‘Take auditor’s suggestions seriously’

‘Take auditor’s suggestions seriously’

‘Take auditor’s suggestions seriously’

Posted: 22 Apr 2014 09:01 AM PDT

23 April 2014| last updated at 12:35AM
By FAZLEENA AZIZ | fazleena@nst.com.my

PUTRAJAYA: THE Public Higher Educational Institutions (IPTA) Vice-Chancellor/Rector Committee must take  suggestions made in the recent Auditor-General's Report 2013 seriously.

Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, who is also education minister, said all suggestions in the report should be used as a guidance to improve any flaws in their administration.

"The institutions should learn from the report and suggestions pointed out in it," he said during his opening speech at the first IPTA Vice-Chancellor/Rector Committee 2014 meeting yesterday.

The Auditor-General's First Series Report 2013 had stated that the ministry had failed to properly monitor achievements and funds under the Fundamental Research and Grant Scheme (FRGS) at IPTAs.

It was reported that only 1,309 research projects were completed from the 2,144 projects approved in 2010.

The report also revealed that Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris (UPSI) had installed various public address systems but had to later fork out RM24,000 to remove them. The report on UPSI revealed that there was no need to install the PA system as the meeting rooms had seating capacities of between 12 and 16 people.

The Public Accounts Committee's (PAC) had since announced its decision to summon five ministries, including the education ministry, to explain shortcomings indicated in the report.

Muhiyiddin said IPTA administrations should emphasise on financial sustainability at their universities to ensure a competitive edge in the higher education ecosystem.

"There should be a practical check and balance instead of just depending on government grants. Vice chancellors are urged to work together with the Higher Education Department and Higher Education Leadership Academy (AKEPT) for a succession plan to identify those who can lead the institutions.

"Those identified can be trained at AKEPT, thus ensuring successors in heading the universities in the future."

On the 11th Malaysia Plan, Muhyiddin said the government was in the process of getting feedback from various sectors and groups. He also chaired the first committee meeting with 20 vice- chancellors yesterday.

Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin chairing the Public Higher Educational Institutions (IPTA) Vice-Chancellor/Rector Committee meeting in Putrajaya at the Education Ministry yesterday.

DAP to meet on by-election

Posted: 22 Apr 2014 09:01 AM PDT

23 April 2014| last updated at 11:54PM

State DAP chief Chow Kon Yeow said the meeting would include discussions on the candidacy and strategy for the by-election.

"We will also look at the logistics and statistics of the election," he said yesterday.

The Bukit Gelugor parliamentary seat was left vacant following the death of its incumbent, Karpal Singh, who was killed in a car accident near Gopeng, Perak, last week.

Asked on reports that Karpal's son, Ramkarpal, 39, would contest the seat, Chow said: "I do not know. I am not aware of this."

The Election Commission will convene tomorrow to decide on a date for the by-election. In the last general election, Karpal won the seat with a 41,778-majority, beating newcomer Teh Beng Yeam from the MCA.

Karpal's widow, Gurmit Kaur, thanked the people for their condolence messages and for honouring him with a state funeral on Sunday. Karpal's eldest son, Datuk Keramat state assemblyman Jagdeep Singh Deo thanked the Kampar and Raja Permaisuri Bainun hospitals in Perak for their assistance.

Jagdeep said an "akhand path" prayers (continuous recitation of the Guru Granth Sahib, the Sikh holy book) would take place at Wadda Gurdwara in Jalan Gurdwara for three days from tomorrow morning.

On Monday, Karpal's ashes were scattered in the sea near his legal firm in Jalan Green Hall. A memorial service for Karpal will be held on May 5.

The late Karpal Singh's son, Jagdeep Singh Deo, with his mother Gurmit Kaur at a press conference at Komtar in George Town yesterday. Pic by Amir Irsyad Omar

US teachers boost students' English

Posted: 22 Apr 2014 09:01 AM PDT

23 April 2014| last updated at 12:02AM
By T.N. ALAGESH | news@nst.com.my

KUANTAN: THE command of English among students in Pahang has greatly improved thanks to the Fulbright English Teaching Assistant (ETA) programme.

Pahang education director Rosdi Ismail said young American graduates from universities in the United States involved in the programme had been dedicated educators, who went the extra mile to help students improve their spoken and written English.

He also attributed the state's increased passing rate for the English subject in major government examinations, to these teaching assistants.

Particularly evident, he added were the confidence exuding from students in rural districts, who now appeared more confident in speaking and writing in English.

"We have seen a marked improvement in the students' grasp of English and we have also expanded this programme over last few years.

"Schools from other districts have also shown keen interest to participate in the ETA programme and we are trying to accommodate their request.

"The programme has had a positive impact on students as the ETAs help make learning English more interesting by organising outdoor camps, visiting Orang Asli settlements and allocating extra hours after school," he said.

Former Pahang education department English language assistant director Faridah Abdul Rahman said the ETA programme had also helped create a close bond between the Americans and local students as the teaching assistants treated the students like their close friends.

"Students are no longer shy to participate in activities, including discussions and quizzes.

"I notice that every year, our students would be eager to welcome the ETAs while the teaching assistants themselves seem to enjoy their stint," she said, adding that some of the ETAs had also applied to return for another teaching stint.

She said the ETAs also had mentors, most of whom were teachers from the same school.

"Their mentors play a crucial role in helping them adapt to the local culture and make their stay here more comfortable

"I was also informed that thanks to the ETA's, not only are students from Orang Asli settlements picking up the language, their parents and siblings are also learning new English words.

"The lack of facilities at Orang Asli settlements and some schools has never dampened the spirits of the ETAs, as they always make the best of what they have to make teaching the subject interesting."

Currently, there are 20 ETAs teaching at 20 schools throughout Pahang.

The Fulbright ETAs began arriving in Malaysia in 2012 for their 10-month stints at schools in Terengganu, Johor and Pahang.

The ETA programme is the result of a shared commitment by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak and US President Barack Obama, to expand people-to-people exchange programmes between the two countries.

The programme is administered jointly by the Malaysian-American Commission on Educational Exchange and the Education Ministry.

Fulbright English teaching assistant Lauren Parson, 23, using the New Straits Times in lessons with students of SMK Teluk Chempedak in Kuantan. Pic by Afif Abd Halim

From strength to strength

Posted: 22 Apr 2014 09:01 AM PDT

KUALA LUMPUR: MALAYSIA has had ties with the United States for centuries, if historical sources are to be believed.

According to Pamela Sodhy, writing for the Institute of Strategic and International Studies, historical sources quote the earliest contact between what would later become Malaysia and the so-called New World, were forged in 1677 "when a Captain Davenport from Boston arrived aboard an English ship, the Flying Eagle".

Of course, both Malaya and America were then colonies, the former under the Dutch and the latter largely under Britain.

Sodhy maintains that what ties there were between Malaya and the US were economic in nature, with the latter needing tin and rubber, until 1945, when the Cold War took centre stage and "ushered in a new theme, the containment of communism".

Malaya received assistance from the US during the Emergency indirectly as the American government sent military aid to the United Kingdom for the purpose. In the Confrontation, the US sided with Malaysia against Indonesia.

In return, Malaysia supported the US during the Vietnam War by training South Vietnamese and American advisers in jungle warfare.

With the end of the Cold War, however, a new threat arrived -- that of international terrorism. And, the US and Malaysia enjoy strong security cooperation in this aspect, too.

Kuala Lumpur hosts the Southeast Asia Regional Centre for Counterterrorism (SEARCCT), where hundreds around the world have undergone training. The US collaborates extensively with SEARCCT on such training programmes.

The US and Malaysia both participate actively in the Contact Group on Piracy off the coast of Somalia, coordinating in efforts to fight piracy in the Gulf of Aden and the Horn of Africa.

A number of military exercises are also undertaken every year between the armed forces of both countries, with Malaysia entering the US-Thai Cobra Gold exercise from 2011 onwards.

US Navy ships regularly visit Malaysian ports, and such visits have increased from single digits to more than 30 a year over the past decade or so.

Then US Assistant Secretary of State (Political-Military Affairs) Andrew J. Shapiro, in his address at the National Defence College here in 2012, had said defence and security cooperation was an integral part of the growing partnership between the US and Malaysia.

He especially noted that "the men and women of our armed forces are working together to help the people of Afghanistan".

A Malaysian medical team had been deployed to Bamiyan province to provide essential medical care and training to Afghan citizens.

"Malaysia is making an important contribution to the responsible transition underway in Afghanistan which we greatly appreciate," Shapiro had said.

Malaysian armed forces members undergo training in the US as part of their professional improvement courses, while US special forces, including the much-vaunted US Navy Seals, train here twice a year.

This is especially so in terms of jungle warfare, with many a special forces operative having called the jungles of Malaysia some of the most formidable and punishing terrain in the world.

The Malaysian armed forces, in fact, have received much praise from the US and other allies. This is especially so when it comes to joint operations under the umbrella of the United Nations.

Malaysia's willingness in the past to commit to peacekeeping missions under the UN meant that US-Malaysia military ties have grown from strength to strength, considering most of these missions are led by US forces.

None was more apparent then in 1993, during what is now referred to as the First Battle of Mogadishu.

US Delta Force operatives and Rangers were trapped under heavy fire in the Somali capital while trying to rescue the crew of two Black Hawk helicopters shot down during an operation to capture key lieutenants of a warlord and retrieve the bodies of those killed in the crashes.

The American forces had gone in without informing the UN peacekeepers in Somalia but had to request reinforcements when things took a turn for the worst.

Eventually, Malaysian and US forces broke through to the trapped American soldiers. In the process, Private Mat Aznan Awang of the 19th Battalion (Mechanised), Royal Malay Regiment, was killed when his vehicle was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade, while nine other Malaysian soldiers were wounded.

Mat Aznan was posthumously promoted to the rank of corporal and received the nation's highest award for gallantry, the Seri Pahlawan Gagah Perkasa.

Last year, 20 years after the battle, current Assistant Secretary of State (Political-Military Affairs) Tom Kelly paid tribute to Aznan, his colleagues and the Malaysian armed forces, thanking them for their assistance in peacekeeping missions in general and Mogadishu in particular.

That the US remembers still Malaysia's role in Mogadishu is an indication of the high level of regard the country has for this little Southeast Asian nation's armed forces, as well as the role military ties have to play in continued relations between both countries.

 

4 factory workers injured in bus crash

Posted: 22 Apr 2014 09:01 AM PDT

23 April 2014| last updated at 12:31AM

The other 13 passengers and bus driver escaped with minor injuries.

Kuala Muda traffic police chief Superintendent Ahmad Kamil Ahmad said the bus was sending the workers home after their shift in a factory in Bayan Lepas, Penang, when the incident occurred at 3.25pm.

He said investigations revealed that the bus driver had failed to avoid the lorry while negotiating a bend at the highway exit.

The lorry driver, who was transporting sugar from Butterworth to Padang Terap, had pulled over by the roadside.

Kamil said the collision badly damaged the left side of the bus, causing the critically-injured passengers to be trapped in their seats.

They were identified as Rohaya Husin, 42, and Masni Ahmad, 29.

All the victims were taken to Sultan Abdul Halim Hospital here, while police detained the drivers of both vehicles for urine tests.

In a separate case, two best friends were killed when their motorcycle crashed into a lorry in Jalan Inang here yesterday.

Mohammad Adam Ramli, 21 and Mohd Ashraf Safri, 19, both from Taman Ria Jaya, were killed on the spot in the 4.15pm incident.

Kamil said the duo were travelling home from a driving school when they collided with the lorry at the Jalan Inang-Jalan Kuda Kepang junction.

In Pontian, Johor, a single mother and her two children died on the spot when the car they were in was involved in a head-on collision with a multi-purpose vehicle (MPV), before another car crashed into them from the rear.

The incident took place at 10.45pm on Monday at Km7.1 of Jalan Pontian Besar-Parit Sikom.

The deceased were identified as petrol station attendant Roslina Manggil, 29, her 9-year-old daughter Melati Ayu Jamaludin and son Mohamad Sufi Jamaludin.

Roslina and her children were heading for Parit Sikom when their car was believed to have strayed into the opposite lane.

After the crash, another car coming from Pontian rammed into Roslina's car, killing all three occupants.

The driver of the MPV sustained light injuries while the driver of the other car, a man, escaped without injuries.

Some of the factory workers waiting for help after their bus crashed into the rear of a lorry near the Sungai Petani Selatan exit of the North-South Expressway yesterday. Picture courtesy of Fire and Rescue Department

'Southeast Asian countries can develop own therapy'

Posted: 22 Apr 2014 09:01 AM PDT

23 April 2014| last updated at 11:51PM

Bangladesh Global Autism Public Health chairman Saima Wazed Hossain said Asian countries were too dependent on Western modules and therapies, which most of the time were not effective locally.

"We do not have assessments, screenings and diagnostic tools that are appropriate for our culture. That is our biggest challenge," she said in a special interview session in conjunction with the International Seminar on Autism 2014.

Saima, who is also Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's daughter, hoped that they could collaborate with Malaysia to exchange experience and expertise.

"We have invited Malaysia to join the Southeast Asia Autism Network. Through this network, we can develop tools that are translatable between regions as we share a similar culture and social structure."

She said three years ago, autism was not in every Bangladeshi's vocabulary and families with autistic children were stigmatised.

"Families broke apart and mothers were blamed for their children's disability."

For the past three years, she said, her country had concentrated on raising awareness and efforts of the government and non-governmental organisations had brought huge changes in understanding autism.

Republic of Kyrgyzstan First Lady Dr Raisa Atambaeva said the prevalence of autism in her country was much lower than world average, but the number was slowly growing.

"We do not have specialists to treat autistic children. They are treated by psychiatrists and speech therapists.

"But as the number grows, we realised that there is need for specialists and we have started training programmes to meet the need."

Dr Atambaeva, who is a medical doctor, said for the past three years, the Kyrgyz government had given special attention to roundtable discussions and training specialists to handle autistic children.

Saima and Dr Atambaeva were here to attend the International Seminar on Autism 2014. The two-day event will emphasise the importance of providing intervention services to children with autism.

It will also serve as a platform for the implementation of the autistic children's intervention programme known as Permata Kurnia, which is expected to start in May next year.

Bangladesh Global Autism Public Health chairman Saima Wazed Hossain says autism has broken apart families in her country