DAP 'graftbusters' to fight corruption - Malaysiakini.tv

There is a new team in town whose raison detre is fighting corruption - meet the DAP's 'graftbuster' squad.

At a press conference today, several DAP politicians announced that the team will complement the work of the Anti-Corruption Agency (ACA) inaccepting complaints from the public.

Karpal Appeals To PM For Hindraf Leaders' Release - Bernama

KUALA LUMPUR, April 23 (Bernama) -- DAP Chairman Karpal Singh today appealed to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi to instruct Home Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar to revoke the detention order on the five Hindraf leaders detained under the Internal Security Act (ISA).

Karpal said that despite the detention orders by the King, Syed Hamid could at any time under the law revoke the orders on the five leaders of the Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf).

The King had on March 26 ordered for the leaders two-year detention, effective Dec 13 last year, be continued until completion.

"I would have thought, in line with the reconciliatory stance of the government in bringing about reforms, including setting up of a judicial commission for the appointment and promotion of judges, the five leaders would have been set free to rejoin their families.

"In fact, the Government should, in line with this approach, repeal the ISA," said Karpal, who is also Bukit Gelugor MP, in a statement tonight.

On Dec 13 last year, the authorities detained M. Manoharan, P. Uthayakumar, V. Ganabatirau, R. Kenghadharan and K. Vasanthakumar for organising a mass rally in the federal capital and making demands for the rights of Indians in the country.

[From http://www.bernama.com.my/bernama/v3/news.php?id=328672]

Lee Right To Quit, Says Political Analyst - Bernama

PENANG, April 23 (Bernama) -- Former Gerakan deputy secretary- general Datuk Lee Kah Choon's decision to quit his party was a wise move as it would prevent the quarrel between Gerakan and DAP from continuing, a political analyst said today.

"A delay in the matter would only cause DAP and Gerakan to be in a state of confusion and their quarrel will continue,” Datuk Dr Cheah See Kian, the principal of Han Jiang College, told Bernama here Wednesday.

He said the controversy of Lee accepting the posts in the two agencies under the DAP-Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) state government would end with Lee's departure from Gerakan.

Cheah was responding to Lee's announcement to quit Gerakan as his appointment to the two agencies could not be accepted by his former party's leadership.

Last Sunday, Lee accepted Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng's offer to be a director of the Penang Development Corporation and to be chairman of the executive committee of InvestPenang.

On Lee's statement that his appointments and his political career were unrelated, Cheah said people found that position hard to accept.

[More at http://www.bernama.com.my/bernama/v3/news.php?id=328673]

Anwar: 'I'll be PM in three years' - AFP

Anwar Ibrahim, Malaysia's opposition leader, has said he will be prime minister within three years, sketching out a dramatic political comeback.

"I don't think we have established a definite, clear timeframe when I will take over [as prime minister] but it certainly wouldn't reach three years ... much earlier than that," he said.

"[But] I am not in a rush," he told AFP news agency.

Anwar has emerged as a serious threat to the ruling coalition after the opposition's strong showing in March parliamentary polls.

Once the heir-apparent to long-time former premier, Mahathir Mohamad, Anwar was sacked from his post of deputy prime minister in 1998 and jailed for six years.

He became free to run for office again last week, when a five-year ban stemming from his corruption conviction expired. He now says he has the support of enough defectors to topple the government.

[More at http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/DB09BE45-6EE5-42D7-8799-C4ED06ADDB95.htm]

卡巴星：引来不满声音‧委李家全是错误的 - Guang Ming Daily

（檳城）民主行动党全国主席卡巴星说，李家全接受州政府的委任是错误的，林冠英也不应该献议他出任有关职位。此外，檳州第二副首长拉玛沙米也说，李家全受委出任州政府的3个高职，在行动党內已引起一些不满的声音。

他说，李家全接受委任时还是民政党员，这是不对的，因为他不能同时处在两个不同的位置上，即以民政党员身份出任民联政府的要职。

“檳州发展机构是檳州政府的投资臂膀。以行动党为主导的州政府，是檳州人民投选出来的，因此已被人民拒绝的国阵党员受委出任有关职位，这是不公平的。”

“李家全和我们是对立的，但现在他却要加入我们，这不是当初投选行动党的人民所乐於见到的。”

尽管如此，卡巴星说，拥有不同政治理念和政党背景的人士，还是可以在政府部门工作。

[More at http://www.guangming.com.my/node/25655]

Kah Choon quits Gerakan - The Sun

By Opalyn Mok

GEORGE TOWN (April 23, 2008): Datuk Lee Kah Choon has quit Gerakan in reaction to the party's decision to issue him a show-cause letter for accepting Pakatan Rakyat (PR) state government's appointment as InvestPenang executive chairman and Penang Development Corporation (PDC) director.

Lee, who had quit as Gerkan deputy secretary-general and other posts last month to take responsibility for the party's poor showing in the March 8 polls, termed his decision to withdraw his membership as "exorcising the political ghost".

The former Jelutong MP and health parliamentary secretary had lost in his bid for the Machang Bubok state seat. If he had won and the Barisan Nasional (BN) took Penang, he was among three people considered for the chief minister's post.

"This way, I hope we can put the matter to rest and move forward with some serious tasks at hand," Lee said in a press statement.

He also reiterated his stand of withdrawing from active politics to focus on serving the society as a citizen.

"My objective is clear and it has remained consistent throughout my political career, which is to serve the people. This is the reason I accepted the positions in both state investment agencies.

[More at http://www.sun2surf.com/article.cfm?id=21706]

Show-cause letter for Lee - The Star

PENANG: Datuk Lee Kah Choon, the former Gerakan deputy secretary-general who was appointed to posts in two Penang state government agencies, will be served with a show-cause letter.

He will have to explain why disciplinary action should not be taken against him for accepting the posts of director in Penang Development Corporation and InvestPenang as well as executive chairman of InvestPenang.

“The party had directed party members to relinquish all appointments as municipal and district councillors as well as Village Security and Development Committee members in states now ruled by Pakatan Rakyat,” former chief minister Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon said in a press statement yesterday.

“This directive is based on the premise that Gerakan now has to play the role as an effective opposition in Penang. We cannot do this objectively if our own members hold key positions in the state and local administrations,” Dr Koh said.

Dr Koh also questioned Chief Minster Lim Guan Eng’s political motives in appointing Lee as he has no direct experience in promoting investment in the industrial sector.

“Lee has experience as a lawyer and was a parliamentary secretary of the Health Ministry, which is unrelated to the manufacturing industry,” Dr Koh said. “As the industrial sector is Penang’s most important economic sector, it is not proper for Lim to play politics in a way that may jeopardise Penang’s efforts and ability to effectively attract investment.”

[More at http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2008/4/23/nation/21038738&sec=nation]

Lee’s action ‘against BN spirit’ - The Star

KUALA LUMPUR: Datuk Lee Kah Choon's decision to accept the posts of director of Penang Development Corporation and chairman of the executive committee of Invest-Penang is against the Barisan Nasional spirit, said Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi yesterday.

The Prime Minister, who is also Barisan chairman, said Lee should not have accepted the two posts offered by the Penang state government before conferring with the Gerakan leadership.

He said the former Gerakan deputy secretary-general should have first sought the views and decision of the party leadership on the offer.

“I want to hear the views of the Gerakan acting president (Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon) on this matter.

“Any subsequent action on Lee will be left to the Gerakan and Penang Barisan Nasional,” he said after opening the opening the Asem (Asia-Europe Meeting) Culture Ministers meeting.

“It is for the party to decide. It is up to Penang Barisan to do what they want as long as there is no clash in policy.

[More at http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2008/4/23/nation/21031463&sec=nation]

Faiz: Continue space programme - The Star

KUALA LUMPUR: The Angkasawan programme should continue, with the funding shared among the relevant ministries that will benefit from the aerospace industry, suggested Mejar Dr Faiz Khaleed.

The second Angkasawan said the space mission should no longer be about sending a Malaysian to space but for Malaysia to embark on the aerospace industry.

He said the industry that included manned space flight missions benefited many fields including communication, research, medical, defence and education.

“As the industry benefits many fields under many ministries, these ministries can share in the funding,” he said in response to Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Datuk Dr Maximus Ongkili’s statement that the ministry presently had no money to embark on the second phase of the programme.

Dr Faiz said people must be clear that it was now about research and development.

“If you just want to send people to space, RM100mil is expensive. We must look at it as moving on to developing our aerospace industry.

[More at http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2008/4/23/nation/21033327&sec=nation]

Kah Choon: Let me focus on my job - NST

GEORGE TOWN: Datuk Lee Kah Choon has thumbed his nose at the Gerakan leadership by shrugging off party adviser Datuk Seri Lim Keng Yaik's terse comments about him.

Lee said his decision to accept the offer by the DAP-Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR)-led state government to helm two top agencies in Penang had nothing to do with politics.

Stressing that he was still a loyal Gerakan member and had no intentions of leaving the party, Lee said: "My political background and my appointments are two totally different things.

"I hope Gerakan will not link them," he said at his new office in investPenang yesterday.

Lee said as far as he was concerned, there were many things which needed to be done and he needed to focus on his new job. "I want to concentrate on another phase of my life.

"This is something new, something I like and, at the same time, something which still enables me to help others."

[More at http://www.nst.com.my/Wednesday/National/2220946/Article/index_html]

Respect cultural diversity, says Najib - NST

KUALA LUMPUR: Cultural difference is "an accident of birth" and should never be the source of hatred or conflict.

Quoting Nobel Peace Laureate John Hume, Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said that the answer to the difference was to respect the different cultures in order to attain peace.

"It is very disheartening to see that the misunderstanding of ideology and culture has led to tension among people and countries, which end in riots or unrest.

"This threatens and undermines peace and stability."

Najib added that diversity was the hardest thing for a society to live with.

"Culture, arts and heritage are the intertwining anchors of a civilisation that underscores every facet of a nation's existence.

"It is the foundation of a nation and shapes the character of its people," he said in his speech at the third Asem Culture Ministers Meeting dinner at the Craft Complex in Jalan Conlay, last night.

[More at http://www.nst.com.my/Wednesday/National/2221295/Article/index_html]

PKR tabloid to hit streets next week - NST

PUTRAJAYA: Parti Keadilan Rakyat's (PKR) tabloid Suara Keadilan is expected to hit the streets next week.

PKR information head Tian Chua said the Home Ministry had approved the publishing permit and the newspaper would be published weekly and distributed widely.

The newspaper has been in existence for the past three-years, although it was only circulated among party members.

He said the party is confident of doubling its circulation from about 100,000 to 200,000 copies in less than a year.

Speaking at the Home Ministry yesterday after submitting RM500 as annual fees to the ministry's publishing unit, Tian Chua, who is also Batu member of parliament, said the 32-page publication would be sold at RM2 a copy and would feature news not covered by mainstream media.

"We will retain the kind of contents we carry but we will also move with the demands of time," he said.

[More at http://www.nst.com.my/Wednesday/National/2221287/Article/index_html]