You are currently browsing the daily archive for October 16, 2008.
Parliament: Cops scared of crooks, so base closed!
KUALA LUMPUR: A police beat base in the Chow Kit area of downtown Kuala Lumpur was closed down because it was in a location that was considered unsafe, said Home Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar.
In a written reply to Dr Lo’ Lo’ Mohamad Ghazali (PAS-Titiwangsa), Syed Hamid said the beat base was located in a dirty area where there was a possibility of being exposed to contagious diseases.
The presence of criminals also posed a threat to the safety of police officers, he said.
Lo’ Lo’ had asked why the beat base on Jalan Haji Taib was closed considering the high number of vice-related activities in the area, as well as what kind action had been taken by the police to curb such activities.
Syed Hamid said that the police were looking for a new location to build a police beat base that would be able to give “guaranteed and continued service to the public.”
Lo’ Lo’s was the 30th question in the Order Paper and hence did not get a mention in the House during the daily one-hour Question Time. However, Dr Mohd Hatta Ramli (PAS-Kuala Krai) managed to raise it when he interjected during Azmin Ali’s (PKR-Gombak) speech during the debate on Budget 2009.
Dr Mohd Hatta said that if the police themselves felt unsafe in a beat base, then it would be even worse for the public.
“The minister has to resign if he is worried about the safety of police in that area. Maybe it would be better to put the beat base in army barracks,” he said.
Dr Mohd Hatta then managed to raise the issue again during his own debate on Budget 2009 saying that Syed Ali’s response was not rational.
“The police are there to make a place safe. If they themselves are scared and run away, then how can we hope for others to want to be there?
“It is embarassing and that is why the criminals will always be there,” he said.
Dr Mohd Hatta said if the place is dirty, then it is up to the police to organise gotong-royong activities to clean it up or if they did not want to then they should move to Putrajaya or Parliament.
“And what is this about contagious diseases on Jalan Haji Taib? The only kind of contagious diseases that are present there are sexually-transmitted ones.
“Is the minister scared that his charges will contract such diseases? That kind of thing is a matter of choice. In any case, if this is what he is worried about then we are worried that the police are not above this.”
Dr Mohd Hatta added that the police had to be brave people and that they were a different breed altogether when facing demonstrators. He said he hoped that the minister would clarify his written answer in the House as this is not the kind of police that the people want.
Full Star article here.
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Yer know what I thought, folks? I had a feeling this news report was published for comic relief since all the other stuff in the MSM seems rather distressing and ominous to read.
But hey, guess who’s the bloke in the limelight again here? Yeah, right! Our one and only Brown Baldy, SHA, the Homey minister with the biggest club.. baseball bat.. kahunas.. busiest pen.. ok lah whatever lah.. defending the MIBs (men in blue).
Sooo.. the next time if there’s a crime occuring somewhere near you, don’t look for MIBs coz the light ain’t on and they definitely ain’t home. Please call your nearest MP for help or assistance. And if yours happen to be one from BN, may God bless you with a long and healthy life, plus a stainless steel front door.
P.S. The link in the Star report was provided by the paper itself. Go lah and read its relevance to the inconveniences our minister can dole out for our well-being.
Friday October 10, 2008
Molotov cocktails thrown at eight vehicles
PETALING JAYA: A total of eight vehicles including a school bus were torched after molotov cocktails were thrown at them by two men on Friday morning.
The vehicles which were badly damaged in the arson included a Honda Civic, three Proton Iswaras, a Toyota Harrier, a Naza Ria, a Toyota Vios and a bus.
The arson attacks, believed to have occurred between 4am and 6.30am, were all in Petaling Jaya, on Jalan SS3, SS4/4D and SS5/5D in Kelana Jaya and in Sunway.
One of the car owners, who declined to be named, said he saw two men in a four-wheel drive, drive past his house with one of them standing in the back. The person at the back then lit a molotov cocktail before throwing it towards his car.
Later, all the vehicle owners lodged police reports.
Petaling Jaya OCPD Asst Comm Arjunaidi Mohamad confirmed the incidents, adding that police are investigating the motive for the attacks.
The case is being investigated under Section 435 of the Penal Code for causing mischief by fire with intent to cause damage.
Full Star report here.
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Just a reminder to jog your memory.
Since the day of the incident, I’ve not read any further reports nor was there a clear response or explanation from the RMP on who were the perpetrators.
Will there be more of such despicable acts in the near future and if so, can we consider it as random acts of mischief?
But what if it was not random?
Be aware and keep your eyes open, folks.
Camera phones will come in handy wherever you are. And stay safe, always.
Najib denies power abuse… again
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 16 – Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak again denied any abuse of power in in the Altantuya Shaariibuu murder case, telling Barisan Nasional MPs today that his associate Abdul Razak Baginda would be free if there was any interference.
“Najib said there is no abuse of power. If he did, Razak would be free,” a BN lawmaker told The Malaysian Insider after the breakfast meeting outside Parliament with Najib who, as BN chief whip, holds regular strategy meetings with the coalition’s lawmakers.
The deputy prime minister made similar denials two days ago as he tries to quell a fresh storm of allegations swirling around the case after Malaysia Today carried a report detailing what it alleged was an exchange of text messages between Najib and prominent lawyer Datuk Shafee Abdullah.
The lawyer initially represented Abdul Razak who was eventually charged with abetting two police officers in the murder of Altantuya in 2006.
Opposition politicians and critics have seized on text message exchanges published in the Malaysia Today news portal, whose editor Raja Petra Kamarudin is detained under the Internal Security Act and is facing criminal charges of sedition and criminal defamation related to the murder case.
In one SMS, Najib allegedly tells the lawyer that Razak – his advisor – “will face a tentative charge but all is not lost”.
Malaysia Today said this message raises some questions about Najib’s role in the case. “Why did he mention ‘tentative’ charge and that ‘all is not lost’ for RB (Razak Baginda)? How would Najib know this before Razak was charged? These are important questions which will have ramifications, not just on this case but far beyond,” a posting on the website said.
Meanwhile, Najib also told Umno lawmakers present at the meeting to reply and rebut allegations with substance, noting that some of them have done well with amply researched materials in the on-going budget debate.
“He told us that accusations such as the Eurocopter deal cannot be left unchallenged as public perception is important,” another BN lawmaker told The Malaysian Insider, referring to opposition claims that the recently-announced Eurocopter contract to replace the air force Nuri helicopters was rushed and too pricey.
Najib, who is aiming to replace Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi as prime minister next march, also cautioned Umno MPs not to hurt the feelings and sensitivities of lawmakers from BN component parties in their parliament replies as relations in the BN are tense following some racial slurs and statements by the Malay lawmakers.
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How in hell.. heavens will NTR rebut and deflect the recent allegations of the:
a) ‘private sms’ exchanged with a defense lawyer involved in a murder case (which he himself did not deny took place), and
B) the premature signing of a LOI to purchase military hardware from Eurocopter two days prior to a portfolio swap with AAB?
The Eurocopter deal is apparently under investigation by the PAC while AAB will be seeking clarification from the Defense secretary. The big question is – how could the LOI be issued when a full evaluation including mandatory test flights are prerequisite standard operating procedure in such matters? Malaysia-Today broke the story on 12th October ’08 with a full disclosure contained in a 5 page letter from one of the participating tenderer.
For the LOI to be signed two days prior to AAB’s entry looks deceptively suspicious considering he (AAB) was the person making the announcement. AAB was quoted in the MSM to have said ” We have signed a Letter of Intent with Eurocopter. Mindef has taken into consideration its needs and Eurocopter presented the best option among all the bidders.”
For the moment, all queries on the matter are met with the standard response, namely “We will check and announce the facts later”.
Therefore, if AAB was not thoroughly informed on the Eurocopter issue by NTR, was the former being set up by the latter to take the fallout when details of irregularities surfaces (as in the case with Mentari’s letter)? After all, with AAB’s pre-determined exit from public office by March ’09, NTR would have preferred any negative publicity be ‘assigned’ to the new Defense minister since nobody, especially from UMNO, would touch an outgoing lame duck politician.
On the other hand, AAB could verify the procedures leading to the LOI signing (i.e. two days prior to his appointment) and ascertain whether in fact a full evaluation was done (including test flights) to come clean on the matter.
And subsequently, RECONSIDER his full confidence on his number two because I don’t think AAB would like the spectre of a murder case to be linked to his legacy, if any.
Lastly, don’t you find it strange that the Eurocopter matter is supposedly under investigations by ‘independent’ state agencies whilst the ‘private sms’ issue has been conveniently ignored by UMNO/BN politicians.
Ain’t life cheap.. despite the facts?
O.B.E. 
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