known as the "resource curse" - countries whose economies depend on oil, gas or other natural resource exports. It's sometimes known as "the paradox of plenty" - rather than create an economic boom, export cash from resource-rich nations often flows directly to corrupt leaders while most the population doesn't share in the wealth.

How to handle a sudden burst in commodity wealth is an issue that echoes around the globe, from the huge copper and coal mines plumbed in Mongolia, to the offshore gas fields in Ghana and vast tracts of lithium deposits in the Andes Mountains of Bolivia.

"Of course you have corruption, but I think the key thing about understanding how the resource curse works is it impedes economic and political development," said Arvind Subramanian, a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute of International Economics in Washington.

Resource curse in the Arab World

Research shows the more a nation's economy is dependent on export of natural resources, the less that nation's economy is likely to grow, says Ragnar Torvik, an economist at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology. "But it's a chicken and the egg question- is it natural resources that cause this low growth, or some bad economic and political conditions as a result of just specializing in natural resources?" Torvik said.

The unrest in the Arab world demonstrates the resource curse at play. "Why was the population (of Libya) not able to get rid of Gadhafi by their own, as they did in Egypt and Tunisia? One likely part of the answer is that the oil revenues in Libya is much more important than in Tunisia and Egypt, which gives the ruler a much wider menu of political choices to fight the democratic demands from the population," Torvik said.
Unfreezing Libya's assets
Why was the population (of Libya) not able to get rid of Gadhafi by their own, as they did in Egypt and Tunisia?
--Ragnar Torvik, Norwegian University of Science and Technology

"And why was the response in Saudi Arabia to hand out large sums of cash to the people? Presumably this was not because suddenly that they cared more about the people - the more likely answer is that this was a move to maintain political power and avoid demands for democracy," Torvik said. "So I think indeed the varieties of experience in the Middle East in the last months have much to do with oil revenues."

Major natural resources aren't necessarily a national curse. A recent survey of the 10 most livable cities by the Economist Intelligence Unit is dominated by cities in Canada and Australia - nations that both have booming commodities exports. While sub-Saharan countries like Nigeria and Congo have had moribund economic growth despite resource riches, diamond-rich Botswana is the fastest growing economy in Africa.

"Here in Norway we are one of the largest oil and gas exporters in the world; I can observe that in Nigeria oil has been bad, but in Norway it is good," Torvik said.

A key difference between nations that do well with natural resources and those that are "cursed" depends on the strength of government institutions before nations strike underground wealth, economists say. Botswana is one of the few sub-Saharan nations with a parliamentary system of government. Norway had 200 years of democracy before its off-shore oil industry took off in the 1970s.

Instead of giving direct payments to citizens, Norway has plowed all its oil revenues into a public fund for use in education or other public works. "We use 4% of the fund every year, the ambition is you don't eat the principal but live off the interest," Torvik said.

Mongolia grapples with 'curse'

On the steppes of Mongolia, the land of Genghis Khan has released a horde of coal and copper in recent years, causing an economic explosion in this landlocked nation in Central Asia. But worries are rising with its national coffers, Mongolian Prime Minister Sukhbaatar Batbold said.

"We talk a lot these days, and especially the last couple years, about the resource curse," Batbold told CNN.

"We have seen the Norwegian experience of sharing the benefit with the people. We have seen the Chilean stability fund, we have seen Canadian and Alaskan model," Batbold said. "We should not reinvent the wheel, we should better learn and copy from good successes."
Can Mongolia avoid corruption?
We talk a lot these days, and especially the last couple years, about the resource curse
--Mongolian Prime Minister Sukhbaatar Batbold

For example, Mongolia is using mining revenues to finance child cash benefits. Each Mongolian citizen will receive 536 shares from the privatization of the Tavan Tolgoi coal mine in southern Mongolia.

"Hopefully, the people will appreciate that they are responsible for an investment in their own future and that they will learn how to treat those shares and use them for benefit for themselves and their children in the future, rather than just selling them," said Bill Gorman, president of the Mongolian Stock Exchange.

Yet the challenges are stark for Mongolia, which has only has 20 years of democracy. The nation ranks 116th out of 187 nations in the 2010 Transparency International corruption perceptions. One-third of Mongolia's 2.8 million people live below the poverty line.

Corruption "is an enormous problem, but one of things we're hoping to do with our partnership with the London Stock Exchange is to make certain the listed companies have proper transparency and management," said Gorman of the Mongolian Stock Exchange.

Are taxes the solution?

Giving direct payments to Libyans, Subramanian and Moser argue, is a way for a new government in Tripoli to foster closer economic ties with its citizens - through taxes.

Taxes create an incentive for the government to make broad improvements across the economy to increase government revenues. And, as the Tea Party phenomenon in the U.S. shows, taxes create a populace that is deeply interested in how government spends its cash. "They are going to watch the government like a hawk," Moser said. "If one year people get a $500 check (from oil revenues) and the next year they get $400, they're going to wonder why."

"People think (an oil find) is Manna from heaven, so you don't need to tax," Subramanian says. "But that severs that two-way relationship between the governed and those who are governed."

Two practical problems to giving away oil cash: Convincing leaders it's in their best interests, and the modalities of getting that cash to citizens. "The latter is actually the easiest ... there's been a lot of advances in biometrics, such as iris scanning and fingerprinting, along with e-banking through cell phones," Moser said.

Trying to talk leaders in resource-rich countries to give it away, however, is another matter. Both Moser and Subramanian have approached leaders in Ghana and Nigeria, respectively, to distribute it - both were rebuffed.

Still, a new government in Libya could have a unique "constitutional moment" to allow its oil profits to flow directly to the populace, Subramanian said. "Libya is a country that has had virtually no political development for nearly 50 years," he said.

Adds Moser: "When you have a moment of transition, there's a lot of uncertainty - that's a moment you can lock into a certain kind of path you may not find for another generation."

CNN's Anna Coren contributed to this report

East Kalimantan is 50% richer than Sabah in 2010

A neighbour underestimated
by Raja Petra Kamarudin on Tuesday, 23 August 2011 at 07:05

http://www.facebook.com/PiEeAwanG#!/notes/raja-petra-kamarudin/a-neighbour-underestimated/10150292149369658

By Karim Raslan, The Star

The buoyant statistics coming out of East Kalimantan underline the extent to which the once-poor neighbour has eclipsed Sabah. And until Sabahans can exorcise their ghosts, Indonesia will remain an untapped mirage.


WE are living in an age of tremendous financial turmoil. Currency and equity market gyrations have dramatically altered relations between nations and entire regions. Indeed, the decline of US and European competitiveness and the attendant acceleration of Chinese wealth have been the most note-worthy developments.

What is less well-documented is the fact that these trends have also led to significant changes within South-East Asia with China’s (and India’s) hunger for natural resources driving prices ever higher.

This is most apparent on the island of Borneo.

In 2010, the GDP per capita in Sabah was RM8,450. By way of comparison, the GDP per capita in the neighbouring Indonesian province of East Kalimantan (or Kaltim) was over US$4,000 (RM12,000).

While the Kaltim statistics are inflated by skyrocketing coal, as well as oil and gas prices, the reality shows a marked increase in living standards for the province’s 3.2 million people.

In fact, Kaltim’s booming economy is also contributing to Sabah’s shortage of labour for the plantation sector.

Meanwhile, decentralisation initiatives (dubbed regional autonomy) meant that a greater proportion of the natural resource bounty was being retained locally.

Kaltim is Indonesia’s largest producer of both coal and oil/gas. At the same time there are plans to increase palm oil planting to well over 1.5 million hectares.

Balikpapan – the premier commercial hub with a population over 600,000 – is also a major transport and services hub.

The city’s Sepinggan airport (with over five million passengers a year) is Indonesia’s fourth busiest.

The buoyant statistics coming out of Kaltim underline the extent to which the once-poor neighbour has eclipsed Sabah and indeed Malaysia.

This is all the more ironic given the fact that for many decades Sabahans have felt imperilled by what they’ve perceived as waves of “desperately poor” Indonesians and Filipinos pressing at their borders.

Indeed, the control (or lack of it) of migrant workers has been an enormously controversial issue in Kota Kinabalu.

Sabah’s exponential population growth – most notably in the 1980s when naturalisation policies (covert or otherwise) were at their most pronounced – witnessed a dramatic increase from 929,992 in 1980 to 1,734,685 in 1990.

Indeed, it is arguable that Sabahans have been traumatised by the massive influx of illegals.

The state’s indigenous communities have seen their demographic and political leadership whittled away.

Unsurprisingly, they are deeply suspicious of Indonesians and Filipinos.

All this has made it difficult for Sabah to leverage Indonesia’s current prosperity despite the state’s strategic location.

Sabah has very poor connectivity with Kaltim, so much so that even the lengthy land border lacks formal road crossings.

Still, Indonesians – including Awang Faroek, Kaltim’s Governor – are lobbying hard for a link at Serudong along the Tawau/Kota Kinabalu road.

In the absence of an overland crossing, hundreds of thousands of Indonesian workers in Sabah have been forced to travel by ferry through Tawau’s meagre and unimpressive port facilities.

By way of comparison, the Entikong crossing between Sarawak and West Kalimantan has become a major thoroughfare with countless buses plying the route linking Pontianak and Kuching.

Moreover, it is estimated that some 3,000 Indonesian students are currently studying in Kuching’s many private educational institutions.

At the same time, direct flights (on local carrier, Kalstar) linking the two cities have further enhanced connectivity and opportunities for businessmen on both sides of the border.

Kota Kinabalu and Balikpapan are like step-sisters. A journey between the two cities requires an awkward and time-consuming detour through either Kuala Lumpur, Singapore or Jakarta.

The alternative is the nerve-wracking ferry from Tawau to either Nunukan or Tarakan ... neither of which are particularly attractive for tourists or business travellers.

But Kota Kinabalu remains a superb destination.

With its waterfront lifestyle, schools, hospitals and international flights, the city is poised to become a popular hub for Indonesians – from as far away as Banjarmasin, Makassar, Samarinda and Manado.

It is worth noting that all four cities are beneficiaries of the natural resources boom and growing faster than the national average.

Indeed, other Malaysian cities such as Penang and Malacca have become adept at tapping the Indonesian demand for healthcare, education, housing and retail.

It remains to be seen whether the socio-political trauma of past decades could be overcome to allow Sabah to maximise these opportunities.

However, thankfully, some of Sabah’s leaders are beginning to recognise their neighbour’s vast potential.

Flamboyant former chief minister Datuk Harris Salleh has been a major promoter of the cross-Borneo linkages.

Last year, he undertook a highly publicised tour across Indonesian Kalimantan.

Similar sentiments are raised by Sabah Economic Development and Investment Authority CEO Yaakub Johari who confidently said: “History aside, we see Sabah acting as a conduit between an expanding Indonesia and the dynamic Northeast Asian markets.

“Enhanced connectivity whether by land, air or sea is a must.”

Until Sabah and Sabahans can exorcise their ghosts, Indonesia will remain an untapped mirage.

Why SAbah was the richest in the world under the British

SAbah was clearly colonised by Great Britain and UK admits it, while
SAbah is also clearly colonised by Malaya, despite denials by Malayan
officials and their servants in Sabah.

Sabahans don't really care whether we are colonised or not, since we
are used to it. What matters is if the colonial masters are fair or
compassionate or not. Clear the British are much better than Malaya.
FActs show it clearly in all former British colonies despite the
propaganda uttered by the later colonial masters using locality as an
excuse to plunder citizens.

When you want to compare, you must compare apples with apples, oranges
with oranges. In the case of development, you must compare the same
time and take into account the number of people residing at that time.

A good indicator of wealth is car.
Now BN likes to lie about the fact that Sabah has more cars now than
under the British, to show that Sabah is now more wealthy under
Malaya. What they fail to tell you is that, based on facts and figures
from all the world bodies and Sabah Government's EPU(Economic Planning
Unit), the number of cars per population is the worst in Malaysia, and
if you compare with the rest of the world, among the worst. After all,
Malaysia does not have the highest car ownership in the world.

What it means that even the poorest nations on earth, have more cars
per population than even Sabah. Watching documentaries and news clips
will clearly show the cars roaming the streets of the poorest nations
on earth.

Under the British, just after the wars, there are a few cars in Sabah,
much less than now, but many other nations, don't even have cars at
all. You may argue that UK has more cars than Sabah in those days, but
if you take into account the much lower population of Sabah, Sabah is
almost the same level in car ownership as UK, which makes Sabah among
the richest in the whole world.

The railway is even clear. There is not a single increase in railway
track under Malaya. Under the British, it was from zero, to hundreds
of kilometers, which is at an infinite rate. Many regions still do not
have any railway, e.g. Sarawak, even now.

Sabah also has the most advanced communication system in the world,
much better than Malaya. It was at par with Singapore but since Sabah
has much less population, it makes Sabah, the best equipped in the
whole world.
You may argue that it was used to ease the job of colonising Sabah,
but who cares. At least Sabahans also benefit, unlike the current
exploitation by the Malayan colonialists.

Our oil and gas is exploited without any benefit for Sabahans at all.
Not even jobs. While the British will recruit Sabahans and even train
them if they are not well trained yet, unlike the Malayans who give
excuses that Sabahans are not qualified for any job on offer.

Any qualified Sabahans will be transfered to Malaya under the so
called integration. It is more like suppressions. Just imagine UK
sending Sabahan workers to work in UK. The British didn't do this, but
Malaya does.

Under the British, jobs are plenty. It was Sabahans who don't want to
work. Under Malaya, Sabahans had to go out of Sabah to work, while
Malayans, who call themselves Malaysians, take the posts in Sabah, as
well as foreigners, giving excuses that Sabahans are lazy and stupid,
the usual excuses.

The British never call Sabahans lazy and stupid, and will train
Sabahans to handle even the most demanding tasks, just as piloting
ships. My father and many of my relatives are proofs of this.

Under Malaya, Sabahans, can't even get jobs as Police Constables, let
alone teachers. Just look at the policemen and teachers in Sabah, and
find out how many are locals. The Malayan workers outnumber Sabahans
by significant margins, whereas you hardly find British teachers in
Sabah under the British.

Of course you can find exceptions, but these are just excuses and it
was a hard fight for Sabahans to get jobs in Sabah, and you have to
make lots of sacrifices.

I just pity the life of my children. All our children must be prepared
to work overseas. You just can't find jobs in Sabah. Or as what my
brothers had done, get jobs in Malaya while waiting for openings in
Sabah. This had been going on since 30 years ago, and it should get
worse.

Afer cutting off Sabah's Limbs, Sabah is blamed for being Lazy, and Musa agrees

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: "Ir. Hj. Othman bin Hj. Ahmad" <othm...@gmail.com>
Date: Jul 2, 11:20 pm
Subject: THEFT OF RESOURCES LOWERING GDP, not LAZINESS
To: soc.culture.malaysia

On Jul 2, 11:06 pm, "Ir. Hj. Othman bin Hj. Ahmad" <othm...@gmail.com>
wrote:

>http://sabahcolonised.blogspot.com/2011/07/theft-of-resources-lowerin...
> Paul Saccani has made a comment about the current state of affairs in
> Sabah which appear to be valid but actually nonsense. BAsed on real
> case stories in SAbah, Nigeria and even Indonesia before REformasi. It
> is called THEFT OF RESOURCES.

> And yet the victims are condemned as stupid and lazy. But for the
> Sabah case, we have cases to fall back to of incidences before the
> THEFT and after the THEFT.

Also it is well known that GDP is affected by government expenditures.
The GDP in Sabah must have been severly affected by the lack of
government expenditures in the past that its GDP has dropped so low.
Now the low GDP is used as a guide in allocating fund to SAbah which
is grossly unfair. After stealing from Sabah, making it the POOREST IN
THE WORLD, money is allocated only based on its GDP so called alleged
productivity.
Just like cutting off your limbs and blame you for not producing your
share of work after you have lost all your limbs.

The statements that Sabahan is stupid and lazy is well know to be made
by idiotic West Malaysians, who is so proud of their idiocy like one
minister who does not even know that Sandakan district is bigger than
the state of Pahang.

THEFT OF RESOURCES LOWERING GDP, not LAZINESS

Paul Saccani has made a comment about the current state of affairs in Sabah which appear to be valid but actually nonsense. BAsed on real case stories in SAbah, Nigeria and even Indonesia before REformasi. It is called THEFT OF RESOURCES.

And yet the victims are condemned as stupid and lazy. But for the Sabah case, we have cases to fall back to of incidences before the THEFT and after the THEFT.


On Jul 2, 4:33 pm, Paul Saccani wrote:

> On Fri, 1 Jul 2011 16:45:21 -0700 (PDT), "Ir. Hj. Othman bin Hj.

> Ahmad" wrote:
> >On Jul 1, 9:34 pm, Paul Saccani wrote:
> >> On Thu, 30 Jun 2011 05:12:38 -0700 (PDT), "Ir. Hj. Othman bin Hj.

> >> Ahmad" wrote:
> >> >The current GDP for Sabah is 4%, not 6%.

...

> >Either interpretation, Sabah is still clearly discriminated. If the
> >share of malaysian GDP is only 10% whereas Sabah's population is 15%,
> >with an area of 23%, this is certainly a blatant discrimination and
> >lack of progress that Sabah had experienced.

> Again, you fail to comprehend your own cited article. It stated that
> Sabah's share of the GDP was 6%, and the article forecast that it
> would increase to 10%.

> For you to talk about discrimination is to expose your complete
> failure of comprehension once again. Using your figure of Sabah as
> 15% of the population of Malaysia, along with the figure of 6% of GDP
> produced there, the conclusion is that Sabahans are less than half as
> productive as the rest of Malaysia.

Even with most of the petroleum and oil palm produced in Malaysia???
Sabah is still less productive. Have you ever wondered why?

Do you know how GDP is calculated?

> >the usual way of measuring GDP is the growth % per year.

> Well, no, that is a complete and utter nonsense. And in any case the
> article was completely explicit;

No it doesn't. Even I only mention GDP instead of GDP annual growth,
and many authors use these simplified terms as well.

If you really want to be explicit, then use the word absolute GDP.

> "In terms of numbers, we think Sabah will increase its overall share
> in Malaysia's GDP from six per cent to 10 per cent in the next five
> years as it will grow faster than the more saturated Peninsular
> Malaysia,"

> In other words, unproductive Sabahans will increase their productivity
> by two thirds, according to the forecast. Even then, they will still

per Sabahan.

> be producing much less than their fair share of the work.

Valued in Ringgit Malaysian terms, per person.

They can do the same job, but paid much much less.

Have you ever wondered why? Idiot.

When all resources are stolen from SAbah, to be spent in West
Malaysia, their GDP per capita increases in terms of RM.

Whereas, Sabah, whose resources are stolen, have less GDP per capita
expenditure, simply because a lot of its money are stolen.

GDP has nothing to do with productivity. It is called GROSS DOMESTIC
PRODUCT for good reasons. Only idiots will use it as a sole
productivity measurement.

It is a good and fair measurement because it takes into account world
monetary values, unlike the PPP(?), so called adjusted GDP.

- Hide quoted text -
- Show quoted text -

> Of course, this will not be the case if you have anything to do with
> it - it seems that you would not work in an iron lung.

> > If you want
> >to diverge from the norm, you have to explain in more detail.

> 1: GDP is never measured in percentage.
> 2:What was being discussed was stated explicitly.
> 3:Your failures both in comprehension and writing are not a
> requirement for others to kow tow to your deviant ideas.

> >Because of your arrogant and racist attitude,

> Don't pretend that others suffer from your afflictions.

> > you can't even see
> >alternative meanings to phrases, and choose the best alternative based
> >on normal practise, which is the way honest people interpret.

> I see no signs of honesty, humility or comprehension from you.

> >Musa Aman is still lying.

> From the report, and your comments, it would seem that rather than
> Musa Aman being a liar, it is simply a case of you being too stupid
> and arrogant to comprehend an article written in simple English.

> With people like you in Sabah, it is no wonder that so little
> productivity occurs in the place, with the rest of Malaysia having to
> pay more taxes to subsidise stupid and incompetent people like you.

> At the moment, Sabah produces 6% of Malaysia's GDP, but gets 8% of
> government spending. You are getting subsidised with 33% more than

Wow. It may be 8% 6% of GDP, but certainly much more in revenue from
petroleum and oil palm that Sabah produces in abundance.

> you have produced, yet bemoan that you are being cheated. In fact,
> you are stealing from other Malaysians by being lazy and inefficient

Funnily, just before BN took over Sabah, Sabahan were not deemed lazy
and inefficient, with among the largest per capita GDP.
Why is it????

> and expecting others to pay you to be stupid, lazy and arrogant.

We don't expect others to pay for our salaries. We only want our
resources back, idiot.

If you look at the poverty statistics, it is not in the number of
developments, rather in the numbers of service personnel allocated to
SAbah, number of doctors, dentists, teachers etc.

Doctors are allocated by the Federal government. Also number of
schools, hospitals etc, all these making SAbah the POOREST IN THE
WHOLE WORLD!!!

Don't you think this will not add to the per capita annual GDP? I am
being very explicit to idiots like you!!!

What 6% GDP contribution are you talking about when our income taxes
are not even spent to improve our lives to a decent level, only to the
level of the POOREST IN THE WHOLE WORLD!!!

Just spend all SABAH resources to ourselves. The GDP will
automatically go up and Sabah removed from the POOREST IN THE WORLD
category, like before.

Sabah has more resources now than before Malaysia or BN, and yet still
the POOREST IN THE WHOLE WORLD!!!

Don't tell me you cannot find doctors to work in Sabah, as most
doctors are from Bangladesh, Myanmar etc anyway.

Why send them to West Malaysia instead of the POOREST IN THE WORLD,
SABAH!!! Bloody bastard idiot.

Sabah government knew Sabah was the poorest since 2002

http://www.sabah.gov.my/infosoc/ppt/UPEN%20(1).ppt

The above is a link to the documents prepared by Sabah's EPU.

Pictures can be viewed at my blog sabahcolonised

Lying about Sabah's economic performance and prospect

The current GDP for Sabah is 4%, not 6%.

The current GDP for Malaysia is 7% so West Malaysia should be around
10%.

If Sabah were to grow at 10% next year, a near impossibility, given no
commitment apart from empty promises, it is still the same as West
Malaysian's current rate of growth. With much more resources diverted
to WEst Malaysia, the situation will continue.

Just imagine, Sabah only getting 10% of the total natioinal budget,
with a population of 14% and area of 23%?

Will Sabah's GDP ever exceed that of West Malaysia that gets much more
of the national budget?
Never indeed. Just use your common sense.

Upbeat on Sabah's prospects

Published on: Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Email to a friend Printer Friendly

Kota Kinabalu: Global publishing, research and consultancy firm,
Oxford Business Group (OBG), firmly believes Sabah has enormous
business and economic potential given what it has to offer investors.

So much so, it expects Sabah to increase its overall share in
Malaysia's GDP from six per cent to 10 per cent in the next five
years, saying it would grow faster than Peninsular Malaysia.

OBG Regional Director for Asia, Laura Herrero, said the book "The
Report: Sabah 2011" launched by Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman on
Monday is testament to this.

"Not only we have done good business here, it has (also) been a
pleasure to work and interact with the people of Sabah at all levels,"
she said.

"So, foreign businessmen and investors, read this report; take note of
our example; follow our lead and come to Sabah," she said.

She said the rapidly evolving economy of Sabah holds out enormous
business and economic potential.

She said the book that was produced by OBG over a six-month period of
research is worthwhile for the people, foreign businessmen and
investors.

The report provides in-depth coverage of Sabah's Development Corridor
(SDC) blueprint and considers the interest that the long-term
development plan is generating among global investors.

The publication charts the wave of new projects which spans
agricultural infrastructure, transport, tourism and logistics, while
analysing the role they are set to play in Sabah's plans to become a
leading economic and investment hub by 2025.

Asia Regional Director for OBG, Paulius Kuncinas said Sabah is blessed
with natural beauty and resources that is key to attracting visitors
and investors alike.

"(Hence) it is worth stating at the outset that the reason our
Publishing Group decided to come here was because we discovered there
are attractive investment opportunities for both domestic and foreign
investors, some of which are overlooked by mainstream investors," he
said.

From OBG's research, he said Sabah is well positioned to benefit from
recent growth in Asean.

It is also well located in the Borneo region to attract Foreign Direct
Investment (FDI) in the next 5-10 years, he said.

He said Oxford Business Group found there are a number of sectors
outside traditional tourism, agri-business and energy that could
benefit from greater involvement of private sector and investment.

The organisation feels the policy momentum created under the Tenth
Malaysia Plan (10MP) will fuel fresh interest form smart investors
looking to locate in the country's most progressive regions, with
Sabah offering the most compelling case.

"In terms of numbers, we think Sabah will increase its overall share
in Malaysia's GDP from six per cent to 10 per cent in the next five
years as it will grow faster than the more saturated Peninsular
Malaysia," he said.

According to him, growth in new service sectors would likely push
total GDP to USD$12 billion with an average annual growth of above
five per cent.

He said their analysts argued in the report that Sabah had the fortune
of being insulated from the great financial crisis thanks to its
resource-based sector that continued to enjoy financial strength and
solid balance sheets throughout the crisis.

However, Kuncinas said there would be challenges going forward such as
to reduce the dependence on commodities and tourism sectors, which
when combined continue to dominate economic activity in the State.

He said one of the key growth areas is likely to be service-related
sectors that offer support services to established plantations,
agriculture, energy and manufacturing industries.

"Even though the rise of commodity prices recently offer attractive
returns to local business, we found it very encouraging the State
managed to post 6.8 per cent growth in services which will help to
diversify the overall economic mix of Sabah's economy," he said.

To achieve sustainable growth and the advanced economy status included
in Malaysia's 2020 Vision, he said Sabah needs to focus on creating
alternative sources of growth by focusing its efforts on education,
research and innovation.

Just like other states in Malaysia, he said Sabah is in competition
for young talent that will determine its competitiveness in the
future.

He said retaining this talent within the State will be key to further
productivity growth and advancing the economy beyond natural
resources.

On the other hand, Kuncinas said Sabah's exports this year continue to
be dominated by palm oil, palm kernel oil, rubber, crude petroleum and
processed woods.

"We believe that these will continue to provide income momentum in the
next five to 10 years," he said.

Looking at the trade data, he said they found a high share of
processed fuels, lubricant and mineral, which accounted for 18.3 per
cent of the total this year.

He said there are still huge investment opportunities in the
downstream segments, especially in oil and gas sectors with Sabah in a
good position to become one of the leading downstream processing
centres in Borneo.

"We also see an upside in the logistics sector with Sabah well
positioned to cater for remote regions of East Asia with the Sapangar
Bay Container Port well placed to become one of the leading trans-
shipment centres in BIMP-EAGA," he said.

Supported by rising world palm oil consumption, Sabah's ports have
returned to full capacity after weathering the global economic crisis.

Nevertheless, he said one of the long term structural issues that will
need to be addressed is the Cabotage Policy and also the nation's hub-
and-spoke transport policy.

He said quite a number of businesses interviewed by the OGB said that
logistics operating costs in Sabah are higher than that in the
peninsula, which undermines the State's competitiveness.

However, he said that OBG was encouraged to learn that the State is
now addressing the vital issue of external and internal connectivity
through infrastructure upgrade investment.

Through the Sabah Development Corridor (SDC) programme, he said the
government is implementing road and rail projects across the State
that will have substantial benefits for both movements of goods as
well as the tourism sector.

Kuncinas noted that Kota Kinabalu is already enjoying advanced air
connectivity with a high frequency in both domestic and international
flights.

"We are compiling investment opportunities in Sabah in our first ever
report and as we continue our coverage, we hope to provide more detail
and insight," he said.

But the best case scenario now, he said, is that Sabah's economy will
continue to outperform other Malaysian states with GDP per capita
increases helping to drive rural and urban development across the
entire State with new growth sectors coming on stream in the next 5-10
years.

Given its location and resources, he said Sabah is a natural choice
for many industries and a contender for the status of sub-regional
capital.

With effective implementation of the initiatives now under way, he
said it may be a prize soon captured by the Land Below the Wind.

Proof that BN disrespects and breaks the constitution

Why should only a private citizen sue the Barisan Nasional, Federal
Government? Why not any of the opposition parties?

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2011/3/19/courts/8300501&sec=courts

Saturday March 19, 2011
Court voids amendment on appointment of JCs

KOTA KINABALU: An amendment to the Constitution to take away the power
of appoin-ting judicial commissioners (JCs) by the heads of state of
Sabah and Sarawak has been declared null and void by the High Court
here.

Justice Datuk David Wong Dak Wah in his landmark judgment said the
1994 amendment to Article 122AB of the Constitution was invalid as it
did not have the consent of the two states.

He said the amendment affected the operation of the Constitution as it
removed the power of the appointment of JCs by the respective Yang di-
Pertua Negri of Sabah and Sara-wak.

Prior to the 1994 amendment, the appointment of JCs to the High Courts
of Sabah and Sarawak was done by the governors on the advice of the
Chief Judge of the High Court of Sabah and Sarawak.

In allowing the suit brought by retired policeman Robert Linggi
against the Federal Government, Justice Wong also declared null and
void Section 37 of the Judicial Appointments Commission Act, which
empowers the Prime Minister to amend any provision of the Act by way
of a gazette.

However, he dismissed the claim by Linggi, who is from Keningau, that
the Judicial Appointments Commission Act (except for Section 37) was
unconstitutional.

In his suit filed on March 13, 2009, Linggi, who was represented by
Datuk Lawrence Thien, had among others, sought a declaration that the
removal of the power of appointment of JCs to the High Courts of Sabah
and Sarawak by the heads of the two states was null and void.

In his 39-page written judgment delivered on March 15 and made
available on Thursday, Justice Wong said Article 161E (2) prohibits
amendments to the Federal Constitution without the consent of the
governors "if the amendment is such as to affect the operation of the
(Federal) Constitution with regard to the constitution and
jurisdiction of the High Courts of Sabah and Sarawak."

The Government was represented by Senior Federal Counsels Suzana Atan
and Narkuna-vathy Sundereson.

On the contention by the Government that Linggi had no locus standi to
bring the suit, Justice Wong ruled that "all Malaysians have a duty to
protect our constitution."

Sabah, the poorest in the world has no starving people???

Sabah, being the poorest in the whole world, is not even told to
Malaysians, let alone the huge number of starving people in Sabah
being reported.

If Doni, committed suicide because his classmates laughed at him for
eating starvation level diet in the centre of a city, Kota Kinabalu,
with the most updated infrastructure in the poor state of Sabah,
getting a government subsidi, JUST IMAGINE the people in the remote
places, where statistics show the REAL POOR really ARE.

Kota Kinabalu is not listed as the poor areas in Sabah, and yet there
are many students living on starvation diet, rice with boiled kangkong
picked up from the drains. If you don't call that starvation diet, you
must be crazy.

Muhiddin must therefore be crazy if he thinks that eating just rice
everyday is not starvation diet. Many other people in Sabah, also eat
similar diet. You don't even have 1 US dollar per day because you are
unemployed. Unemployment is the highest in Sabah.

China and India are much richer than Sabah. Just imagine how come
nobody is ACKNOWLEDGED as living on starvation diet. BN is just a
bunch of liars manipulating statistics.

To make matters worse, Sabah has much more resources than China and
Indian combined together. How come SAbah can be the POOREST IN THE
WORLD???

Simple. NONE OF THE RESOURCES ARE FOR SABAH. All petroleum resources
go to Malaya via expensive gas pipelines costing BILLIIONS OF RM.

With a SO CALLED PROMISED 5%, but unaudited, it is more like much
less than 1%, or NEGLIGIBLE. Not even enough to cover maintenance of
the foreign workers employed for these gas pipelines and the
environmental loss that led to the poverty of the locals. Just use
your imagination to calculate how much is 150 RM million per year for
the past 30 years. Is it really 5%??? Price of petrol has gone up 1000
percent. It may have been 5% 30 years ago, after price and volume
increases, it is much less than 0.1% remaining. It had been increased
to 400 million, i.e. from 0.1% to 0.4%!!!!

In another 30 years it become 0.04%!!!!

If you don't believe, than explain why Sabah GDP grows 4%, while
Malaya grows 9%!!!!
Malaysia is 7%.. Malaysia includes Sabah so it pulls down Malaysian
overall GDP.

With MInisters like Muhidin that don't know that Kinabatangan is
BIGGER THAN PAHANG.
No wonder, they only give 20 million for Sabahan poor, the 3RD behind
Trengganu and Pahang.

And these are only for fishermen who are registered. If you have no
money, how can you even register??? tell me honestly. You still think
that there are no starving people in Sabah!!! Idiot.

Stop whining, poor Sabahans told
Charlie Rudai
| March 4, 2011

Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin has admitted that the
government is unable to do much for the landless and hardcore poor
mainly due to incompetence of its leaders.

TONGOD: Poor Sabahans should stop whinning and be satisfied with their
lot because the poverty situation in Sabah was not as bad as that
faced by citizens in China and India.

Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said that since starvation did
not exist in Malaysia, there should be no complaints about the poverty
situation in the state.

Drawing comparisons with countries like China, India and other
developed countries, he said that unlike others there had been no
reports of people dying of starvation in Malaysia.

He said that in some countries the poverty issue was so critical that
some of the people there were earning about one dollar a day and
coping with the issue of starvation unlike Malaysia.

Last year, the World Bank Report revealed Sabah to be the poorest
state in Malaysia. According to the report, 40% of Malaysia's poor
were centred in Sabah, which incidentally is an oil and gas hub. The
state government, however, has vehemently disputed the categorisation.

Muhyiddin also made a staggering revelation that the Barisan Nasional
(BN) government has been unable to do much for the landless and
hardcore poor in the country mainly due to incompetence of its
leaders.

He took a swipe at ruling party political leaders for not doing their
jobs and not articulating the problems they faced.

Citing Kinabatangan, he said he had been ignorant until now that the
constituency is much bigger than Pahang, and was shocked to know that
Tongod itself was bigger than Selangor.

Muhyiddin claimed it was not easy to bring development to Sabah until
political leaders went down to the ground to study and understand the
needs of the people.

Infrastructure projects

He sees the whole problem of poverty eradication and development as an
infrastructure issue.

"So how to bring development to Sabah and Sarawak? … the only way is
to provide better infrastructure.

"In this respect, Sabah and Sarawak get the priority from the federal
government… millions of ringgit are being poured in to implement
infrastructure projects.

"I monitor every month and listen to the ministers during meetings,"
he said, adding that under the 10th Malaysia Plan, RM320 million had
been approved for various projects in the Kinabatangan parliamentary
constituency alone.

However, he said that the government would give out funds according to
priority and not all at once to prevent bankrupting the country.

"It is like in a family: when you give a present to one child, the
other children also want it but a family with a small income would not
be able to do so.

"Similarly, the nation will go bankrupt if it fulfils the demands of
all the people," he said.

Muhyiddin assured that Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak was focused on
the National Key Economic Areas (NKEA) to propel the country to a high-
income nation by improving the economy and living standards of the
people.

"Our prime minister is focused and as his deputy, I sit with him every
week in various economic development meetings," he said, adding that
last year Malaysia had achieved a 7.2% growth, which not many country
could claim.

Communal land titles

He also defended the BN's record on poverty eradication, saying the BN
government had made extraordinary achievements as far as reducing and
eradicating poverty in the country is concerned compared to pre-
independence days when the poverty rate was 98%.

In an almost election-like campaign speech at the Kampung Simpang
Entilibon field here yesterday, he claimed the BN never stopped
thinking about how to bring development to the people and lauded Chief
Minister Musa Aman for granting communal land titles to the landless
and distributing dividend payments to the hardcore poor.

"Ask any other states (in Malaysia) or in other countries if they are
doing what the Sabah state government is doing… none.

"The BN government realises that the people still yearn for
development," he said.

Muhyiddin, who is also Education Minister, said he was briefed on the
poor education situation in Sabah schools.

"It was supposed to be a 20-minute briefing but it went on for more
than an hour and I said last night that if it cannot be solved, then
we should form a committee so that the education facilities in Sabah
are not only at par with the rest of the country but are also better,"
he said.

Libya can produce petrochemicals for local use even in crisis

Despite the turmoils, Libya's Eastern part where only about 1.4
million people live is still capable of producing petrochemicals for
local consumption. Petrol as well as cooking gas.

Sabah, which also produces light petroleum and gas, cannot produce
anything for local consumption. Everything has to be exported to
Malaya 1000km away. Sabah has a much higher population of 3.4 million
than even this eastern part of Libya.

Even in times of crisis, oil production is not affected. It is the
lack of shipping that is hindering export of oil and gas.

I wonder where the money goes to. With the sanctions on Gaddafi's
regime, the money should go to the interim government of Libya in
Benghazi.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=134090660

Turmoil Rocks Libya's Oil Sector, Slashing Output

by The Associated Press

BREGA, Libya February 26, 2011, 08:05 pm ET

The massive oil terminal at Brega feels strangely deserted for Libya's
second-largest hydrocarbon complex. After more than a week of turmoil
in the country, production has been scaled back by almost 90 percent
with many employees fleeing and ships not coming to collect its
products.

The most activity on the site Saturday appeared to be a squad of boys
from the nearby town finishing the job of tearing apart the local
headquarters of Moammar Gadhafi's Revolutionary Committee.

The seaside Brega complex, some 125 miles (200 kilometers) west of the
rebel stronghold of Benghazi, collects crude oil and gas from Libya's
fields in the southeast and prepares it for export. It also produces
some petrochemicals and refined products for local consumption.

Since the crisis began on Feb. 15, however, General Manager Fathi
Eissa said the facility has had to scale back production dramatically
from 90,000 barrels of crude a day to just 11,000.

There are no reliable figures about the impact of the uprising against
Gadhafi on Libya's oil exports, but facilities across the country have
been forced to make sharp cuts. Most Libyan ports — the main method of
export — also were closed due to bad weather, staff shortages or
production outages, according to the International Energy Agency.

The IEA, citing reports from Western producers, said overall crude
production has dropped from 1.6 million barrels per day to 850,000.
The unrest in the OPEC nation — which ranks about 17th among world oil
producers and has Africa's largest proven oil reserves — has sparked a
major spike in world oil prices.

At Brega, the huge spherical storage containers and reservoirs used to
hold natural gas and crude oil are filling up rapidly with no ships to
cart away their valuable contents.

Production in the southern fields has been throttled back until Brega
can clear some of its capacity.

"At this time we are operating with the minimum required number of
operators, technicians mainly," Eissa said. "The production from the
fields right now is at minimum, it is not completely stopped but it is
minimum."

On Saturday, a ship arrived to collect some ammonia and methanol, but
it was one of only a few since the troubles began.

Brega has continued to pump natural gas for local consumption along
the coastal pipeline that is keeping the power plants and desalination
plants running, as well as providing the people with cooking gas
canisters.

Ahmed Jerksi, the chairman of the manager's office and a 40 year
veteran of the company, estimated the terminal was operating with just
45 percent of its normal manpower.

Many employees left amid rumors that Gadhafi was going to bomb the
plant and its volatile contents, while others feared for their
families, he said.

The neighboring petrochemical complex of Ras Lanouf, some 60 miles
(100 kilometers) to the west has experienced similar drops in manpower
and has had to cut production down to similar levels, Jerksi said.

Ras Lanouf is also perilously close to the town of Sirte, one of the
last holdouts for Gadhafi loyalists in central Libya, raising concern
about clashes in the area.

The Gulf of Sidra is critical to Libya's energy exports. The ports of
As Sidra, Marsa el Brega, Ras Lanuf, Tobruk and Zuetina handle about
77 percent of Libya's oil exports. Allegiances in the Gulf of Sidra
and the economic value they represent, therefore, are key to the
survival of Gadhafi's regime.

Libya's uprising came to the Brega complex on Feb. 20 when inhabitants
of the nearby village appeared at the gates and said the complex was
now with the revolution. The facility's guards let them in and they
went around and tore down the many pictures of Gadhafi.

The local headquarters of the Revolutionary Committee was also
trashed, with air-conditioning units pulled out of the walls and a
large-screen projection TV knocked over.

By Saturday, a group of youths had little to do besides smash windows
and set fire to a picture of Gadhafi.

"We are with the revolution," said Eissa, the general manager. "We are
supporting the change by keeping operations running to avoid the
country's collapse."

Many of Brega's 600 foreign workers — mostly from Britain and other
European countries — were preparing to evacuate. The British frigate
HMS Cumberland, which took evacuees from Benghazi to Malta, is set to
return to pick up many of Brega's workers. They missed an earlier
evacuation at Benghazi because of the poor state of communications in
the country.

Marianne Steeley of Britain has been working on and off at Brega since
1981 and is hoping her absence won't be long.

"Everybody's erring on the side of caution and they've certainly
dialed down the oil and gas operation here and the ammonia plant,
everything's been sort of kept on a very cautious level," she said. "I
think they are trying desperately to get things going as soon as
possible, I would certainly be very happy to return once things are
sorted."

Even Africa reports on Sabah's cancellation of Coal Power

http://af.reuters.com/article/energyOilNews/idAFL3E7DH01Y20110217

Malaysia scraps Sabah coal power plant project
Thu Feb 17, 2011 1:07am GMT

Print | Single Page
[-] Text [+]

KUALA LUMPUR Feb 17 (Reuters) - Malaysia's federal and Sabah state
governments have scrapped a plan to build a coal-fired power plant
meant to meet the state's energy needs, the Star newspaper reported on
Thursday.

Sabah Chief Minister Musa Aman said national power producer Tenaga
Nasional and national oil corporation Petroliam Nasional Bhd
(Petronas) have been asked to come up with an alternative solution to
replace the proposed 300-megawatt coal-fired plant in Lahad Datu.

"Sabah needs to increase its power supply to meet the increasing
development but the state cannot afford to put its natural environment
at risk," he said.

Environmental groups campaigned against the building of the power
plant after it was proposed in 2007. (Reporting by Julie Goh)

© Thomson Reuters 2011 All rights reserved

Malays in Sabah grow by 1,552%!!!

"Look, in those 30 years the Kadazan-Dusun-Murut community grew by
162% – a population growth that makes sense.

"But those classified as Malay grew by a staggering 1,552%. The
federal government hasn't given any solid explanation for this
staggerring rise," Chong said.

It also does not make sense for Kadazan community because in Sarawak,
population growth is only 106% and Brunei 157%. Brunei's growth is due
to immigrants from Malaysia.

It shows that there are also many migrants within the Kadazan
community as well.

As for Malays increasing at such rapid rate, it is due to immigration
from West Malaysia where everybody call themselves Malays as long as
they are Muslims.

I doubt Filipinoes will call themselves Malays because they can always
call themselves Bajau, which is one of the natives of Sabah.

However these Filipinoes like to pretend that they are West Malaysian
Malays, imitating the West Malaysian Malay dialect.

The most vocal groups in SAbah are the Kadazan Dusun communities
because they feel that they are swamped by Muslims reducing their
political influence. But this community is now supporting the current
BN government that allows this situations to occur through parties
such as PBS, UPKO and PBRS.

https://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.malaysia/post?hl=en

Sabah's tale of woes
February 20, 2011

Beyond the touristy Kota Kinabalu waterfront lies the 'hazy' reality
of Sabah's fragile social fabric.

Saturday afternoons at the markets flanking the Kota Kinabalu
waterfront are a casual affair. Tourists stroll the walkways toting
cameras, families finish buying their day's groceries, the smell of
pickled vegetables and fresh fruit intoxicates.

A line of tailors steal a nap during the lazy, shady hours. It's quite
a delight seeing those vintage Singers still in use.

And as a solitary machine goes "shik-shik-shik" in the background, the
issue about Sabah's fragile "social" fabric crops up again.

Interwoven in this tapestry is a generation of carefree children, who
neither read nor write, and who each morning leave their homes in the
settlements at Pulau Gaya and come ashore to the city's waterfront
seeking menial work – dishwashing, food preparation and packaging.

Is it fair that these children, innocent of any crime, be deprived of
a promising future because of negligence by their hosts? To them a
high-income economy and the New Economic Model are meaningless.

This is the tale of Sabah that has seen a population increase by a
stupefying 301% in 30 years (1970-2000), a phenomenon that surely
needs to be investigated closely.

Especially since neighbours Sarawak grew by 106%, and Brunei 157% in
the same time-frame.

Said former Sabah senator and activist Dr Chong Eng Leong: "Sabah's
borders were deliberately kept porous. You could enter and leave it
like a sieve."

Chong believes that foreigners and the contentious Project IC are two
of the biggest issues facing Sabah for over two decades.

Project IC, or more pointedly Project M, refers to the "allegation of
systematic granting of citizenship to immigrants (whether illegal or
legal) by giving them identity documents known as IC (identity card),
and subsequently, MyKad" .

It is an alleged covert exercise with its roots in the early 1990s to
alter the demographics of Sabah to make it more favourable to the
ruling government and certain political parties.

"Look, in those 30 years the Kadazan-Dusun-Murut community grew by
162% – a population growth that makes sense.

"But those classified as Malay grew by a staggering 1,552%. The
federal government hasn't given any solid explanation for this
staggerring rise," Chong said.

Damning evidence

But despite the issue being common conversation in the warongs and
kopitiams here and, to some degree, in the local media, investigations
into Project IC never quite reached a satisfactory momentum nor
conclusion.

Chong believes it's because the evidence is damning – it shows up in
the daily life of Sabah.

Chong has self-published a book, "Lest We Forget" (Security and
Sovereignty of Sabah), in July 2009 – a compilation of hard facts and
newspaper clippings to create public awareness of Project IC.

"Don't get me wrong. I have nothing against foreigners…They are human
beings who seek a better life; borders mean nothing to them.

"It is the lack of a political will in both the federal and state
governments to resolve this problem that gets me (upset)… They refuse
to even acknowledge it's a problem.

"Here they (foreigners) are considered a vote bank. I have collated
the reports and evidence in my book," said Chong.

He said the worst thing about Project IC and the influx of these
immigrants is the humanitarian aspect.

"You have brought (them) in as a vote bank, offered them MyKad, given
them Bumiputera status, perhaps resettled them somewhere…

"You are expected to remain grateful. No education for your children.
No proper sanitary system. No refuse collection – rubbish is disposed
of in the sea or burned in some common dumpyard nearby.

"It's an epidemic waiting to happen," he said between conversations
with the local traders at the KK Handicraft Market, commonly known
here as Pasar Filipina.

Tragic Sabahan

Chong, who speaks a variety of local dialects, believes that to
properly understand the issue of Project IC, one needs to walk the
problem. And that was what he did: one Saturday last year, he took
this writer from the Saya Anak Bangsa Malaysia blogsite on a
walkabout.

The most tragic part of the problem is that Project IC has left the
genuine local Sabahan with the short end of the stick.

"You know, conditions are even worse for the natives of Sabah. Visit
their kampungs scattered all over Sabah if you can.

"They get no water or electricity supply. Let's not even mention
schools for the moment.

"We have many cases of true-blue Sabah natives who were denied MyKad
even though they have birth certificates to prove their case.

"How can a government do this to its own people?" Chong asked.

From the charm of the KK waterfront, Chong took us across the scenic
Likas Bay to Telipok, about 30 km away.

Here, two government-initiated settlements have sprung up over the
years.

Hazy meaning of "Malaysian'

Atop a hill lies Kampung Boronuon. The residents prefer to call it
Kampung Penempatan – resettled.

They were resettled from Pulau Gaya in 2001. Back then, the mayor of
Kota Kinabalu had assured the people of Telipok that the Pulau Gaya
resettlers were Malaysians.

But in this part of the world, as we were beginning to see, the
meaning of "Malaysian" can be as hazy as smog from the annual
Kalimantan fires.

In his book, "Lest We Forget", Chong cites numerous cases of dubious
citizenship. Here is a sampling:

• A Pulau Gaya fag smuggler admitted in court he is a Philippine-born
Malaysian, but his new IC is coded 12, that is, born in Sabah. His old
IC number was H0558763, and is still registered on the Sabah electoral
rolls today.

• One foreigner was convicted in 1992 for possession of fake IC and he
told the court that he got his IC through Project President Mahathir
(appendix 51 of book). He was jailed for two years and managed to get
registered in 1995 on Sabah electoral rolls after his release – was he
deported but later sneaked back? His old IC number was H0487096 and is
still on Sabah electoral rolls today.

• Salman Majid – arrested in March 2005 at KLIA and detained for 199
days at the immigration centre in Sepang… Salman stated in the "Sijil
Akuan" that he was born in Ranau, Sabah, when in fact he was born in
Pakistan. His old and new IC numbers were H0352141 and 620202-12-5053
respectively.

Salman had reportedly said about his IC: "Pada tahun 80′an saya telah
ditawarkan kad pengenalan di Sabah semasa Projek Khas. Saya telah
menerima tawaran itu bersama dengan beribu-ribu rakyat Sabah yang
lain." (In the 1980s, I was offered an identity card in Sabah under
the a speical project. I accepted the offer together with thousands of
other people in Sabah.)

Down in the valley from Kampung Penempatan lies a serpentine grouping
of houses. This is Kampung Pelarian, otherwise known as the UNHCR
Settlement Scheme. It was established in the 1970s under the care of
the UN for Filipinos fleeing from the civil war in the southern
Philippines.

Growing settlements

Although the war has long since ended and UN funds ceased, the land
continues to be inhabited.

Instead of diminishing in number, more houses are being built in this
area. A 2006 Borneo Post report said more than 1,000 dwellings are
occupying the land and growing.

In both these neighbouring settlements, life isn't super.

There aren't many in terms of amenities; there's electricity and water
supply. Waste just goes into a hole or a waterway. The residents are a
hardy lot. But the story repeats – no schooling.

At about 3pm that afternoon, we noticed a dusty van passing in front
of us along the narrow, winding lane. It stopped not far ahead, its
body listed to one side because of the potholes.

A couple of young girls – no more than 15 years old and dressed in
Tees and jeans – boarded the van.

Were they heading for their day jobs as dish-washers or other menial
jobs at the market, we wondered? Or rather, we hoped.

For it could easily be something even worse. Something like
prostitution.

It is not mere imaginings. Another excerpt from Lest We Forget:

• Six girls in vice activities in Perak in March 2002 were initially
said to be Sabahans but Sabah police chief later on corrected by
saying that they were Indonesians whose Malaysian ICs were issued by
Sabah NRD.

If all this is true, then Project IC is not merely about the story of
a power-crazed government pulling out all the stops to retain its
position.

It is also about the social repercussions which hurt the state and the
very people who were invited inside our borders.

2Million RM a day for Diesel in Sabah?

TNB subsidises RM2million a day for diesel. Do you know how much will
TNB need to subsidise if coal were produced? It could be up to RM20
million a day for COAL. Taking into account all costs, storage,
transportation and cleaning up.

And this does not include the RM2.5 billion gas pipeline to export
Sabah's gas!!!
If this gas were to be used in Sabah, there is no need to spend 2.5
billion RM, no need to subsidise any diesel at all. The most important
of all is that, it is the cleanest fuel EVER. That is why it is very
valuable for other nations but SAbah is denied its use.

Musa used to be a strong supporter of the coal power plant. Why the
sudden change of heart??? Is it caused by the coming election??? What
happens after the ELECTION????

Won't they BE RELIABLY EXPECTED TO CHANGE THE FACTS AGAIN???
Certainly!!!
They will start saying that COAL IS CHEAPER THAN GAS etc. Just as what
they have been doing now.
Notice the lack of commitment in abolishing this coal powered plant.
Musa only said that the people of SAbah objected, NOT HIM.

Guaranteed 100% that if BN wins, the coal power will continue. After
all, this is what BN believes sincerely, that COAL IS MUCH CHEAPER
THAN GAS etc. So far there is no admission of error or the slightest
sense of guilt at all from the BN parties.

SAbahans should wake up and SEE THE FACTS!!!

Bintulu LNG to generate power supply for Sabah's east coast
February 19, 2011

KOTA KINABALU, Feb 19 — Petronas and Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) will
soon be working on bringing liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Bintulu
to generate alternative power supply to Sabah's east coast.

Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman said this was to address the
critical shortage of power supply in the east coast, especially since
the proposed coal-fired power plant project was recently scrapped.

"I know that we have a critical problem in terms of providing stable
electricity to the people in the east coast, and not many know that
TNB was subsidising RM2 million a day for diesel used in the various
independent power plants there," he said at Gerakan's Chinese New Year
and Chap Goh Mei celebrations here today.

Musa said the venture between Petronas and TNB was a directive by
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak during the recent National
Economic Action Council (NEAC) meeting, which came prior to his
meeting with the premier, together with Deputy Chief Minister Tan Sri
Joseph Pairin Kitingan and state Industrial Development Minister Datuk
Raymond Tan on the proposed coal-fired power plant.

During that meeting, Musa told Najib of the Sabah people's unhappiness
over the project.

Meanwhile, Gerakan president Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon said the party
fully supported the decision by the government to scrap the proposed
coal-fired power plant project, that was in line with the
sustainability concept under the New Economic Model.

"This (decision) reflects the commitment of the chief minister and the
BN (Barisan Nasional) to continue to make environment as its main
agenda. So, this is most welcome," he said.

Koh, who is also minister in the Prime Minister's Department, said the
scrapping of the project was one of three reasons for BN to smile in
the Chinese New Year of the Rabbit.

The other two, he said, were the victory in the Batu Sapi
parliamentary by-election and Gerakan receiving many new members. —
Bernama

Amazed with Sabah's 4.5% growth vs 7 for malaysia, 14 for Singapore?

And this is despite having a positive trade balance of over 2, 000%!!!
Export is 20 times import.

No wonder Sabah is the poorest in the whole world.
Despite exporting so much, very little has gone into Sabah. over 95%
goes to develop Malaya.(West Malaysia).

Musa Aman dapat pujian

<b>Pengesahan buat Musa</b>: Muhyiddin Yassin menandatangani plak
menandakan lawatannya di tamu Donggongon di Penampang. Bersamanya
ialah Musa (kiri) dan Menteri Perusahaan, Perladangan dan Komoditi,
Tan Sri Bernard Dompok.

Pengesahan buat Musa: Muhyiddin Yassin menandatangani plak menandakan
lawatannya di tamu Donggongon di Penampang. Bersamanya ialah Musa
(kiri) dan Menteri Perusahaan, Perladangan dan Komoditi, Tan Sri
Bernard Dompok.

Timbalan perdana menteri kagum dengan pencapaian Sabah

Sabah mendapat RM5.7 bilion pelaburan tahun lalu, empat kali ganda
lebih banyak pada 2008, dan walaupun berlaku kegawatan global. Jumlah
ini hampir seperlima daripada RM32.6 bilion pelaburan yang diterima
Malaysia dan meletakkan negeri di timur Malaysia ini sebagai tumpuan
pelabur asing.

Ia adalah pelaburan dalam perindustrian merangkumi sektor pembuatan
galian bukan besi hinggalah kepada produk kimia, makanan, kertas dan
kayu-kayan.

Timbalan Perdana Menteri Datuk Muhyiddin Yassin agak kagum dengan
ketahanan ekonomi Sabah yang dijangka berkembang di antara 4 peratus
dan 4.5 peratus tahun ini. Ketika lawatan selama tiga hari di Sabah,
Muhyiddin berasa selesa membiarkan perkara berkaitan ekonomi selamat
di tangan Ketua Menteri Sabah, Datuk Musa Aman yang bekerja tanpa
mengenal penat untuk menjauhkan negeri ini daripada kesan kemelesetan
ekonomi dunia.

Sebaliknya, beliau mengalihkan perhatian kepada kekurangan sekolah di
Sabah yang menyaksikan banyak sekolah rendah berkongsi bangunan dengan
sekolah menengah. Sebagai menteri pendidikan, Muhyiddin berkata,
beliau berasa terkilan dengan keadaan itu dan berjanji untuk membuat
perubahan.

Dalam dialog dengan ahli perniagaan, Muhyiddin berkata, keseimbangan
jualan semula Sabah memberinya RM2.3 bilion. Kemelesetan melengahkan
eksport pada tahun lalu. Namun, Sabah masih mengeksport RM2.4 bilion
nilai komoditi primari, terutamanya minyak mentah sawit manakala ia
mengimport hanya RM125.5 juta hasil produk - kebanyakannya barangan
pengguna dan jentera. – Insight Sabah

Melaka get NGV Train while Sabah export NGV but no NGV Train

Melaka is to spend RM272 million for NGV Train while Sabah had to
spend 2.5Billion RM to supply this train with NGV, while having NO NGV
at all for Sabah.

The train in Sabah, after spending RM200 million, will use diesel
fuel, which has to be imported.

Melaka Tram to open to public in May 2012
2011/02/19

Share |

AYER KEROH -- Train maker, Mrails International Sdn Bhd expects its
RM272 million Melaka Tram, the first natural gas vehicle (NGV) powered
tram in the world, to open to the public in May next year.

Its president and managing director, Datuk Jeya Kumar said, the
implementation and application of the environmentally friendly "Next
Generation Tram" will revolutionise the locomotive industry.

"We will be using this technology to add convenience to culture and
enhance heritage without affecting the environment in compliance with
Melaka's status as a Unesco World Heritage Site," he told a media
briefing here today.

Kumar said the tram would scrap the traditional "pantograph" system in
keeping with the times and also in line with United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate Change to combat global warming.

"This also represents our vision to take part in Melaka's growth as an
ultimate destination centre for tourism, and marks our commitment to
creating sustainable transport systems," he added.

The ground breaking ceremony was performed by Prime Minister Datuk
Seri Mohd Najib Tun Razak.

Also present was Melaka Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Ali Rustam and
Terengganu Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Ahmad Said.

Melaka Tram was made official via an agreement between the Chief
Minister Incorporation (CMI) and Mrails in March last year.

Under the agreement, the company has agreed to design, construct and
finance, manage, maintain and supervise the road tramway and tramcar
operations for 25 years, while the financing of the project worth
RM272 million is borne by Mrails as well.

The company has also been charged with managing ticket collections for
25 years, with CMI taking 20 per cent in terms of ticket collection
and the balance by Mrails, Kumar said.

He highlighted that the Melaka Tram Corridor would begin from its
depot adjacent to the Ayer Keroh Toll Plaza heading to the heritage
town of Melaka with a distance of 40 kilometres covering 11 of
fourteen major tourist spots.

"We will work hand-in-hand with our partners, CNR Tangshan Railway
Vehicles Co Ltd, a Chinese-based locomotive manufacturer," he said.

The tram is a rail borne vehicle, lighter than a train and differs
from other forms of locomotion, as the tracks are embedded in the
street.

It is able to accommodate 120 passengers at one time, caters to the
disabled because its ground-level design and will operate at speeds of
40 km/h.

Kumar said Mrails, which is expecting at least a 40,000 ridership
daily, would make commuting affordable, with a fare charge of RM2.

It is free for the disabled and students.

Moving forward, the company intends to export its train to other
cities in the country as well as overseas, namely to India and Africa
next year, he said. -- BERNAMA

Read more: Melaka Tram to open to public in May 2012
http://www.nst.com.my/nst/articles/MelakaTramtoopentopublicinMay2012/Article/#ixzz1EQ1ndqlN