selangor times march 9

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commnty March 9 – 11, 2012/ issue 64

More Selcatrevelations

Pakatan marksfour years inselangor

p 2 & 7 Pullout pgs 61-12

CelebratinginternationalWomen’s Day

p 6

Gasing

landslide fears

By Gan Pei Ling

kuala lumPur: A landslip only days aterhe appellate court ruled against residents’ call or a publicearing on a hillside development at Bukit Gasing is raising

ears o another Bukit Antarabangsa.“Tis isn’t the rst time this has happened aer heavy

ain, the authorities must explain to us what’s going on,”oncerned resident Agnes an told Selangor imesesterday.

Residents campaigning to halt the development suferedmajor blow on uesday when the Court o Appeal ruledgainst their demands in a 2-1 majority verdict.

It decided that a public hearing was not required underhe Federal erritory (Planning) Act 1982 as the project

P3KU president Jessie Yau handing over a token of appreciation to veteran iron-men (from left) DrJagjit Singh Sidhu, Yee Sze Mun and Lee Cheewee Hoe. The trio are off to the Sahara to take part in adesert marathon to raise funds for the charity organisation. Story on Pg 4

id not involve a change in land user an increase in population density.

an said they discovered theandslip early yesterday morning.

She said a similar incidentccurred at almost the same spot, onhe hill overlooking Jalan 1/132shortly aer Chinese New Year.

“We don’t know whether there aremore urther in (the construction

te),” said the homemaker who hasved there or six years.

She added that her neighbourscross the road, whose homes were

irectly below the project site, wereven more worried.D e sp ite susta ine d p ubl ic

pposition since 2005, developerG a s i n g M e r i d i a n S d n

hd commenced earthworks on theanctuary Ridge Kuala Lumpur Cityroject last August.

It had appointed consultantkram Engineering Services Sdn Bhdo monitor the construction o 69ungalows on the 15ha land, whichsupposed to put in place mitigation

measures to ensure slope stability.Kuala Lumpur mayor an Sri

Ahmad Fuad Ismail deended CityHall’s (DBKL) approval o the

roject on Monday, adding the site

elonged to the developer andDBKL would have to spend RM135million i it were to acquire the lando gazette as a green lung.

He said DBKL had already

applied to gazette the neighbouring 52.6ha public land as a green lung inDecember 2010.

Residents have long lobbied CityHall or a public hearing on the low-density project as it is located on thesteep slopes o Bukit Gasing.

On Sunday, around 100 residentshad gathered at Jalan 1/132 to urgeD B KL to m a k e p ubl ic th eenvironmental impact assessment(EIA) report on the proposed

development.“We’re not against development.I they can convince us the project issae, we won’t be against it,” said JointAction Group or Bukit Gasing committee member and resident o Fraser owers Mohamed KamarMohamed.

Another committee member andresident o Maxwell owers, GaryYeoh, had pointed out that BukitGasing has a history o landslides.

“We don’t want to become thenext Bukit Antarabangsa,” he said lastSunday, in reerence to the landslidein Ampang which claimed the liveso ve and destroyed 40 bungalowsin 2008.

Lembah Pantai member o Parliament Nurul Izzah Anwar, who was present at the site yesterday andon Sunday, called on DBKL torelease the project’s EIA as well.

Education Supplement

Selangor Times will be producing two educationsupplements this year to help school leaversdecide on the crucial question of their tertiaryeducation.The supplements on March 16 and Oct 19will be targeted especially at SPM andSTPM students who will need to determine

the best course for their future.The supplement will also be a platform for

Universities and Colleagues to get their mes-sage across to students about what they haveto offer and at what cost.Our experience editorial team will also be onhand to further promote what institution of higher learning have to offer students.

Publication Date

• 23 March 2012 and 19 October 2012

Booking Deadline


Material Deadline


OR

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Kenneth 012 906 2523

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03 5510 4566

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2 march 9 — 11, 2012

news

Mog

Friday Saturday Sunday

afeoo

ngh

Selangor WeaTHer

Source: Malaysian meteorological department

phone (603) 5510 4566fax (603) 5523 1188

email [email protected]

EDITORIALCHIEF EDITOR KL Chan

COMMUNITY EDITOR Neville Spykerman

PRODUCTION EDITOR C Gunasegaran

WRITERS Tang Hui Koon, Chong Loo Wah, Gan Pei Ling,Basil Foo, Alvin Yap, Gho Chee Yuan, Brenda Ch’ng

COPY EDITORS James Ang

DESIGNERS Jimmy C. S. Lim, Chin Man Yen

ADVERTISING Timothy Loh, Samantha Sim, Ivan Looi, Tony Kee

ADVISORS Faekah Husin, Arfa’eza Abdul Aziz

To place your Advert in

ContactTimothy Loh 019-267 4488,

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Tony Kee 016-978 2798,

Samantha Sim 019-382 7121

By Alvin Yap

SHAH ALAM: All contracts awarded without opentenders between 2006 and 2010 will be made public bySelangor during the upcoming state legislative assemblymeeting next month.

“Te documents will be presented and discussed dur-ing the meeting to get approval beore they can be made

public,” said Menteri Besar an Sri Khalid Ibrahim aerthe state executive council meeting on Wednesday.

He pointed out the documents were classied underthe Ocial Secrets Act and any disclosure had to be car-ried out in accordance with procedures.

he move ollows claims by blogger Raja PetraKamarudin that the state had dished out over RM250million in directly negotiated contracts.

“We emphasise transparency in our administration

and because o that, we will reveal the tender documentsso that the people know and can make their own judge-ment on the decisions we have taken,” he said.

Khalid pointed out that d irect tendering o contractsor procurement and services was still in practice, espe-cially during emergencies.

“As an example, when there was a landslide, we had toappoint a consultant like IKRAM to investigate thesaety level immediately. In such cases, we can’t ask or a

price quote,” he said.He also explained that Selangor had acted with the

knowledge o the state nancial ocer in accordance withguidelines set by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Com-mission (MACC).

“It does not violate the Malaysian Anti-CorruptionCommission’s procedures because it was approved by stateexco members and the state nancial ocer.”

Directlynegotiatedcontractsto be revealed

SHAH ALAM: Selangor has set aside an initial RM10 millionto und scholarship programmes or civil servants, employeesat state subsidiary companies and their children.

“Te Selangor State Subsidiary Education Fund is a Corpo-rate Social Responsibility (CSR) programme in line with thestate policy to share its revenue with its citizens,” said MenteriBesar an Sri Khalid Ibrahim.

He said the money or the scholarship will be obtained romstate subsidiaries including the Selangor State DevelopmentCorporation (PKNS), Selangor Agriculture Development Cor-

poration (PKPS), Permodalan Negeri Selangor Berhad (PNSB),Kumpulan Darul Ehsan Berhad (KDEB and Kumpulan Perang-sang Selangor Berhad (KPS).

Selangorestablishes

scholarship fund

By Alvin Yap

SHAH ALAM: Families whose household income isRM1,500 and below will soon be entitled to a child

care allowance o RM100 a month, or a maximum o three children, under a new state scheme.“Te households and kindergartens must be registered

with the state,” said executive councillor Rodziah Ismail yesterday.

Rodziah, who is in charge o Welare and Women’sAfairs, added that only children below ve years o agequaliy or the relie.

She said this during Selangor’s International Women’sDay celebrations at the state secretariat yesterday.

She said Selangor’s database showed that there weresome 23,000 single mothers, with 1,000 hardcore pooramong them.

Rodziah added that this year, the state had allocatedsome RM3 million or the new programme.Also at the celebrations yesterday were Puan Sri Sal-

biah unut (wie o Menteri Besar an Sri Khalid Ibra-him), Lim Soo Ee (wie o state executive councillorRonnie Liu), Rawang state lawmaker Gan Pei Nei, dep-uty state assembly speaker Haniza alha and Kota Rajamember o Parliament Dr Siti Mariah Mahmud.

New child care schemefor deserving families

(From left) Gan, Lim, Haniza, Salbiah, Rodziah and Dr Siti Mariah.



SELANGOR TIMES ⁄ March 9 – 11, 2012 ⁄ 3



4 march 9 — 11, 2012

news

By Brenda Ch’ng

SUBANG JAYA: A senior citizen is among three men who will brave 250km o desert in the Marathon Des Sables nextmonth to raise unds or Persatuan Kebajikan Kanak-KanakKurang Upaya, Subang Jaya (P3KU), a local disabled children

welare association.Although dubbed the “oughest Footrace on Earth”, the

trio - Yee Sze Mun, 75, Dr Jagjit Singh Sidhu, 58, and homeo- pathic practitioner and acupuncturist Lee Cheewee Hoe, 57- are undeterred.

Tey aim to raise RM100,000 to build a premises or P3KU.Yee, who trains twice a day, said he thinks he’s physically t

enough or the week-long desert track, but remains concernedabout the mental strain and hauling a 10kg bagpack.

“I’m a 15-time Ironman riathlon nisher, and have endureda lot o physical strain but I think this marathon will be thelongest week o my lie.

“I’ve endured 17 hours o swimming, cycling and running but I’ve never done a marathon on sand beore. Tis will be

very dierent or me,” he said.“I hope afer this, more Malaysians will be aware o the less

ortunate people around them and help in anyway they can.”Lee, who was the rst Malaysian to complete an Iron Man

race in 1990 in Hawaii, said he elt inspired to run in aid o theassociation afer rst meeting the members.

“I was so touched by the children and amazed by their parents that we decided to spend a week walking the Saharadesert to raise unds or them,” he said.

His training regime includes a daily ve-hour walk with a12kg backpack.

Teir compatriot, Dr Jagjit Singh, is also both a marathonrunner and Atacama Desert run nisher.

All three will each be paying RM30,000 to take part in therace and stressed during the launch o the und-raising, at

Subang Parade, that all undscollected will go to P3KU.

he association currentlyoperates rom a multi-purposehall in USJ 2, or several hoursrom uesday to Friday, every

week. Volunteers and parents who

run the weekday activities, likeart, baking and music therapy,have to share the hall withother residents in the area andcannot occupy it or long.

Tey are also nding it aninconvenience to transporttheir activity equipment to androm the hall.

“We do not have the undsto set up a permanent centre orthe children and so our onlyoption is to use the USJ2 hall or ree,” said P3KU president

Jessie Yau.She said all equipment needed or the children’s activities is

currently paid or by the parents.Te centre now caters to only 27 children, rom as young as

eight while the oldest are in secondary school.“With the new centre, we can accommodate more children

and extend our operating hours to seven days a week,” said Yau.She said students will also be able to come straight to the

new centre afer school instead o only in the evenings.o date, the association has managed to collect RM60,000

rom the awareness created by the three runners under theRunning the Sahara or Special Kids project.

Also at the launch was Subang Jaya assemblyperson HannahYeoh, who is patron or the event.

“A huge thank you should be given to the three angels whoare willing to go the extra mile just to help these less ortunatechildren,” said Yeoh.

She wished all participants a sae and pleasant run and hopedmore people will come orward and ollow in their ootsteps.

“I hope this event will create more awareness or the public.Parents o disabled children should also join P3KU.

“Tis centre can be a good support group or those whoneed it and also train the children to have special skills,” shesaid.

Te Marathon Des Sables rom Morocco to Egypt will beheld rom April 8-14.

Tose wishing to contribute can call 019-3637099, 016-2162188 or email [email protected] or [email protected].

Senior Iron Mento take on Sahara

It’s all smiles at the My Selangor Story 2011 prize giving ceremony on March 5as Tourism Selangor general manager Noorul Ashikin (ourth rom let) poseswith state executive councillor or tourism Elizabeth Wong (th rom let), MySelangor Story 2011 winner Chen Tian Chad (sixth rom let) and My SelangorStory 2011 best photo winner Nigel Low (ourth rom right). The event was heldto promote the state as a premier tourist destination. Chen won the grand prizeo RM5,000 worth o travel vouchers, a camera, fight tickets, and a BlackberryTorch. He also won a one-year contract to manage Tourism Selangor’s socialmedia network. Low, who blogs at nigellow.wordpress.com,won RM1,500 worth otravel cash vouchers, a camera, and fight tickets.



6 march 9 — 11, 2012

news

By Gan Pei Ling

SHAH ALAM: Revelations that Federalloans amounting to RM90.3 million weresquandered by subsidiaries o Selangor Agri-cultural Development Corporation (PKPS)raised eyebrows during the public inquiry, on

Wednesday.In 2005, the Ministry o Finance dished

out RM40.1 million to PKPS Agro IndustriesSdn Bhd to sell resh salad and ruit juices(RM30.1 million) and composted ertiliser(RM10 million).

PKPS Agro Industries Sdn Bhd is a wholly-owned subsidiary o PKPS.

In 2006, the ministry granted anotherRM50.2 million to PKPS Agro Industriessubsidiary Premium Agro Products Sdn Bhdto set up a herbal extract business.

PKPS general manager Ali Ahmad madethe disclosures while testiying beore Selcat.

Ali, who joined PKPS in January 2009, saidhe ound out about the mismanaged projectsand the RM90.3 million debts around mid-2009.

“Tat’s quite a huge debt or PKPS. We tryto nd ways, on a case-by-case basis, to revi-talise the businesses. But in my opinion, there

was no hope,” he said.Premium Sanitised Products Sdn Bhd,

wholly owned by PKPS Agro Industries, wasestablished two weeks aer the RM30.1 mil-lion ederal loan was approved in September

2005 to sell resh salad and ruit juices toDubai.

Te company used hal o its loan to pur-chase machinery (RM15 million) withoutopen tenders, and the remaining hal to opena actory in Seri Kembangan (RM9.8 million)and or operations (RM5.3 million).

PKPS Agro Industries ormer generalmanager Md Zahary Malek said rising uelcost ruined the business as the products hadto be transported by air to Dubai to maintainreshness.

“It was no longer viable to send the productsto Dubai, so we only marketed them locally,”said Md Zahary.

Te company ceased operations in Febru-ary 2010 and its RM15 million worth o equipment have been le idle.

Md Zahary admitted that PKPS had noexpertise in the business when queried bySelcat chairperson Datuk eng Chang Khim.

In the second case, ormer PKPS subsidiaryPremium Agro Products used a RM10 millionederal loan to start a business composting ruit and vegetable wastes to ertiliser in 2005.

Ali said the venture ailed because a localcouncil did not honour its promise to pur-chase the ertiliser and the product wasinerior.

“We sent a sample to the lab, the quality was lacking,” said Ali, adding that PKPS oil palm plantations’ production improved aer

they stopped using the composted ertiliser.Ali said they sold all o their 85 per cent

shares in Premium Agro Products to its joint venture partner Hidangan Milik Keluarga SdnBhd eventually.

Another ormer PKPS subsidiary, Premi-um Bioherbs Sdn Bhd, used a RM50.2 millionloan to start a business extracting componentsusing nano-technology rom local herbs suchas ongkat Ali.

It spent more than hal o its loan, RM27million, to buy machinery through directnegotiations as well.

Its RM50.2 million debt was taken over byHidangan Milik Keluarga when the privatecompany bought over Premium Bioherbs.

Currently, PKPS is still le with RM40.1million debts.

Ali said the current PKPS management wasstill looking or business partners to revive itsresh salad and ruit juice business underPremium Sanitised Products.

eng told the press aer the Selcat hearing that the select committee would prepare areport on this inquiry but it was unlikely tobe ready beore March.

RM90.3mil down the drain

PKPS deputy general manager Aqmal Azam Ahmad, general manager Ali Ahmadand former PKPS Agro Industries general manager Md Zahary Malek.

SHAH ALAM: None o the complainants with “evidence” o grain Kumpulan Semesta Sdn Bhd (KSSB) attended Monday’s publichearing by Selangor’s Special Select Committee on Competency,Accountability and ransparency (Selcat).

“We’ve invited those who claimed they can proo misconduct inKSSB to testiy but none stepped orward,” said Selcat chairpersonDatuk eng Chang Khim aer the hearing.

Among those missing were Selangor Umno deputy chie DatukSeri Noh Omar and Selangor Barisan Nasional coordinator DatukSeri Mohd Zin Mohamed.

Noh had reportedly said on Feb 14 that he was ready to providethe evidence and witnesses o gra at the state sand-mining subsidiary

while Mohd Zin was previously invited by Menteri Besar an SriKhalid Ibrahim to attend the public inquiry to expose any evidencehe had.

Tere was also no show by the nine “whistle-blowers” who werereportedly sacked or exposing the company’s wrong-doing.

KSSB chie executive ocer Wan Abdul Halim, who was among three witnesses who testied during the hearing, said only our ormerstaf and not nine, were terminated or disciplinary issues.

“All went through a domestic inquiry (beore they were dismissed),”said Wan Abdul Halim, who has led the company since July 2010.

Te our included a security manager who was sacked or revising payment rates to security companies without his employer’s knowl-edge along with appointing an unregistered security company.

A senior manager was sacked or arbitrarily extending sand-mining land areas or companies. A marketing executive was red or behav-ing disrespectully towards his co-workers while another marketing executive was accused o breaking into two cabins at two separatesand-mining sites.

Wan Abdul Halim also testied that KSSB never received anyapplication rom Double Dignity Sdn Bhd, a rm linked to PKR state

lawmakers, to carry out sand-mining.Blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin had made the allegation against Sri

Muda assemblyperson Shuhaimi Shaei and Batu Caves assemblyper-son Amirudin Shari in a Feb 9 blog posting at Malaysia oday.Both Shuhaimi and Amirudin appeared beore the public inquiry

and denied the allegations under oath.Shuhaimi reiterated at the public inquiry that Double Dignity was

never registered with KSSB.Amirudin, who was a director at Double Dignity rom 2009 to

2011, testied that he has never had any dealings with KSSB.

No show by ‘whistleblowers’, accusers

SHAH ALAM: Yayasan Selangor was taken to task orspending RM1.41 million to organise lavish events in2010 by Selcat on uesday.

“I a (local) university student’s ee is aroundRM7,000 per semester, Yayasan Selangor could haveunded over 200 students or a semester with RM1.41million,” said Selcat chairperson Datuk eng Chang Khim on the second day o public hearings.

Te state education oundation had spent RM899,020to celebrate its 40th anniversary on Nov 15, 2010, in-cluding a gala dinner, shing competition and purchaseo extravagant attire or its staf.

Another hal a million was used to organise threebanquets in 2010 - RM167,400 or Buka Puasa on Aug 21, RM303,476 or Aidil Fitri on Oct 4, and RM44,452or Korban Perdana on Nov 18.

SHAH ALAM: Yayasan Selangor general managerIlham Marzuki estimated that the education oundation

lost RM500 million rom 1991 to 2008, a public inquiryheard on uesday.“Yayasan Selangor used to enter into joint ventures

with private companies [beore 2008] but only received30 percent o the revenue.

“Te return in investment [due to such practice] isless than what we’re achieving right now,” Ilham toldthe Special Select Committee on Competency, Ac-countability and ransparency (Selcat).

He said Yayasan Selangor currently owns RM300million worth o xed assets and the amount would

have been RM800 million i it weren’t or the leakages.He added that he would propose to Yayasan Selan-gor’s board o directors to appoint an independentauditor such as Ernst & Young or KPMG to conductorensic audit to on the matter.

“Ten we’ll know the truth. Even i my estimation was less by 50 percent, Yayasan Selangor still lostRM250 million [during that period],” said Ilham, who

joined Yayasan Selangor in 2010.

In addition, the event management companies wereappointed without open tender.

Yayasan Selangor’s internal audit committee mem-

bers told Selcat that or any expenditure overRM50,000, an open tender should have been calledaccording to protocol.

Te oundation’s general manager, Ilham Marzuki,said the management did conduct limited tenders bycalling or quotations rom three selected companies.

However, Ilham said he was unable to provide thelimited tender documents to Selcat as they have beensurrendered to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Com-mission.

Yayasan Selangor was also ound to have paid at least95 percent o the ees to the event management com-

panies even beore the events were held.For example, the education charity paid an event

management company RM270,750 (95 percent) toorganise its 40th anniversary gala dinner on Nov 15,2010.

However, the dinner was cancelled aer the Selan-

gor Sultan reused to attend and Yayasan Selangor has yet to receive any reund rom the event managementcompany.

Selcat member Sulaiman Abdul Razak (Umno-Permatang) noted that companies would usually payonly 30 percent o the ees to event managementcompanies prior to the occasion.

Despite that, Ilham repeatedly assured the Selcat panel that Yayasan Selangor had take immediate stepsto stop malpractices in its nancial management.

“Tere were weaknesses in our nancial manage-ment but we’re making sure these mistakes will neverhappen again,” said Ilham.

Yayasan Selangor slammed over lavish events

Yayasan Selangor GM alleges RM500m lost under BN

Date RM

Nov 15 40th anniversary celebration 899,020

• Galadinner (cancelled)–RM270,750

•Fish ing competition – RM179,000

•Souvenirs–RM52,900

•Otherexpenses–RM396,370

Nov18 KorbanPerdanabanquet 44,452

*Accountsstatementnotpreparedyet

attimeofaudit

Oct4 AidilFitribanquet 303,476

•Budgeted–RM281,000

•Extracostb illed – RM22,476

Aug21 BukaPuasabanquet(2,300people) 167,400

•Budgeted–RM138,000

•Extracostb illed – RM29,400

TOTAL 1,414,348



People come rst

2 ⁄ March 9 – 11,2012 ⁄ SELANGOR TIMES

To mark the fourthanniversary

of PakatanRakyat’s rulein Selangor,BASIL FOO

met up withMenteri Besar Tan Sri KhalidIbrahim to ndout about hisadministration’ssuccesses, itsaspirations and plans for thefuture.

W hat are the underlining principleso your administration and how has that translated into per-

ormance?I think we have moved to nd solutions as

opposed to just developing policy. In managing Selangor, I nd, we must also have a hands-on(approach), as opposed to (just being) a

policy-making body. We are also changing the culture o work,

in the sense that, we want even our seniorocials to know how to solve the problem. Inshort, we want to create more doers than

policy makers.Looking at the trend since 2008, I think we are quite pleased with the perormance. O course, like some o you say, while our basicundamental perormance is good, we are not

very good promoters o ourselves. We don’toversell Selangor.

here are times where we spend aboutRM700 million or the Merakyatkan EkonomiSelangr (MES) programme, but it looks like

we spent only RM100 million. So we got tolearn how to be better (at promotion) thanthat.

But in terms o contribution, I think wecontribute signicantly to the Gross DomesticProduct (GDP) o Malaysia. In terms o growth in 2010, while the Malaysian economygrew by 7.2 per cent, we grew 10.8 per cent.

And our contribution to the national economyhas consistently been around 21 to 23 per centin the previous years.

Tat shows that one-h o the nation’seconomy is in Selangor.

Also, the reserve o the state since 2005grew rom RM813.61 million to RM1.944billion last year.

How has the state’s nancial strength overrecent years contributed to the people’s welare?

We already spent over R M592 million onour MES programme. Te gure also includesthe Selangorku grant. Te major diferencebetween beore 2008 and aer is that our

programmes are targeted at beneting peopledirectly.

Our ree water programme, the SelangorChild Heritage Fund (awas), the SeniorCitizens Scheme to deray uneral costs are allirst-time programmes that beneit those

entitled to it.Te state had also annually allocated RM6million to both state Chinese and amilschools along with RM4 million to religiousschools since 2008.

Under Selangorku, this year , we plan tocontribute more. I people are talking aboutconsistency in distributing unds, we havebeen very consistent.

We also have a lot o other policies like JomShopping, which started aer 2008.

In addition, we are launching another 17new programmes to support the concept o minimum wage, to eradicate bribery, empower

women, workers’ welare, youth entre- preneurship, along with additional unds oreducation support and inrastructure.

Tis includes providing afordable housing

as many cannot buy homes We are now trying to come up with a better programme to ensure those below 40 will havea chance to start owning houses. How do wesupport them?

When we launched afordable homes inBangi, we had only 300 units. oday we haveover 5,000 applications. Tat means there is

demand but we must nd ways on how tomeet it.

Are the state’s inances and reservesafected by these programmes ?

When you say you distribute RM600million, the rst question in your mind: thesavings o the state will go down. But in spiteo our distribution o over RM600 million,Selangor’s reserves increased rom RM800million to RM1.9 billion.

So we win both ways – we got more savings, we got more distribution.

What are some o the promises that weremade during the elections but have not been ullled yet?

Tere are three major areas. One is thereduction o assessment rates. We looked atit. We are now trying to stretch the paymentsbut we cannot aord to reduce the rates.Second, we also wanted to provide support tohelp children rom poor amilies go tokindergartens. We are trying to work out thenumbers and will start introducing someschemes.

Tird, we indicated, we didn’t promise, torecognise the role o homemakers. Tat meansallowances or housewives. But we saw thenumbers were quite big.

So I think these are the things we have to

work on. But as or the rest, we have given alot more than promised during the election. We also planned to have (limited) local

council elections (in PJ) since last September. We stopped it because there were rumoursthat we were going to have the general election(GE) in December. So why should we havelocal elections and also GE at the same time.

But December didn’t happen.Ten it was going to be in February, aer

Chap Goh Meh. Ten aer the oranges werenished, Chap Goh Meh was over, it didn’thappen either. We are caught – to the extentthat there were some who argued that weshould deer the appointment o councillors.

Now we have appointed councillors or thenext two years. Tere are groups who argued

we shouldn’t do it. Just extend the councillorsuntil GE. But my answer is we won’t know

when that will happen because the GE is notdetermined by us.

I you can tell me that the GE will be inSeptember or November, then I can assure you, beore June, we will have local councilelections or Petaling Jaya.

What is the state doing to address theshortage o schools in Selangor?

We are sorting it out. We are trying to giveschools to the people but the powers o thestate are only with regards to the land, notanything else. But we hope the Federalgovernment, upon getting our allocations o land, will give grants to set up the schools.

Tere are reports in the papers saying theFederal government is not quite happy withthe state or allocating land to Chinese schoolsbut we will do it. Our policy is the choice o education will be le to the parents. We let

the people make their choice.Tese are the minutes o the state executivecouncil meeting. We have to date approved84 pieces o land or Chinese, sekolahkebangsaan, and religious schools. Tat’s 84in our years, compared with less than 20 in50 years – that’s the picture.

• Turn to Page 4




Will Selangor ollow suit i the GeneralElections are called?

We’d like to say that we will act independento the Federal elections. I did say, in my speechin the last state assembly, because we arelaunching our RM300 million Selangorkugrant, plus spending the budget o RM1.6billion or 2012, we didn’t want to have a veryshort period o time to embark on the

programmes.Basically, we can only consider having

elections aer at least six months into the year.Some people in Pakatan agree with this andeven suggested that it should even be extendedto October or November. But I will make adecision only aer I see an announcementrom Putrajaya.

But it is unlikely that the state will ollowi they announce it in April. Aer June thenI will consider it. At the same time, we alsohave to see how we have conducted our

programmes. here are advantages anddisadvantages in joining the election. Pakatan’smajor thrust this time is winning Putrajaya.

Tat means we should concentrate all ourresources. In Selangor, we have the mostnumber o state assemblypersons representing Pakatan. We can use the state lawmakers togo around Malaysia, to campaign or

parliamentary seats. I we win Putrajaya, theSelangor state election aer that will be quitea simple exercise.

I we can increase our majority in Putrajaya,it will be a good motivation or us to workharder to retain Selangor. In both cases, wethink that it is a good idea to ocus on ourobjectives – winning Putrajaya and retaining Selangor.

Are you going to contest inParliament and state seatsagain?

I am also a party member. Alldecisions with regards to this willbe in the hands o PKR andPakatan Rakyat.

I don’t think any o us canmake any statement with regardsto participating in the elections.I eel that I should be verydisciplined in this regard.

hat’s why they didn’tannounce the candidates becausethe moment they do, everybody

will go bonkers and ght eachother. In the right time, there willbe a proper announcement.

We have a vision and I cameinto politics because o Re-ormasi. So I have to be verydisciplined to attain that ob-

jective. I have done it or Selangor,I have introduced transparency,accountability, competency, andI always make great eort toensure there is no corruption inthe state, and also I separate

politics rom government.I’m trying to do my best. Tat’s

the reason I think I got elected.

What is your view o Datuk Hasan Ali’s removal rom his position inthe state administration?

Hasan Ali leaving the exco stabilised theassociation between the component parties.Or maybe everybody has the same objectiveto win the election so everybody has becomemore ocused.

We laugh a lot. We have become more o ateam. We laugh a lot, talk a lot, and share a lot.

We can have diferences but we nd amicablesolutions or what we want to do.

Are you confdent o retaining Selangor?

I think i (Datuk Seri) Najib (Razak)

thinks he can win, he would already havecalled the election. But nothing happened.Tat shows their (election analysis) numbersand ours, show that Pakatan may win a biggernumber o seats than what we have now. Tatmeans we could even reach a two-thirdsmajority.

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• From Page 2



SELANGOR TIMES ⁄ March 9 – 11, 2012 ⁄ 5 – ,

Congratulations

From

Board o Directors, Management & Staf o

To

T C L U L G E G TIVE E C L U L G EG TIVE

Tourism Selangor Sdn Bhd Lot P7, Jalan Indah 14/12

Seksyen 14, 40000 Shah AlamSelangor Darul EhsanTel: +603-5513 2000Fax: +603-5513 6268




Dr Halimah Ali

(Education, Higher Education and Human

Capital Development):

Dr Halimah wants Selangor to continue

with its “lie-long” education concept by

inculcating reading habits with residents.

“The program we want to have will make

reading a habit in public as well as in pri-

vate homes ,” she said.

She added that she wants state spon-

sored educational centres to instil creativ-

ity and critical thinking skills in students.

“We are looking at syllabus rom other developing and devel-

oped countries towards that end,” she said..

Ean Yong Hian Wah

(New Village Development, Illegal Fac-

tory Settlement):

His oce is looking at bringing

planned development to new villages

in Selangor.

“The next ew years will see usbringing in amenities such as roads

and upgraded sewerage to new vil-

lages in Selangor,” he said.

For shing villages, he wants to ad-

dress environmental issues that have been plaguing areas

along the state’s long coastal area.

“We must nd a way to handle rubbish that is dumped

into the sea by villagers in the shing areas,” he said, adding

that the state was kick-starting a pilot project to teach and

set up recycling centres in the aected areas

Rodziah Ismail

(Welfare, Women’s Affairs, Science,

Technology and Innovation):

Rodziah hopes the state will reach

out to more needy individuals with its“Work-are” initiatives.

“We don’t want to give welare, but

want to provide education, training and

micro-business opportunities to needy

residents in the state,” she said.

Similarly, under her Women’s Aairs

portolio, her oce will implement policies to uplit the nan-

cial independence o women through education and entre-

preneurial programmes.

Rodziah also wants to increase ree WIFI coverage or pub-

lic areas in the state.

Elizabeth Wong(Environment, Tourism and Consumer Affairs):

Wong wants to make environmental aware-

ness and protection a top priority in the state.

“We want to put more land under orest ga-

zette to protect our natural resources,” she

says.

Wong also wants more environmental initia-tives such as the successul “No Plastic Bag

Day” campaign, such as setting up bicycle

lanes in local government areas.

Meanwhile, her ofce will concentrate on

promoting lesser known tourist sites in Kuala Langat, Sabak Bernam

and Kuala Selangor.

Wong’s ofce also wants the state to resolve Orang Asli land issues

and fnalise the list o gazetted land reserves.

She also wants the state to ully implement the Freedom O Inorma-

tion Enactment.

Dr Ahmad Yunus Hairi

(Malay Customs, Youth and Sports):

The newly-appointed state execu-

tive councillor wants Selangor ath-

letes to compete in a regional and

global sports arena to gain exposure

and experience competing against

world-class sporting gures.

“Selangor sportspersons should

not only limit their participation in the

Malaysia Games (Sukma) but com-

pete abroad to gain

experience,” said the Sijangkang assemblyperson.

He also wants Selangor to und more sporting events

or youths at the local council level, adding that he is con-

sidering asking the state in 2013-2014 or more alloca-

tions to upgrade community sports complexes in the 12

local governments..

Ronnie Liu

(Local Government, Research and Devel-

opment):

Liu says he wants to see a return o lo-

cal council elections in the 12 local gov-ernments, beginning with a “test initia-

tive” at

Petaling Jaya City Council by the third

quarter o 2012.

“We want local governments to re-

fect the need o the people through local

council elections,” he said.

Meanwhile, he’s calling or local governments to rise to the

challenge o managing public cleaning and solid waste collec-

tion and disposal ater a 13-year hiatus.

“All the local governments have to amiliarise themselves

with the procedures and discharge their duties well,” he said.

Exco’s vision and wishes




Iskandar Samad

( Housing, Housing Management and

Squatters):

He wants the state to build more

houses under the Aordable Housing

scheme ater an initial 300 units were

snapped up when launched in 2011.

“My vision or the state or 2012 and

beyond is the same as it was last year. I

want middle-income amilies to be able

to own their own houses,” said Iskandar.

He is pushing or the construction o

an additional 1,000 units o the 950 sq t houses that will sell

or RM100,000.

Iskandar also wants to increase the number o low-cost

ats to be reurbished under the state‘s Skim Ceria initiative.

Dr Xavier Jayakumar

(Health, Plantation Workers, Poverty and

Caring Government):

He wants the government to set aside

RM5 million to provide free meals for chil-

dren who would otherwise go to school on

an empty stomach.

“We want students from poor families to

get at least two square meals, that is nutri-

tious for their mental and physical growth,”

he said.

As education is the key to eradicating pov-

erty, he wants the state to increase its spending to provide educa-

tional opportunities to needy families.

He also wants the state and federal government to upgrade dis-

trict hospitals.

Teresa Kok

(Investment, Trade and Industry):

Kok wants Selangor to attract more

high-tech, low polluting industries into

the state.

“The value rom such industries is

high, and the technology transer can

beneft the human capital o Selangor

residents,” she says.

She adds that Selangor aims to pull

in increasingly higher amounts o For-

eign Direct Investments (FDI) or 2012-

2013.

“Selangor is home to the largest number o skilled and

trained workers, and the state has the best inrastructure sys-

tem in Malaysia,” she said.

Dr Yaakob Sapari (Agriculture Modernisation, Natural Re-

sources and Entrepreneurial Development):

Yaakob hopes to see an increase in the

livelihood of farmers in Selangor.

“I want to make sure that the income of

farmers is increased substantially within

these two years,” he said, adding that he

wants the state to adopt “natural farming”

methods that boost production and are also

free from harmful chemicals.

Yaakob wants to make Selangor the num-

ber one producer of dairy milk as well as become a large-scale fruit

growing centre.

Congratulations

From

President, Councillors, Management & Staf

To

MAJLIS DAERAH KUALA LANGAT



8 ⁄ march 9 – 11,2012 ⁄ SELANGOR TIMES

I

n the private sector, change managementreers to a structured approach to theshiing and transitioning o organisations

rom a current state to a desired uture state.In a rapidly changing environment, it is crucialor companies to react quickly and ensure all

players within are single-mindedly ocused onachieving a common goal.

Tis concept can be similarly applied to therunning o a government. And even moreimportantly so when it is a new government

whose change needs to be wisely managed.Four years ago, Selangor voters chose to

end the reign o the only political coalitionthey had ever known, thereby electing a newgovernment in its place. Te Pakatan Ra kyatcoalition (Pakatan), as it was later named, wasmade up o its three component parties: theDemocratic Action Party (DAP), PartiKeadilan Rakyat (PKR) and Parti Se-IslamMalaysia (PAS).

hree parties with seemingly disparate views to begin with would now work hand-in-hand in making their new state government

work. (Other state governments that were won by Pakatan Rakyat include Penang,Kelantan and Kedah. Perak was wrested awayby the Barisan Nasional coalition (Barisan)some time aer).

Despite initial challenges, namely learning to work closely with the civil service whichhad only worked with Barisan, having to aceconstant political arrows shot rom the otherside, as well as working out internal dier-

ences within and amongst the parties, Pakatanhas ared well in Selangor.

Beore we explore the many areas that Se-langor has initiated polic y and programmaticreorm, it is an important reminder that thestate o Selangor was and is the most hotlycontested state in the country.

Tis is because it is rich in natural and hu-man resources, contributing almost 20 per centto the national gross domestic product (GDP).

Hence, a greater, and more intense battleis bound to have taken place.

Second, the makeup o the Selangor popu-lation is the most representative o that o Malaysia. In terms o ethnic, religious andcultural proportions, Selangor mirrors na-tional statistics.

Likewise, its problems and challenges arereected therein. In act, national and stateissues are sometimes blended together, withlocals conusing one with the other.

Developing DemocracyAt the oreront o Selangor’s approach to

managing its new government was to developan environment o greater democracy, a prin-ciple embraced by all component parties, anda clarion call during the election campaign trail.

Having had a previous government that wasalways shrouded in secrecy, measures o trans-

parency and accountability were priorities.Te legislative assembly ormed a Select

Committee on Competency, Accountabil-ity and ransparency which conductedseveral high-level proceedings to investigatealleged corrupt practices o the previousgovernment.

One o the more memorable was the un-covering o how Balkis (Wives o SelangorElected Representatives Association) misusedunds it received rom the state government.

In line with the transparency approach, theSelangor state government was the rst in thecountry (either at the state or ederal level) toenact a Freedom o Inormation Act (FOIA).

Although this would apply only to stategovernment-linked companies and its sub-sidiaries, and state bodies, this is a revolution-ary move. It certainly sets an example thatother states can ollow, and more impor-tantly, that the ederal government shouldemulate.

For so long the nation has aced the OfcialSecrets Act, and changing the culture to en-sure greater data transparency will ultimatelyhelp citizens claim their rights.

Te Selangor exco has also steadily releasedinormation on past deals that were shady,releasing previously classied documents withthe intention o ensuring the public was get-ting access to unair deals.

Selangor has also been in negotiation with

the ederal government to restore local coun-cil elections, an eort which unortunately hashit a dead end ollowing negative responserom the Elections Commission.

Nevertheless, the state has had constantinteraction with the Coalition or GoodGovernance (CGG, a coalition o non-gov-ernmental organisations working on variousgovernance issues in Selangor) in order to

work out a roadmap toward a potential pilotlocal election.

Despite this hiccup, the state proceededto carry out local village elections in threeChinese new villages, and is also the rststate to conduct mosque committee elec-tions state-wide.

O course, managing government at stateand local levels has not necessarily beensmooth-sailing given that ederal government

powers are so strong.Te country’s centralisation o power has

been one o the banes o any opposition stategovernment.

Almost all major policies are decided inPutrajaya, leaving states to handle natural re-sources, roads, drains, local councils, Islam anda smattering o other aairs. Even something as localised as water services is a shared duty(in the concurrent list o the Federal Consti-tution), which accounts or the long-drawn

water battles still gone unresolved today.

Four years of PR in Selangor

• Turn to Page 11

Just selangor

Tricia Yeoh

“Pemangkin Generasi Berilmu”“Pemangkin Generasi Berilmu”

Happy 4th Anniversary

Selangor State Government

under Pakatan Rakyat

Menara Yayasan Selangor,

No 18A, Jalan Persiaran Barat,

46000 Petaling Jaya, Selangor Darul Ehsan.

Happy 4th Anniversary

Selangor State Government

under Pakatan Rakyat

� Tahun Merakyatkan Pendidikan Selangor� Tahun Merakyatkan Pendidikan Selangor




Congratulations

From

Te Management & Staf o

Selangor State Investment Centre

o

SSIC BERHAD

No. F1-2-G, Jalan Multimedia 7/AGCityPark i-City Shah Alam 40000 Selangor Darul Ehsan

Tel : 03- 5510 2005 Fax : 5519 6403e-mail: [email protected] website: www.ssic.com.my



SELANGOR TIMES ⁄ march 9 – 11,2012 ⁄ 11

Servicing the PublicAs mentioned above, the water saga in

elangor was quite a tell-tale story o previousovernment errors, where either the pastovernment was unable to work out a air dealor itsel – and thereore, its people – or itntentionally did so.

In either case, the water services industrywas le in shambles, needing severe cleaning

p by the new Pakatan government. Long tory short, the private concession companyyabas was (and is) in debt, but has not been

willing to sell its company because it considershe Selangor oer too low.

Te Selangor government, in wanting toeverse this process o privatisation by return-ng the rights o water back to a state-runntity, is trying to stop cronies rom proteer-ng at the taxpayers’ expense.

Privatisation can succeed but not the way was done in the Selangor water industry,here certain concessions were granted with-ut the necessary expertise nor experienceequired to run the business concerned.

Running a state involves all kinds o localsues, where at times the mundane tasks o aily administration may not be exciting – buthis is where the proo is in the pudding.

How well states run their solid waste man-gement, housing, sanitation and environ-

ment speaks volumes or their governments.Here, Selangor has made tremendous e-

orts in resolving housing projects previouslybandoned by ormer developers acing nan-ial diculty.

Managing a multi-religious society is noasy task. Although numerous issues croppedp over the past our years (recall incidents o

he Hindu temple relocation, church burning,ale o alcohol), at times testing the stateovernment’s ability to handle matters, thesues were eventually managed without areak in power ranks.

Managing the EconomyEconomic policy is managed by the ederal

overnment in almost all respects, governedy the Economic Planning Unit with other

major decisions made at the highest o levels.Selangor as a state, however, is a jewel in

he nation’s crown, and it has been said manymes that Selangor ought to be supported.

Without adequate support or co-operation,

would be as i one is cutting o one’s noseo spite the ace.Tus, because o the inability to make very

many key policy changes, the state govern-ments are at time relegated to disbursing unds

here deemed appropriate.In this case, it is an evaluation o the best

bang or your buck” – is your ringgit being nvested or given out to those worthy o it?

Here, an increased allocation was given tohose previously with relatively little: amilnd Chinese vernacular schools, sekolahgama rakyat, increased allowanced or kaaeligious teachers, and CCV cameras oraety in the streets.

Te Pakatan government’s economic phi-osophy is not given a particular label but the

most appropriate might be a social demo-

ratic one, in which business is thoroughlyncouraged to promote air and rigorousompetition.

However, this does not mean the weakernd lower-income groups are abandoned – onhe contrary, they are assisted through nan-ial aid and more importantly through train-ng and empowerment programmes like those

oered by the state government.Selangor’s “MES: Merakyatkan Ekonomi

Selangor”, or the People’s Economy (looselytranslated), a slew o nine and growing pack-ages to assist the underprivileged communitieshave creative ideas, one o which involves in-

vesting RM100 into a und or every childborn in the state, aer 18 years o which hecan claim a larger amount.

In the conventions jointly attended by theour Pakatan states, the leaders have oenmade it clear that they intend to work closelytogether in ormulating common policies and

programmes.

ConclusionManaging the largest and most lucrative

state may seem a walk in the park. No matter what you do, investors and businessmen willsurely set up shop in Selangor. Even the KualaLumpur International Airport is deceptivelynamed since it is located within Selangor.

On the other hand, those involved wouldknow or sure the tough challenges that lay intheir paths o managing the state government.

Selangor has had to contend with the ed-eral government and opposition political

parties’ antics and continuous arrows, baggagerom the previous government, a civil service

where the bulk still reports to Putrajaya, as well as internal confict that unortunately is washed as dirty linen in public.

Given this context, it is or all intents and purposes a miracle that Pakatan has achievedthis amount or its time in government. O course, complaints are ever aplenty. Someclaim business is slower than beore, since

previously bribes could be paid to speed thingsalong, whereas this seems impossible now.

Although a aster and more ecient ad-ministration is always preerred, Malaysianshave to also choose between transparency andcorruption, the ormer o which may slowthings down slightly to ensure due process isgiven.

As Selangor citizens sit back to refect onthe successes and ailures o the Pakatan gov-ernment, perhaps it will be a useul exercise toimagine what things would be like under aBarisan government all over again.

Finally, one crucial point to note is thatunder Pakatan, the process o getting thingsdone has been a lot more people-oriented.Consider or example the many public hear-ings organised by the state government during controversial and heated cases such as the

Subang Ria incident, the temple relocationaair, Bukit Botak, and most recently Univer-sity Malaya Medical Centre’s health metropo-lis in Petaling Jaya.

Obtaining eedback rom residents in thegeographical area concerned is consideredimperative to the state government.

Where previously one would have hadminimal interaction with their councils orstate government, today the state governmenthas set a standard practice to ollow.

It has also compelled enaga Nasional andPrasarana to conduct similar public hearingsor ederal government projects, an examplethat surely benets only the community in theshort and long run.

Aer our years o governing Selangor, it isclear the state has had both achievements to

be proud o and challenges that caused minorbumps along the way.However, it has also accomplished a whole

lot, given the heightened political context andcircumstances.

Tricia Yeoh’s book “States of Reform: Govern- ing Selangor and Penang” will be published and launched in May.

State condentlymarches forward

From Page 8




Congratulations

From

President, Councillors, Management & Staf

To

MAJLIS PERBANDARAN KAJANG



7march 9 — 11, 2012

news

By Gan Pei Ling

KUALA LUMPUR: White gloves were mailedo all state lawmakers in the country by women’sroups asking or clean, corruption-ree governmentsn International Women’s Day, yesterday .

Donned in white gloves and purple attire symbol-ing emale empowerment, around 20 women’s

ights activists marched rom Little India’s elephantountain to the Brickelds post oce yesterday a-ernoon.

“Te white gloves symbolise our call or a cleanovernment, and purple is the colour o women’smpowerment, used since the 1920s when womenemanded or the right to vote,” said organiser aniao Maliamauv.

he group chanted “olak Rasuah!”, “HidupWanita!”, “Wanita Mau Kerajaan Bersih!” andWanita Mau Gaji Minima!” throughout the proces-on.

Te 30-minute rally attracted curious glances romedestrians and caused a slight jam at Jalan Tambi-

pillay as drivers slowed down to watch what wasoing on.

ania said they posted the letters, consisting whiteloves, to 576 assemblypersons to urge them to en-orse the six demands o the “Wanita Suara Peruba-an” coalition.

Made up o 18 civil society groups, the coalitionalls or clean governments, an end to violence against

women, RM1,500 minimum wage, and ree and airlections, among others.

She added that the coalition would be giving outwhite gloves to members o Parliament on March 13.

Prominent women’s rights activists at the marchncluded Empower chie Maria Chin Abdullah,Women’s Aid Organisation president Meera Saman-her and executive director Ivy Josiah, and All

Women’s Action Society chie Ho Yock Lin.Sisters in Islam and enaganita members as well

s Bukit Mertajam member o Parliament Chong ng were also present. Wanita Suara Perubahan will be holding a bigger

ally on March 18, at 2.30pm at Padang Astaka inetaling Jaya to demand or clean governments.

For more inormation, visit www.acebook.com/wanitasuperMY and www.twitter.com/wanitasu-erMY.

Women wantclean governments

Women activists posted 576 pairs of white gloves toassemblypersons nationwide calling for corruption-freegovernments.

By Basil Foo

PETALING JAYA: Whistles were distributed to womencommuters at the Kelana Jaya LR station in conjunction withInternational Women’s Day by Jenice Lee on Wednesday.

Te eratai state lawmaker said whistles were chosen overowers to enable women to draw attention should they be as-saulted.

“Some 600 whistles were given out to ladies today. Tis smalldevice is useul to attract attention i they are attacked,” said Lee.

Shelina Rusli, a 48-year-old clerk rom Sunway who receiveda whistle rom Lee, said she had been robbed beore.

“I was walking in SS2 at night when two men pulled me intoa dark alley and grabbed the chain around my neck,” she said.

Te only silver lining to have come out o the rightening experience was that her chain was only costume jewellery.

Bariah Sharif, a 48-year old housewie, almost became a victim when her car was blocked by unknown assailants in Bandar SriDamansara but she managed to escape.

“I will g ive this whistle to my daughter,” said 63-year-old re-tiree Violet Loke.

Also present at the event was Klang councillor Lim Lip Suan.Lee said crime could be better tackled using an auxiliary police

orce made up o local council enorcement ocers.She said the Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ ) made a request

or auxiliary police ocers in 2009 but was rejected by the HomeMinistry.

“Tis is unair as even areas in KLIA and Sunway can haveauxiliary policemen.”

Whistles overowers for

commuters

Shelina, Lee, Bariah, and Loke.

Rawang state assemblyperson Gan Pei Nei (right) handing astalk of rose to a trader at the Rawang town morning marketon Thursday. Flowers were given out to women at the market inconjunction with International Women’s Day. Gan also launchedher International Women’s Day questionnaire research project,which aims to create political awareness among women.

DAP Klang’s Nancy Lee (third from left) handing out flowers to the traders at the Chi Liung nightmarket in Klang on Wednesday in conjunction with International Women’s Day celebration. Also

resent was Klang member of Parliament Charles Santiago who handed out flyers listing fiveemands for women’s rights. Among them are 30 per cent women participation at council, statend federal levels, and to end all domestic and sexual violence. Local councils are also asked to

ook into awarding small contracts worth between RM2,000-RM5,000 to single mothers.



8 march 9 — 11, 2012

news

VICTORIA: Selangor state ocials will be posted in the Victorian Oce o Housing tostudy methods used by the Australian state totackle housing issues.

Te move was mooted by Selangor stateexecutive councillor or Housing IskandarSamad when he visited Melbourne on March2.

Iskandar met with Victorian Housing Ministry chie o sta Anna Cronin who sug-gested that Selangor ocials be posted in herdepartment or a certain period.

Cronin suggested or the ocials to beexposed to the implementation o the Victo-rian government’s housing agenda whichadopted people-rst policies.

Iskandar welcomed Cronin’s suggestion as it wouldexpose Selangor ocials to the inner workings o adeveloped country.

He was also condent that the experience will con-tribute to making Selangor a world-class state.

He noted that Victoria not only prepared homes or young adults and the needy but also had programmeslike counselling, skills training, and other orms o sup-

port.Te public homes there could be compared to the

People’s Housing Project (PPR) in Selangor which hasdevelopments in areas like Lembah Subang and KotaDamansara.

During the visit, Iskandar and Cronin brieed eachother on the housing programmes, policies and agendao their respective states.

Taking housing tipsfrom Aussie counterparts

By Gan Pei Ling

PETALING JAYA: A 4.8 kg patin, caught ve minutes into therst leg o the Selangor Fishing Grand Prix 2012, le Mohd DesaZakaria RM40,000 richer last Sunday.

Te storekeeper rom Sungai Buloh was grinning rom ear to ear asMenteri Besar an Sri Khalid Ibrahim handed him eight large bundleso RM50 notes on stage metres rom where he caught the commonresh water Silver Cat Fish at asik Bandaran, Kelana Jaya.

“Tis is the rst time I’ve won the rst prize,” said the 56-year-old who only started angling our years ago.

Mohd Desa said he planned to celebrate his good ortune by taking amily and riends out or a good meal while saving the rest o the purse.

Meanwhile, Fazilah Baharani, also rom Sungai Buloh and sole participant or the newly-established women’s category, caught threeshes and brought home RM300.

Her husband, Mohd Yuslan Ibrahim, was placed 29th in the contestand took home RM100 and a hamper.

Te couple said they were looking orward to taking part in theother 11 legs o the grand prix scheduled throughout the year.

Te grand slam winner at the end o the series will receive a ProtonPersona worth RM55,000.

Te next leg will be held on March 25 at aman asik Chempakain Bangi.

A motor show, karaoke and ino hunt competitions were held con-currently with the shing competition.

Also present at the event were executive councillor Yaakob Sapari,Petaling Jaya mayor Datuk Roslan Sakiman and Klang MunicipalCouncil acting president Ikhsan Mukri.

Storekeeper’sRM40,000 catch

First prize winner Mohd Desa (third from left) receiving hisbundles of RM40,000 from Khalid (third from right). Alsopresent are Yaakob (second from left), Roslan (second fromright) and Ikhsan.

By Basil Foo

SHAH ALAM: F&N Beverages Marketing Sdn Bhdand the Shah Alam City Council (MBSA) Rec ycling Campaign are oering schools here a chance to winattractive prizes while doing their bit or the environ-ment.

Te campaign, in i ts sixth year, kicked o last ues-day and will be held until June 20.

Both primary and secondary schools in Shah Alamare eligible to take part.

Te school which collects the most recyclable items,in terms o weight, by the end o the campaign will

win the grand prize o RM1,500.Tose placed second, third, ourth and h will

win RM1,300, RM1,200, RM1,100 and RM1,000respectively.

“Te response so ar has been good. Our studentsand their parents were encouraged to take part,” saidSK DI Jaya senior assistant Salomah Abd Ghaar.

She attributed her school’s achievement, nishing in rst place or three consecutive years, to a recycling area they built in 2009.

Tey reached ourth place a year beore that andused the prize money to help build the recycling con-

tainment area worth RM3,000.“Tis is not just or the money. Aer the campaign,

we carry on with recycling all year round,” said SKSeksyen 9 co-curriculum senior assistant Ong Eng oo.

Te school receives regular contributions o plastic, paper, and aluminium rom its 1,126 students, their parents, and surrounding residents.

SK Seksyen 6 English teacher Noor Azwa Zainal

Abidin said her students were spurred to participateaer an inter-class recycling competition was held last year.

A new category has been established this year toenable Shah Alam’s 24 Residents’ RepresentativeCouncils (MPPs) to also take part.

Te MPP category ollows a similar ormat to thetwo school categories.

“We elt it was time to expand the campaign to theadults,” said F&N Beverages Marketing managing director Khalid Alvi, who spoke during the launch.

He was positive the adults would join in on therecycling action as they have already been watching and helping their children with the campaign or the

past ve years.Shah Alam deputy mayor Mohtar Hani, who was

also present, said eorts like these which are spear-headed by the community are important.

Local percussion group Storm Percussion LineBand perormed during the launch.

Turning trash to cash

BANGI: Contrary to news reports, Selangor has not im- posed a ban on cinemas here, said the developer o theSentral @ Bangi Central Business District(CBD) project.

“We have checked with the state and local council, thereis no such ban,” said Andaman Property Management salesand marketing head Datuk Vincent iew.

He was responding to objections by a local lawmakers which made headlines last month.

He said the cinema along with the bowling alley at thedevelopment’s our-storey shopping center was to cater to

demands rom consumers and residents.“We eel that this is or the people’s benet. We will stillcooperate and comply with all requirements or the mall,”iew said.

He added that the Selangor State Development Corpora -tion (PKNS) was a major shareholder in the proje ct and thatthe people’s welare was top priority.

A joint venture between Andaman Group and PKNS,

Sentral @ Bangi consists o a rst phase o 86our-storey shop-oces and the shopping mallas its second phase.

“Sales have been antastic with 100 per cento the shop-oces sold. We are still receiving registration or uture phases,” he said.

Tose interested are encouraged to apply tobe on the waiting list as they stand a chance toown a unit in Sentral i any current buyers ail toget bank loans.

Construction o the 86 shop-oces is scheduled to startin the middle o the year and completed in two years.Regarded as Andaman’s fagship landmark development,

Sentral @ Bangi will eature uturistic designs like a ull-glassaçade.

“Each shop will also have its own individual private li.Such a eature is not avai lable anywhere else in Bangi today,”iew added.

Other attractions include textile giant Jakel which boughtseveral units with the intention o opening the largest textilecity south o Kuala Lumpur.

Te collection o potential tenant data or the mall is stillunderway, with leasing activity slated to begin soon.

Tose interested can drop by the Andaman Bangi salesoce, which is op en daily, at No. 59, Jalan Medan Pusat 2D,Seksyen 9, Bandar Baru Bangi, or call 03-89222288.

No ban on movie theatres

Tiew says responseto the project hasbeen fantastic.

Iskandar (right) meeting Cronin in Melbourne on March 2.



10 march 9 — 11, 2012

food

By Brenda Ch’ng

Slip into the rustic surroundings o Capricciosarestaurant and get treated to dinner in Italy, wherethe pastas are made resh daily and the pizza

dough kneaded resh as orders come in. With light music reverberating against the veneer o

Italian brick wall architecture, the dim lig hting and cosyseating exudes nothing but warmth to patrons dining there.

From amilies to couples and big groups o riends tooce unctions, this Ristorante Italiano is ready to caterto all occasions.

For those with the heart or pizzas and pastas, this will be the dining stop or you as their menu eatures adiverse variety o both dishes.

I you are a an o authentic Italian pasta, eelree to slurp up their creamy carbon-ara, or be more adventurousand go or their squid ink

pasta.ossed in black

squid ink, this pasta will dei-nitely leave you

with a pre-cious memen-to o blackstained l ipsaccompaniedby a dark smile.

However, i pizza and pastaaren’t really up youra l l e y , d o n ’ t b ealarmed and dismissthoughts o dining there, as you’d bemissing out on theche ’s steak, chicken and seaood spe-cials.

For ve weeks only, Capricciosa willbe introducing their new menu o Grilled Spring Chicken, FettuccineBouillabaisse and Rib-eye steak.

“Our che ’s steak, chicken and seaoodspecials provide our guests with morechoices.

“While they can still enjoy our resh pastasmade al-dente, pizzas and our signature dishes,our promotional specials will be able to cater or di-erent palates,” said Capricciosa’s marketing director Ryan

Poh.Tree dishes cooked or the rst time e ver in their kitchen,marinated with authentic Italian herbs and dishing out onlythe best cuts o meat, sold at an aordable price.

Red meat lovers can order a serving o the 200 gram Rib-eyecut, and choose the right temperature or your steak.

Be it rare, medium rare or well-done, the che will ensurethe meat is grilled to perection and served with a side o greens.

As a nishing touch, a layer o black pepper sauce will be poured onto the meat to add extra favour to the juices romthe steak.

With the rib being the tastiest o all cuts, the marbled andfavourul steak promises patrons tender and succulent mouth-uls o meat.

Next, get your ngers ready to tear into the whole chickenserved and taste the aromatic spring favour o olive oil, rose-mary and garlic.

Served as a whole, you are advised to share it out among two to three people, as it might be too much or one person.opped with tiny slices o browned garlic and Italian herbs

sprinkled all over the chicken, it’s recommended to eat boththe skin and meat together to ully taste the juices trappedunder the skin.

Spring chicken, which normally is young chicken agedbetween two to 10 months and weighing below 450 grams,

has a more tender meat compared to ully grownchicken.

asting it or the rst time, we were amazed byhow tender and juicy the white meat tasted, noth-ing close to the normal arm chickens we get atother restaurants. Te dish also comes with a serv-ing o grilled potatoes and mixed vegetables.

With it grilled with olive oil, this dish makesor a light and healthy protein packed meal, which

will denitely leave you coming back or more.Alongside those two distinct meat dishes, sea-

ood lovers can now revel as the che introduceshis amous Fettuccine Bouillabaisse.

Bouillabaisse, which is a recipe o rich spicy stewmade up o various sh originating rom France,

resembles a slightly watery tomato soup.Stewed under a slow re or three hours everymorning, this dish is cooked with clams and mixed

with their homemade tomato sauce.Once stewed to a perec t richness and thickness, the sauce

is drizzled onto the homemade ettuccine pasta, tossed andtopped with prawns, calamari and c lams.

For seaood enthusiasts, this dish is a denite must-try not

only or the shellsh, but or the resh pasta and tasty rubyred sauce.

Te three promotional specials are only available untilMarch 25, and priced between RM30.90 to RM43.90.

Visit their outlets at Sunway Pyramid, Pavilion KL andSubang Parade rom 11am-10pm daily.

New menu of red

and white meat

New promotion dishes available until March 25.RiceCroquette,Sicilian style.

Frittelle,vanilla ice

cream with honeycinnamon glaze pastry puffs.



11march 9 — 11, 2012

culture

y Dominic Luk

For the past ew years, playwrights, actors, singers,dancers, directors, and perormers have gathered oncea year to be part o a estival that takes place in several

ountries around the world. his annual event, calledhort+Sweet, is the biggest estival o 10-minute plays,

musicals, and dances you can possibly nd.It was rst produced in Sydney, Australia, in 2002 but it

as become a signicant part o the Kuala Lumpur Perorm-ng Arts Centre calendar.

Trough this estival, aspiring talents get to showcase theirwork and creativity, and the best part is they get to collabo-ate with proessionals.

o add some excitement, this estival is also a competi-on among the groups that take part. eams will get judge dy invited judges as well as the audience who get to pickhe winner or the “Audience Choic e Award”.

Basically, anyone can be part o this un-lled experience.hort+Sweet constantly encourages people to come up withresh ideas or 10-minute perormances.

In Malaysia, the Short+Sweet estival is divided into threemain categories: Teatre, Dance, Musical.

I you’re a writer, you could write a script or a short playnd submit it to be reviewed. And it’s usually an overwhelm-ngly positive experience to work with other actors and direc-

tors and put up a short perormance and compete withother groups.

Like the previous years, KLPAC will hold a workshop orthose who are curious and interested in Short+Sweet nextmonth. During the workshop, sessions will be conducted byexperienced playwrights, directors, composers, choreogra-

phers and perormers who will shed a lot o light on what ittakes to be involved in the p erorming arts, and specicallyto be part o Short+Sweet. It’s also a great way to meet oth-ers who share the same interests and passion as you when itcomes to creativity.

Te workshop will be kick o in Penang rom April 6-8beore a second one is held in Kuala Lumpur rom April13-15. Te sessions on theatre will be conducted by AlexBroun (award-winning playwright).

Tose interested in the dance workshop will get to meetAida Redza ( leading Malaysian dancer and choreographer),

while Llewllyn Marsh and Onn San (experienced musiccomposers and arrangers) will be conducting the workshopsor musical theatre.

I you’re curious, interested, and itching to be part o theShort+Sweet estival this year, check out www.shortand-sweetmalaysia.blogspot.com to see what has been happening over the years (lots o pictures and inormation there!).

You can also check out www.klpac.org or more inorma-tion, or e-mail Kelvin an at [email protected].

The Biggest Little Thing

In Town!

SUBANG JAYA: Heavy machine and engineering quipment manuacturer CIH (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd spending RM300 million or its local expansionlans.

“CIH is committed to invest RM100 million andRM200 million this year and next two years respec-

vely or new premises and inrastructure to be setp locally,” said marketing director Siew Weng Hoe.

he investments include land acquisition andonstruction o actories in Dengkil and Sepang.

CIH is the sole distributor o machines andquipment rom Guangxi LiuGong Machinery in

China.Siew said construction o the actories, including

esearch and development centres, would start laterhis year.

He said growth in the mining and agricultural

sector was driving demand or heavy machines andengineering equipment in the country.

“More than 300 CIH machines were sold in 2010and 2011. We’re condent o doubling the sales or2012 and 2013,” he said at a press conerence at theiroce in Puchong.

Te event was to dedicate the reopening o its re-cently renovated and extended premises.

Te company also launched a new line-up o heavymachinery rom LiuGong.

It was opened by Menteri Besar an Sri KhalidIbrahim and attended by CIH and LiuGong boardmembers as well.

CIH general manag er Ian Wei later handed outcash donations amounting to RM30,000 to se-lected beneiciaries with LiuGong president Zeng

Guan’an.

CIH to invest RM300 million

to increase production

Khalid (brown batik shirt) with CIH board members and state executive councillor for trade andnvestment Teresa Kok (second right) at the launch of the company’s extended premises inuchong.

SHAH ALAM: Work has started to shore up 40 double-storey houses which were in danger o collapse due to soil settlement at Section 7 here.

“We will be putting sand onto the aected areas beore compressing it,” said a spokesperson or the developer PCM Bina Sdn Bhd in a pressstatement.

Te repair works began last Wednesday afer receiving the go-aheadrom a committee headed by Shah Alam mayor Datuk Mohd Jaaar MohdAtan.

he repairs, which started at our homes along Jalan Plumbum7/101A, were carried out under the supervision o soil experts.

“Interlocking pavers will also be placed on the surace o the area. Weexpect repairs to take ve days or each home,” added the spokesperson.

Te developer also commended their joint venture partner, SelangorState Development Corporation (PKNS), or providing temporarylodging or the aected residents.

PKNS will determine i urther action needs to be undertaken by thedeveloper based on on-going monitoring.Te study will be carried out by a soil investigation contractor ap-

pointed by the state subsidiary and the results will be raised during thenext weekly coordination meeting.

Jalan Plumbum 101-103 residents task orce secretary Zain Wahi-nuddin Idris, 55, said he was satised with the repairs so ar and hopedthe issue would be resolved soon.

Houses being saved

from collapse

Repair works being carried out on the affected homes along JalanPlumbum.

selangor times march 9

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