4 œ theSun | FRIDAY JULY 24 2009

news without borders

First H1N1 related death in Malaysia H1N1 figures

(as of 8am yesterday)

by Giam Say Khoon

newsdesk@thesundaily.com
PUTRAJAYA: A 30-year-old Indo-
nesian student here has died after
contracting Influenza A(H1N1),
making it the first flu-related death
in the country.
Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow
Tiong Lai said the actual cause of
death, however, was pending as a
preliminary autopsy had also shown
other health complications.
Liow said the student at the
International Centre for Education in
Islamic Finance in Kuala Lumpur had
a mild fever and cough after returning
from Indonesia on July 5.
He developed a high fever, cough and
fatigue on July 20 and sought medical
treatment at a private medical centre in
Kampung Baru the following day.
“He collapsed at 11.50am while
waiting for medication. Emergency
were positive for A(H1N1), while
A(H5N1), dengue and lept-
“Thirteen local transmissions were
reported from the four clusters (identi-
» New cases: 18
» Imported cases:
INFLUENZA A(H1N1) HOTLINE ospirosis tests were negative.
“He had a high white blood
fied by the ministry) in Malacca, while
the other four were sporadic and (from London) 1
» 03-88810200/300 cell count which was a sign of isolated cases. The Indonesian student
» 03-88834414/415 secondary bacterial attack. was one of the four isolated cases,”
» Local transmissions: 17
Thus, his death was not di- Liow said.
aid was provided but failed
rectly caused by the H1N1 flu,
but a comorbid condition as he
He said the four clusters in Maktab
Perguruan Durian Daun, Kolej Yayasan » Total no. of cases: 939
to revive him,” Liow said. The medical also suffered from obesity.” Mara, Asrama Kolej Professional Mara
centre had classified the cause of Liow said the full autopsy report and the Nilam nursing school had
death as cardiac arrest due to ven- would be ready today as other tests been ordered closed for seven days
tricular fibrillation, he said. had yet to be completed. from yesterday.
Liow said an autopsy by the Kuala “We have also ordered the 25
Lumpur Hospital the same day found staff of the medical centre to be self-
The total number of H1N1 cases
in the country now stood at 939, of Fill up forms
symptoms of pneumonia in the lungs
and “pus-like” material in the lower
quarantined for seven days. Seven
roommates of the deceased had been
identified and only one had symptoms
which 573 were imported.
Bernama reports that the Universiti
Teknologi Mara (UiTM) campus in Dun-
in responsible
part of the trachea.
He said the hospital had collected of influenza. A health check was also
20 specimens for virological, bacterio- conducted in the college yesterday.”
gun, Terengganu; SM Teknik Perdagan-
gan Johor Baru; and SMS Lahad Datu,
manner: Liow
logical, histological, biochemical and In the last 24 hours, the ministry Sabah, have also been ordered to close by Llew-Ann Phang
toxicological tests. has recorded 17 local transmissions for one week after some students from newsdesk@thesundaily.com
“The virological and bacteriological and one imported case of an arrival the institutions were suspected of
tests on his lung tissue and trachea from London. having contracted the flu. PUTRAJAYA: Health Minister Datuk
Seri Liow Tiong Lai has expressed disap-
pointment at false information
submitted in health declaration

Teoh’s ‘best man’ among

forms at entry points to the
country, particularly at the KL
International Airport.
He said people should be
responsible in filling up the
forms to ensure the country’s
safety.

eight quizzed by cops

SHAH ALAM: The person who was to be through short messaging service or phone working as a political secretary
Liow said there had been
incidences of telephone num-
bers listed in the passenger’s
declaration form as “Oh! It’s
the wrong number”.
“The forms enable us
to trace passengers and
tourists, so we need their
Teoh Beng Hock’s best man was among calls, with Teoh before his body was found was a challenging job.” cooperation in filling up
eight witnesses questioned by police in a at 1.30pm on July 16, about 11 hours after In Kuala Selangor, CPO the forms responsibly with
probe into the death of the political aide he was questioned by the MACC over the Datuk Khalid Abu Bakar said correct information.
whose body was on July 16 found in the alleged misappropriation of Selangor state the investigation was expected to “Fabricating inform-
building that houses offices of the Selangor funds. be completed before an inquest ation is irresponsible
Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission. Teoh’s employer, Seri Kembangan into Teoh’s death scheduled for because it is necessary for
The witnesses, accompanied by law- assemblyman Ean Yong Hian Wah, who next week. the security and protection
yers Lim Lip Eng and V. Ganabatirau, had is the Selangor New Village Development “The investigation is about of the nation,” he said.
their statements recorded at the Section 11 and Illegal Factory Committee chairman, 10% to 15% near completion,” The forms are only
district police station here at 11am. is among several assemblymen in the he told reporters after closing a referred to in the event of
They are telecommunications shop state under investigation. Selangor contingent-level Quranic disease infection such as Influ-
owner Woo Chuan Sing, 30, who was Woo told reporters outside the police recital near here last night. enza A (H1N1), which would require other
Teoh’s good friend in their student days at station that Teoh contacted him at 7.29am Khalid said Teoh’s handphone was still passengers to be located and alerted.
Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Ampang on June 15 to ask him to be his best man. with the police because “we want to trace Asked about an episode in which the
Jaya municipal councillor Chan Su Sann, “We talked for about two minutes. Teoh’s calls before he was brought under forms of theSun’s R. Nadeswaran (who had
Subang Jaya municipal councillors Chong Before that, he had sent me a text message MACC’s custody and the short messag- MIC man claimed to be Benjamin Nethanyahu in his
Hoon Ming, Tai Cheng Heng and Pooi on the same matter, and when I did not ing service notes received before he was and nine declaration form) and Terence Fernandez
Weng Keong, Kajang municipal council- reply, he called me.” found dead”. were not collected upon their arrival from
lor Lee Kee Hiong and two unidentified Asked whether Teoh had confided in He said closed circuit television camera others Hongkong on June 12, Liow said there was
DAP members. him about any problem he might have footage of the Plaza Masalam car park and arrested a miscommunication between the Health
The eight are believed to be among the had, Woo said that to his knowledge, lift areas had been consistent with witness to stop Ministry and Immigration Department
last persons to have had contact, either Teoh had no problem. “But he did say that statements thus far. – Bernama over parties responsible for collecting the
protest forms.
pg 6 “That was rectified a few weeks ago
when we decided it was better for Health
Join us this Sunday ‘RC must address key Ministry officers to do it instead of immi-
gration officers.”
@ Calvary Church! Nadeswaran had written in his

DAMANSARA HEIGHTS
Assemblies of God
2, Jln Damansara Endah, Damansara Heights, 50490 KL
Worship Services @ 8am 10.30am 5pmO
Interpretation into Bahasa Malaysia
& Cantonese at 10.30am
SCG & CW @ 8am 10.30am O
DAMANSARA PERDANA
4th Floor, 20 Jln PJU 8/5G,
Bandar Damansara Perdana, 47820 PJ
Worship Service @10.30am
Interpretation into Bahasa Malaysia
SCG @ 9am & CW @10.30am
CHERAS
2nd & 3rd Floor, Block C, Lot 18113,
off Jln Cerdas, Taman Connaught, 56000 KL
Worship Service @ 9am
Interpretation into Cantonese
SCG @ 10.45am & CW @ 9am
AMPANG
7th Floor, Wisma Central, Jln Ampang, 50450 KL
Worship Service @ 10.30am
Interpretation into Cantonese
SCG @ 9am & CW @ 10.30am
SCG|School of Christian Growth (Bible Study classes)
CW|Carpenter’s Workshop (Children’s programme)
question of how Teoh died’
O by Maria J. Dass and Opalyn Mok
newsdesk@thesundaily.com
SHAH ALAM: The Royal Commission
of Inquiry (RC) set up to examine the
Malaysian Anti Corruption Commission
(MACC)’s methods of questioning should
not be divorced from the circumstances
leading to Teoh Beng Hock’s death, Paka-
tan Rakyat lawmakers said.
A joint statement by Parti Keadilan Rak-
yat vice-president R. Sivarasa, PAS central
committee member Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad
and Selangor DAP secretary Lau Weng San
said that while it was appropriate that the
RC look into the MACC’s investigation
procedures, the key question of how Teoh
died must also be investigated.
PKR information chief and Batu MP
Chua Tian Chang when contacted said:
“Don’t fool us with this because by sepa-
rating probes into MACC procedures and
the cause of death, there will be a lot of
For non-Muslims only
who asked him to stay back, were nasty
words and references made to him and
his loved ones, what was said and done to
him,” Chua said, adding that the inquest
would focus only on injuries and bodily
harm that led to Teoh’s demise.
In George Town, DAP secretary-gen-
eral Lim Guan Eng said the RC should also
look into the circumstances leading to
Teoh’s death.
Lim, who is Penang chief minister, said
the RC should investigate weaknesses in
the interrogation methods of the police
and the MACC that allowed “deaths in
custody”.
“There should also be corrective
measures to prevent these types of inci-
dents from happening again,” he said.
Lim said the federal government
needed to assure the public that people
taken into custody by the police or the
MACC would be safe.
Meanwhile Bernama reports that
column that he intentionally gave false
information to test the airport’s screening
system.
Review five-year cap
on skilled foreigners
PETALING JAYA: Employers yesterday called on the
government to review its policy to allow skilled foreigners
to work in the country for a maximum five years, saying it
could be detrimental to local businesses.
Malaysian Employers Federation executive director
Shamsuddin Bardan said the effect of the policy would be
employers having to spend a great deal of time and money
on retraining new workers.
Currently, the policy is to allow unskilled workers to
work for two years. Visa extensions from the third year
would be dependent on skill.
“Usually these workers are sent for various training
courses by companies and they acquire the required skills
to make them eligible for visa renewal,” Shamsuddin said.
“In reality, workers begin to be productive only from the
fourth year, and if we send them off, it would be a loss not

Tel: 03-7728 6000 unanswered questions. An inquest into
http://www.calvary.org.my the cause of death won’t determine what
happened to Teoh during questioning and
if this had led in any way to his death.”
“There should be answers to matters
like who gave the order to take him in,
Senior Pastor: Rev. Tan Sri Prince Guneratnam, M.A., D.D., D.Litt., LLD.
what was the investigation focused on,
the family of Teoh wants the RC to also
investigate the cause of his death.
Teoh’s younger sister Lee Lian, 29, to
reporters in Alor Gajah yesterday the fam-
ily wanted to meet Datuk Seri Najib Abdul
Razak as soon as possible to convey their
request to the prime minister.
only to the companies, but also the country.”
Shamsuddin said Malaysia’s loss would be the gain of
other countries because trained workers were in demand
elsewhere.
He was commenting on the government’s decision to
put a cap on the years of service of skilled foreigners as a
strategy to reduce dependence on them. – Bernama