PM: Sarawak a role model

PM: Sarawak a role model

PM: Sarawak a role model

Posted: 03 Jun 2014 09:01 AM PDT

04 June 2014| last updated at 11:29PM

 The prime minister, in his Facebook posting, said: "Sarawak is a model of national harmony of our country because of the peace and harmony that exist among the various ethnic and sub-ethnic groups as compared to people in other states.

  "This success should not be taken lightly nor taken for granted. Because, if we reject what we have inherited today, we might not be able to achieve what we want."

  He  called on all  Malaysians to work hand in hand in the spirit of 1Malaysia.

  Najib, on his Twitter handle @NajibRazak, also shared a picture of a Gawai culture of sharing food during his visit to the Rumah Jarek longhouse in Lambir, Miri, on Sunday.

  "As a Malaysian, I believe in the concept of sharing happiness and based on the 1Malaysia concept, Malaysia is for all," he tweeted.

  The prime minister was on a two-day visit to Sarawak for Hari Gawai which saw him celebrating with the remote Kenyah community in Long Silat, Ulu Baram, and the Iban community in Lambir, Miri.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak joining the Hari Gawai revellers in sharing food during his visit to the Rumah Jarek longhouse in Lambir, Miri, on Sunday. With him is Deputy Chief Minister Tan Sri Alfred Jabu (second from left).

‘Make choices based on principles’

Posted: 03 Jun 2014 09:01 AM PDT

04 June 2014| last updated at 04:00AM
By ROZANNA LATIFF | news@nst.com.my

United States Acting Assistant Secretary of Defence for Asian and Pacific Security Affairs Kelly Magsamen said yesterday the US administration's rebalance to Asia strategy was about improving its engagement with Asian countries as a whole and was not aimed at curbing China's influence in the region.

The US, she said, was interested in working with Asian countries, not only on security issues, but also on common challenges, such as cyber security, climate change and terrorism.

"We are not asking (countries in the region) to pick between us and China, but to make choices about principles.

"The choices that this region makes now are going to define the future and the direction of the next century," she said at the 28th Asia-Pacific Roundtable here yesterday.

Magsamen was speaking as a panelist at a session, titled "Fostering Peace and Managing Security in the Asia Pacific", moderated by the Institute of Strategic and International Studies (ISIS) Malaysia chief executive Tan Sri Rastam Mohd Isa.

She was joined on the panel by the European External Action Service managing director for Asia and the Pacific, Viorel Isticioaia Budura, Japan's National Security Secretariat cabinet councillor Major-General Jun Nagashima and Korea University Graduate School of International Studies Professor Dr Kim Sung-han.

The US administration, Magsamen said, was supportive of efforts to resolve ongoing disputes between China and its neighbours, such as overlapping claims over territories in the South China Sea.

She said the US would not take a position on the territorial claims, but hoped that they would be resolved according to the rules and norms of international law, rather than through force, coercion or intimidation.

"We want more dialogues, not monologues. It does not mean we have to agree on everything, but we need to manage these disputes clearly and peacefully with respect to international law."

Her comments, made in response to a question from a delegate, were a softer echo of the statements by US Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore last week.

Hagel's blunt criticism of China's actions in the South China Sea at the dialogue had drawn rebukes from high-ranking Chinese government officials.

Magsamen said engaging and welcoming China's rise was part of the US rebalancing strategy and that the administration welcomed all efforts to improve engagement on security issues in the Asia-Pacific.

"Rebalancing is about our (American) interests, too.

"The US has underrated security in this region and we want to make sure we will be able to correct that, moving forward."

The three-day roundtable, jointly organised by ISIS Malaysia and Asean-ISIS, ends today.

28th Asia-Pacific Roundtable underway in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.

VAT 69 joins the hunt for Huntley

Posted: 03 Jun 2014 09:01 AM PDT

04 June 2014| last updated at 03:58AM
By T.N. ALAGESH | news@nst.com.my

Pahang police chief Datuk Sharifuddin Abdul Ghani said arrangements were made to bring 20 personnel from the Ulu Kinta Camp in Perak to boost the search operation, which enters its eighth day today. He said the search for Huntley was intensified with additional personnel, assets and an extended search radius of 17km from where he was believed to have gone missing.

"Besides the existing police, marine police, state Fire and Rescue Department, Civil Defence Department, Rela and Forestry Department personnel and local residents, the operation will get additional manpower.

The Fire and Rescue department will be sending 30 men while two K9 tracker dogs will be deployed for the operations.

"Two helicopters, one each from the Royal Malaysian Air Force and Fire and Rescue Department, have been conducting aerial sweeps of the area; four boats have been scouring the waters off Pulau Tioman while two four-wheel-drive vehicles are tracking on land.

"We are covering all areas to locate Huntley and more assets are expected to arrive to assist the operation."

He said this after visiting the site where Huntley was supposed to have gone trekking.

Sharifuddin said despite spending a week searching the area near Kampung Juara, search personnel have yet to discover any sign that the victim was still in the vicinity.

He also refuted allegations that Huntley was abducted from the island as there were no signs of a struggle at the area and his family did not receive any ransom demand.

"The search personnel remain optimistic and are committed to efforts to locate him. We have not set a deadline for the operation and will continue to deploy assets until he is found," he said.

Meanwhile, Huntley's mother, Janet Southwell, said she would remain on the island until the rescuers find her son.

Southwell, who arrived on Monday morning to support the search for her son, said she was touched by the efforts of the authorities and local villagers.

"It has been an amazing experience to find everyone gathered at the waterfall area and calling out his name.

"They have also been providing me with updates from time to time," she told reporters here yesterday.

On May 27, Huntley, 34, who was staying at the Penyu Juara Chalet in Kampung Juara, Pulau Tioman, had gone alone to the waterfall area on the island alone around noon.

Two days later, his disappearance was reported at the Tioman police station before a SAR operation was deployed to locate him.

Gareth Huntley went missing on Pulau Tioman on May 27

Penang Council adamant on Line Clear ultimatum

Posted: 03 Jun 2014 09:01 AM PDT

04 June 2014| last updated at 11:57PM

THE Penang Island Municipal Council (MPPP)  brushed aside critics who  questioned why it is meddling in the ownership crisis involving Line Clear Nasi Kandar eatery.

Instead, its licensing department director, Azman Sirun, said the council had every right to decide on the new owners of the outlet, should the squabble involving the feuding family members remain unresolved.

He said this would depend on the documentation submitted to the council by the warring factions.

"We will scrutinise every document and whoever can substantiate their claims would be the rightful owner or owners and he or they will be given the licence to continue operating the eatery," he said when asked if the local authority had the right to decide ownership of the famous nasi kandar eatery.

On Monday, Azman issued an ultimatum to four "owners" of the nasi kandar outlet, that has been in existence for over 60 years, after three of them approached the council to resolve a squabble among them on who is the rightful owner.

The trio, who claimed they had obtained a licence to run the eatery in 2012, insisted that the fourth "owner", Abdul Hamid Seeni Pakir, 65, had failed to honour his word to run the food outlet on a rotational basis among them.

The trio comprised Sahubarali China Mohd Hanibah, Abdul Latif Thulkarunai and Pathumah Iskandar.

Azman also gave the four two weeks from Monday to resolve the ownership squabble, failing which the council would have the last say on the matter.

Contrary to many news reports, Azman stressed that the council was not going to close down the eatery, set up by Abdul Hamid's father and uncle, S.N. Seeni Pakir and S.N. Sekandar, respectively, in 1949.

He described Line Clear Nasi Kandar as a "heritage" and that it had become synonymous with Penang.

Customers thronging the popular Line Clear nasi kandar eatery in Penang Road, George Town during lunch hour.

Drivers all for proposed tint rules

Posted: 03 Jun 2014 09:01 AM PDT

04 June 2014| last updated at 04:10AM
By A. AZIM IDRIS | news@nst.com.my

For Diana Nadween J. Radzri, 30, driving her vehicle in the current weather was proving to be a chore due to the intense heat in the daytime.

"There are times when my car is parked outdoors for long periods and the searing heat can get nauseating," said the training coordinator with an oil and gas company.

Diana said her problem was also compounded at night-time as other drivers were able to see that she was a woman, which made her concerned about her safety.

"If the windscreens are slightly darker, other motorists would not be able to make out who is driving and how many people are in the vehicle.

"This reduces the chances of any (unwanted) attention on female drivers."

Hainizam Roslan, 25, a manager of a car accessories shop in Presint 15, here, also believed that restrictions and potential clampdown on tinted windscreens were unnecessary.

He said demand for darker tinted screens had increased over the last few months during the dry spell.

"Customers will flout the law because they are willing to pay the summons rather than abide by the ruling.

"It is an inconvenience to drivers who are often caught in traffic jams and other discomforting driving experiences."

Malaysian Automotive Association president Datuk Aishah Ahmad said any decision to relax restrictions on Visible Light Trans-mission (VLT) levels was welcomed.

"I think it is a good decision and it will not have a signi-ficant adverse impact on security or safety."

She said the authorities should not have a problem with the new ruling as it would be still possible to see through the windscreens with the lower VLT level.

A driver breaking the law with his multi-purpose vehicle in Bandar Bukit Tinggi, Klang, yesterday. Pic by Faiz Anuar

Greenland ski team returns

Posted: 03 Jun 2014 09:01 AM PDT

04 June 2014| last updated at 04:08AM

The 25-year-old, a participant of the KE7B Malaysia Greenland Expedition 2014 organised by the 7 Continents Exploration Club (KE7B),l said he was elated that both his biggest dreams had become a reality.

Present at the welcoming ceremony at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport were Felda Higher Education Department and Youth Generation director Amir Hamdan Yusof and KE7B President Muhamad Muqharabbin Mokhtarrudin.

Shaiful was among eight skiers in the expedition. They included Yanizam Mohamad Supiah, 29, Abdul Rahman Abu Hassan, 31, Tahira Najmunisaa Muhammad Zaid, 25, and Mohd Akasyah Jamaludin, 25. Skiers Muhammad Irwan Yusuf Abdullah, 34, Muhammad Musaddiq Samsudin, 25, and Muhd Hafizuddin Abdul Muthalib, 25, were also part of the group who arrived at the airport yesterday.

They had accomplished the expedition at Hill 660 Kangerlusuaq recently, making Malaysia the first country from Southeast Asia to cross the Arctic island.

Shaiful said the group had surpassed their 35-day target of crossing the island by completing the feat in 27 days.

The participants started the journey at East Greenland (Ammassalik) and reached West Greenland (Sondre Stromfjord) over a week ahead of schedule, despite freezing temperature.

"The journey was very challenging as we had to lug some 80kg of supplies in freezing temperature while suffering bouts of cold and other illnesses due to the climate," said Shaiful.

He said the other two groups from the United Kingdom and Netherlands, who were on a similar expedition, could not complete their journey due to frostbite and other injuries.

Members of the KE7B Malaysia Greenland Expedition group celebrating after arriving at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport yesterday. Pic by Fariz Iswadi Ismail