PM: New Economic Model to benefit all - The Star

KUALA LUMPUR: The New Economic Model (NEM) unveiled by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak Tuesday will generate benefits for all Malaysians, irrespective of race under its inclusive growth goal and approach.

The pro-poor growth warrants that no groups be marginalised and the essential needs of the people will be satisfied, according to the NEM.

Under the NEM, inclusiveness will enable all communities to contribute to and share in the wealth of the country.

t points out that a key challenge of inclusive growth is the design of effective measures that strike a balance between the special position of the Bumiputera and legitimate interests of different groups.

While saying that ethnically divide societies are more prone to violent conflicts, NEM emphasises that the multi-racial composition of the Malaysian population is still its outstanding feature and this ethnic diversity will always be with us.

As such, the market-friendly affirmative action programmes in line with the principle of inclusiveness will target assistance to the bottom 40 per cent of households, of whom 77.2 per cent are Bumiputra and many are located in Sabah and Sarawak, and ensure equitable and fair opportunities through transparent processes.

It also allows access to resources on the basis of needs and merit to enable improvement in capacity, incomes and well-being, and has sound intellectual frameworks for better monitoring and effective implementation.

[More at http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2010/3/30/neweconomicmodel/20100330095105&sec=neweconomicmodel]

Soi Lek wins close race for No 1 post, Tiong Lai is the new deputy - The Star

KUALA LUMPUR: Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek staged a stunning victory when he was elected the ninth president of MCA.

He defeated incumbent Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat and former president Tan Sri Ong Ka Ting at yesterday’s fresh party polls after a protracted crisis that had dogged the party since its AGM on Oct 18, 2008.

Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai, who was aligned to Ka Ting, defeated Housing and Local Government Minister Datuk Seri Kong Cho Ha in a close fight for the deputy presidency.

Many observers see the election results — which had candidates from all three factions winning various posts — as reflective of the desire of members to close ranks and rebuild the party.

[From http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2010/3/29/mcaelection2010/5954363&sec=mcaelection2010]

TM’s UniFi ups ante on broadband competition - The Edge

KUALA LUMPUR: Broadband providers throughout the nation, and one television broadcaster, will have to keep a careful eye on their market share after TELEKOM MALAYSIA BHD [] (TM) on Thursday, March 25, announced a highly competitive pricing scheme for its new high-speed broadband retail offering, also known as UniFi.

At RM149 per month for the entry level retail plan, VIP 5, subscribers will receive up to a five megabit per second (mbps) transfer rate. At that speed, a typical song file of about five megabytes in size will take, on paper, eight seconds to transfer.

The next plan, VIP 10, subscribers will see a connection speed of 10 mbps for RM199, while the premium plan, VIP 20, will provide subscribers with a speed of 20 mbps for RM249.

While critics would argue that TM’s high speed service will only be available in Zone 1 areas, that is, areas of high economic impact, TM’s CEO Datuk Zamzamzairani Mohd Isa announced yesterday at a press briefing that it would also lower the price for its fastest StreamyX broadband plan.

The latter falls under TM’s broadband for the general populace (BBGP), which is TM’s broadband offering in areas falling into the Zone 2 category.

“Obviously, we need to adjust the pricing for the 4mbps plan on Streamyx. Today, we have the combo package available at RM160, (but) with immediate effect, we will reduce it to RM140,” Zamzamzairani said.

The pricing of the plans came after the launch of the National Broadband Initiative and the National High Speed Broadband Project by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak on Wednesday night. TM’s UniFi service will be available in Taman Tun Dr Ismail, Bangsar, Subang Jaya and Shah Alam in its first phase of deployment.

[More at http://www.theedgemalaysia.com/business-news/162404-tms-unifi-ups-ante-on-broadband-competition.html]