2 theSun | TUESDAY NOVEMBER 4 2008

news without borders

briefs Gerakan hopes Najib will lift BN spirit

Company to be charged with
polluting Lojing Highlands
KOTA BARU: The Kelantan Department of Environment
(DOE) is taking legal action against the management
of a company for allegedly polluting the environment
in Lojing Highlands, Gua Musang.
Its director, Mokthar Abdul Majid, said the manage-
ment would be charged at the Gua Musang magis-
trate’s court on Nov 11. He said the company was
allegedly linked to the pollution of Sungai Belatop and
Sungai Nenggiri in Gua Musang.
“Several other companies in Lojing are also being
closely monitored by DOE,” he told reporters after the
PENANG: Gerakan hopes Datuk Seri
Najib Abdul Razak, who won the Umno
presidency uncontested yesterday, will
promote the spirit of commitment and
cooperation in Barisan Nasional (BN) to a
higher level when he takes over the helm
next March.
In congratulating Najib on his win,
Gerakan president Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu
Koon said the deputy prime minister
was expected to continue and further
consolidate the process of reform in the
government and BN.
“I hope Najib will promote the spirit
of commitment and cooperation in BN to
an even higher level, representing and
realising the aspirations of all Malaysians
to achieve a truly united and prosperous
Bangsa Malaysia,” he said in a statement
released yesterday.
He said Gerakan would extend its
support and cooperation to Najib to lead
the country and BN.
“After having been confirmed as Umno
president-elect, Najib is in a position of
strength to assist Pak Lah in the interim
period to realise the reforms promised
while proceeding with preparations for
his own plans as the next prime minister
and BN chief,” he said.
In the past few months, he said,
Najib had frequently chaired the BN
Management Committee meetings and
was prepared to listen to diverse views,
and was very focused and quick in
achieving consensus.
“All these will take place if there

PM: Be confident in
launch of the state-level Malaysia Environment Week is confidence,” he said, adding that
at the Pangkalan Chepa Industrial Training Institute the people must be convinced that
here yesterday. – Bernama whatever they implement would be
successful.
Heavier penalties sought for Abdullah said the Malaysian
money politics in Umno currency was stable and not

facing economic crisis

KUALA LUMPUR: The Federal Territories Council
of the Association of Former Elected Representa-
tives (Mubarak) has urged the Umno disciplinary
board to take more drastic action, including
expulsion, against any party leader or member
found to be involved in money politics.
Its treasurer, Datuk Abdul Rahman Sulaiman,
said yesterday the action would be in accordance
with Clause 20.9 of the party constitution which,
among other things, provides for issuing of a
warning, suspension, and prohibition on contest-
ing any party post for a specified duration.
He said the Federal Territories Mubarak held a
special meeting last week to discuss the matter.
Disciplinary board chairman Tengku Ahmad
Rithauddeen Tengku Ismail had said recently it was
difficult to contain money politics and corruption
as they had taken root in the party. – Bernama
DBKL integrity officers to
attend further training
KUALA LUMPUR: Seventy-eight new integrity officers
with the Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) will attend an
integrity course at the Anti-Corruption Agency.
Mayor Datuk Abd Hakim Borhan said the officers
would be tasked with coordinating DBKL integrity
programmes. “Integrity and quality are inter-related.
When we have integrity, the quality will improve,
likewise when the quality is good, the integrity will be
enhanced,” he told reporters this after launching the
DBKL Integrity and Quality Day. – Bernama
PUTRAJAYA: Prime Minister
Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad
Badawi yesterday urged the people
to have confidence in the country’s
capacity to face challenges brought
on by the current global financial
turmoil.
He said it could not be denied
ARMF that the country cannot escape the
invests impact of the crisis but that did
RM1.1b not mean the people must allow
themselves to get carried away by
in four fear and worry.
malls “All this started with the
pg 14 financial crisis in the United States
and now the US and Europe are
in a recession, which is a cause
for worry because ours is an open
economy.
“We have economic links with
other countries and more so with
the US and Europe,” he said in his
address at the monthly assembly of
the Prime Minister’s Department,
here. Deputy Prime Minister Datuk
Seri Najib Abdul Razak was also
present at the event.
“All of this originated from them,
but we have to look at ourselves.
We do not have to be carried away
by fear and worry. We must have
confidence to face the challenges,”
Abdullah said.
He said in the wake of the US
financial crisis having a negative
effect on other regions such as
Europe, the people should be
thankful that the country’s banking
industry was still strong in terms of
capital and liquidity.
“We are also strong in terms of
our reserves which can sustain at
the moment. We still have strength
in terms of domestic consumption
and our savings are high,” he said.
Abdullah said he wanted
banks to be prepared to provide
reasonable loans to enable national
development to continue unabated
for the implementation of important
projects and to give domestic
investments a boost.
volatile so as to cause worry, and
the country had been developing
sectors such as tourism, Islamic
banking, biotechnology and
ICT.
He said Najib, who is also the
finance minister, would announce
in parliament today several
measures the government would
take to face the effects of the global
financial turmoil.
“These (measures) will give us
confidence to face the challenges
and convince us that we have
the capacity and capability to at
least shield our economy from the
undesirable effects.
“We must lessen the impact
of the undesirable effects by
encouraging investment and
focusing on the developing sectors
which can be given a boost for
expansion, even if it’s just a little,”
he said.
Abdullah said civil servants
should convince investors that
they would face no difficulty
when investing in the country,
particularly in terms of bureaucratic
red tape, because this would ensure
that the country remained their
preferred choice for investment.
– Bernama

Four charged with kidnapping

woman, son for RM2m ransom
JOHOR BARU: Four
men were charged in the
magistrate’s court yesterday
with kidnapping a woman and
her son for a RM2.03 million
ransom last month.
Ng Kim Low, 49, Tang Kok
Peng, 50, Lim Cheng Yong, 37,
and Ching Siong Huat, 41, are
alleged to have kidnapped Lee
Yoke Chan, 42, and her son,
Tong Wei Jie, six, with another
still at large, at house number
28, Jalan Bulat, Taman Abad,
about 11.40am on Oct 6. The accused (from left)
The offence under Section Ching, Ng, Tang and
3 of the Kidnapping Act Lim at the magistrate’s
1961 provides for the death court yesterday
sentence or jail or whipping
on conviction. Deputy public prosecutor Abdul Kadir represented Ng
No plea was recorded. Husmin Hussin appeared for and Ching while Tang and
Magistrate Rasidah Roslee the prosecution. Counsel John Lim were unrepresented.
fixed Dec 17 for mention. Fernandez and Muhammad – Bernama

Easier way to verify foreign IDs

PUTRAJAYA: Foreign workers’ I-Cards and
their passports may in future be embedded
with the ‘NexCode Solution’ system that
would enable the Immigration Department to
detect those who have overstayed.
And just by using a mobile phone.
Home Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid
Albar said his ministry and the department
were now studying the effectiveness and
need for the system.
“Given that there is a lot of false
information now which is difficult to
verify, the system is seen as a good way
of verification by mobile mode,” he told
reporters after a ceremony to launch the
system yesterday.
Through the Nexcode Solution system,
not only is it possible to detect a foreign
worker who has overstayed but it is also
possible to detect false information in their
passports. The system, developed by Nexbis
Sdn Bhd, can also cater to exchange of
information between related agencies like
the police. – Bernama