theSun | MONDAY JULY 13 2009 3

news without borders

MCA ready for direct polls
KUALA LUMPUR: MCA is ready to
implement direct election of the party
president during the next party elections
scheduled for 2011.
Its national organising secretary, Yoo
Wei How, said the party has completed a
proposal for party re-structuring to enable
direct election to be implemented, with the
proposal set to be tabled at the next MCA
presidential council meeting.
At present, about 2,000 delegates
elected by divisions pick the president
and the top leadership.
However, under the proposal, the
election of the party president will be
extended to all branches and divisional
level where the ordinary member can
elect the party president directly.
“I will present it in the next
presidential council meeting, then get the
presidential council’s approval where
they will pass the message to the state
leaders for more brain-storming and
obtain feedback from the grassroots.
“We have a few proposals on how
to restructure our organisation to
allow direct election to be implemented.
As we want to do it in a transparent
manner and with participation from the
grassroots, we will carry out an exercise
to get feedback from party members on
our proposals,” Yoo told Bernama in an
interview.
However, he declined to give details
of the proposal, saying only that it con-
sists of several recommendations on
how the system of direct election should
be carried out, and the mechanism to
implement it.
He said, it cannot be revealed as
yet, as it is still subject to approval by
the presidential council, as well as the
grassroots.
Yoo said once the presidential council
gives its approval, the proposal would be
released to the grassroots for feedback
before it is adopted, but is confident the
model would be ready by year-end.
He said the party is continuing to clean
up its membership rolls. “At the moment,
our membership stands at about 940,000,
from the previous 1.08 million members.
We have cleaned up by striking out those
who did not pay their annual member-
ship subscription fees,” said Yoo, adding
they have come across with “some ex-
traordinary findings” such as more than
200 people sharing the same address
and even some without any telephone
number to contact.
“Now, we have made it compulsory
for applicants to provide phone num-
bers, otherwise their applications will
be rejected. Apart from that, we will
also verify the information provided,
by calling up the applicant, as well as
their proposer, before we approve the
membership,” he said.
Another change that has already taken
place in the party is disallowing the open-
ing of more branches in a particular area.
Instead, new branches are encouraged to
be opened in other areas. “For example,
there are more than 10 branches in a ‘kam-
pung baru’ when just two branches are
sufficient. You can always set up branches
in other areas to serve more people.
“What is the point of establishing 10,
15 or 20 branches in one ‘kampung baru’?
It’s just a numbers game. So, let there be
more focus on the general election.”
Viewers don masks at the Rainforest World Music Festival in
Student dies
of suspected
encephalitis
SEREMBAN: A secondary school student
died of suspected meningo encephalitis, an
inflammation of the meninges and brain, at the
Tuanku Ja’afar Hospital yesterday afternoon.
Urumqi Chan Hui Ven, 16, of Sekolah Tinggi Chung
tense Hwa, was in a semi-comatose state when she
after was admitted to the hospital on Monday, Health
Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said.
unrest “Initial tests show she died of meningo
pg 6 encephalitis virus infection. However, we have
sent her samples to the Institute of Medical
Research to confirm the cause of death,” he
said after the opening of the Negri Sembilan
MCA annual general meeting yesterday.
Liow said meningo encephalitis was a rare
disease and infection occured only through
direct contact with causes.
“The disease can be transmitted by water
contamination or pollution of the environment.
This is the first case of its kind in Seremban,”
he said.
The ministry was looking into how Chan
could have become infected to map out precau-
tionary measures, said Liow, who had visited
her family in Taman Seremban Jaya near here.
– Bernama

UK govt may Santubong, Sarawak on Saturday night.

reconsider briefs
Batang Kali Anti-piracy drive against
appeal ‘big sharks’
RAUB: The Domestic Trade, Cooperative and
Consumerism Ministry is focusing on the “big
by Tan Yi Liang sharks” in anti-piracy enforcement, minister
newsdesk@thesundaily.com
Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said.
“Our strategy now is to go after the source of
KUALA LUMPUR: A lawyer representing pirated goods,” he said after attending a function
survivors and the families of people killed at SK Kampung Guai in Bera yesterday.
in a 1948 massacre by the British Army in Ismail said that from January to June, pi-
Batang Kali, Selangor, yesterday said the rated goods valued at RM21.18 million were
British government will reconsider an ap- seized by the ministry with the biggest success
peal to reopen investigations into the killing goods worth some RM6 million at an optical
of 24 tappers and the torching of a village. disc duplicating factory in Sungai Buloh re-
“The meeting with the British govern- cently.
ment took place in London on Friday and He urged the public to come forward with
BERNAMAPIX

they will tell us on Aug 14 what they are information. – Bernama

going to do next,” Datuk Dominic Puthuc-
heary said.
“We look at this initial opening by the
British as something very positive, and we
don’t want too much public examination
of the past before we have more reactions
from the British government,” he said.
Puthucheary noted at a press confer-
ence here organised by the Action Commit-
tee Condemning the Batang Kali Massacre,
that eyewitnesses to the massacre were
still alive.
“We have four eyewitnesses in Malaysia,
and in the UK, there are eight Scots Guards
soldiers. There have been confessions, and
the people who made these are alive.
“None of the soldiers have come
forward to assist, and we have not
approached them. I think it is a sensitive and
difficult issue as they belong to a regiment.
We hope they will come up if asked.”
Meanwhile, lawyer Firoz Hussein said
the decision of the British government was
a step forward after its rejection of a request
by the committee earlier in the year.
“We are pleased the British government
has agreed to meet us, and it is the first
meeting in 60 years to see whether this is-
sue can be resolved. I think they are forcing
themselves to reconsider the matter after
rejecting the claim on Jan 21,” he said.
Firoz said that while no reason was given
for the about-turn, it could relate to recent
developments in the English law and the
Batang Kali incident itself.
“Prior to this, the British government had
always said all decisions were based on
investigations conducted. However, it has
now come to light that since 1948 there has
not been any completed investigation into
the incident. This is crucial because it means
the decision of the British government not to
investigate, compensate or prosecute the sol-
diers was not made on the basis of properly
considered and completed investigations,
whether in 1948, in 1970 or at any time.”
KT school closes for 5 days after
2 pupils test positive
by Hemananthani Sivanandam
newsdesk@thesundaily.com
PETALING JAYA: A school in Kuala Ter-
engganu was closed for five days on Friday
after two of its students tested positive for the
A (H1N1) virus.
SK Sulaiman 1 is the first school in Kuala
Terengganu to be closed since the outbreak
of H1N1 in Malaysia.
A class of Form Four students of SM
Aminuddin Baki, Kuala Lumpur who were
placed under home quarantine will return to
school on Wednesday.
As of 8am yesterday, 39 new confirmed
cases of influenza A (H1N1) had been reported,
of which 22 were imported and 17 were local
transmissions, bringing the total number of
confirmed cases to 710.
“Out of the 710 cases, 90% or 637 patients
have been discharged, while 73 are still receiv-
ing treatment at designated hospitals,” Health
Ministry director-general Tan Sri Dr Mohd
Ismail Merican said in a statement yesterday.
Meanwhile, a ministry official said yesterday
the ministry did not wish to become involved
in a debate with the Information, Communica-
tion and Culture Ministry over the right term
for H1N1.
The official said Health Minister Datuk Seri
Liow Tiong Lai had repeatedly emphasised the
use of H1N1 as the standard term of reference
for the pandemic, based on the identification
provided by the World Health Organisation.
WHO had also said the virus was not caused
H1N1 figures
as of 8am yesterday
» New cases: 39
(29 Malaysian, three from Indonesia, two each
from Australia and Germany, one each from
Britain, Japan and Hongkong)
» Imported cases: 22
» Local transmissions: 17
» Total number of cases: 710
(90% – 637 discharged, 73 under treatment)
» World total: 106,565
(470 deaths in 143 countries)
b y
the consumption of pork
and that the meat was safe to eat.
“We don’t want to be dragged into a contro-
versy nor be seen as going against each other,”
the official said. We’ve explained the right ter-
minology and the public is well aware of it.”
Information, Communication and Culture
Minister Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim had said
all media should return to the use of the term
“swine flu” instead of H1N1.
Five squatter houses
destroyed in fire
KUALA LUMPUR: Seven families lost their
homes and belongings when a row of five
squatter houses on Jalan Pudu was destroyed
in a fire yesterday.
No loss of life or injuries were reported
in the 2am incident, Kuala Lumpur Fire and
Rescue Department assistant operations
director Azizan Ismail said.
The residents were asleep when the fire
broke out in one of the wooden houses, he
said.
Seven fire engines from the Hang Tuah
station were dispatched to the scene.
A van, two motorcycles and a store were
also destroyed in the fire. – Bernama
RM70m in strawberries
annually
CAMERON HIGHLANDS: The 30ha of land in
Cameron Highlands planted with strawberries
are capable of producing RM70 million worth of
the fruit annually.
Deputy Agriculture and Agro-Based Industry
Minister Datuk Johari Baharum said this was due
to measures taken by the ministry to ensure that
the quality of strawberries produced was on par
with that of imported fruit.
“If previously the strawberries grown here
were smaller and rather sour, now they are big-
ger, sweet and more delicious.
“Because of their better quality, the fruit has
begun to be exported to Singapore,” he said
after launching the “One District, One Industry”
programme here yesterday.
Johari said the strawberry industry would
grow more rapidly through downstream activi-
ties such as the production of strawberry jam,
pickled and candied strawberries, ice-cream,
dried strawberries, and strawberry-flavoured tea
and cordial. – Bernama