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PUTRAJAYA --  All summonses issued under the Automated Enforcement System (AES) since 2012 have been cancelled, said Transport Minister Anthony Loke Siew Fook on Friday. He said this involved 3.1 million summonses with a total value of about RM435 million. "The government has also agreed not to renew the contract of the companies operating the AES which expires at the end of this month,” he said in a press conference here, adding that the Road Transport Department (RTD) will take over the full AES operations from Sept 1. Loke said the cancellation was a one-off exercise and the PH government would not give any other discount for AES summonses. He said of the total number of summonses issued, only 18 per cent of offenders had paid up, with a total collection of not more than RM700, 000. On the possibility that the RTD’s operational costs would escalate following this takeover, Loke said this could not be avoided. “But we have to remember that, after this, ...

BANGKOK -- A 20 year-old Malaysian man could be spending several years in jail if found guilty of filing a false police report about being robbed by a knife-wielding ‘Western tourist’ in Chiangmai on Friday. Mueng police in Chiangmai, upon receiving the report, had swiftly conducted investigation by visiting the scene where the alleged crime took place and interviewed nearby residents but found nothing as claimed. “We did not find any evidence of robbery and when asked, the Malaysian man eventually admitted that he had falsely filed the police report as a ruse after spending all his money at a bar,” a Chiangmai police source told Bernama today.   The source said the youngster told the police that he needed the police report to convince his father to send more money to enable him to return to Malaysia. The youth claimed he was broke after spending all his money totalling Bah...

KAMPAR -- The decision to grant citizenship status and issue blue identity card to permanent residents who are holders of red identity card aged 60 years and above, is for all races, said Human Resource Minister M. Kula Segaran . He said the citizenship status would be granted not just for the Indian community. Kula Segaran added that many were with the notion that the citizenship was for the Indian community  because those who had approached the Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad over the issue were the Indian MPs. "Yesterday the Cabinet had specifically stated that it is for all races. Perhaps the majority of the cases involve one race but many among the Malays, Chinese, Kadazans and Ibans are red identity card holders too." The Ipoh Barat MP said this to reporters after launching the Ministry of Human Resources community service counter at the Public Market, Bernama re...

KUALA LUMPUR -- Bursa Malaysia is expected to trade firmer next week retesting its 1,800 level, spurred by improved sentiment in some domestic and external factors, dealers said. Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd, Head of Research Kenny Yee said Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad's five-day visit to China on Friday was seen as positive as it aims to maintain good relations with China. "Also, the 100-days of the new government just came by on Aug 17 (Friday) and so far the administration looks relatively good. "Besides that, the gross domestic product (GDP) growth figure of 4.5 per cent announced by Bank Negara Malaysia was also within our expectations," he told Bernama. Meanwhile, M&A Securities Sdn Bhd Chief Dealing Officer R Sundararajah said the FBM KLCI index is anticipated to trend higher on bargain hunting mainly in lower-liner stocks. He said the index, which has fallen an average of 20 points during the week, is likely to appreciate as inve...

source: https://indianexpress.com NEW DELHI -- Malaysians have been advised to avoid travelling to the southern Indian state of Kerala where nearly 200 people have died due to heavy rains and flooding. The Consulate General of Malaysia in Chennai said it is “closely monitoring the situation and wishes to advise all Malaysians in Kerala to exercise vigilance and take all necessary precautions”. “Malaysians who are planning to travel to Kerala are also advised to defer non-essential trips until the weather condition improves,” it said in an advisory on Friday, Bernama reported. Cochin International Airport, a major transport hub, has suspended its operations until Aug 26. At present, rail and road transport were disrupted and people stranded in flooded areas are desperate for food and essential goods. Many regions of Kerala are hit by heavy rains, with dozens of deaths being reported from Thrissur, Idukki and Malappuram districts. More than 300,000 people h...

KUALA LUMPUR -- In two days, the Pakatan Harapan (PH) government, led by Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, will complete its first 100 days in office. One hundred days may be too short a period to institute sweeping changes and bring about meaningful reforms but the inroads PH has made in fulfilling some of the 10 main pledges outlined in its 14th General Election (GE14) manifesto have generated enough public confidence in its ability to set in place a New Malaysia. The 10 main pledges by PH, which comprises PKR, DAP, Bersatu and Amanah, are as follows: Abolish the Goods and Services Tax (GST) and reduce the cost of living through the implementation of various initiatives. Reintroduce targeted petrol subsidies by stabilising fuel prices. Abolish unnecessary debts imposed on Felda settlers. Introduce Employees Provident Fund (EPF) contributions for housewives. Equalise the minimum wage nationally and start the process to increase the minimum wage. Postpone the repaymen...

KUALA LUMPUR – Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng’s statement over the missing RM19.25 billion in the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Refunds Trust Account will be recorded by the police next week. Lim, who is also DAP Secretary-General, said his full cooperation with the police has proved that the new government wants the truth to prevail. He said former Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak has no more excuses not to answer three pertinent questions over the missing RM19.25 billion in the GST Refunds Trust Account that affected 121,429 companies and individuals. “Did Najib authorise that GST refunds not be made within two weeks as required by the law? Did he approve the decision by Tan Sri Dr Mohd Irwan Serigar not to transfer the full amount of RM82.9 billion refunds as requested by Customs, but only RM63.5 billion since 2015, to the GST Refunds Trust Account? “Did he approve that the GST refunds not paid back since 2015, wer...

  KUALA LUMPUR -- Today, Aug 18, marks the first 100 days since Pakatan Harapan (PH)  came into power.  The PH government made history when it became the government of the day after winning the 14th General Election (GE14) on May 9, ending the Barisan Nasional’s (BN) reign of more than six decades. On the run up to GE14, PH had pledged to implement 10 basic promises as stated by the coalition, made up of PKR, DAP, Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (BERSATU), and Parti Amanah Negara (PAN), in their manifesto  Buku Harapan.   Here’s the list of what the current PH government had successfully implemented as promised in their 100-day election manifesto.  Goods and Services Tax (GST) implemented by the previous BN government effective April 1, 2015 has been zero rated and will be replaced with the Sales and Services Tax (SST) effective Sept 1, 2018. The first phase of the Employment Provident Fund (EPF...

KUALA LUMPUR -- Members of the public are advised to be alert towards early signs of heat stroke in the wake of the current hot and dry weather that hit the country. Health director-general Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said the heat stroke occurred when the body temperature exceeds 40.5°Celsius compared with the normal body temperature of about 37°Celsius. He said high body temperature would lead to complications to the nervous system of the brain, which could cause a person to experience seizures, coma and could lead to death. “Among the early symptoms of heat stroke are throbbing headaches, nausea, lack of perspiration despite the soaring temperatures and racing heart rate. “Other symptoms are weak muscles and spasms, vomiting, dry skin and redness, seizures and blackouts,”  he said in a statement issued via his Facebook account, Bernama reported. Dr Noor Hisham also urged the public to take several immediate steps when facing ho...

PETALING JAYA -- Kerajaan Selangor memerlukan suara pembangkang yang kuat bagi mengelakkannya daripada 'leka dan lena' dalam menjalankan amanah, kata calon PAS bagi Pilihan Raya Kecil (PRK) Dewan Undangan Negeri (DUN) Seri Setia, Dr Halimah Ali. Beliau berkata, berdasarkan pengalamannya sebagai anggota Exco kerajaan Selangor sebelum ini, adalah sukar untuk wakil rakyat kerajaan mengeluarkan kenyataan yang bercanggah dengan kerajaan negeri. "Jika calon Pakatan Harapan juga yang menang di sini, adakah dia mampu untuk menegur kerajaannya sendiri, pemimpinnya sendiri, ia bukan mudah…suaranya akan diterhadkan dan diminimakan," katanya kepada pemberita selepas selesai proses pencalonan di Dewan Sivik Majlis Bandaraya Petaling Jaya (MBPJ). Turut hadir Timbalan Presiden PAS, Datuk Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man, Setiausaha Agung PAS, Datuk Takiyuddin Hassan dan Pesuruhjaya PAS Selangor, Sallehen Mukhyi. Turut memberikan sokongan kepada Dr Halimah ialah beberapa pemimpin UMNO, ...

PETALING JAYA  – Polis mengingatkan semua pihak supaya menjaga dan memelihara ketenteraman di sepanjang  kempen Pilihan Raya Kecil DUN Balakong dan Seri Setia selama tiga minggu bermula hari ini. Timbalan Ketua Polis Selangor Datuk  Ab Rashid Ab Wahab juga berpesan supaya penyokong dan yang terbabit dengan kempen  tidak melakukan provokasi ke atas pihak lawan, tidak membangkitkan isu sensitif serta merosakkan harta awam. “Pihak-pihak yang berkempen dinasihati mengikut prosedur dan undang-undang yang telah ditetapkan terutamanya dari segi permit ceramah dan masa yang ditetapkan. Calon yang bertanding dinasihatkan agar tidak menghantar permohonan permit untuk mengadakan ceramah di saat-saat akhir,” katanya dalam satu kenyataan.  Proses penamaan calon kedua-dua PRK itu hari ini berjalan lancar tanpa berlaku sebarang insiden yang me...

PUTRAJAYA – The civil service was among the earliest to express its commitment to bring about changes within the first 100 days of the new government administration, said  Chief Secretary to the Government (KSN) Tan Sri Dr Ali Hamsa. He said during that period, several changes were made to ensure a smooth administration including by implementing administrative restructuring in government departments as well as the reshuffle of high-ranking government officials. "The changes are being carried out in line with the government's vision of reforming administrative institutions," he said in a statement in conjunction with 100 days of Pakatan Harapan administering the nation, Bernama reported. Ali also listed down some of the changes that had been made, among them; ·       Termination of contracts of special envoys and former prime minister's advisers who were...

HANGZHOU -- Malaysia is keen to tap leading e-commerce group Alibaba’s technology for the benefit of Malaysians, said Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad today. The prime minister said Alibaba Group Holding Ltd has made full use of modern technology for the benefit of the people. "We like to tap your idea of modern technology so that it can benefit Malaysians," he said when visiting Alibaba’s headquarters in co-founder Jack Ma's hometown here. r Mahathir said Alibaba understands the power of technology very well, noting that the online business it created has taken into account delivery system, speed as well as access to information and data. The prime minister, who is on the second day of his five-day official visit to China, was speaking in front of Ma and Alibaba’s top management during a briefing by the latter at the headquarters. Sharing his own experience in the bakery business, the prime minister said from catering to a small market, it could reach...

KUALA LUMPUR -- The Pakatan Harapan (PH) government has made quite an achievement within 100 days of its formation and despite the financial constraints, issues affecting the rakyat's cost of living have been seriously dealt with. Some quarters have expressed satisfaction over the efforts made, pointing out that, among others, the June inflation rate showed a significant decline from a year ago. RHB Research Institute Sdn Bhd Economic Research Head, Peck Boon Soon, said it was too early to judge if the cost of living had been really cut down within the first 100 days of PH taking office but based on June's Consumer Price Index (CPI) data, the inflation rate had been significantly lowered to 0.8 per cent from 3.6 per cent recorded in the same month last year. "Obviously, the CPI was lower owing to the zero-rated Goods and Services Tax (GST) as well as the freeze on RON95 and diesel prices. "Therefore, based on the ...

KUALA LUMPUR – The commitment of the Pakatan Harapan (PH) government to ensure good governance and free Malaysia of corruption is reflected in the realisation of 21 of the 60 promises in its 14th General Election manifesto, said Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad. The Prime Minister, when sharing with the people the efforts the PH had taken after taking over the government from the Barisan Nasional on May 9, said the government wanted Malaysia to be known for integrity and not corruption. “These efforts called for a drastic integrated and comprehensive plan. The government commitment was to achieve the principle of wanting Malaysia to be known for integrity and not corruption,” he said in his address on ‘The 100 Days of the Pakatan Harapan Government’ broadcast to the nation. Bernama reported, towards this objective, he said, several matters had been implemented so far, including: a. Establishing a Special Cabinet Committee on Anti-Corruption (JKKMAR). b. Establishing the Gover...

KUALA LUMPUR – The Super yacht Equanimity linked to fugitive businessman Low Taek Jho or Jho Low which was allegedly cost RM1 billion could be sold for half the price, said  lawyer R.Sivarasa. Speaking at the International Malaysia Law Conference here today, Sivarasa said the price was his personal view because the asset would depreciate in value just like a car. “We are not getting that much, the yacht is just like a car,  when you buy today and tomorrow the price will be less. The yacht was bought probably at RM1 billion, we  will be lucky and probably hope to get RM500 million,” he said in his speech during  the last plenary session entitled “Equanimity: Perspectives of Handling Criminal Investigations Relating to Government Corruption and Abuse of Power. Sivarasa, who is also Deputy Rural Development Minister,  said the yacht is currently placed in Pulau Indah, Port Klang  waiting to be sold and ...