8 theSun | TUESDAY JULY 21 2009

news without borders

Press Digest
AES cameras to catch by Kong See Hoh
newsdesk@thesundaily.com

traffic offenders
IPOH: Road users who commit
traffic offences at more than
200 high-risk areas here will not
be able to escape the law once
monitoring cameras under the
Automated Enforcement System
(AES) are installed from Sept 1.
Deputy Transport Minister,
Datuk Abdul Rahim Bakri, said
via the system all offences
would be recorded on automatic
cameras and summonses issued
immediately through the Road
Transport Department’s (RTD)
computer system.
“The automatic cameras will
be installed at more than 200
accident-prone areas identified
by the Road Safety Department
and Malaysian Institute for Road
Safety (Miros).
“The system will operate 24
hours a day,” Abdul Rahim told
reporters after visiting the Perak
RTD office here yesterday.
He said the AES would record
offences like beating traffic lights
and speeding.
“Those who commit an
offence and don’t pay their
compounds will find it difficult to
renew their road tax,” he said.
Abdul Rahim said in Perak
there were 50 locations identified
Illegal structure on Pulau Ketam
to be demolished
that had high risk of accidents
and added that AES would have
a good impact on educating road
users about careful driving.
Meanwhile, in KUCHING,
Deputy Transport Minister
Datuk Robert Lau Hoi Chew said
negligence and not making road
safety a priority were the main
reasons for 6,845 people dying
in road accidents in the country
last year.
He said although various
measures had been taken like
enforcement and organising road
safety campaigns to reduce the
problem, the people were still
taking road safety for granted.
“I’m disappointed that only
30% adhere to wearing the
back seat safety belts despite
the campaign launched. It’s the
same with motorcyclists; they
wear the crash helmet because
they are afraid of police action
but not because of safety,” he
said before meeting with repre-
sentatives of 11 public transport
companies, here, yesterday.
Lau said 2,886 fatal road
accidents were reported in the
first six months of this year, with
motorcyclists making up 60% of
the fatalities. – Bernama
Difficult for MCA to
reform itself, says Chua
FORMER MCA vice-president MCA being restrained, and because
Datuk Chua Jui Meng, who joined of this, it is difficult for the party to
Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) on Sat- even reform itself.
urday, says an overbearing Umno “Only by pulling out of the
is a hindrance to MCA’s efforts to Barisan Nasional (BN) can MCA
reform itself. perform. But because MCA is un-
He told able to withdraw from BN, I have
Nanyang no choice but to quit the party,” he
Siang Pau said.
U m n o He said it was after much
is very thought that he decided to join PKR
strong, as the party’s ideology matches his
result- own.
ing in Chua, 66, a former health min-
Chua ... ister, contested the president’s post
PKR’s in the last two party elections
ideology but lost to incumbent Tan Sri
matches Ong Ka Ting in 2005 and to
mine. Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat last
year.
Chua pointed out that while
running for the party’s top post
last year, he already made his
stand very clear to delegates, that
if the reform within Umno is just
superficial, MCA should withdraw
from the coalition.
He said he believed that due to
his stand, Umno would not have
wanted him to be elected party
president.
He stressed that there are a lot
of similarities between his ideology
and PKR adviser Datuk Seri Anwar
Ibrahim’s agenda.
Meanwhile, Tee Keat admitted
that Chua had chosen to leave the
party because it faced interference
and pressure from an external force
in its efforts to transform itself.
He said Chua had spoken to him
on the matter.
He said there were two options
one can make when faced with
such interference and pressure,
and Chua had opted to get out,
whereas Tee Keat chose to stand
firm and deal with the problems.
Tee Keat told reporters this
at a function in Kuala Lumpur
yesterday when asked to comment
on talk that Chua had left the party
due to pressure from Umno.
However, he declined to elabo-
rate on what he meant by “external
force”.

by Maria J. Dass their village development committee on

the construction of the illegal structure.
newsdesk@thesundaily.com

SHAH ALAM: The Klang District Land

Office has decided to demolish an illegal
extension of a restaurant located near a
helipad landing on Pulau Ketam but the
exercise is an expensive one which the
office is ill-equipped to carry out.
The helipad, near which the structure
is located, is usually used by Selangor
Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah during his
visits to the island and for emergencies.
Following this, a police report was
lodged by the Pulau Ketam village head
on July 9.
Later, in a statement to the media,
Selat Kelang assemblyman Dr Halimah
Ali said she had received complaints
from Pulau Ketam residents through
After checking with the Klang District
Land Office, Halimah was informed that
no approval was given for the construc-
tion of the structure on Temporary Oc-
cupied Land (TOL).
When contacted yesterday, Halimah
said the district land office met last
Friday and decided that the structures
would be demolished.
“But it is not the usual demolition
process involved because the equipment
needed is that of much higher technology
as the structure was built to withstand
flooding from high tides,” she said.
The land office is trying to obtain
the equipment needed to demolish the
illegal extension, said Halimah, adding
that the equipment was expensive.
Negligence on MACC’s part, says Abu Kassim
MALAYSIAN Anti-Corruption Com-
mission (MACC) deputy chief commis-
sioner Datuk Abu Kassim Mohamed
admitted that there was negligence on
the part of the commission in ensuring
the safety of Teoh Beng Hock, and said
remedial steps will be taken.
Teoh, the political aide to Selangor
exco member Ean-Yong Hian Wah, was
found dead on the level five landing of
Plaza Masalam, Shah Alam, where the
state MACC office is located, hours
after he was interrogated by MACC
officials on Thursday.
“We have to regain the public’s
confidence so that they dare to come
forward to assist us in our investiga-
tions,” Abu Kassim said.
He told Nanyang Siang Pau on
Sunday that the incident had greatly
affected MACC’s image.
“All our efforts so far have gone
to waste because of the incident,” he
was quoted as saying.
He said if police investigations
implicate any MACC officer in Teoh’s
death, the commission will ask the
police to take action.
Abu Kassim said that according
to state MACC officers, they thought
Teoh had left the office after inter-
rogation and did pay attention to his
whereabouts. This was negligence on
the part of the officers, he said.
However, he did not feel that there
is inadequate security at the MACC of-
fice as it is manned by officers round
the clock.
“Teoh came to the MACC office to
have his statement taken under very
safe situation,” he said.
MACC will ensure that in future,
anyone who opts to stay on in the
office after being questioned will be
closely monitored, he added.
“We will also make it a rule that of-
ficers record all movements of people
taken to the office for questioning.”

would submit the memorandum with sugges-

tions on how to alleviate the residents’ plight

briefs through Human Resource Minister Datuk Dr

Woman stabs hubby for
coming home late
KUALA LUMPUR: A woman stabbed her hus-
band who returned home late at Pandan Heights
condominium early Sunday after watching the
friendly match between Manchester United and
the Malaysian team.
The woman is under remand for five days
from yesterday and her 26-year-old husband,
who was stabbed in the chest, is being treated
at Kuala Lumpur Hospital. He is said to be in a
stable condition.
Ampang Jaya police chief ACP Abdul Jalil Has-
san said the woman, in her 20s, was believed to
be incensed when her husband broke his promise
to return home immediately after the football
match on Saturday and arrived home at 2am (on
Sunday) instead.
She is remanded to assist in the police inves-
tigation under Section 326 of the Penal Code for
voluntarily causing grievous hurt with a dangerous
weapon. – Bernama
MIC prepares Kg Buah Pala
memo for cabinet
GEORGE TOWN: The MIC is preparing a memo-
randum, complete with documentation on the
plight of the Kampung Buah Pala villagers for
the cabinet’s consideration.
MIC youth chief T. Mohan said the party
S. Subramaniam, who is also MIC secretary-
general.
Mohan said this yesterday during a visit
to the century-old village, which faces an un-
certain future after the residents were given
until Aug 2 to make way for a development
project.
Aug 2 decision on Herald case
intervention
KUALA LUMPUR: The High Court yesterday fixed
Aug 2 to decide whether to allow 10 state Islamic
councils, the Malaysian Gurdwaras Council and
the Chinese Muslim Association to intervene as
parties in the judicial review proceedings between
Catholic weekly Herald and the Home Ministry.
“This is the decision on whether to allow the
other parties to intervene, and we have submitted
that there should be no intervening parties. The At-
toney-General’s Chambers was in favour of the state
Islamic councils intervening, but not the Gurdwaras
council,” said Herald counsel S. Selvarajah, who
spoke to reporters after a hearing in chambers.
“The court heard the submissions from all the
councils and we reiterated our stand that the
parties should not be allowed to intervene in the
judicial review proceedings, which only concern
the decision maker and the affected body.”
Senior federal counsel Datuk Kamaludin Mat
Said said only parties adversely affected by the
decision of the then Internal Security Ministry to
prohibit all non-Islamic publications from using
certain words, such as “Allah”, should be allowed
to intervene.