F1 Wannabe

Allure of F1 undimmed in Asia (source: Malaysian Insider)

A new design, manufacturing and technical centre will be built at the Sepang International Circuit. —Reuters pic

LONDON, Sept 16 — The allure of Formula One remains undimmed for Middle Eastern and Asian investors as the sport shifted further away from its European origins yesterday with the rebirth of Lotus as a Malaysian-owned team.

Leading Malaysian entrepreneur Tony Fernandes will be team principal after Lotus were awarded the 13th slot on the 2010 starting grid by the governing International Automobile Federation.

A new design, manufacturing and technical centre will be built at Malaysia’s Sepang International Circuit.

“The cars will be made in Malaysia, by Malaysians,” the government said in a statement.

BMW-Sauber, who were left fighting for their survival after German manufacturer BMW announced in July that it was pulling out at the end of the season, hope to be racing against them after being rescued by Middle Eastern money.

BMW said Qadbak Investments, a Swiss-based foundation representing unnamed Middle Eastern interests, had signed a contract to buy the team.

Although Lotus have taken the slot that was BMW-Sauber’s, the latter team were given a reserve 14th place with the FIA also looking into a regulation change to allow the grid to stretch to 14 teams and 28 cars.

The Middle East already has two races for the first time this year, with the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix joining Bahrain on the calendar, while France has disappeared from the calendar.

Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Investment fund owns a five per cent stake in Ferrari while Bahrain’s state holding company Mumtalakat has 30 per cent of McLaren.

A further 15 per cent of McLaren is in the hands of Saudi businessman Mansour Ojjeh.

The Gulf’s financial involvement could grow even further if media reports in Germany are correct about Mercedes seeking a 75 per cent stake in championship leaders Brawn.

German magazine Auto, Motor und Sport reported last week that Aabar, a major investor in Mercedes’ parent company Daimler, would hold the stake until the car maker’s exclusive contract with McLaren expires in 2011.

Malaysia and Singapore are now established fixtures while South Korea is aiming for a slot in 2010 before India makes its debut in 2011.

Indian aviation and liquor tycoon Vijay Mallya has already put the country more firmly on the motorsport map with his Force India team taking pole position in Belgium last month and grabbing two top four positions in two races.

Force India were formally Jordan, Midland and Spyker and remain based at Britain’s Silverstone circuit.

Britain and its “Motorsport Valley” has long been the home of choice to a majority of teams but the numbers are levelling out. Newcomers due to debut next season promise to take the sport out of its familiar surroundings.

USF1 have decided to base themselves in Charlotte, North Carolina which means that the championship that started in Europe 59 years ago with teams from just Italy and France could soon see cars being produced on three continents. — Reuters

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Malaysian F1 team plans grand HQ (source: Malaysian Insider)

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 16 – Sepang International Circuit (SIC), a joint partnership involving the government and a consortium of Malaysian entrepreneurs for the 1Malaysia Formula (F1) One Team project, has allocated between 8,000 and 12,000 hectares for the development of the Made-in-Malaysia F1 team headquarters.

SIC chief executive officer (CEO) Ahmad Razlan Ahmad Razali told Bernama the headquarters, to be located at the circuit, would be equipped with state-of-the-art facilities, including a wind-tunnel, to test the aerodynamics of the Malaysian-made machines.

He said the headquarters, comprising an office, research & development (R&D), manufacturing, technical centre and other related departments, would be fully functional, two years after the preliminary works expected to begin by the middle of next year.

“SIC have chosen a suitable site for the team headquarters which will be located at the parking area before the tunnel, to enter the podium building.

“But it’s all in the preliminary stages. All the parties involved will have to sit together after the Hari Raya and submit whatever plans we have to the motorsports governing body, the Federation of International Automobile (FIA) for endorsement,” he told Bernama here today.

Ahmad Razlan admitted the cost to build the team headquarters at SIC would involve millions or maybe even billions of ringgit but could not reveal the actual cost because it was “still in the preliminary phase”.

SIC would only build the physical infrastructure but the hardware and software of the projects would be decided by other parties, he said.

Ahmad Razlan said cooperation between SIC and AirAsia began a few months ago when Asia’s low-budget airlines boss Datuk Tony Fernandes told him about his ambitious dream to set up an all-Malaysian F1 team.

For SIC, the idea will not only enhance the level of the company’s involvement in the motorsports industry but also show Malaysia’s direct involvement with F1.

“This is a new chapter for SIC ... as organiser of Malaysian F1 race to the niche Home of Motorsports and now, we can boast that we’re the hub for motorsports in Asia,” said Ahmad Rzalan.

Asked if the Malaysian-made machines would be on the grid before the Australian Grand Prix in March next year – the first round of the 2010 F1 calendar – he said the cars would be in Malaysia before the race.

“I can assure all Malaysian that the 1Malaysia F1 Team machines will be in this country before the Australian race, most probably for testing at the 5.543km Sepang Circuit.

“We’re not building the car from scratch. We already have the Lotus technology for the engines and within three month, the car is fit to be on the road. The Malaysian car has enough time to make a pinnacle for the motorsports industry. That, I can assure them,” he said.

He said the team’s technical director Mike Gascoyne had over 20 years experience in F1, and previously performed the same role for the Force India, Toyota, Renault and Jordan Formula One Teams.

Meanwhile, National Sports Institute director-general Datuk Dr Ramlan Abd Aziz said the institute was willing to share its expertise with the budding F1 drivers.

He said former national F1 driver Alex Yoong used to undergo physical training under the institute’s supervision as F1 drivers needed to be physically and mentally ready.

“If necessary, we will set up a team comprising experts to help in the training.

“However, before we provide any assistance, we must get the green light from the youth and sports ministry,” added Dr Ramlan. – Bernama

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By Admin:

Will all these be another white elephant project where millions or even billions of tax-payers' RMs going down the drain? Petronas spent about 50mil pounds (approx. RM290mil) a season sponsoring the soon-to-be dissolved BMW-Sauber F1 team (the team will not be participating in the 2010 season), and that is just as a sponsor having its name and logo pasted on the cars.

So how much would it actually cost Malaysia to build a grand F1 HQ in Sepang, and to run and upkeep an F1 team? Millions? Billions? And where will all these lead to? How long can the team be sustained? 1Malaysia? (suck) People First, (no) Performance Later? In Bolehland, it's Malaysia Boleh, come rain or shine! CIAO!

1Malaysia F1 Via Lotus?

A model of the new 1 Malaysia team car unveiled today in Putrajaya. - Reuters pic

UPDATED (The Malaysian Insider)

LONDON, Sept 15 — Formula One’s governing body today named Lotus as the 13th team for the 2010 championship. The new outfit will be led by Tony Fernandes of Malaysia, it was announced here.

In Kuala Lumpur, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak also confirmed the news and said the team will be known as the 1 Malaysia Formula One team, although Reuters quotes the FIA as calling the new outfit the Lotus F1 team.

According to Reuters, the new team is a partnership between the Malaysian government and a consortium of Malaysian entrepreneurs.

The FIA said the team principal will be leading Malaysian entrepreneur Tony Fernandes. The 45-year-old set up Asian budget airline Air Asia and, with a net worth of US$220 million (RM770.57 million), is Malaysia’s 15th richest man, according to Forbes Malaysia 2009 rich list.

Investors in the new team are Air Asia co-founders Datuk Kamarudin Meranun and Fernandes as well as SM Nasarudin SM Nasimuddin of Naza.

Technical director Mike Gascoyne has more than 20 years of experience in Formula One having previously performed the same role for the Force India, Toyota, Renault and Jordan Formula One teams.

As part of its application to compete in the 2010 championship, the Lotus team agreed an engine supply deal with Cosworth.

The team will initially be based in Norfolk, some 10 miles from the Lotus Cars factory in Eastern England.

The team’s future design, manufacturing and technical centre will be purpose built at Malaysia’s Sepang International Circuit, the FIA statement said.

1Malaysia is Najib’s platform for uniting Malaysians irrespective of ethnicity and creating a performance based culture.

The concept has gotten mixed reviews as some have praised its objectives while others have criticised its vagueness, which Najib says is deliberate.

The Malaysian government has gone on overdrive to promote 1Malaysia via billboards and song competitions.

Najib declined to disclose the amount that the public-private initiative will cost.

He added however that the government’s investment will be via proton.

Lotus, one of the most successful and glorious names from Formula One’s past, will return next year replacing BMW-Sauber as the 13th entry on the starting grid.

The governing International Automobile Federation (FIA) said in a statement that, after due diligence and an intensive selection process, it had chosen Lotus.

“The cars will be made in Malaysia, by Malaysians,” the Malaysian government said in a separate statement.

The vacancy arose after BMW announced that they were withdrawing at the end of the season, following a path already trodden by Japan’s Honda.

The FIA said BMW-Sauber, who are still seeking a buyer, had been given a reserve slot to fill any vacancy that might occur between now and the start of the 2010 championship.

“The team will announce its two drivers by October 31, 2009. Currently six local and international drivers have been selected,” the Malaysian government said.

Three teams had been on the FIA shortlist for the 13th slot: Lotus, a BMW-Sauber entry to be renamed under eventual new ownership and Spain’s Epsilon Euskadi.

The original Lotus won seven Formula One constructors’ titles and six drivers’ crowns between 1963 and 1978 under the inspirational leadership of the late Colin Chapman, one of the most innovative engineers in the sport.

Chapman died of a heart attack in 1982 and the company slid into administration in 1994 after giving the late Brazilian Ayrton Senna his first victory in 1985.

British great Jim Clark spent his entire F1 career with Lotus, winning two titles. The team’s other champions include compatriot Graham Hill, Brazilian Emerson Fittipaldi and American Mario Andretti.

In 1970 the team’s Austrian driver Jochen Rindt became the sport’s only posthumous champion.

The right to the Lotus F1 name was acquired by David Hunt, brother of the 1976 champion James, while the British-based car company was bought by Malaysian state-owned Proton.

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By Admin:

Hopefully this foray into F1 won't turn into another failure like the first when Malaysia put the first Malaysian driver in F1. Whether this venture fails or succeeds is left to be seen, come rain or shine! CIAO!

Cars' Insurance Rip-Off

Tuesday, 15 September 2009 17:31 (Malaysian Mirror) KUALA LUMPUR - Thousands of cars are plying the roads without valid road tax because their owners are unable to get insurance coverage, according to the Federation of Malaysian Consumers Associations (Fomca). Its secretary-general, Muhammad Shaaini Abdullah, told Bernama that these were owners of cars of more than 10 years old which were considered "risky" and insurance companies were reluctant to provide cover for them. He said that should such vehicles meet with an accident it would cause tremendous problems for the authorities, owners and victims because no claim could be made as there was no insurance coverage. Director-General of the Road Transport Department Solah Mat Hassan confirmed that the department had received several complaints from motorists about not being able to obtain insurance coverage for such vehicles although they were roadworthy. Insurance is mandatory Under the Road Transport Act, he, said, it was mandatory for the motorist to get at least a third party insurance coverage before the department could renew the road tax. "While we sympathise with the motorists, we cannot do anything but enforce the law if they are found to be without valid road tax," he added. He called on the insurance companies to find an amicable solution to the problem. In response to Bernama's query via e-mail, General Insurance Association of Malaysia (PIAM) executive director CF Lim said: "Currently the motor insurance market is experiencing high loss. As such, many insurers have either declined or are scaling back on underwriting risks, especially third party insurance and insurance for older vehicles." However, he said, motorists who found it difficult to get the required insurance could obtain it from the Malaysian Motor Insurance Pool (MMIP) jointly operated by all the 33 general insurance companies in the country. Lim said the MMIP provided insurance for vehicles which were considered high risk and those unable to obtain from the normal market. "In other words, the MMIP is the insurer of last resort." MMIP premium too high The MMIP had formed a strategic partnership with Pos Malaysia since July, and motorists could obtain the insurance from the 684 Pos Malaysia branches in the country. Since Pos Malaysia was also an agent for the Road Transport Department, motorists could also renew their road tax at these outlets which were convenient one-stop centres, he added. However, Muhammad said, many motorists were reluctant to use the services of the MMIP because the premium was very high. He called on Bank Negara, as the agency in charge of insurance, to immediately review the rates and make them affordable.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- By Admin: Insurers are using this excuse to force motorists to convert their third party coverage to comprehensive coverage at an increased premium. Whatever happened to the compulsory Personal Accident policy that motorists were subjected to previously when renewing third party insurance coverage? Bank Negara definitely have to step in and solve the problem and reduce the burden on motorists that own older vehicles, come rain or shine! CIAO!

Kamunting: Detention Without Trial

Some have said it is where they experienced the darkest moments of their lives, others, that it encouraged contemplation. What is life like in the country’s most well-known prison?

BY JUNE H.L. WONG and SHAHANAAZ HABIB, The Star

FOR almost four decades, the place has struck fear in those facing the Internal Security Act: if you were sent to Kamunting, it could mean years of detention without trial.

Originally intended for imprisoning communist terrorists, in recent times, Kamunting Detention Centre has become a rather romanticised prison of conscience, thanks to the detention of political figures like Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, Lim Kit Siang, Karpal Singh, Dr Syed Husin Ali, Dr Jeffrey Kitingan, Dr Nasir Hashim, Tian Chua, Ezam Mohd Nor, Datuk Zahid Hamidi and, more recently, the Hindraf (Hindu Rights Action Force) leaders and uber blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin.

The stories told by released detainees have reinforced Kamunting’s reputation as a kind of Alcatraz, Devil’s Island or Guantanamo in our own backyard. Stung by the negative public perception, and at the request of senior editors during a meeting between the Home Ministry’s secretary-general, Datuk Seri Mahmood Adam, and the media, a visit was arranged late last month.

Grim view: The Kamunting Detention Centre’s 230ha are surrounded by double fences topped with barbed wire. – Photos by SHAHANAAZ HABIB / The Star

Led by the ministry’s head of corporate communications, Jamilah Taib, a busload of print journalists make the almost four-hour trip from Putrajaya to Taiping, Perak.

There is a sense of guarded anticipation. We realise we are lucky because such a first-hand look is so rare. Yet, we are aware that it will be a carefully managed visit. Right from the start, we are warned that no cameras and mobile phones would be allowed.

We stop in front of Kamunting’s gates, which are flanked by 6m-high double fences topped with barbed wire. Beyond lies 230ha of prison land containing 299 inmates.

Of the lot, only 12, all men, are ISA detainees. (Six of them are Malaysian.) The rest of the prisoners are serving time for other crimes.

Eight of the ISA detainees, including Singapore terrorist Mas Selamat Kastari, are members of the radical militant Jemaah Islamiah (JI) group. The remaining four are being held for forging documents like passports.

The foreigners, who are from Thailand, Pakistan and Bangladesh, are being held under the Emergency (Public Order and Prevention of Crime, or POPOC) Ordinance, 1969.

Since 1973, when the prison was built, it has held 2,706 ISA detainees. The highest number – 1,642 communist terrorists – was recorded between 1973 and 1989.

We can enter this gate only after all the body and bag searches have been done.

Guarded visits

On hand to greet us are several senior ministry and prison department officers, including Prison commissioner-general Datuk Zulfikli Omar, Prison (Management) commissioner Hassan Sakimon, Prison Affairs director Haji Abd Wahab Haji Kassim, Prison deputy commissioner (Security) Thang Ah Yong and Kamunting Detention Centre commandant Ramli Osman.

Once we step through the first gate into Kamunting and sign in, we have to leave our cameras, mobile phones and even our wallets in lockers. Then, as expected in high security areas like these, we have to go through a bag check and body search before we are allowed through the second gate.

Our first stop is the visitors’ area where detainees meet their families for their once-a-week visits. (For some reason, the place is painted pink; even the tiled stone benches are pink!)

Commandant Ramli explains that detainees are allowed to meet with family members (a maximum of five people per visit) for 45 minutes once a week, or a bit longer if there is a special reason. Most of the visits are on weekends. Friends are allowed (as one of the five) if a family member brings them in.

Those coming from, say, Sabah or Sarawak, or who are unable to make weekly visits, are allowed extra time with their detained family member.

There are two types of meetings. For new detainees, family visits take place in an area where they are separated by a glass partition, and communication is via an intercom. Those who have cleared two months of detention are allowed to meet without any barrier and can even touch each other.

As expected, guards are present throughout both types of visits, watching and listening. This means there is little privacy for the detainee (his incoming and outgoing mail, too, is read) but the authorities say this is necessary for security reasons.

Ramli says the camp authorities make sure that detainees know and get their rights.

“They can see their family members once a week, they are allowed to meet with their lawyer, they can appeal against their detention, they can file complaints, they can write and receive a letter once a week, they have the right to seek medical treatment, and they are allowed a phone call to their family weekly,” he says.

As we make our way into the separate ISA detention area, we are shown the clinic and introduced to the doctors who work full-time there. One of them, Dr Michael Wong, was formerly an army doctor who left private practice to take up the post in May last year.

Since photography is not allowed inside the prison, we persuaded former ISA detainee Tian Chua to share the sketches he made while he was at Kamunting: These are his possessions in the dorm.

Surreal juxtaposition

As for the detention camp area, to get inside, we have to get past another two of those massive gates with more of that 6m-high perimeter fencing.

Interestingly, on one of the gates is a huge sign warning against sodomy, describing it as a condemned act that should be reported to the authorities immediately. A prison officer tells us this is a standard warning in Malaysian prisons and that we should not read more into it.

We are escorted down a path past a large building from which we can hear banging sounds and loud voices. That’s the kitchen, where the detainees’ meals are prepared, we’re told.

As we head towards a section where five or six separate dormitories are located, it feels a little surreal. In front of us is the pleasant sight of the forested Kinta hills and all around us, open, quiet space. If not for the barbed wire fencing, we could very well be visiting a wellness farm!

We are shepherded towards the last dorm, which is empty. The 12 detainees were nowhere to be seen – it’s evident that there is no chance of us bumping into them!

Inside the dorm, which can house 10 people, are the standard facilities that every ISA detainee is given: bed frame, mattress (very thin but clean), bed sheet, single pillow, pillow case, thick grey blanket, towel, soap (brown, non-perfumed), brandless tooth brush and tooth paste, and a set of clothes.

A small “luxury” is the attached bathrooms – certainly not the norm for prisons. There are four toilets with doors and a common shower area.

The floors are bare cement and the walls are painted a grayish white. There are three ceiling fans, a long table with benches, a wooden ledge to store things above each bed and a wall clock.

There are plenty of windows with wire mesh painted white, but they are very dusty. You can’t see outside or look in through them; the doors, which have a huge padlock, are left open throughout the day until 7pm, when detainees have to be inside.

Comfort-wise, one could do worse – but the place is definitely depressing.

While each dorm can accommodate up to 10, normally there are only six or seven people. It is not uncommon for some dorms to have only one detainee, especially if the person is a new arrival.

Terrorist Mas Selamat, for instance, shares the dorm only with his JI buddy Abdul Matin Anon Rahmat. And for security reasons, they are not allowed to mix with the other 10 ISA detainees.

The detainees follow a strict routine that begins with rising at 7am, followed by breakfast. Meals are brought to the dorm. They then attend classes according to their religious beliefs, complete assigned chores, have “play time” – badminton or football – and can move around until 7pm.

During our visit, however, the ISA detainees are confined to their dorms behind locked doors. They are very quiet, and the only visible sign that they are inside are their slippers left outside.

The last photo the media was allowed to take before the tour. The board showing the number of inmates and ISA detainees indicates that 10 of the detainees are separated from the remaining two, presumably, JI members Mas Selamat Kastari and Abdul Matin Anon Rahmat.

It’s a prison, not a resort

During the press conference after the tour, Ramli says each detainee costs the Government RM35 each day to house, clothe and feed.

To prove that the prisoners are not fed just bread and water, he shows us weekly menus, which are rotated. Dishes include tom yam, chicken and fish cooked in soy sauce; fruits are served daily.

Ramli says detainees are given more than enough to eat, and this includes rice, fish, chicken, meat and vegetables. “A person can get fat from eating the food here,” he quips.

He also says detainees are allowed to buy extra items from the canteen, such as mee goreng, for up to RM10 a week, and dry food stuff like sugar and milk costing about RM60 a month.

On detainees who go on hunger strikes as a protest against their detention, Prison deputy commissioner Thang says, contrary to public perception, fasts generally lasted for short periods of time only, and the detainees only refused to eat what was served at meal times.

“They still bought food from the canteen to eat,” he says, adding that no Kamunting detainee has ever died from a hunger strike or was hospitalised for it.

Understandably, not all accounts of Kamunting are flattering, especially if they come from the detainees. But, as a prison officer retorts to a comment that the place is bleak and depressing, “This is a prison after all, not a resort!”

The freedom of the hills seems tantalisingly close beyond the barbed wire.

Pain of isolation

Batu MP and PKR strategic director Tian Chua spent two years and two months at Kamunting (2001/2003).

For him, the 60-day interrogation period by the police prior to being sent there was the hardest part. But even so, he describes detention under the ISA as being worse than a prison sentence.

“When you are sentenced, you know for how long. Even if it’s 10 years, you can be psychologically prepared for it. But with the ISA, you don’t know for how long because the authorities can keep extending the detention indefinitely. That uncertainty is the most difficult part,” he explains when we speak to him over the phone after our tour.

While Chua (whose full name is Chua Tian Chang) agrees that the meals were decent and detainees could move in and out of the confines of their dorms, he says the isolation from society was tough to deal with.

He says during his two years in Kamunting, he was not allowed to meet other groups of detainees.

“They manage it like an isolation camp. I was placed with the Reformasi group but we were kept separate from detainees from groups with other political or ideological beliefs, like the (local militant group) KMM, the (Filipino) Moro Liberation Front, JI.”

While detainees got mainstream newspapers to read, Chua says they were full of holes, as sections and articles, particularly news on the Opposition, were cut out first.

Chua spent some time during his detention painting, which he says was a struggle to do.

“They were initially against it; they said I might swallow the paint.”

That reaction would have been a result of the prison authorities’ role and responsibilities, which they deem are very clearly spelt out: keep detainees safe and rehabilitate them.

“We do the best that we can,” says Ramli.

The media trip does not satisfy all our curiosity or answer all our questions – for one thing, we are not allowed to speak to any of the detainees and we are shown only a small part of the grounds – but it is a first tentative step towards shedding some light on a place that the public has been kept in the dark about for a very long time.

Time served

WHEN an ISA detainee is first taken to the Kamunting Detention Centre, he can appeal within 14 days, after which an Advisory Board will meet within three months to hear his appeal. During this meeting, the detainee’s lawyer can also be present.

Kamunting commandant Ramli Osman explains that the panel will subsequently review cases every six months.

Most detainees go into Kamunting under Section 8(1) of the Internal Security Act, whereby the Home Minister issues the order for the person be detained for up to two years to prevent him (or her) from acting in a manner “prejudicial to the security of the country, the maintenance of essential services or of economic life”.

After two years, the minister is allowed under Section 8(7) to extend the detention period further.

Of the 12 detainees currently in Kamunting, six (including Singaporean Jemaah Islamiah, or JI, terrorist Mas Selamat Kastari) have been there for less than two years, three (JI suspects) have been held between two and four years, and another three (also JI suspects) have been detained for over six years.

The longest an ISA detainee has been held in Kamunting was during the communist years: a suspected communist terrorist was detained for 16 years before being released!

By Admin: Should the ISA be reviewed and retained, or abolished, come rain or shine? CIAO!

CSL's 2 Faces & 1 Evil Agenda

921 MCA EGM SIGNATURES - THE 9 REASONS WHY CHUA SOI LEK HAS 2 FACES AND 1 EVIL AGENDA

-to become the Mca president

By I Love Malaysia

1)

Face 1 - Who were those behind the "Topple Ong Ka Ting" group? Theng Bok and Wong Leong were key leaders. Who was the mastermind of the group? It was the same person who hated Ong Ka Ting, and blamed OKT for being the one behind the DVD secret recording.

Face 2 - Who are those behind the "Topple Ong Tee Keat" group now? Also Theng Bok and Wong Leong- the same group, now with help from Tan Chai Ho, Loh Seng Kok, etc. Will the "Topple MCA president " stop only when CSL himself becomes the president?

2)

Face 1 - CSL said this was the first time an MCA president called for an EGM. (http://drchua9.blogspot.com/2009/09/mca-egm.html )

Face 2 - He forgot that Ling Liong Sik had also called for one to resolve the Nanyang controversy in 2001, following the Team A- Team B split. He obviously forgot that Lim Ah Lek had blamed CSL for being the "hair that broke the camel's back" in the infamous "Batu Pahat Incident", resulting in the formation of Team A-Team B.

3)

Face 1 - CSL said the MCA disciplinary board has always been headed by the deputy president. Now, it is headed by a veteran, an ex-lawyer, Ng Cheng Kiat.

Face 2 - He forgot that just a few years ago, it was also headed by a veteran and ex-lawyer, Tan Sri Kam Woon Wah. In fact, CSL was in the central committee which endorsed the formation of the then disciplinary panel.

4)

Face 1 - He said he should lead Johor MCA, not the president OTK.

Face 2 - Being a Johor old hand, he "forgot" that since Tan Sri Lee San Choon, ALL successive presidents have led the State at one time or another.

5)

Face 1 - In the afternoon of August 18, 2009, the MCA central committee, which met in JB, endorsed two resolutions - to support OTK's efforts to probe PKFZ and to back the president in lodging police reports into the case.

Face 2 - On the same night, CSL held a press conference in KL to say that OTK should not drag the MCA into the PKFZ issue, although he had attended the said CC meeting a few hours earlier. What a hypocrite! He obviously doesn't want his cosy relationship with Tiong King Sing compromised. They both want to get rid of OTK.

6)

Face 1 - On March 1, 2009 after the MCA 60th anniversary celebrations, OTK and CSL at the joint-media conference said they could work well with each other.

Face 2 - Less than an hour later, CSL held another press conference at the same venue and complained that he "could not feel the warmth from the president". Can you trust this man to say and do the right things in Cabinet despite whatever public pledges he's made?

7)

Face 1 - In January 2008, he said he would resign as Minister, from all party post and as MP following the revelations of his sex DVD.

Face 2 - Now, he said he did not resign as MP. He knew then if he did, he would be barred from being an MP for five years, effectively shutting any possibility of him making a comeback. Can you trust such a man who lies so easily?

8)

Face 1 - CSL complained of being snubbed for the Ministerial post.

Face 2 - He knew that to be a Minister, he must be a Senator (because he did not stand in the last election). So when the central committee in early 2009 tabled a motion on who to fill up the MCA quota, he did not suggest himself, although he was present at the meeting. Neither did his supporters in the CC nominate him. CSL himself let his Ministerial chance slipped pass.

9)

Face 1 - In his blog, CSL tries to play hero, seemingly speaking up against Umno and bringing up populist issues like ISA and public health care.

Face 2 - He keeps running to PM Najib complaining of not being made a minister, Johor chairman and head of the disciplinary board panel. Do you trust a man who's beholden to Umno to speak up on issues affecting the Chinese if he becomes MCA president? He will squeal like a mouse the moment Umno dangles the 377b (offence for oral sex) in his face each time he attempts to speak up. Several police reports have already been lodged. Offenders are liable to whipping and a jail term of up to 20 years. Jail term and whipping or play along with Umno? It's a no-brainer.

By Admin: Another 9 damning reasons why MCA should 'close shop' asap. Even if they are too 'thick-skinned' to do so, inevitably, comes the next GE they would be sent into oblivion, come rain or shine! CIAO!

Crouching Cat, Hidden Rat

An e-mail circulating for the past couple of weeks entitled "An Open Letter To All MCA Delegates" entailing 10 ills of the present MCA and recommending 7 remedies to them.

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An Open Letter to All MCA Delegates


Ong Tee Keat as President, MCA will Die

Ong Tee Keet was elected as president on 18 October, 2008 but he has done nothing and party is going down the drain fast. The PFKZ issue is just a show to make him look like hero in the eyes of Chinese community to cover up him and his cronies from stealing party assets and cash.

But chua soi lek also not a good alternative because of his sex scandal and will tarnish the image of the party further as a president.

So, MCA delagates – the future of MCA is in your hands. Here is a 10- part series to give you information to save the party from Ong Tee Keat and Chua Soi Lek.

1. Party HQ – revonavation costing party a lot of money. Why?

Did you know that during Tun Ling and Ong Ka Ting’s time, he would not enter the building by the front door because he is afraid of being “pantang by their feng shui”. So he gets his driver to go down to basement and he would come up through the car park lifts. He did this for years so now that he is president he wants to change the feng sui of the party and HQ. Please look at his hand and the number of colourful crystal beads he wears.

He consults many sifus. One sifu told him the council chamber on the 9th was no good so he did the renovation and it cost the party RM800,000. Then another sifu tld him that the renovated council chamber was also not good. So he renovated the 6th floor to become a second council chamber which cost the party another RM550,000.

He also changed the front door, the lobby and other floors were also renovated. He dismantled the internal set of stairs connecting 7th, 8th and 9th floor as well.

The entire renovation work done cost RM2 million.

He also wanted to change the way HQ is being managed by replacing our loyal staff with outside people who do not know anything about the party. They are also not members of the party even. These outside people tell our staff what to write and what not to write. How can?


2. Do you know what is happening inside CC and PC meetings

OTK is first concern is about feng shui. His second concern is his life as minister of transport. He flies here and there using government money and so, he has no time to hold PC and CC meetings.

Remember, he was elected party president on Oct 18, 2008 but the first PC and CC meetings only took place more than a month later. This is because he was badly criticized that he finally held his first PC meeting on Jan 2, 2009 and the first CC meeting on the Nov 11 2008. Now, only after one year, he only hold 6 PC and 5 CC meetings.

Last time, Ong Ka Ting’s years, PC meetings were every Tuesday and sure everybody must come so that can talk about issues to prepare for cabinet meeting on weds. In case party decision is needed. And CC meetings held regularly every month and only once in a while that meetings is ever changed. But for OTK, meetings change all the time until we all “kalang kabut” go here and there because he also like to change place last minute.


3. What happens in Cabinet?

The only leader with some Cabinet experience is Chua Soi Lek but he is very “actsy” and “LCLY” in his body language and he thinks everybody is stupid so OTK don’t like it. So to avoid discussing national matters in front of CSL, he form a Pre-cabinet council. Only Ministers and deputy ministers can come for this meeting. Even the Secretary-general and Treasurer-general are cannot attend the meetings. Is this right? This is not the decision of the PC or the CC but the decision of only a few people. How can this happen?

What is the use? He doesn’t talk inside the Cabinet anyway!! He prefer to fight with Ng Yen Yen like last time when he was youth chief and she was wanita chief.

OTK also don’t read cabinet papers. Only after things are passed in cabinet then only he brings up for CC and PC to discuss. What is the use? Too late!! Also many times he is not in the country travelling here and there with government money so no time to attend cabinet. Now we also know from Kuala Dimensi that he also take private jets and don’t pay petrol.


4. Crouching Tiger and Hidden Dragon

We also have crouching tiger and hidden dragon. Do you you know where? His name is Clement Hii in the Star. This fellow Clement Hii is from Sarawak and not a member of MCA.

He is now the owner of SEGI college. OTK ask Clement Hii to sack Steven Tan as MD for 20 years, and put Clement Hii as Deputy Chairman. Do you know under Steven Tan, the Star made Rm600million cash? And clement hii and OTK working on how to take out all this money. They want to develop section 13 land now rented out to UTAR for small rental. Clement Hii also used stat cash to inject into loss making companies or his cronies. This bastard clement hii also sacked many good people and management who have work very hard for the company for many years. He even replaced the CEO of 988 with a lady whom she herself was sacked formt he same station many years ago for indiscipline. Now, 988 is receiving many complaints that 988 is becoming a station for OTK.

Clement Hii pay himself RM6.5 million a year and he shares this money with OTK.

The star also owns a house in Bukit Tunku and OTK and Clement Hii has many meetings in this house to plot the future of MCA. Since Star is a PLC, should politicians use the premise for political reasons?

You know how powereful Clement Hii is? Even the treasuere general of the party has to make an appointment to see him and to ask for a board seat for Loke Yuen Yow, our CC member and deputy Sec gen. but Clement Hii rejected him.

Now the star is a laughing stock of the public. So many people say they don’t want to buy the paper anymore because it is the mouthpiece of Ong Tee Keat. It is rumoured that the staff have been told to black out news of other leaders like Ng Yen Yen, Liow Tiong Lai, Wee Ka Siong and Chua Soi Lek.

So Clement Hii is the crouching tiger and OTk is the Hidden dragon and both whacking our party’s money. See Part 6 for details of where the RM10 m went?

During Ong Ka Ting there was a proposal for a Central Board of Trustees (CBOT). If we had this, at least all these can be avoided. With CBOT we could prevent this kind of abuses. So how now, central committee members ?Please wake up and see you mistake! And please do something before its too late.


5. Lim Kit Siang set a trap in PKFZ for OTK

You know how? OTK stupidly took up Lim Kit Siang’s dare and fell deeply, deeply into a tunnel which he himself can no longer get himself out of. PKFZ has been explained already in Parliament four times about the increase in RM4.6 billion. Now he say that he must clean the party of the past because the downfall of Selangor was due to PKFZ. But he thinks we are stupid and forgetful. Actually, the fall of Selangor was because of Khir Toyo’s corruption and his famous brooms. And also Zakaria’s mansion in Klang. PKFZ was not the main election issue like he said now. Now that he has wallop the RM10m he wants to put the blame on everybody like UMNO, Najib, tiong, CSL and also former deputy president to divert attention from his RM10m.

Spin Spin Spin _ that all he knows how to do.


6. So, where is the RM10 million now?

Why does Tan Sri and OTK like to visit Japan so much? Tan Sri Tee has helped to transfer the RM10m to Japan through a Japanese sogashosa closely associated with tan Sri Tee.

It is said that in one bank account alone, between OTK and his wife, they have safe deposits worth a million. It is said that they both receive between RM60-70K a month into their accounts from somewhere unknown.


7. OTK also has deep dark secrets

He likes to sell out friends. TS Lim, a close friend, supporter and advisor for 20 years as well as the former GM of PKA was sacked because OTK has found a new dog to play with – Clement Hii. One person called Tan Sri Ta who supported him when he had nothing – gave him a car and driver so that he could go around campaigning with dignity during his days under Tun Ling. Now Clement Hii told OTK to distance himself from Tan Sri Ta because Tan Sri Ta is a “pai kia” (bad hat).

Despite all the denials and painful pleadings for us to believe him _ yes, he did send his mother off to a home. Nothing wrong if she was well looked after but to deny it?? Why unless it was found that she was badly treated also by her own son?


8. Some more about Clement Hii’s background

Clement Hii’s background as the co-owner of SEGI University College . Back in his hometown in Sibu, Sarawak this boy claims that he was the editor in chief of Borneo Times at the age of 21. Actually, he was just a reporter but made side incomes (huge) by trafficking prostitutes from Philippines to Sarawak. His record still exists in Bukit Aman. He then ran away to the UK and got himself cleaned up by acquiring some sort of degree. Today, he makes money of educating NURSES (of all professions) instead.

He is truly the trouble behind the party’s woes now. He has purposely surrounded and engulfed the President with his own people. The president’s office is surrounded by Clement Hii’s own boys; OTK’s political secretary, Simon Lim ( a lawyer who represents Clement’s companies) and his special officer, Bruce Lim (former lecturer from Segi college). They control the diary as well as the -ins and the -outs of the party president. They record who he sees and where.

The more the party is messed up, the happier Clement is. He has plenty of time to dig the party’s coffers. RM600m cash in The Star– who doesn’t want that?? Members! Please wake up! This is YOUR money being taken away from you by a NON-MEMBER.


9. Chua Soi Lek’s real agenda; so-called resolution of the EGM

Is Chua Soi Lek the savior of MCA? He has been going around on the ground to seek support to push for his EGM – something he has been threatening to do since he never got the minister post. Now he tells the PM and the public that he will not seek ministerial positions but argues that he is the sole viable candidate to depose and take over Ong Tee Keat.

His agenda is simple; take control of the party and all the assets. Same selfish agenda like the present President.

His first resolution is about removing Ong Tee Keat ( ok, we can support that). The rest of the resolution is about removing all party records of his scandal!! What a joke – you think this is China? Removing records by burning bamboo sticks and edicts carved on stones???

Chua Soi Lek is the last man on earth to take over as our President.


10. MCA under MACC investigation

This week, the party HQ is being investigated by MACC. They demanded to know the list of donors as the party president was under intense media scrutiny that he had taken RM10m from the owner of Kuala Dimensi. This is a shameful event for MCA. Who would donate now to MCA? This would impact the states, divisions and branches. Such are the consequences of the president’s exposure of the PKFZ issue just so that he can become a hero for himself. He is clearly destroying the party for his own selfish gain.

Someone should send MACC to investigate Clement Hii and SEGI instead. Your party is being taken over by the BACKdoor! SEGI is an education institution – should it be so involved in politics? Someone should also alert the Securities Commission on this.


What Next?

1. Ong Tee Keat will continually be blaming the party’s past leadership for the a) downfall of Selangor because of PKFZ and therefore he has to cleanse the party of the past; that b) he is the victim of some conspiracy by Chua Soi Lek and UMNO.
2. Ong Tee Keat will continue to harp on suing Kuala Dimensi for accusing him of taking the RM10million. He is now spreading the rumour that the past deputy president has taken the money instead and not him.
3. The Disciplinary Board has already decided on the verdict of Chua’s case even before it even began. So yesterday kena sack already.
4. Chua Soi Lek will retaliate by organizing demonstrations of support and he will push for his own agenda via the EGM, which is devoid of any interest of the party or the BN.
5. Clement Hii will cunningly carry out mergers and acquisitions to suck up the party’s assets while the leaders are busy and distracted by the internal fights.
6. Finally; the party will be split and bankrupt.


What the Delegates must do?

1. Demand for the accounts of the party be tabled at this AGM; provided under the party constitution.
2. Demand that Ong Tee Keat swear (“cham pak kai”) at the Thien Hou temple that he never took the RM10 million.
3. Demand for the resignation of both the president and deputy president because both have tainted the image of the party and its members. Ask for fresh elections of all the central committee meetings. Those who stand the integrity and scrutiny of the members should not fear for they will stand to be re-elected.
4. Those with appointed positions should resign. You are serving the party against your own conscience. You are helping a self-serving president who is out to plunder the party’s assets and destroy the organization.
5. Dato’ Leong Tang Chong – please look after our RM600 million cash in The Star. The onus is solely on you as the chairman of The Star.
6. Tan Sri Tee Hock Seng and Dato Wong Foon Meng – please resign as treasurer general and secretary general respectively, with immediate effect if you have the conscience.
7. Look for fresh team of leaders!!

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By Admin:

Based on the in-fighting MCA is facing now, it will be to the best interest of all that they 'close shop' A.S.A.P., come rain or shine! CIAO!