Looming Water Crisis in Selangor

 Contrary to statements by the Selangor Government, the Klang Valley is heading towards a major crisis worse than the 1998 water shortage.

(During the 1999 water shortage seven districts and 1.8 million people were affected over six months)


Here is te NST repor:

Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya Water Association vice-president Aldric Loong Kim Yew said water reserve levels were nearing zero because of prolonged spells of hot and dry weather.

According to the most recent data by Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor (Syabas), the average water demand in Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya has risen to 4,364 million litres per day — close to the water treatment plants’ maximum operating and distribution capacity of 4,371 million litres per day.

“This shows that there is near-zero reserve capacity to cater for any rise in water demand, particularly during peak periods.

“Very low levels during peak demand will mean our treated water reservoirs cannot be replenished during off-peak demand periods, as they would have been under normal circumstances,” Loong said in a statement yesterday.

He said the situation was set to worsen for consumers if the stalemate between the Selangor government and water suppliers remained unresolved.

He criticised the Selangor government’s assertions that dams in the state were full and consumers would not face water shortages.

“The state government is obviously confused. It is referring to the seven dams in Selangor which act to store surface water or raw water, when Syabas is referring to the reservoirs storing treated water for supply to consumers.”
 
Loong also said the Selangor government had no expertise to take over the state’s water supply as the entire operation had been privatised.

“At the very least, they owe a duty to the citizens of the state to listen to the authorities and operators who know of the true situation and to act responsibly in the interests of consumers.”
Syabas said 134 areas were expected to experience water disruptions this week, including 86 areas in Shah Alam, Klang and Hulu Langat.

Consumers who need water supply through tankers or wish to get more information on disruptions can contact the Puspel customer service centre at 1-800-88-5252 or SMS by typing Puspel complaints/inquiry and send to 39222. They can also lodge complaints by typing “puspel” or “puspel syabas” on Facebook and Twitter.

Also read Rocky's Bru

And BigCat

Wah! Gua Caya Lu....

These are photos - lots of them -  of Lim Guan Eng, all spread out in the DAP's Buletin Mutiara.

NST has a little story on it HERE

Blogger Helen Ang who first posted about it, takes a real good swipe HERE.

Bigcat from down south is giggling no end. Read his posting HERE.

"Depa punya buletin, suka hati depa, naah," ujar kawan saya di Pulau Pinang.

As for me -- well waddya know...The man is having his moment..He's the chief now, after all. And as Ms Ang said -- "Dear leader Kim Guan Eng.."



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Flight Attendants Want To Be Postal Voters

BANGI: The National Union of Flight Attendants Malaysia (NUFAM) want the government to consider allowing cabin crew from MAS, Air Asia and Fire Fly to cast early or postal votes in the general election.
Its president Ismail Nasaruddin Abd Wahab claimed that during the last general election, 5,000 cabin crew could not vote due to work commitments.
"We have about 5,000 cabin crew who could not vote because they were working. So we request the government to categorise them as postal voters just like media pratitioners and national security forces personnel," he said in a dialogue session with Deputy Minister in Prime Minister's Department Ahmad Maslan here.
The dialogue also raised issues faced by workers in the airline industry which covered salary increments, the rights and future of flight crew, retirement, female workers' rights and assistance for cabin crew who were single mothers.
Ahmad Maslan received the memorandum and assured that it would be brought to the attention of the Prime Minister - Bernama

Hari ini Hari Felda. Hari Peneroka.

KUALA LUMPUR: Felda Global Ventures Bhd (FGV) was in the limelight today (Thursday, June 28)  making a firm debut on the Main Market.
FGV closed 75 sen or nearly 16.5% higher at RM5.30 with 261.57 million shares done. It was the second largest initial public offer this year after Facebook.- (The Star)

Not Another One....

I know you're innocent until proven guilty...
but just so many of them. And they have enough people who believe in them.



That is why I never trust people in kopiah....
or those who show off their "religiousness".


Too many (who appear to be so religious)  have been proven to be fraud, fakes, cheats, liars....

This case of City Harvest Church founder Kong Hee in Singapore reminds me of THIS and so many others...

(a couple of readers took exception to my above remarks about people wearing kopiah. I apologize. I agree it is a sweeping statement. Let me just say that I don't trust people who show off their religiousness. If they happen to wear a kopiah, that's a coincident. I've known of real cases of supposedly religious people who were caught in intimate and compromising situations with women (not their wives), steal from orphans and haj pilgrims. They happen to wear  a kopiah. Again, my apologies for my sweeping remark.)

Mid Valley Steps Up Security....

KUALA LUMPUR (Thurs June 28): Mid Valley City Megamall, in an effort to help improve security in the shopping mall's car park following a recent robbery there, has installed "panic" or "help" buttons on selected pillars marked with the "HELP" sign.

  A company spokeswoman said in a statement immediate assistance can be rendered when the panic button is pressed.

  

Additional CCTVs were being installed to further enhance surveillance coverage.  There are now  more than 200 CCTVs in the car park and related areas and more than 2,000 CCTVs within Mid-Valley City. 

 

The shopping mall also has a 24-hour security escort service, which is extended to customers for the collection of their vehicles.   

This service is available at security counter in car park lobbies located at Zone A, P1 and Zone B, P2 or via the information counters and the security hotline. 

The shopping mall's security control room operates 24 hours and can be reached via telephone at 03–2938 3244 for Mid Valley City Megamall and 03–2289 8777 for The Gardens Mall. 

The spokeswoman said security in the car park is being stepped up. Additional personnel are being deployed at strategic points and increased frequency of patrolling.

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I hope other shopping centres are doing the same. People, especially want to feel safe at places they frequent. Places that are supposed to be safe where women and children hang out....


You know, if women decide to avoid shopping centres, baru tau!

Bukit Aman To Meet Mall Management on Security

From The Star
KUALA LUMPUR: Bukit Aman will be meeting with shopping mall security management teams to address the recent cases of women who were attacked at several shopping mall car parks in the city.
Federal CID director Comm Datuk Seri Mohd Bakri Zinin said he planned to organise the meeting as soon as possible to discuss security measures employed by the shopping malls.

Comm Mohd Bakri said most cases of theft and armed robbery involved male suspects.

“These suspects are highly opportunistic and look for the easiest way to rob a victim.
“The reason most of these criminals attack women is because they are less likely to fight back,” he told The Star.

He added that the environment and surrounding area also played a big part in criminal activity.

“In most of these cases, the attacks took place in dark, secluded areas and criminals are more likely to attack in these areas as there is less likelihood of people witnessing their crimes.”
Comm Mohd Bakri said upgrading closed-circuit camera systems (CCTV) at shopping mall car parks would be one of the topics discussed as it helped in identifying criminals.

The cases of women being attacked by armed men came to light after Internet marketeer Chin Xin-Ci posted on Facebook her ordeal of being attacked and almost kidnapped by two men at a shopping mall car park.
Less than 24 hours after that incident, two women were robbed of RM80,000 from the same place.
Following that, another woman was robbed at the outdoor parking lot near 1Utama shopping centre on June 4.
The suspect who was armed with a parang approached her as she was getting into her car and forced her to drive to an ATM.
More recently a woman nearly had her finger severed by an armed robber as she stopped in front of her friend’s house along Jalan Datuk Sulaiman 4 at Taman Tun Dr Ismail.
Just 32 hours earlier, another woman was robbed and slashed on the head while she was walking towards her car at the Mid Valley MegaMall car park.

---------------------------------

I beg to differ with Bakri: these days criminals are targeting "ordinary" neighbourhoods and relatively safe areas. 

That is why you hear sighs of dismay and despair : "It's not safe to walk to your neighbour's house now", "it's not safe to be in front of your gate now", "it's not safe to park in shopping centres anymore".

 IT'S NOT SAFE ANYWHERE ANYMORE!

We've all got to learn to accept that no where is safe?That is so sad.
 Anywhere can be a criminal's target because, most times, these criminals are "opportunistic", yet they do their own background checks. that is why they know where to best get their victims.

The Curve parking area is one of the safest, I'll tell you that. I've been there at 10pm at night to join my siblings or friends at Red Box...Balik lambat - tak ada hal dan tak takut sebab bright at all levels.

Where the girl was mugged and slashed in Mid Valley -- that is near the GSC  and bright and lots of people coming by.

It is "that moment"  the the criminals wait for and seize. 


The victim at Jalan Datuk Sulaiman 4 - well, I know the case personally because the mother of  the girl whose friend was mugged and robbed is a close friend of mine and she called me early that morning to relate the incident.

Her friend (the victim) was slashed and had her finger almost severed. Thank God the neighbours came out when she screamed, and seconds later my friend's daughter also screamed when she came out after hearing her friend's scream. 

My friend was in Taiping and when it happened, her daughter called her -- panic and all. I facebooked and tweeted the incident.


The entrance leading to Jalan Datuk Sulaiman 4 at one end, and at the other end (exit/entrance) are manned by security guards. And these bad guys still find their way into the area.


Just two days ago, my nephew's friend was chased by a motorcyclist near Plaza Damansara, Bukit Damansara.. It's crazy.


Some time ago, a close friend of my daughter's was robbed by two men armed with parangs in front of her house in Section 17, PJ. They were in a Proton. Thank God she was not harmed.

It is frightening. 


One more thing the Bukit Aman must take note -- these muggers are getting more and more violent. They do not just snatch your bag -- theymakesure they hit your head or slash you first. Before or after the act. That is the most horrific part. In isolated cases, they use acid to bring you down or "alat renjatan elektrik" to cripple you momentarily.

That is why, the police must must hunt them down and send the message that these b*****d cannot get away with it!

As for shopping centres and malls -- well -- unless they're happy seeing their patrons get mugged and slashed and bloodied -- they can happily pretend security and safety are not important.

 And ladies, young and old, stay alert, and safe.


If you're up to it -- take up martial arts. Seriously!

Anger Over Tor-Tor As Malaysian Heritage Escalates

Senseless, senseless. As though you even care for the Mendailing community. Bodoh.


JAKARTA (June 23) : The Mandailing cultural controversy worsened, as several sections of the Malaysia Hall building here were damaged by large stones hurled by about 50 rioters.

Non-governmental organisation, Pancasila Youths, who earlier torched the Malaysian flag and hurled eggs in the compound of the Malaysian Embassy in Kuningan after Friday prayersYesterday , headed for Malaysia Hall in Jalan Hos Cokroaminoto, Menteng, and began acting more violently.

At Malaysia Hall, they attacked a security personnel who sustained slight injuries, threw large stones and pieces of wood which shattered the warden's windows, apart from damaging the main gate and messing up the windows by hurling eggs.

The stones thrown by the rioters also damaged the front roof of Malaysia Hall yesterday.
Education Malaysia director Prof Madya Dr Juzhar Jusoh said the incident at Malaysia Hall occured at 1.45pm.

Following the attack, Jakarta's Malaysia Hall Security personnel Bambang Sukrisno lodged a police report.

In the demonstration in front of the Malaysian Embassy, the Pancasila Youths, joined by other students, protested against Malaysia's move to recognise the Tor-tor dance and the striking of the Gordaang Sembilan as one of the branches of the national heritage.

Meanwhile, witnesses told The Star that yesterday's attack was the most violent.
It is understood that some of the stones hurled at the Malaysia Hall were as big as a human head. - Bernama

Enough Already!

Frankly, I am sick and tired of the ravings and rantings of some Indonesians whenever Malaysia makes "claims" over a dance, or a song or whatever that originated from Indonesia. It doesn't help that their politicians including ministers, academicians and people of some standing, are leading the chants.

What part of our shared history do you not understand?

We share a cultural heritage. Get over it. Deal with it.

We do not claim that "batik", "rasa sayang" and "reyog"  originated in Malaysia. But they've been in Malaysia a mighty long time. courtesy of those who came from Indonesia.
So,  we want to claim them as our cultural heritage. Why not? They belong to the people who came from Java and Sumatra during a time when neither Indonesia nor Malaysia was a sovereign nation.

Don't you know that the Malay community in Malaysia comprise ethnic groups from Java, Sumatra, and Bawean, among others.

Everytime this sort of thing happens. the Indonesians will ungkit balik the "pendet" (Balinese origin) issue. Everytime they forget to say that Malaysia never claimed that "pendet" was Malaysian. The producers of the programme on the Discovery channel made that mistake. When this became an issue, the producers explained and apologized and took out that part from the segment.

The latest, of course, is the Tor Tor dance. I bet you guys didn't even know what it is before the issue exploded. Maybe some of you still do not know what it is.

It is a Batak/Mendailing (ethnic group from Northern Sumatra) dance. There is a large Mendailing community in Malaysia who came to these shores more than a century ago. They are proud of their heritage. Isn't that a good thing?

Indonesia should be happy that Malaysians of Mendailing descent have been able to preserve their culture.


Here's why I so agree with Farish Noor when he tells Indonesia and Malaysia to celebrate our shared history.

I also like Pangeran Siaahan's take on the issue where he is so bemused by the antics of his countrymen and women.

Coca Cola Boss: We Didn't Do It!

Yes sir. It's so easy to blame those  sugary fizzy drinks for people's obesity. They all blamed McDonald's Big Mac and God-knows-what for the fat they piled up.

Coca-Cola CEO Muhtar Kent must have had enough - he insists his company is not responsible for the rise in US obesity despite New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg's recent moves to limit the consumption of sugary drinks.

The Wall Street Journal, in an interview, quoted him :
"This is an important, complicated societal issue that we all have to work together to provide a solution.
"That's why we are working with government, business and civil society to have active lifestyle programs in every country we operate by 2015," Kent said.

The rest of the article:

His remarks came just weeks after the health-conscious Bloomberg proposed a ban on super-sized soft drinks that would restrict the sale to 16-ounce servings, more than an average can but far less than the bucket-sized beverages offered at cinemas, service stations and sporting events.

Kent said Coca-Cola has diversified from its namesake, offering a wide range of healthy teas, juices, sports drinks and other products.

"We've gone from being a single-beverage, single-brand company to now 500-plus brands, 3,000 products. Eight hundred of these products we've introduced in the last four or five years are calorie-free or low-calorie.

"It is, I believe, incorrect and unjust to put the blame on any single ingredient, any single product, any single category of food," he said.

Bloomberg said the proposed ban was needed to confront the "epidemic" of obesity in the United States, which contributes to rising health costs.

Critics have derided the proposed ban as a "nanny state" overreach of government power.
They have also faulted the mayor for seeking to restrict certain unhealthy habits -- like smoking and sugary drinks -- while the city hosts eat-athons like the annual Coney Island hotdog competition.

The proposed measure would target fast-food and other restaurants, delis, and places of public entertainment like stadiums. It would not cover drinks sold in supermarkets or any diet, fruit, dairy or alcoholic drinks.

Air Asia's New CEO

This is Aireen Omar who will head Air Asia's local operations.

She takes over from Tony Fernandes who is now CEO for the AirAsia group, and who will be moving to Jakarta to oversee its regional expansion plans.

Prior to the appointment, Aireen was AirAsia’s regional head of corporate finance and treasury.
She assumes her new post on July 1, reporting directly to Fernandes.

AirAsia co-founder Kamarudin Meranun, in a glowing appraisal of Aireen said: “During the credit crisis, Aireen kept AirAsia ahead of the curve.”

Reuters quoted Kamaruddin: “While other companies fell into trouble securing any financing at all, Aireen was able to lock up financing at very competitive rates for two years for the purchase of aircraft for Airasia.”

Remembering Bapak On Father's Day

Bapak never cared much for Father's Day. But he humoured us when we celebrated it each time. Especially when the grandchildren came.

For someone who never quite cared for Father's Day, he always made it special for us and the grand kids. He was oh-so sporting.

And of course, he never minded the presents. Especially from the grandkids. Father's Day was Datuk's Day for them.

Bapak left us on Sept 4, 2008 during Ramadan. He was 84.

We miss you, Bapak.
Al Fatihah.

Go Get Them, this Gen Y kids..

They can make YOU happen. or Not.

Get them off the fence! Read the Star story HERE

Singapore Bans The "Financially Vulnerable" From Casinos..

I like this.
But imagine if the Malaysian government were to do that....

SINGAPORE: The Singapore government announced Thursday that an additional 15,000 Singaporeans and Permanent Residents (PRs) will be prohibited from entering the two casinos in the city-state to strengthen existing social safeguards and to protect the financially vulnerable from casino gambling.

 From July 1, about 12,000 short to medium-term recipients of ComCare, a sustainable fund for assistance programmes for low-income Singaporeans, will be excluded from casinos.

 

Another 3,000 HDB flat tenants paying subsidised rents with rental arrears of 6 months or more will also be barred from August 1 this year, Xinhua news agency reported.

 

There are currently about 28,000 persons who are excluded from the casinos under third-party casino exclusion, including undischarged bankrupts and those receiving long-term public assistance and special grants.

 

The extensions to more financially vulnerable persons was earlier announced in February, with the target of moving proactively to address "the small but increasing proportion of low income gamblers who betted large amounts."

 

The third-party casino exclusion is administered by the National Council on Problem Gambling.

 

Family Exclusion empowers a family that is adversely affected by a problem gambler to exclude the person from the casinos, while Self-Exclusion give individuals the choice to exclude themselves from the casinos if it is necessary. -- BERNAMA

Oh. Just Read This...

32 Innovations That Will Change Your Tomorrow

(courtesy - The New York Times)

Surviving Print ....

Here or there in the US, the same story is played.

(From The New York Times)

The news waits for no one. But newspapers might start asking readers to — at least for print copies.

Almost two weeks ago, The Times-Picayune in New Orleans, which is owned by Advance Publications, announced that it would cut back its print schedule to just three days a week. Within hours, its sister publications The Birmingham News, The Press-Register of Mobile and The Huntsville Times followed suit. Four days later, Postmedia announced that three of its papers, The Calgary Herald, The Edmonton Journal and The Ottawa Citizen would all eliminate their Sunday editions.

Newspaper executives across the industry lament the loss of the daily print paper, but concede they might follow the same path. John Paton, chief executive officer of Digital First Media, which operates 75 daily newspapers, said he would consider reducing his print schedule when there was enough digital advertising to support it.

Read the rest of the article HERE....

Champions of Press Freedom? My Foot!

There is a circular, allegedly issued by the DAP-led Penang government, instructing its councillors not to talk to reporters from New Straits Times and Utusan Malaysia,

Even if there were no such circular, we've known that since Lim Guan Eng became chief minister of the DAP-led Penang government, he's barred NST, Utusan and TV3 journalists from his events or got the organisers not to invite these media companies to their events where he would be guest.

Mean fellow. Bikin tak serupa cakap. Baru chief minister. Imagine if you were the PM?

Anyway, here's a News Straits Times report:

KUALA LUMPUR: A circular, allegedly issued by the DAP-led Penang government barring its councillors from talking to reporters from New Straits Times and Utusan Malaysia, showed it was being "hypocritical".

 Speaking to the NST yesterday, veteran journalist Datuk Ahiruddin Attan said the party, which claimed to champion freedom of speech, was doing the exact opposite now that they were in power. "For many years (as a journalist), I have known these politicians. They were my contacts and friends and they always claimed they would give us a better environment to work in when they come into power.
"But suddenly, instead of giving us more room to move, they are making it more difficult for us and accusing us of being part of their rival, which is Barisan Nasional, when most of us are not even members of any political party," said Ahiruddin, who is a former chairman of the National Press Club.
Describing the move as "very sickening", he said journalists in this country had never been treated "this badly" throughout his profession as a journalist for the past 27 years.
He said journalists had always fought for better and greater freedom in reporting everytime the administration of the country changes.
"Whether it was under Tun Hussein Onn, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad or Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, we always have to fight for greater press freedom but we have never been treated this way by this (state) government."
The National Union of Journalists (NUJ) has also urged the Penang government not to penalise the reporters just because they were angry with the media owners.

Continue reading here.

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