Malaysian doctor fighting for life after fall in ravine

Malaysian doctor fighting for life after fall in ravine

Malaysian doctor fighting for life after fall in ravine

Posted: 31 Mar 2014 09:01 AM PDT

01 April 2014| last updated at 01:27AM
By ALIZA SHAH | news@nst.com.my

KUALA LUMPUR: A MALAYSIAN doctor working in Dublin, Ireland is fighting for his life due to severe head injuries after falling into a two-metre deep ravine during a cycling trip on Sunday.

Dr Zekri Hashim, 40, was cycling ahead of four other friends when he lost control of his bicycle near a bend while going downhill at Glendalough valley, located 60km from her during the 3.30pm (Dublin time) incident (10.30pm Malaysia time)

Some Irish cyclists, who were passing by the area, witnessed the incident and helped to pull him out of the ravine. Dr Zekri's four friends, however, only knew about the incident later as they were cycling far behind him.

A spokesman of the Malaysian Embassy in Ireland when contacted yesterday said Dr Zekri suffered severe head injuries and was currently warded at the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at St James Hospital, Dublin.

"He was airlifted by a helicopter to the hospital where he is reported to be in coma. His wife and the couple's two children are by his side waiting for him to regain consciousness."

The spokesman added that doctors were conducting more tests on Dr Zekri to ascertain the extent of his concussion and treating him for other injuries.

"Besides his head injury, doctors are saying that he sustained internal injuries as a result of the fall. He suffered bruises and other minor injuries to his face and other parts of his body."

Dr Zekri and his family have been residing in Dublin ever since he began serving as a doctor at one of the hospitals in the city.

Dr Zekri Hashim (fourth fom right) with his cycling team at one of their trips across the country in Dublin, Ireland. (Inset) Dr Zekri Hashim.

Najib 'did his duty'

Posted: 31 Mar 2014 09:00 AM PDT

01 April 2014| last updated at 01:41AM

KUALA LUMPUR: AUSTRALIAN Prime Minister Tony Abbott has backed his Malaysian counterpart's view that Malaysia Airlines (MAS) flight MH370's final flight path ended in the remote Indian Ocean.

    Abbott said he agreed with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak's view that the flight "ended" in the southern Indian Ocean as it was based on evidence which pointed to the conclusion.

    "The accumulation of evidence is that the aircraft has been lost and it has been lost somewhere in the south of the Indian Ocean.

    "That's the absolutely overwhelming wave of evidence and I think that Prime Minister Najib Razak was perfectly entitled to come to that conclusion, and I think once that conclusion had been arrived at, it was his duty to make that conclusion public," Abbott told  reporters at the Pearce Royal Australian Air Force Base, 40km north of Perth.

Abbott also said the search for debris of the aircraft was an "extraordinarily challenging exercise", as the joint  forces were  searching a vast area of ocean on quite limited information.

"Nevertheless, the best brains in the world are applying themselves to this task, all of the technological mastery that we have is being applied and brought to bear here.

"If this mystery is solvable, we will solve it," he said.

Abbot said numerous objects had been spotted in the past days since the new search area was defined but none had been confirmed as coming from flight MH370.

"Searchers need to recover debris to better understand what happened to the plane," he added.

Besides, he said there was no time limit on the search to find the missing jetliner.

"We can keep searching and we will keep searching for quite some time to come," he said, adding that the intensity and magnitude of their search were increasing.

"We owe it to the families, we owe it to everyone that travels by air, we owe it to the governments of the countries who had citizens on that aircraft, we owe it to the wider world which has been transfixed by this mystery for three weeks now," he was quoted as saying.

He said Australia has been coordinating the international search mission for the missing plane, comprising about 100 personnel searching from on board surveillance aircraft and 1,000 sailors in ships in or near the search zone.

Abbott has acknowledged the Royal Malaysian Air Force's (RMAF) tireless efforts as "extraordinary" in the search for MH370.

Meanwhile, Timor Leste Prime Minister Kay Rala Xanana Gusmao commended the government and MAS for their efforts in searching for the missing craft.

Meanwhile, China's Xinhua news agency has quoted Abbott as saying that Australia's regular military cooperation with the United States, New Zealand, Malaysia, China, Japan, and South Korea was heartening.

Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott says Datuk Seri Najib Razak's conclusion is based on evidence, at the Pearce Royal Australian Air Force Base in Bullsbrook, Australia. AFP pic

Humbled by homestay

Posted: 31 Mar 2014 09:00 AM PDT

01 April 2014| last updated at 01:17AM
By ALYAA SOFIAH TAJUDIN | news@nst.com.my

KUALA LUMPUR: SOME 30 undergraduates from 18 institutions of higher learning took part in a two-week homestay programme by Yayasan Sukarelawan Siswa (YSS) in Santubong, Sarawak.

 They stayed with adopted families in Kampung Beradek.

 The programme which started on March 23 saw participation from Majlis Perundingan Pelajar Kebangsaan (MPPK), Institut Pendidikan Guru (IPG) Kampus Pendidikan Islam (IPGKPI), Kampus Ilmu Khas (IPGKIK), Kampus Bahasa Antarabangsa (IPGKBA) and Multimedia University (MMU).

 Chairman of YSS Datuk Zuraidah Atan said the reception at Kampung Beradek was incredible as the foster families treated the participants like  their own children.

 She said she sympathised with the foster parents because their own children had left their homes to move to bigger cities like Kuching, Sibu and Kuala Lumpur.

  Zuraidah said the Kampung Beradek families comprised slightly more than a hundred families living on an island and their only mode of transportation were rickety fishing boats.

  "Our participants were really worried when they first got on the boats and they were clutching their life-jackets and haversacks but later they got used to it," she said.

 Zuraidah said the boat trip usually lasted up to an hour but was  slightly faster during high tide.

"When the tide is low, you can see crocodiles lurking along the edges of the river," she said.

 She added that she was humbled by the way the folks of Kampung Beradek treated them and that the experience would motivate the undergraduates to contribute to society.

 The homestay programme also involved another 30 undergraduates who were stationed at Kampung Maludam, Batang Lupar, in Sarawak.  In return for their hospitality, the 60 participants focused on teaching English, Mathematics and Science subjects to children as well as counseled them on health awareness and personal hygiene.

Akhbar returns as CFE president

Posted: 31 Mar 2014 09:00 AM PDT

01 April 2014| last updated at 01:18AM

He retained his position at the chapter's bi-annual general meeting here last Sunday.

Certified Fraud Examiners are trained to identify the warning signs and red flags, which indicate evidence of fraud and fraud risk.

They also help to protect the global economy by uncovering fraud and implementing procedures to prevent fraud from occurring.

CFE also specialises in fraud prevention, detection and deterrence.

The Malaysian chapter is part of the certified fraud examiners Austin, the United States. It is the world's premier provider of anti-fraud training and education.

Akhbar, who is also the Transparency International Malaysia president and director of Institute of Crime and Criminology, Help University, holds a Master in Criminal Justice Studies from University of Detroit.

The Malaysian chapter of CFE's executive council position's of deputy president, secretary-general, assistant secretary, treasurer and director of training were also filled uncontested. They are Mohd Yunos Yusof, Aaron Lau, Helen Quat, Kanakaraja Muthusamy and Lee Long How, respectively.  

    New general committee members of CFE elected are Raveendra Kumar Nathan, Raymon Ram, Saravanan M. Selvaratnam and Siti Subaidah.

Pilot's daughter angered by 'Daily Mail' report

Posted: 31 Mar 2014 09:00 AM PDT

01 April 2014| last updated at 01:42AM

   Aishah Zaharie, 28, took to Facebook on Sunday to vent her anger over the report, which claimed that she had told investigators her father had seemed "disturbed and lost in a world of his own" prior to the Malaysian Airlines' aircraft's disappearance on March 8.

    In a post on her Facebook account, Aishah said:     "Dear Daily Mail, you should consider making movies since you are so good at making up stories and scripts out of thin air.     

"May God have mercy on your souls. You can bet your *** I will not forgive you."

    She also quoted a verse from the Quran, which translated to "And spreading lies is worse than killing".

    The Daily Mail report, published online on Saturday, had also claimed that Aishah's mother, Faizah Khanum Mustafa Khan, told police that her husband had been withdrawn and distracted in the days before the jetliner went missing on its way to Beijing.

    It was not the first time the tabloid's coverage of the missing aircraft, which has been heavily focused on Zaharie and his family, has been questioned.

    Early in the MH370 investigation, the Daily Mail had come under fire for reports that Zaharie, a supporter of opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, had been a political fanatic who was upset over the verdict of Anwar's latest sodomy trial.

    Meanwhile, Malaysian Pilots Association president Captain Abdul Manan Mansor denied a separate report in Daily Mail, which quoted him as saying that Zaharie was "psychologically unstable" following the breakdown of his marriage.

     Manan said he had never spoken to the Daily Mail.

    "You can disregard the entire article," he said yesterday.

   The Aviation Management College chief executive asserted that he did not know Zaharie personally and would not have known of any marital problems he may or may not have had.

Manan also refuted claims that he had pinpointed Zaharie as having flown the aircraft up and down 45,000 feet to give passengers positive and negative g-forces in an attempt to  disarm them.

Activist Fernandez dies at 67

Posted: 31 Mar 2014 09:00 AM PDT

01 April 2014| last updated at 01:18AM

  Her sister, Josie Fernandez, who was former secretary-general of Transparency International Malaysia (TI-M),  said Irene possessed a heart that gave unconditional love and care to anyone regardless of their background.

  "I remember vividly when some 20 years ago on Christmas day, Irene brought home several women who were rescued from traffickers and did not have a place to stay.

  "She celebrated Christmas with all of them, and made them feel happy," Josie said, choking with emotion.

   Irene, who last served as executive director for Tenaganita, has been pursuing causes for human and women rights in the country since the 1970s.

She was considered as the backbone of the movement.

   Irene, 67, died because of heart failure at 10.58am yesterday.

 She is survived by her husband Joseph Paul and three children, Tania Joe, Camvera Jose and Katrina Jorene.

  Josie said despite Irene's dedication to her causes, the latter never failed in her duties as a daughter, sister, wife and mother.

  Josie and her sister Aegil Fernandez had initially made plans to celebrate Irene's birthday on Good Friday on April 18.

  She said the family had hoped that Irene would fully recover from her illness, as she had shown some signs of recovery and was shocked over her sudden loss.

  Six days ago, Irene who lived in Seremban, was rushed to Serdang Hospital after suffering from a heart complication.

Josie said Irene wanted her urn to be buried alongside their parents' grave in Sungai Petani, Kedah.

  The family will conduct a wake for Irene at her family's home at 570, Lorong Jambu, 1/3 Taman Sungai Ujung, Seremban until Thursday morning.

A funeral service will then be held at the Church of Divine Mercy in Shah Alam at 3pm on Thursday.