Tag: malaysia

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Hail The Playstation Pilots

Franklin slams on the brakes of his Truffade Adder, exits his car and gets into a lift (or elevator, depending on the part of the world you are from) all the way to the rooftop of a building in Los Santos where he boards a helicopter on the rooftop helipad. A simple press of the R2 button and he’s off into the air.  He flies above the serene Mount Gordo without any problem, then lands the helicopter at the airfield in Sandy Shores before hijacking a Canis Mesa listening to East Los FM. That is how simple flying a helicopter is to some…especially on their Grand Theft Auto V game.

Franklin runs to a chopper - picture courtesy of Gametipcenter
Franklin runs to a chopper – picture courtesy of Gametipcenter

If only life is as simple as according to the whiners out there.  Unfortunately, it is not.

Many whine and complain about the late response by the military, Fire and Rescue Services Department, police etc., to rescue stranded climbers on top of Mount Kinabalu after a M5.9 earthquake killed 19 climbers, trapped more than a hundred others, and damaged or destroyed buildings in Ranau, southeast of the mountain.  An Australian climber even lambasted the Malaysian authorities to the world’s press.  On Facebook, keyboard pilots echo the psychotic behaviour of the Australian climber, criticizing the so-called delay in response by the authorities.

So why can’t a Franklin just fly the helicopter to the peak of Mount Kinabalu?  The only Franklin I knew who flew close to Mount Kinabalu was my squadmate, Lieutenant Gabriel Buja Joel RMAF, who rescued British SAS who got lost near the mountain in 1995.  For that he was awarded the Air Force medal (Pingat Tentera Udara) and a medal from Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.  In 2003, Gabriel was unfortunately killed near Lawas, by another mountain.

What am I getting at?

Mountain Waves Turbulence!  It is the unseen nightmare that has brought down a number of airliners and helicopters, including late Gabriel’s, and damaged a whole bunch more worldwide.  It is so violent and unforgiving that the Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) of the US had issued a specific instruction just for mountain flying. To safely fly above a mountain pass, a clearance of at least 2,000 feet above the highest pass an aircraft is to cross.  On top of that, mountain flying is not recommended if the winds aloft are greater than 25 knots as potentially dangerous turbulence as well as strong up and down drafts are likely to occur. I will go deeper into this later.

On 10th January, 1964, a Boeing B-52H Stratofortress strategic bomber (tail number 61-023) had its vertical stabilizer (or tail if you want to) sheared off by mountain waves after flying above the Rocky Mountains at 14,000 feet.

B-52H Nr 61-023 without its vertical stabilizer on 10th January 1964 - courtesy of Talkingproud
B-52H Nr 61-023 without its vertical stabilizer on 10th January 1964 – courtesy of Talkingproud

On 9th December 1992, a DC-8 aircraft of the American International Airways had its Engine No.1 sheared off by mountain wave turbulence.

The DC-8 of the American International Airways that lost an engine - courtesy of University Corporation for Atmospheric Research
The DC-8 of the American International Airways that lost an engine – courtesy of University Corporation for Atmospheric Research

Both aircraft and crew above were lucky to make it back alive.  Others like Gabriel weren’t so lucky.

The late Gabriel )3rd row, right most) and the writer (3rd row, second from right) during a jungle warfare exercise in January 1988
The late Gabriel )3rd row, right most) and the writer (3rd row, second from right) during a jungle warfare exercise in January 1988

Most of the time, those who frequently look at Mount Kinabalu from far could see streams of clouds occasionally envelope the mountain.  Let me show you a photo taken from one of the rescue helicopters that attempted to land at Laban Rata:

Visibility from a rescue chopper headed towards Mount Kinabalu - courtesy of @ayaqjagung on Twitter
Visibility from a rescue chopper headed towards Mount Kinabalu – courtesy of @ayaqjagung on Twitter

The visibility can change drastically and in Alaska, many pilots and passengers have perished thinking the visibility would remain clear all the time.

But the weather was clear and the stranded climbers could see all the way down!

Did they watch what was above?  Clear visibility also means high winds have pushed away the clouds.  What you need to look above are those thin, long clouds that we who have our feet firmly planted on the ground and head that stays on our neck unlike those who suffer from psychosis call Lenticular clouds.

Lenticular clouds formation caused by mountain wave turbulence - courtesy of the City University of New York
Lenticular clouds formation caused by mountain wave turbulence – courtesy of the City University of New York

As you can see, beneath the lenticular clouds are what meteorologists call rotor – a turbulent horizontal vortex generated around the “troughs” of mountain wave activity.  Rotors could either push an aircraft upwards, or slam it down to the ground as shown in the diagram below:

The effects of rotor turbulence on aircraft - courtesy of Flight Safety Australia
The effects of rotor turbulence on aircraft – courtesy of Flight Safety Australia

In the end, the helicopters did manage to get to Laban Rata to bring down bodies and some of the injured victims.  Of course not to the instance wanted by the climbers.

Yes, the Kinabalu Park guides are the heroes in this most unfortunate tragedy.  Why them and not the soldiers or pilots or firemen or the police?  They are the ones with the best knowledge of the area.  Even of some trails have been cut off, they would still be able to find their way up and down the mountain because they are most familiar with the area.  I salute them, as I salute the other rescuers who have and still are risking their lives trying to bring down the stranded climbers as well as bodies of the victims.

So, stop whining and forget what you have watched on TV or in the movies.  Life does not work like how the directors want you to believe.  And helicopter flying is nothing like how Franklin does it in GTA V.

Let the professionals do their job!

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Everything2Dig

I saw this posted on the Internet:

Bro Azri
22 mins ·
Nothing To Hide

Saya tak daftar untuk hadir ke program Nothing to hide yang berlangsung di PWTC hari ini. Pada awalnya hendak juga hadir namun atas sebab dimaklumkan bahawa jika tidak mendaftar maka tidak boleh masuk ke dalam dewan.

Sejak pagi saya lihat status status yang pelbagai dari banyak pihak dengan dakwaan dakwaan yang serius. Saya melihat dan memerhati dan membuat analisis dari apa yang keluar dari laman media sosial.

Apabila program dibatalkan saya juga lihat kenyataan demi kenyataan yang pelbagai dari pihak pihak yang hadir di program tersebut.

Apabila saya berkesempatan melihat keseluruhan video penuh sepanjang program berlangsung sehingga program dibatalkan maka saya membuat rumusan seperti berikut:

– Tun Mahathir dikatakan tidak dijemput namun realitinya pihak penganjur Suka Guam & JASA telah menyediakan kerusi buat Tun Mahathir.

– Penyokong Tun M rempuh masuk ke dalam dewan dan ianya benar kerana waktu Tun M masuk maka para penyokong ini mengikuti Tun M dan turut merempuh masuk walaupun tidak mempunyai jemputan dari pihak penganjur.

– Penganjur Suka Guam & JASA gagal mengawal keadaan sehingga menyebabkan keadaan jadi bising seketika dan gagal membuat para hadirin menghormati program yang akan dilangsungkan.

– Tindakan penyokong Tun M yang merempuh masuk menyebabkan tindakan balas agresif oleh seorang lelaki dikenali dengan nama Ali Tinju diluar dewan yang turut ingin masuk ke dalam dewan namun dihalang oleh pihak penganjur.

– Pihak Polis mengarahkan program tersebut dibatalkan atas sebab keselamatan dan menyebabkan pihak penyokong Tun M didalam dewan menjerit dan bising.

– Pihak penganjur Suka Guam & JASA yang sepatutnya menamatkan terus program tersebut telah membuat jemputan kepada Tun Mahathir untuk memberikan ucapan diatas pentas.

– Berita yang menyatakan Tun Mahathir naik ke pentas merampas microphone adalah tidak benar kerana penganjur Suka Guam & JASA sendiri telah menjemput Tun M naik ke pentas memberikan ucapan.

– Pihak Polis kemudiannya meminta Tun M membatalkan ucapan dan keadaan menjadi lebih panas kerana penyokong Tun M menjadi lebih bising kerana Polis menghalang ucapan Tun M diteruskan.

– Apabila program dihentikan dan semua keluar dewan ianya dihangatkan lagi dengan suara bising penyokong Tun M yang tidak berpuas hati.

Kesimpulan saya pihak penganjur Suka Guam & JASA telah GAGAL sama sekali dalam menjaga program yang mereka anjurkan dan ini merupakan satu damage yang berat kepada YAB PM Dato Seri Najib Razak.

Penyokong Tun M bijak menggunakan peluang dan ruang sehingga berjaya mengawal dewan dan membuatkan penganjur tidak berupaya berhadapan dengan mereka dan seterusnya mengambil alih program tersebut.

Memang wajar YAB PM tidak turun pada program Nothing To Hide kerana jika ianya diteruskan sudah pasti akan berlaku pekara pekara yang tidak diingini dan akan menjadikan keselamatan terancam bukan sahaja kepada YAB PM, Tun M malah kepada semua hadirin yang hadir.
Tindakan pihak Polis yang membatalkan program tersebut adalah wajar setelah melihat tindakan agresif para penyokong dan juga menyedari kegagalan penganjur Suka Guam dan pihak JASA.

Akhir kata dari saya sebagai seorang penyokong YAB Dato Seri Najib Razak, saya melihat ini adalah satu bencana kepada UMNO yang bukan memberikan manfaat kepada YAB PM sebaliknya telah merosakkan dan mengaibkan YAB PM. Program seumpama ini jika dikawal dengan baik serta dihadiri mereka yang beradab sudah pasti berjaya dilangsungkan.
Suka Guam & JASA bertanggungjawap sepenuhnya atas kerosakkan nama baik YAB PM Dato Seri Najib Tun Razak pada hari ini.

The above was written by a pro-Najib Razak person from UMNO about the conduct of the pro-Mahathir people who are mostly Malays from UMNO.

It is well and good that people want to know how their money have been spent by the government through its agencies or companies set-up by the government.  Transparency is what we all are gunning for.  For most of the time I see both pro-Najib and pro-Mahathir people also tell the Opposition to allow the government agencies to do their work and await results as evident in the Sodomy trials, and to trust reports by government agencies such as the instance of the Auditor-General’s 2014 report on Penang.

However, what happened at the PWTC yesterday is what we call not-walking-the-talk especially by the pro-Mahathir group.  As I have said before, you do not add fuel to the opposition’s fore and say you are doing so in the interest of the party. No public spat between anyone in public is good for any party.  Secondly, why is there a need for a forum to explain anything when the agencies tasked to audit the 1MDB transactions have yet to come out with a final report?  Had prudence and wisdom prevailed, yesterday’s fiasco would not have happened.  There was neither prudence nor wisdom on all sides, be it from the Najib camp, Mahathir camp, or even the organisers themselves.  In short, none of the above have evolved from the Homo habilis stage to even the Neanderthal stage.

What have been presented thus far are circumstantial evidences of “wrong-doings” and nothing substantial.  If you want someone to resign over circumstantial evidence, you are not being fair.  Even in offices, when someone is suspected of having done something wrong, you first do your preliminary inquiries. If there is substance to the allegation, you conduct an investigation.  Right now as far as the 1MDB is concerned, there are allegations. And the audit by the A-G is the preliminary inquiry part. If there is substance to the allegations and the audit finds irregularities, then a thorough investigation is conducted to find what is missing, what power has been abused, and whose heads should roll.  Circumstantial evidence alone cannot prove anything. Otherwise, I would have asked the police to put on charge at least three people who could have conspired to cause my brother’s death based on just circumstantial evidences. Where is the fairness to those suspects?

Back to the event, I wonder what drove the organisers to organise that event, knowing well that the A-G’s report will be out by the end of June?  What is the need? Why want people to hear the Prime Minister talk on things that have not been substantiated by the A-G’s audit?

The following is the explanation by the main organiser, SukaGuam, on the event:

1. Sebelum penganjuran program Dialog PM bersama NGO, kami telah bertemu dengan sekurang-kurangnya 3 Pegawai Kanan DS Najib di Putrajaya yang sangat positif dan mahukan program ini mencapai matlamatnya. Malah, idea awal program ini juga adalah hasil perbincangan dua hala antara penganjur & beberapa pegawai kanan DS Najib termasuk seorang pegawai kanan yang dipertanggungjawabkan menyelaras program ini bersama-sama. Justeru, adalah kurang adil jika SukaGuam selaku penganjur serta beberapa pihak lain yang membantu kami dijadikan kambing hitam (scapegoat) serta dijadikan bahan tohmahan.

2. Kami percaya, keadaan akan menjadi sebaliknya (penganjur tidak akan dipersalahkan) jika program Dialog yang dirancang semalam, tidak ‘diganggu’ secara berlebihan oleh pegawai berkenaan (dan sekutunya).

3. Sebenarnya, penganjur telah pun mendapatkan pandangan dari pegawai-pegawai kanan PM berhubung banyak aspek termasuk kemungkinan jika Tun Dr Mahathir menghadirkan diri. Seperti diakui oleh Tun Mahathir, beliau tidak diundang secara rasmi, namun hadir sebagai tetamu apabila diwar-warkan dalam media mengenai kemungkinan kehadiran beliau ke majlis Dialog itu. Malah, beberapa NGO yang Tun naungi bersedia memberikan kad undangan yang mereka terima bagi membolehkan Tun Mahathir hadir.

4. Atas dasar itulah, apabila ditanya oleh wartawan mengenai kemungkinan Tun Mahathir akan hadir, penganjur mengakui tidak akan menghalang kehadiran Tun sebagai salah seorang tetamu pada majlis berkenaan. Berita ini dilaporkan dalam pelbagai media dan penganjur bersedia dengan sebarang kemungkinan. Penganjur menyediakan satu kerusi (yang dilabelkan dengan nama Tun Mahathir) bersama para hadirin lain dan turut menyediakan bilik tertutup (holding room) sebagai persediaan jika Tun benar-benar hadir. Rata-rata dari kalangan pegawai PM amat positif akan perkembangan ini kerana DS Najib menunjukkan keyakinan yang amat tinggi untuk merungkaikan segala persoalan.

5. Namun demikian, pegawai kanan berkenaan (dan yang sekutu dengannya) yang dipertanggungjawabkan sebagai penyelaras program ini telah bertindak berlebihan dalam beberapa perkara. Ini saya simpulkan sebagai ‘pertembungan ego’ beliau yang akhirnya menjadikan SukaGuam dan beberapa pihak lain sebagai kambing hitam dan mangsa keadaan.

6. Justeru, ada benarnya seperti yang diperkatakan oleh sesetengah pemimpin-pemimpin Umno sendiri, aktivis NGO dan rakyat, bahawa yang merosakkan imej DS Najib bukanlah sangat oleh pihak luar, tetapi dari kalangan orang dalam sendiri.

7. Saya berkesempatan meluahkan perkara ini secara terus-terang kepada DS Najib pada petang semalam untuk menjelaskan situasi sebenar, dan dari riak wajah Perdana Menteri, beliau menerima baik dan memahami apa yang saya cuba sampaikan. Kami cuma berharap beliau mengambil tindakan tegas terhadap individu ini ( dan yang sekutu dengannya).

8. Sebagai contoh, ketika Tun Mahathir hadir di awal pagi program, pihak penganjur menyediakan satu bilik tertutup supaya DS Najib boleh minum secangkir kopi bersama Tun Mahathir, sebagai memulakan semangat ukhwah persahabatan dan silaturrahim.

9. Apabila DS Najib sudah dalam perjalanan dan dinasihati Ketua Polis Negara mengenai keadaan di PWTC, penganjur berpandangan bahawa DS Najib perlu hadir bagi membuktikan beliau berjiwa besar dan bersedia bertemu wajah dengan Tun Mahathir, sambil berbual mengenai apa jua perkara.

10. Kami yakin dan percaya, sekalipun program dialog itu ditunda atas nasihat polis, pertemuan perlu diteruskan antara DS Najib dan Tun Mahathir dalam bilik tertutup kerana ini akan membuka lembaran baru dalam konteks politik Malaysia sekaligus meredakan hati pendokong-pendokong masing-masing.

11. Malangnya, pegawai berkenaaan telah berusaha menghalang kehadiran Perdana Menteri, menghantar laporan yang kurang tepat, menangguk di air keruh dengan menokok-tambah cerita kepada DS Najib kononnya Perdana Menteri akan diejek sekiranya hadir ke PWTC. Walaupun penganjur akur dengan arahan polis supaya program Dialog bersama NGO ditangguhkan atas sebab keselamatan, namun alang-alang Tun Mahathir sudah bersedia untuk bertemu DS Najib, ia tidak sewajarnya dihalang. Isu keselamatan tidak timbul sama sekali jika mereka bertemu dalam bilik yang tertutup.

12. Bayangkanlah ‘feel good factor’ yang akan dialami oleh seluruh rakyat Malaysia sekiranya foto DS Najib dan Tun Mahathir sedang menikmati kopi dan berbual dalam keadaan mesra menjadi viral dan foto mereka bersalaman mesra menjadi tatapan rakyat yang rindukan persahabatan dan perdamaian pemimpin-pemimpin mereka. Tidak mengapalah Dialog bersama NGO tidak dapat diteruskan, asalkan persaudaraan dan persahabatan antara kedua-dua pemimpin ini dapat ditautkan apatah lagi dalam keberkatan hari Jumaat di bulan Sya’ban ini,

13. Kepada pihak-pihak yang memberi nasihat dan semangat kepada kami (anda tahu siapa anda), jutaan terima kasih kami ucapkan.

14. Kepada individu berkenaan dan sekutunya (anda tahu siapa anda), hentikanlah menjadikan SukaGuam dan sahabat-sahabat kami sebagai kambing hitam (scapegoat). Hentikanlah serangan peribadi, fitnah dan tohmahan.

15. Jika masih berterusan, terutama melalui agen-agen anda, kami tidak teragak-agak untuk mendedahkan lebih lanjut beserta bukti dan saksi-saksi hidup kerana apa yang kami dambakan sebagai rakyat Malaysia ialah perdamaian dan kesepakatan antara pihak-pihak yang berbeda pandangan dalam isu-isu yang berlaku dalam negara.

16. Tampaknya, ada pihak yang tidak senang melihat perubahan landskap politik yang bakal berlaku sekiranya perancangan semalam berlangsung dengan jayanya kerana pertembungan berterusan antara DS Najib dan Tun Mahathir boleh terus menguntungkan agenda peribadinya.

17. Kami tidak akan teragak-agak menyatakan kebenaran yang hak dan yang batil. Kami berpegang teguh dengan Sabda Rasulullah SAW- “Kulill Haq Wa Lau Kaana Murro” (Maksudnya, berkatalah yang hak (benar) sekalipun ia pahit).

18. Ingin kami jelaskan niat sebenar SukaGuam untuk mencari penyelesaian terbaik bagi memulihkan perpaduan orang Melayu Islam dan rakyat Malaysia secara keseluruhannya yang kini jelas terbahagi kepada banyak kumpulan. Bagi kami, jika tidak berjaya sepenuhnya pun, sekurang-kurangnya program ini dapat membuka langkah pertama untuk meleraikan kekusutan yang berlaku sesama kita.

18. Mana tahu, dengan kemuliaan Ramadhan yang bakal menjelang, Allah bukakan pintu rahmat-Nya untuk mendamaikan hati semua pihak dan mengorak langkah perpaduan yang sangat dirindukan rakyat Malaysia.

19. Marilah kita teguh dan beristiqamah dengan perintah Allah melalui firman-Nya:-
” Sebenarnya, orang yang beriman itu adalah bersaudara. Maka damaikanlah di antara dua saudara kamu (yang bertelingkah itu) dan bertaqwalah kepada Allah supaya kamu beroleh Rahmat” (Al Hujurat, ayat 10).

Ikhlas,
Khairul Anwar Rahmat
SukaGuam

The pro-Mahathir side may not be pleased if Mahathir and Najib patch things up; all they want is for Najib to resign. Otherwise, they won’t blindly try to debunk facts presented with weak and circumstantial points. Lim Sian See whom I believe is either an economist or a person with a background in finance, and the strongly-Ahlus Sunnah Wal Jama’ah Azmi Arshad whose background is corporate finance, have both successfully debunked the detractors. Yet, the detractors keep on attacking Najib and 1MDB without pausing for a moment the damage it would cause UMNO and BN! Evidently, most of the online detractors aren’t even UMNO members!

Najib’s mistake was to agree to attend the event. Or did he agree to it? Or was he coerced into going by the “officers” in the Prime Minister’s Office as presented by SukaGuam’s statement above? SukaGuam has also been making contradicting statements especially on Twitter today on whether Mahathir was actually invited orr not. Perhaps the police need to dig deeper into who are the SukaGuam people linked to, and who are the PMO officers associated with. It would be interesting to find out. Especially the allegation that Khairul Anwar had met with a minister just before announcing the event.

Najib’s other mistake, if he wilfully agreed to attend, is his memory lapse: he had appointed Shabery Cheek to speak on the GST on behalf of the government, he also appointed the Second Finance Minister, Husni Hanadzlah, to speak on the 1wMDB issue. He should relinquish his Finance Ministry post, and concentrate on administering the nation. He cannot be micro-managing things. He may claim to be a pahlawan (though I believe it is whoever-the-failure-called-comms-director-at-PMO who came up with the idea. Thanks to him or her, we also got to know that the Prime Minister is only 26 years old), but Najib is no Superman! Let the various Ministers answer for the Ministry they have been charged with!

1MDB’s comms team should also be blamed for not coming out with responses when things were quite tame back then, and for not suing anyone yet despite the warning given. But I cannot blame them totally for not revealing too much details as 1MDB is bound to respect confidentiality agreements and the Financial Services Act.

The police also need to investigate the detractors, their bloggers, as I see their incessant attacks border on inciting anarchy. If Anwar Ibrahim was bad, these people behave worse! The media statement last night by UMNO Petaling Jaya Utara’s Deputy Division Chief, Azli Saad, on Daim Zainuddin’s role in enrolling UMNO figures to go against the President. This usurpation of the President’s authority is nothing but treacherous.

As for the police, the IGP had made a statement on his actions. I did not like it, but I believe the IGP had taken action based on the two tests to civil liberty and freedom of speech prescribed by the First Amendment of the US Federal Constitution. Judge Learned Hand, an advocate of civil liberties had asked to apply the Clear and Present Danger and the Incitement tests to civil liberties and freedom of speech. I agree with the Speaker of the state of Sabah that had the police allowed for the event to continue and videoed, civil unrest and mob rule would take place. Mahathir may be a 90-year old but is he tame? I doubt. He is both respected negatively and scorned by the West for the very reason that when he speaks, only his views matter.

I love Mahathir for what he had done for the nation. We will never find a Prime Minister like him in this lifetime. He was our Prime Minister. His time is over. Let Najib do things his way. You don’t like him, ditch him in the UMNO elections and in the general elections. But until then, he IS the Prime Minister and we should accord him the same respect and opportunity we gave Mahathir.

As for the pro-M and pro-N in UMNO, stop the bickering. You are not helping your party. For those pro-M not from UMNO who are jockeying the old man and prodding him on like a donkey, you are making a mule of yourselves. You have brought the great statesman down to probably Mat Sabu’s unrefined level. For that, I sincerely hope you will get it one day.

As for those in UMNO I believe are trying to bring down both Najib and Mahathir, you will rot on this Earth before you rot in Hell!

Continue reading “Everything2Dig”

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1MDB:The RM42b Is There

Media statement by Arul Kanda, 1MDB President and Group Executive Director

Issued on 3 June 2015
For immediate publication

RM42 Billion All Accounted For.
“In recent weeks, there has been much speculation about the use of RM 42 billion of debt raised by 1MDB, and more specifically that RM 27 billion of debt proceeds are alleged to be “lost” or “missing”. We provide a summary of what the RM42 billion debt has been used for, information that is fully disclosed in 1MDB’s audited and publicly available accounts from 31 March 2010 to 31 March 2014. We trust this clarification will help to clear any confusion on this matter.”

image

image

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Dragnet

I agree with the statement by the former IGP Tan Sri Rahim Noor that the PDRM’s Commercial Crime division should commence an investigation into the 1MDB (The Star: Cops Must Probe 2009 Deals of 1MDB ).

The police does not require a report in order to look into the deals of the 1MDB. However, given that others agencies including the Auditor-General’s office is still probing the company, it is only appropriate for the police to await the outcome of the probe. If there is an element of wrong-doing, it becomes a crime and it would be much better for the police to step in then.

However, I would take a step further to also probe past deals involving GLCs to see if there had been abuse of power as well as misappropriation of GLC funds.

Only that would be fair for the rakyat.

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Land of Vile

Malaysian authorities dig up mass graves along the Malaysian-Thai border, and the cartoon published by Nation News of Thailand (pic by Siakapkeli.my)
Malaysian authorities dig up mass graves along the Malaysian-Thai border near Wang Kelian, and the cartoon published by Nation News of Thailand (pic by Siakapkeli.my)

The Nation recently ran a cartoon that made fun of Malaysia in light of the recent discoveries of human-trafficking camps with mass graves of Rohingyas.  The cartoon was picked up by an AFP correspondent based in Malaysia, Parameswaran Ponnudurai., and was subsequently highlighted by The Malaysian Chronicle. It is all well and good for Thailand that the remains of the Rohingyas as well as the camps are mostly found on this side of the border, not that they do not have any, mind you. The Thais should also remember that while Malaysia and Indonesia have agreed to take in 7,000 of these refugees, Thais have adamantly refused to take in any.

So, shame on Thailand for closing an eye on the problems across its western border?  Wait for it.  There is another thing they ought to be ashamed of. In interviews carried by BERNAMA, the luckier Rohingyas spoke about the guards who tortured, raped and killed the rest.

Read from the link and see who they were and if there anything sinister about the Land of Smiles!

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The RMAF: 57 And One

For the residents of the town of Manik Urai in Kelantan, the image below taken late in December of 2014 will forever be etched inside their mind.

An RMAF PASKAU with essential supplies is lowered from an EC725 helicopter to a school in Manik Urai
An RMAF PASKAU with essential supplies is lowered from an EC725 helicopter onto a school in Manik Urai, Kelantan where hundreds of flood victims were trapped

From its humble beginning 57 years ago playing a supporting role in the war against insurgency, the Royal Malaysian Air Force has evolved into a force that is respected and also to be reckoned with. From the days of the Scottish Aviation Twin Pioneer that was used for communications and support of ground operations, the RMAF’s Sukhoi Su-30MKM multi-role combat aircraft (MRCA) of today have been pitted against one of the best in the USAF’s arsenal: the F-22 Raptor.  However, the image above brings us back to earth as to how the RMAF also is one with the people of the nation.

On the 1st of June this year, the RMAF will celebrate its 57th anniversary.

The RMAF Sukhoi Su-30MKM in action
The RMAF Sukhoi Su-30MKM in action

Promoting “We Are One” as this year’s anniversary celebration theme, RMAF Chief General Dato’ Sri Roslan bin Saad TUDM outlined the concept of the theme in a recent press conference as a culture to develop human capital; symbolises an image of the RMAF that is formidable, courageous and patriotic; incalculating a sense of belonging to the RMAF, and; responsible to the RMAF as an organisation.  The transformation plan for the RMAF would include the consolidation of assets and organisation, strengthening the human resources, and optimisation of financial resources.

In order to achieve these objectives, General Roslan outlined six main items that need attention and accentuation.  They are:

  • to increase the level of readiness
  • to develop human capital
  • strengthening of leadership and administration
  • strengthening of the organisational structure
  • increasing togetherness and colloborations
  • emphasis on safety and welfare

“We Are One” essentially means that within the RMAF every men and women will have equal opportunity to develop and progress free from prejudice towards their trade, race, and gender.  This is to avoid resentments that may have surfaced in the past towards the general-duty pilots by other trades whereby posts belonging to “less-glamorous” trades were taken away and given to  the more “glamorous” trades.  This caused the RMAF to lose experienced officers, men and women over the years. In the context of the Malaysian Armed Forces the theme points to the complementary role the RMAF provides to other services, while in the national context the RMAF is one with the Malaysian people and the government in providing its assets in support of other government agencies as well as other external and international agencies in peacetime as well as in disaster-relief roles.  The above picture as well as the roles played by the RMAF in providing medical evacuation for critical patients as well as the ferrying of the body of victims of the MH17 tragedy underscores the one-ness of the RMAF with the Malaysian people.

An RMAF Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-29NUB flying alongside the C-130H the writer was in
An RMAF Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-29NUB flying alongside the C-130H the writer was in

On another development, the RMAF is still seeking to replace its Mig-29 Fulcrum fleet with another MRCA.  In the meantime, the RMAF will see how best to ensure that the Mig-29s remain a potent force while waiting for the arrival of the next fleet of MRCAs.  The recent arrival of the Airbus A400M Atlas to supplement the RMAF’s fleet of C-130H Hercules transport aircraft has allowed the RMAF to enhance its airlift capability from one that is tactical to a level that is strategic.

The first of four Airbus A400M Atlas arrived on the 14th March 2015 at the Subang Airbase
The first of four Airbus A400M Atlas arrived on the 14th March 2015 at the Subang Airbase

General Roslan also added that the public perception of the RMAF has been encouraging. The increase in the number of visits of the RMAF website; very good response in the application for jobs in the RMAF as well as for each of the intakes; attendance by the public at Open Days at the various air bases and at aerial shows are among the indicators of good public response towards the RMAF.

The Chief of the Royal Malaysian Air Force, General Dato' Sri Roslan bin Saad TUDM at the recent RMAF's 57th Anniversary press conference
The Chief of the Royal Malaysian Air Force, General Dato’ Sri Roslan bin Saad TUDM at the recent RMAF’s 57th Anniversary press conference

When asked about the recent arrests of IS symphatizers within the Malaysian Armed Forces, General Roslan informed that although it falls under the purview of the Malaysian Armed Forces Headquarters, the Royal Malaysian Air Force actively monitors its men and women for such characters and steps are in place to combat such threats within the organisation.  The human capital development and the promotion of one-ness with the organisation are among the steps taken to ensure that the men and women of the RMAF continue to remain loyal not just to the RMAF, but also to the King an Country.

Programs lined up to celebrate the RMAF’s 57th anniversary include a blood donation program, a golf tournament, special prayers session for each religion for the men and women of the RMAF, while the 57th anniversary parade will be held at the Kuantan Air Base on 1st June 2015.

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Companies And Debts

I’m again sharing this with you:

1MDB:
Jumlah Hutang: RM42 Billion
Jumlah Aset: RM50 Billion

CIMB:
Jumlah Hutang: RM398 Billion
Jumlah Aset: RM438 Billion

Tenaga Nasional Berhad:
Jumlah Hutang: RM66 Billion
Jumlah Aset: RM113 Billion

Sime Darby:
Jumlah Hutang: RM29 Billion
Jumlah Aset: RM59 Billion

Gamuda:
Jumlah Hutang: RM5 Billion
Jumlah Aset: RM11 Billion

Malakoff:
Jumlah Hutang: RM25 Billion
Jumlah Aset: RM29 Billion

IJM:
Jumlah Hutang: RM9 Billion
Jumlah Aset: RM19 Billion

About RM8b of the RM42b debt by 1MDB was inherited when 1MDB took over all those IPPs.

These RM8b are also project financing for the IPP and covered by the IPPs cash flow.

I guess many have forgotten the facts above.

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TLDM Teruskan Operasi Mencari dan Menyelamat Pelarian Rohingya

Setelah menerima arahan Perdana Menteri Datuk Seri Najib Razak, Tentera Laut DiRaja Malaysia mengerahkan lima buah aset permukaannya untuk memberi bantuan kepada pelarian Rohingya serta melakukan operasi mencari dan menyelamat selebih pelarian Rohingya yang masih berada di laut dan belum ditemui.  Di dalam satu sidang akhbar yang telah diadakan petang tadi, Panglima Tentera Laut Laksamana Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Jaafar TLDM menegaskan bahawa kelima-lima aset tersebut yang terdiri dari KD Mahawangsa, KD Selangor, KD Laksamana Muhammad Amin KD Ledang dan KD Jerai telah diarahkan untuk memberi bantuan sewajarnya seperti yang telah diarahkan oleh Majlis Keselamatan Negara (MKN).

KD Jerai, kapal penyapu ranjau TLDM yang turut serta dalam misi bantuan kemanusiaan untuk pelarian Rohingya - gambar TLDM
KD Jerai, kapal penyapu ranjau TLDM yang turut serta dalam misi bantuan kemanusiaan untuk pelarian Rohingya – gambar TLDM
Krisis pelarian Rohingya telah menyaksikan kematian beratus jika bukan beribu pelarian akibat pelayaran yang mengambil masa lebih tiga minggu untuk tiba di perairan Thailand, Malaysia dan Indonesia.  Hanya Malaysia dan Indonesia sahaja yang telah memberi persetujuan untuk memberi perlindungan sementara kepada 7,000 orang pelarian, sementara Thailand akan menghentikan penundaan semula ke laut bot-bot yang membawa para pelarian tersebut.  Menteri Luar, Dato’ Sri Anifah Aman menegaskan para pelarian tersebut perlu dihantar pulang dan diberi penempatan tetap dalam masa setahun dengan bantuan kewangan daripada masyarakat antarabangsa.

Bagi TLDM dan kerajaan Malaysia, ini bukanlah julung kali ianya terlibat dalam misi bantuan kemanusiaan untuk kaum Rohingya.  Pada bulan September 2012, kerajaan telah menggunakan kapal KD Indera Sakti untuk menghantar sebanyak 480 tan barangan keperluan seperti makanan, ubat-ubatan serta keperluan harian lain melalui pelabuhan Sittwe, Myanmar.

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1MDB, IPP et al

I find this a must-share:

Eol Zari
1MDB : A PERSONAL VIEW

E. Zari 18 May 2015.

In the past, I have not said much about the controversial issue surrounding 1MDB. Why 1MDB? What are the roles of 1MDB and its contributions to our national economy? I have been keeping this information to myself for sometimes as I feel it may not be the right time to share with my esteemed readers. However, today I was taken by the information transmitted to me by my close friend. This piece of information is similar to the one which I have been keeping all this while.

I am convinced that this is a non-biased piece of information. Being a LNG Consultant and in the course of my works, I have the opportunity to interact with PETRONAS, TNB, TNB Fuel, PEMANDU, Energy Commission and other known organizations for nearly 3 years from 2011. I help to educate the personnel from PEMANDU, TNB, Energy Commission on the new source of energy – Liquefied Natural Gas as a feed for the power plants and city gas.

My area of specialization is energy. I was once a principal specialist in LNG shipping operations in PETRONAS. I have spent 35 years of my career in this field. Energy is the life blood for infrastructures development and this is a major ingredient for our country in achieving economic progress to become a developed nation.

I leave it to my esteemed readers to interpret on what I have outlined. After all we are human and I expect each and every one of us to have their own views.

Back in 1990s, Malaysia introduced the concept of Independent Power Plant (IPP) for electricity generation. This initiative was under our former Prime Minister, Tun Mahathir. The main players who owned the IPPs were Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar, YTL group, Genting and Anand Krishnan. Sime Darby was also one of them but being a Government linked company not much attention was given. These players got the most attractive deal and it was a one sided. The former chairman of TNB, the late Tan Sri Ani Arope, a man of integrity refused to sign the agreements and he voluntarily resigned in protest.

The opposition parties took the Government to task for granting a one sided deal. They argued that it was a “crony’s agreement” and questioned the needs for the Government to grant substantial subsidy to the IPPs. Even in May 2011, one of the opposition members regarded these IPPs as “a major drug factory” that required substantial subsidy from the Government of estimated RM19 billion a year.

In the mid-2011, I was taken as a LNG Consultant to look into the possibility of importing LNG through the Malacca Regas Terminal at Sungei Udang. This terminal is an open gate similar to the one I used to do in United Kingdom – the Dragon LNG Regas Terminal located at Milford Haven in Wales. The Sungei Udang’s LNG Regas Terminal is owned by PETRONAS and the imported LNG is vaporized as gas to flow into the PGU pipelines. This is in view of the insufficient domestic gas from the East Coast of about 950 mmscfd. TNB requires about 1350 mmscfd. The capacity of Sungei Udang is about 500mmscfd or equivalent to about 40 cargoes of imported LNG via the Q Flex LNG ship of capacity 210,000 m3 each.

Actually, I am humble to note that the concept of the floating LNG storage using two of our old LNG ships with an island jetty, the first in the world was mooted by me to the CEO of PETRONAS Gas the ownership of this project. This idea came by while discussing with him in the car on the way to Narita Airport from Tokyo. With this idea, PETRONAS saved for not doing the dredging and a greenfield shore LNG storage which costs would be very substantial.

As a result of the marked disparity between imported LNG and domestic gas price, TNB who earned a thin margin from the IPPs was not able to absorb this disparity in prices and therefore was not able to buy the gas from the imported LNG directly. Ultimately, PETRONAS has to be the importer and therefore a subsidizer.

Under PM Najib, a company, My Power was formed by the Government to initiate renegotiation with the IPPs for a balanced deal. Thereafter, 1MDB purchased the IPP from Ananda in March 2012 and followed by the purchase of Genting in August 2012. Subsequently, in October 2012, Energy Commission announced the decision on the concessionaries agreement with the IPPs. As outlined in this agreement, there is no further extension of concession for the IPP owned by Ananda and also new concessions for the other three IPPs. Only new concessions are to be given to 1MDB and TNB. This new arrangement will ensure that private companies will not earn excessively at the expense of Government’s subsidy.

As a result of the mistake done since 1990s, for the past 20 years an approximate of about RM100 billion was lost by PETRONAS and TNB because of this inferior deal. Actually, credit should be given to PM Najib, Energy Commission and 1MDB for saving our country from this excessive subsidy granted to these favored companies from the earlier regime. To me credit should be given to whom it is due.

Actually, the rates of tariff for consumers for Peninsular Malaysia should be increased by July 2014 and January 2015 under the Fuel Cost Pass Through (FCPT). But it was never increase because the new revised agreement was improved and was more attractive and balanced to TNB, the final purchaser. Instead, the electricity tariff was reduced from March 2015 due to the reduction of coal prices and the reduction of tariff of these IPPs.

Under this new arrangement, TNB started to register substantial profit from 2013, 2014 and the first quarter of 2015. It records a profit of RM2.3 billion in the first 3 months of 2015. Therefore, with this revised arrangement the benefactors are:

1. TNB registers higher profit,

2. The Malaysian consumers benefit from lower tariff partly due to the reduction of oil prices.

3. PETRONAS will not have to incur higher subsidy which in the past benefit only these private companies, and

4. Consumers of electricity are the ultimate winner.

The losers are the original owners of the IPPs. And this may be the reasons why they are not happy with 1MDB and PM Najib even from the senior members of UMNO.

The issue of Tun Razak Exchange (TRX) and the purchase of land by Tabung Haji is insignificant compared with the amount saved by the revision of the agreement initiated by the present Government.

On the other side of the coin, there are allegations by the oppositions for the misused of fund by 1MDB, the role played by Jholow, the disappearance of proceeds from the Petro Saudi investment and latest the controversial sale of a piece of land of about 1.5 acres for RM188 million to Tabung Haji’s subsidiary. These issues started late last year when 1MDB was not able to raise enough fund to pay their loan installment.

The issue is now further twisted and makes it looked as though 1MDB is losing RM44 billion which is not the case. Actually, 1MDB does not lost RM44 billion. What it lost will be the substantial amount of loan repayments which they have to dig from somewhere because of the reversed operating leverage. Temporarily, their current income is not able to cover the loans and other expenses. However, given time they will be able to reverse this situation. Additionally, because of this bad publicity it is feared that Deutsche Bank may request for early settlement as 1MDB is not able to secure additional collateral. We should refrain from speculating further pending the outcome of the Auditor General’s findings which will be available the latest by end June 2015.

Other personalities including the prominent lawyer and former minister, Zaid Ibrahim commented that as the Chairman of 1MDB, Najib should stand up and face this by responding to the allegations. The Chairman of CIMB, who is Najib’s younger brother, during the luncheon meeting also asserted that the Chairman of the Board and its members of 1MDB to do the same.
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