Hak pe' nal;:!;' " amasalah setinggan

--- -- -~It

SHAH ALAM -Kerajaan

Selangor akan memastikan

hak perumahan untuk semua

diberi penekanan bagi

mengatasi isu setinggan dinegeri ini, kata Menteri Besar,Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim.

Beliau berkata

pengurangan bilangan

setinggan di negeri ini

perlu diteruskan bagimembebaskan rakyat

daripada kemiskinan dan

menjamin hak mereka untukmendapat tempat kediaman

yang selesa."Kami juga akan

menentukan perumahan

kos rendah mencapai

spesifikasi minimum yanglebih baik. Garis panduan

baru akan diwujudkanuntuk menentukan hak

dan kebajikan setinggan

dipertahankan setiapmasa; katanya dalam satu

kenyataan di sini, semalam.Abdul Khalid berkata

kerajaan negeri juga akanberusaha mengeluarkan

penduduk terlibat darikawasan setinggan untukmemberi mereka dan anak-

anak mereka masa hadapan

yang lebih baik di sampingmenjaga kepentingan hak

kepada pemilik harta dalamkawasan yang didiami

setinggan berkenaan.Beliau berkata kerajaan

Selangor juga akan

memperkenalkan proses

rundingan dengan semua

pihak terbabit, termasukbadan-badan bukan kerajaan

dan sektor korporat bagimemastikan semua pihak

dapat memberi input dan

mendapat maklumat yang

sahih mengenai segalaperancangan dan polisi yang

dibuat.BERNAMA'" >1f>

3.\ Nkf.- ~ t\-w

2 9MAR 2008

~:i-

Q,'

,."".,

'

"

.'i'-

,

'

"

'

,,

,

'". "

Lau Bing menunjukkan tulisannya mengenai masalah di SubangJaya yang disiarkan dalam akhbar tempatan.

PresidenCASUtawardirijadiAhliMajlisMPSJSUBANG JAVA - Pengerusi Persatuan Pengguna Subang Jaya

, (CASU),Lau Bing yang turut menganggotai beberapa organisa-, si bukan kerajaan (NGO) di sini kelmarin menawarkan diri untuk

mengisijawatan Ahli Majlis Perbandaran Subang Jaya (MPSJ),Lau yang ditemui Sinar Harian berkata, beliau berhasrat meng-

isi jawatan berkenaan untuk memberi khidmat lebih baik kepadamasyarakat serta membantu menyumbang idea demi faedah ka-wasan setempat.

"Saya mendapat tahu untuk Subang Jaya sahaja diperuntuk-kan lapan kerusi iaitu empat untuk ahli parti politik manakala se-lebihnya kepada ahli NGO.

, l'Atas sokongan rakan-rakan, saya percayajika dilantik sayaI' akafi mampu memberi perkhidmatan dan idea demi untuk kebaik-, an serta kepentingan penduduk Subang Jaya," katanya.It Bing berkata melalui pelantikan ini, mungkin akan me-

mudahkannya membawa perkara itu kepada pihak yang ber-kenaan.

'I ~ >1/i~(NAP- H-A-~ A,,.J

? 9 M~R 2UU8

I READwith interest the report "AState of uncertainty hangs over LocalCouncils" (NST,March 26) and findthe subject matter both timely andexpedient to be dealt with.

We are all undoubtedly affected bythe local government the moment wewake up till we go to sleep. From theearly morning rubbish collection, theroads we drive on, the landscape wepass through, the buildings,cleanliness, health, licensing and a

! host of other services we rely on the\ local councils to provide to the costs

of living in a municipality.It is no secret that most councils

operate like a sendirian berhad andhave little Napoleons who dowhatever they want.

It is most refreshing to hear SubangJaya Municipal Council president say:"Weare obedient government servantsand we would do whatever is asked ofus". That is indeed great news for allwho have been harping on the lack oftransparency, good governance andefficient local administration that affect

, our dailylives.j Tothe new state government,I say

don't make the same mistakes or youwill face the same wrath of thepeople. Don't rush into makingunreasonable political decisions on

I: councillors and representation in, localcouncils.

I

. The callfor localgovernment. elections should be lauded. The

I peopleare to be blamed if the electedI councillors fail to do their job.I Theadministrationoflocalcouncils

. is not as easy as it sounds, and theI

makan-minum policy to rubber stampwhat has already been decided, as itis most evident now, should be doneaway with. Councillors must be moreproactive and community-driven.

It is best to leave the current set ofcouncillors to complete their term,which as I understand is just monthsaway in most councils, but under thewatchful eyes of the new stateadministration and the public.

Councils will now have to be moretransparent. They must invite residentgroups as observers to meetings andmake the whole process moretransparent while waiting for localelections to be sorted out.

The local governments mustresolve all outstanding matters. Thismust not stop just because ofuncertainty.

The state governments and thefederal government were dissolvedbefore elections. However, the localgovernments were not dissolved andshould be allowed to continue with aseamless transfer of power whentheir terms are up with new electedor appointed councillors.

Good councillors cannot be pluckedand trained overnight. Appointinggreenhorns will only put them at themercy of the directors and councilpresidents.

Let us give everyone a chance toprove themselves under a new set ofrules under the watchful eyes of thecommunity. Don't be hasty.

MBPJTAXPAYERPetaling Jaya

NEW srf9'-M~~ ~t1ESTarikh: ''''''''''''''''''''.

Your article "Doing your'business' in public? Watchout!" (Streets, March 27) is ofinterest to me. I live in USJ9/5C, Subang Jaya, and yes,some dog owners are simplyirresponsible as they allowtheir dogs to do their businesson neighbours' territory.

Another problem faced byresidents are cats. There aretoo many of them everywhereand they breed at analarming rate.

In my area, the cats are letloose and they do their"business" almosteverywhere - from flowerpots, garden to porch. Andthe sight is sickening, not tomention the stench. Theworse part is they seem toknow where the "100"is andwill always return to do theirbusiness at the same spotalmostdaily. .

If that is not bad enoughthey also sit on our houseroofs and defecate there too.

So how do we solve thisproblem? Call MPSJ? Theyare too busy with "othermatters". More often thannot, nobody answers thephone, and even if we getthrough, they pass you fromone department to another.

II'

rHELPNEEDEDSubang Jaya

"""-'-"

> LETTERS . :I I

I

I Don't be hasty inCatowners I!

to be -choosig councillors

blamed, too

JawatankuasakhaspastikankemudahanasaspendudukSERDANG- Bagi memasti-kan kemudahan asas pen-duduk terus ditambah, mantanAhli Parlimen Serdang, DatukYap Pian Ron, menggesa ke-rajaan persekutuan melaluiKementerian Kemajuan LuarBandardan Wilayahmenubuh-kan satujawatankuasa khas.

Katanya, JawatankuasaPenyelarasan Kemajuan dan

Pembangunan Kampung itubertujuan untuk meneruskanprojek kerajaan persekutuanbagi memberi kemudahan dikampung tradisi.

"Perdana Menteri, DatukSeri Abdullah Ahmad Badawijuga mengumumkan bahawaprojek yang telah diluluskandalam Rancangan MalaysiaKe-9 akan tetap diteruskan. .

'I- -. I iIII

C"'''' ",'

I,

1"-,

"=::".'

,

';'"

<-" ' ""'L;~ ;;',' ,,' ~' ,; " "". .. ~

-

\' l

}<I",

';ft{ ,,,,

. .,,"""1--

r(-.J,. -

'

~ ~&f<'},; ",'" '" "f'

,

''''

,1 ",," ~

,

,

~' "'

.

"

,

'

,

'

,

."

I ,l ''',l1!~' ,;I,.. .~I I i

-'-- t.,\

it5ebueh SyarIkat Bumipufra MemfJuRt& MenjuaI Peti Sf/juk &Stainless

&tHI~EqlIipJmnt.~~~IST~~

"Pihak kami akan me-mantau perkara ini supayapenduduk kampung tidak ke-tinggalandalampembangunanserta dapat menikmatipelbagaikemudahan asas yang disedia-kan," katanya.

Menurut Yap, pihaknyajuga mewujudkan PejabatPerkhidmatandanPenyelarasankawasan Parlimen Serdang un-tuk memberi nasihat berkaitanprosedur kerajaan.

"Kami juga akan me-mantau Ahli Parlimen yangmenang pada pilihan raya ke-n lalu sarna ada mereka me-

ngotakan janji yang dikeluar-kan kepada rakyat.... .~-tI ,l

"Ini kerana kami mahuprojek diluluskan kerajaansebelum ini bergerak serta da-pat dinikmati oleh rakyat ke-seluruhannya," ujarnya.

Tambah beliau, orang ra-mai yang mempunyai masalahboleh menghubungi di PejabatPerkhidmatan MCA yang ter-letak di Seri Kembangan.

"Saya akan cuba mem-bantu apa yang mampu ma-lah sehingga kini masih ramaiyang memohon pertolonganterutama dalam prosedur ke-rajaan. Saya sedia mendengarmasalah anda malahbolehber-kongsi sebarang pendapat,"jelasnya.

_

1. '1 R' I. ;

, ..", ..-;"",~ ., - ...11,-",,;;4--.''f~;;

1

Yap (kiri) mendengar masalah yang diutarakan wakil pendudukkepadanya.

(' i N.MZ. ~14,J ~IVf .~

2 ~ Mfl..R2006

~1

When govtdepartments may accept giftsPUTRAJAYA:Governmentdepart-ments are allowed to accept giftsfrom companiesor other parties -but there are several conditions

I

which must be met.First, permission should be ob-

I

tained from the respective secre-taries-general, who are also thecontrollingofficers.

In a recent circular issued by thePublic ServiceDepartment, Direc-tor-General Tan Sri Ismail Adamsaid secretaries-general were au-thorised to approvegifts,incl~dingthose valued at more than

RMIO,OOO.

Previously, gifts worth more thanRMIO,OOOhad to be approved bythe Treasury.

Several conditions, however,must be met before such approvalscould be given by the secretaries-general.

Among others, Ismail said, thegifts should be freely given, withoutany conditions attached.

Those presenting the gifts mustalso not have any connections or in-terests in the government.

Ismail said the gifts, including

equipment,mustbe newand spare-parts should be available in themarket in case ofa breakdown.

The equipment must be of bene-fit to the department and the coun-try.

"Thegiftsmustbe givenvoluntar-ily and not on the request or de-mand made by the departments oragencies.

"Government departments arebarred from solicitingpresents ordonations from other parties, or-ganisationsor individuals,"the cir-cular stated.

NEW STRAIJA~1d~lESTarikh: ~. ~ ,

.. - - - -- -- ~-- .. ..

Seri Kembaneanfolks want their flyoverBy LlM CHIA YING'Chiaying@tnestar.com.my

TRAFFICproblems in Seri Kem-bangan are a nagging problem thatresidents say is made worse by theabsence of a flyover that they claim"was to have been built a decade ago.

Taman Universiti Indah residenti Chan Chee Leong said he had writ-~ ten letters to the Public Complaints! Bureauwith regard to the status of -ithe elevated highway at the SeriIKembangancommercialcentre.; He said traffic lights had been'"! installed along Federal Road 3215, (where the commercial centre is" located). However,he claims that. the traffic lights,which are at the!top of a slop, pose a danger to, motorists.1 "The Petaling Public Works!DepartmentUKR) had written to -!me saying that the traffic lights hadibeen approved in 1997," Chan said.

"However,part of the conditionswas that the developer needed tocontribute to the costofthe flyoverconstruction together with otherdevelopers concerned.The projectwas to have taken place under thesupervision of the Subang JayaMunicipalCouncil(MPSJ).

"In fact, in a letter from thePublic Complaints Bureau last

---,\

I1Jm~~ '"

,

,"".. '" ~(;.'"

Dangerous: Residents say the traffic lights pose a risk to motorists.

December,it said the traffic lights to ensure the flyoverwas built.were a short-term measure while "The residents have not gottenthe elevated highway is the long- answers on the current status orterm plan which the JKR had what causedthis longdelay.Ailwedirected the developerto build. want to know is when will it be

"After 10 years, we still don't built sincethe JKRhas said it is theknow where is our flyover is," he -council's responsibility to coordi-said. nate and supervisethis," he added.

Chan said most of the homes Taman Universiti Indah resi-developedin the areahad already dents association(RA) chairmanreceived their CFsand, therefore, WongFahSongsaid the congestionthe onus was on th.~10calauthorj.t;Y,h~adinginto Seri K~mbanganvil-

,. " . -"" " ~

Tarikh~ S1f~AR 2008..u. ...............

2~(.At1-

lage was getting unbearable andone of the contributing factorswere the traffic lights that haltedthe traffic.

"This would not happen if theflyoverwas built,"he said.

Together with former SerdangMP Datuk Yap Pian Hon, Wong saidthe RAwould want to callfor a dia-logue with the SelangorJKRand.MPSJ.

MPSJ public relations officerAzfarizalAbdulRashidcouldnot bereached for comments.

However,MPSJpresident AdnanMdIkhsanaskedhis officersto lookinto the project file and providefeedback.According to him, the'council had, in a meeting in.November 2003, decided to buildtwo inner roads, BS3/1and SK6{1,to help alleviate congestion in the'area.

"Bothroads are under construc- :

tion now,"saidAdnan.He confirmed that the develop~

ers had contributed funds that Iwere being channelled into the Iconstructionworks.

On the promised elevated high- fway, Adnan said it was on JKR ~

reserve and not the council. I"We'll want to seek discussions

withJKRto resolvethis matter," hesaid.

Bekalanair20meterpadutanpabayaranP~mbekalanairterawatolehSyarikatBekalanAirSelangor(Syabas)yangakandiberikankepadapenggunayangmempunyaimeterairberdaftarsahaja.

. NORSHAHZURAMATZUKI

SHAH ALAM - KerajaanSelangor akan membekalkan20meterpadu air secarapercu-ma kepadasemuapengguna dikediaman yang menggunakanmeter individu bermula 1 Jun

depan, kataMenteriBesar TanSri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim.

Katanya, pembekalanair tersebut akan dilaksana-

kan kepada setiap isi rumahdi Selangor seperti biasa me-lalui pembekalan air temwatoleh Syarikat Bekalan AirSelangor (Syabas) yang akandiberikan kepada penggunayang mempunyai meter airberdaftar sahaja.

"Kita akan memberikanmeter padu air percuma kepada

penggunayangmenggunakan20 meter padu air dan penggunayang menggunakan melebihihad tersebut perlu membayar-nya dan kepada rakyat yangtiada meter air tidak akan di-berikan kecuali mereka men-daftar sebelum 1 Jun nanti,"katanya.

Beliau berkata demi-

kian ketika ditemui padaMajlis Perasmian PenutupanMenghafazal-QuranPeringkatNegeriSelangordi AuditoriumMBSA, malam semalam.

Bekalan air percuma itum:erupakanantara janji dalammanifesto pakatan gabunganParti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR),PAS dan DAP pada pilihanraya umum lepas.

MenurutAbdulKhalid,ke-rajaannegeriakanmengadakankira- kira untuk memberikan

subsididanmengenaibagaima-najumlahairdOOrakepadarak-yat supaya mereka mendapat

s ;. ~ '-

maklumatmengenainya."Kita tidak akan mem-

beritahujumlahsubsidiyangdiberikantetapikitaakanme-nerangkankepadarakyatme-ngenai kira- kira tersebut,"katanya. -

. Menurutnya, kemjaanSelangorjuga telah menjalan-kan kajian berhubung me-kanisme bagi melaksanakandasar berkenaan demi men-

jaga kepentingan kerajaan ne-geri sendiri, alarn sekitar danorang ramai.

"Tujuan kerajaan nege-ri memperkenalkan dasar ter-sebutbagimeringankanbeban-an kehidupan rakyat khususnya

golonganyang berpendapatanrendah.

"Rakyatjuga perlu me-ngamalkan penggunaan airsecara berhemah serta ber-tanggungjawabbagi meng-elakkan pembaziran sum-ber agar sumber air negeriSelangor dapat dipelihara da-lam jangka masa yang pan-

~(rJ~ ~A-N

2 9 MAR2008

jang," katanya.Abdul Khalid juga mem-

beritahu bahawa KerajaanNegeri akan memperkenal-kan langkah mempelbagai-kansumber bekalan air secara

menyeluruh dalarn masa ter-dekat.

Sementara itu SuruhanjayaPerkhidmatan Air Negara(SPAN) telah mengkaji per-janjian mengenai operasi danpenyenggaraan Loji RawatanAir Sungai Sireh di Selangorantara kerajaan negeri denganPuncak Niaga (M)Sdn Bhd.

SPANdalamsatukenyata-an semalamberkata ia me-merlukanmaklumatlebihlanjutsebelum mencapai keputusantentang sarnaada ia mematuhiAkta Industri PerkhidmatanAir(WSlA)2006.

Perjanjian tersebut men-cetuskan kontroversi selepaspersetujuan ditandatanganipada 7 Mac, sehari sebelumpilihan raya umum barn-barnIn!.

Iq Kitaakanmemberikan .meterpaduair .

I

perc.

umakepadapenggunayangmenggunakan20

imeterpaduairdanpenggunayang

. menggunakan~melebihihadtersebut

I perlumembayarnyadankepadarakyat

, yangtiadameterairi

.

tidakakandiberikanf kecualimereka

I mendaftarsebelum1Junnanti,"

MenteriBesar, TanSriKhalidIbrahim "

LebihIDponmNasional"

Globalsetiaphari

-.~ ;~..:S

I

I FreewaterfromJuneISelangor consumers to enjoy offer on first 20 cu m of useBy DHARMENDER SINGHdharam@thestar.com.my

, SHAH ALAM: Domestic con-sumers in Selangor who are usingindividual meters will start enjoy-ing free usage of water for the first20 cu m from June 1.

Those whose supply is linked tobulk meters - including flat, apart-ment and condominium dwellers- will not enjoy the free water justyet.

Water distribution concession-aire Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor(Syabas) has been working to pro-vide individual meters to those liv-ing in flats, apartments and condo-miniums but the process has been

slow, as all the owners in a partic-ular scheme would have to agreeto the change before it can beimplemented.

Mentri Besar Tan Sri KhalidIbrahim said in a statement yester-day that the state government hadstudied the proposal to provide thefree water and had worked out aformula that would benefit thepeople, the state and the environ-ment.

He said the study found that thestate government could for nowprovide free water to householdswith individual meters.

The decision, he said, was tolessen the burden of the people,especially those in the lower

income group."But consumers should use wa-

ter wisely and responsibly to avoidwastage that will affect efforts toconserve the state's water re-sources," he added.

He said the state governmentwould also soon diversify rawwater sources as part of a move toconserve the state's own resources.

Selangor has run out of rivers totap for drinking water and hasbeen working on an inter-statewater transfer project with Pahangto ensure adequate supply in thefuture.

Syabas declined comment onthe free water offer.

Meanwhile, the National Water

STAR

i\Hi\\~ ~ l.9...M~"lAJ!l31 m

Services Commission (SPAN)saidin a statement that it had studiedthe Sungei Sireh Water TreatmentPlant operation and maintenanceagreement and "requires furtherinformation before arriving at adecision as to whether it is in com-pliance with the Water ServicesIndustry Act 2006".

The statement added that SPANhad received several agreementsfrom Puncak Niaga (M) Sdn Bhdincluding the Sungei Sireh agree-ment.

The Sungei Sireh agreement wassigned by the State Secretary onbehalf of the Selangor StateGovernment and Puncak Niaga on .

March 7, the statement said.

Selangoreyes tradeties with China

~"'.v

7 ;

State wants to secure investments.0

By ELAN PERU MALelan@thestar.com.my

...

. 1

»We can bring investment from I

China to the Halal Hub and export

Ithe goods to the M

.

iddle East«

,.

".

~ TERESAKOK ;t ~~ '.' I .

.

'"

HE Selangor government islooking to China in a bid tosecure foreign investment.

In line with the East Asia giantbecoming one of the world's eco-nomic super powers, the state islooking towards establishing closerbusiness ties with the country.

Senior executive councillorTeresa Kok, who is in charge ofinvestment, industry and trade, saidChinahad great potential waiting tobe tapped.

Kok said Mentri Besar Tan SriKhalidIbrahim was keen on havingmore businessmen from Chinainvesting in Selangor.

"Currently the situation isreversed as many businessmenfrom Selangor have set up business-es in China and we hope the Chinese

..... Teresa: 'Thereare many richChinese business-men lookingforan opportunity toinvest inSelangor'.i

will do the same in Selangor."There are many rich Chinese

businessmen looking for an oppor-tunity to invest in Selangor.

"Now is the right time for us toinvite them and I am confident theywill feel comfortable to do so," shesaid yesterday.

For a start, Kok said they plannedto meet with some high profile localbusinessmen with strong business

ties in China.She said their assistance would be

valuable to the state, adding thatthey would also hold meetings withthe various Chinese Chamber ofCommerce.

With the opening of Science Park2, Kok said the high-tech manufac-turing industry had great potentialfor the investors.

She said the state's Halal Hub pro-

ject at Westport was the other sec-tor they hoped the Chineseinvestors would be interested in.

"We can bring investment fromChina to the Halal Hub and exportthe goods to the Middle East," shesaid.

BesidesChina,Koksaid meetingswould also be held with thebumiputra and Indian chamber ofcommerce as well.

She said more efforts would alsobe made to pave the way for moreinvestors fromother countries.

She said investors need notworry as the new governmentwould not be making any drastic i

changes in policies.As an elite state, she said Selangor I

would only be getting better interms of economic growth.

STAR.

Tarikb: 2 9~AR 2008n.n... ............

~UKses score WIT"

organisedgameplanY ,r' Men's: ATM-;-Bomba 3=0(25-9, 25-17:2;-

23); V3-J bt MBSA 3-1(25-23, 25-22, 19-25,25-20); UKM bt MPSJ 3-0 (25-18, 25-18, 30-

I 28); Sukses bt BJSS 3-0 (28-26, 25-21, 25-21); MPSJ bt BJSS 3-2 (21-25,25-19, 25-23,21-25, 19-17);Sukses bt UKM 3-0 (25-23, 25-19,25-19); V3-J bt Bomba3-0 (25-15, 25-22,25-18); MBSA bt ATM 3-1 (25-18,21-25,26-24,

STAR 25-18)

They toppl BJSS d UKM.

II b Illeague Tarikb: 29M~~ennebtBJSS3-0(25-13,25-4,e an Invo ey a "."'.""~.25-'22);AXis bt Gumi3-0 (25-6,25-14,25-16);V3-J bt Sukses 3-1 (18-25,25-21, 25-14, 25-19)

r~~,~'- ~'" " " , '0'

,," . ,,' "''''''';'. "':" 0 Y'

,

"

',

.- '" ..,.,,.,' .By NG WEI LOONt

--

"

,

.. ~' - """,. ': t't:, ~. . 'V - ,hd

'\, .;' ' ',. en..., Kuala50lan

~:

,

'~

,

'"

.".

,

' ,~~"."".~.. tIt DWY8A ~~ (March 2~or Indoor Stadium.c'. ,~ ,- ~, , . 12,00

pm' ATM

.. ','- I "\~ 1

02.

'. ".. ' ~' :00pm:UKM v.." ,,", I 03:30 pm' B vs05' 00. ombavs

. pm:MPSJvs.'S-

" ~ ~~~, Jir'

Winning start: Zenne(inpurple)chalkingupa 3-0 victoryoverGumi(inred) intheir opening match.

'....

::J Sunday (March 30), -Women's

09:00 am: Gumi vs10:30 am: V3-J vs12:00 pm: Zenne vs

UKSES, last season's runners-up,regained their footing in the SelangorPremier V-League men's volleyball

competition, with two consecutive wins lastweekend.

In the league, played at the Subang jayaMunicipal Council (MPSj) Indoor Stadium inSeri Serdang, Sukses registered wins againstBukit jalil Sports School (Bj5S) andUniversiti 'r~bangsaan Malaysia (UKM).

Sukses toppled both sides with com-manding 3-0 wins to collect the RM500weekly champions' purse. Sukses upstaged'ii'if rB.lSS 28-26,25-21,25-21 and defeated UKM """if'25-23,25-19, 25-19. '~

SelangorVolleyballAssociation(SVA)sec- ~.retary BillyLee said Sukseswas consistent' '"with theIr organised game plan last week-end.

"They showed good progress with theirregulartrainingprogrammeas a buildup forthe MalaysiaGames(Sukma).Althoughboththeir rivals offered stiff resistance, Suksestriumphed with tactical and calculated )strategies. They did not crack under pres- .sure. In contrast, Sukses displayed theircomposure and foughtpoint for point in thecloselyfought encounters;' he added.

Thisweek, Sukseswill be out to maintaintheir lead at the Kuala Selangor IndoorStadium, taking on MPSj and defendingchampions ShahAIamCityCouncil(MBSA)respectively.

The first two matches in the men's leagueare expected to be thrilling encounters inthe third week competition. MalaysianArmed Forces (ATM)will be taking on V3-Johor (V3-J) followed by the battle of twoeducation institutions between UKM andBJSS.

"V3-jcomprisingjunior players are veryquickaround the court.ATMwillrequiretheserviceof nationalplayerS.Vickneswarantosubdue their aggression. However, thematch-up between UKM and BJSSwill be an

open affair because both teams are veryunpredictable,"saidLee.

In the women's league,Axisjaya will beup against lenne in the top of the tableclash.

Men's01:30 pm: MPSJ vs03:00 pm: MBSAvs

I 04:30 pm: UKM vs

~ 05:00 pm: BJSS vs

V3-JBJSSMBSASukses

SuksesBJSSAxis

BombaSuksesATMV3-J

Women'SP W L F A Pts

Axis 2 2 0 6 0 4"...,, '<I Zenne 2 2 0 6 0 4

Sukses 2 I I 4 4 3V3-J 2 1 I 3 4 '3

. BJSS 2 0 2 I 6 2

1;:,;. Gumi 2 0 2 0 6 2

Men'sP W L F A Pts

J Sukses 4 3 I 10 3 7UKM 4 3 I 9 4 7V3-J 4 2 2 9 7 6BJSS 4 2 2 8 7 6ATM 4 2 2 8 7 6

'rI MBSA 4 2 2 7 8 6I MPSJ 4 2 2 7 10 6

Bomba 4 0 4 0 12 4

I Yes, water's free butonly the first 20,000 litres

By RAHMANDAROS

KUALALUMPUR:Selangorresidents can finally expecttheir first 20 cubic metres(20,000 litres) of free waterfrom June 1.

The much anticipatedannouncement came in a faxedstatement issued by the MenteriBesar's office on Friday, sayingthat the State governmentwould supply that amount ofwater free to households usi ngindividual meters.

The free-water policy wasone of the promises madeby the opposition coalition,

I namely DAP,PKRand Pas, inI its manifesto during the recent

general elections.According to the statement,

a study was done to determinehow to implement the policyto ensure it served thebest interests of the Stategovernment, the environmentand the public.

"The State governmentintroduced the policy to reducethe rakyat's burden, especiallythe low-income group.

"However, the rakyat shoulduse the water wisely with asense of responsibility to avoidwastage," said the statement.

Earlier, Menteri Besar Tan SriAbdul Khalid Ibrahim criticisedthe Federal government'sdecision four years ago to send

I back more than 400,000 illegal

I foreign. workers to their home. countnes.

I AbdulKhalidsaid that mostI of those deported returned to

~

~

ABDUL KHALlD:The State's efforts

could help the Federal governmentresolve its problems

this country several days later,making big profitsfor agentsof foreign workers and travelagencies.

He said it is time to tackle

the matter openly."I don't hide things or

instruct other people tobecome agents to make moneyby luring foreign workers intothe country," he said after aclosing ceremony for a newbatch of enforcement officersat their training centre inBanting, Selangor, on Friday.

He said foreign workers hadto pay agents, who broughtthem into the country, betweenRM3,000 and RM4,000.

"We feel that is too high. TheFederal government collected alevy but eventually, the agentsdidn't know where the workerswere and this caused an influxof foreign workers who created

I"" '1 - !...

-J~

:::::--

IT'S OFFICIAL:Abdul Khalid presenting a certificate to best trainee Mohd Shaari Md lazit in Banting on Friday

problems for society."The State government also

has to bear the costs due to

the impact on infrastructurefacilities like health, educationand roads."

He said although the Stategovernment has no authorityto amend legislation, they havethe administrative authorityto impose a monthly RM9levyon employers for each foreignworker they employed.

BERNAMApic

"Wewant to showtheFederal government how tokeep records on illegal workerswith the levy. I will set up acentralised information systemto keep correct records onthose who work in the state,"he said, commenting on HumanResources Minister Datuk DrS. Subramaniam's statementon Friday that the coalitiongovernment had no authorityto amend legislation to impose

the levy.He said the State's efforts

could help the Federalgovernment resolve itsproblems.

The Federal government,he said, might have difficultyaccepting ideas from politicalparties not in the BarisanNasional but it must listen to

the people's wishes. "If theycan come up with a better idea,they should do so."

MALAY MAILTIH ik h: .. .2..9..MAR..?OO~"..