Najib says "NO" to KLIA@East

Deputy Prime Minister Dato' Sri Mohd Najib Tun Razak has put his foot down and said "NO" to the proposed new low cost carrier terminal in Labu, Negeri Sembilan.

According to Sime Darby Watch, Najib conveyed his disapproval at a meeting with Air Asia and Sime Darby Berhad this morning. Khazanah Nasional is also against the project.

Thank you, Dato' Sri for taking into account the feelings of the people.

I wonder if the decision was made earlier, BN could have clinched Kuala Terengganu in the recent by-election.

Kong Hee Fatt Choy

I wish all my Chinese friends and readers a Happy Chinese New Year.

Please explain Sime Darby...

I am shocked! I heard over the radio a few minutes ago that the Government has not given the approval for Sime Darby and Air Asia to proceed with the proposed new Low Cost Carrier Terminal to be built in Labu, Negeri Sembilan.

The statement was made by Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.

But early this month, Sime Darby, in an announcement to Bursa Malaysia said the Government has given its approval for the construction of the new LCCT.

So which is which? I am confused!

I am sure our Deputy Prime Minister wouldn't have got it wrong because he sits on the Cabinet. Decisions such as this are normally made after a lengthy deliberation in the Cabinet. Furthermore, as Finance Minister, he would have first hand information about this project.

Blogger Sime Darby Watch is asking whether Sime Darby lied to Bursa Malaysia, its shareholders, and the people of Malaysia. Read here.

My dear friend Rockybru is also puzzled. Read this.

YB Wee Choo Keong, the MP for Wangsa Maju has also joined the chorus. Read here.

If indeed Sime Darby had lied, then I agree with Sime Darby Watch that the entire Board of Directors should be given the sack. Is Sime Darby trying to show that it is more powerful than the Government?

Bursa Malaysia is duty-bound to look into this matter immediately.

I reproduce here the full Sime Darby statement to Bursa Malaysia dated 5 January 2009:

Type : Announcement
Subject : Sime Darby Berhad
Proposal to develop a private low cost carrier terminal
("Proposed LCCT Project")

Contents : We refer to Sime Darby Berhad's ("Company") announcement on 23 December 2008 on the above matter.

The Company wishes to announce that it had, today, obtained approval from the Government of Malaysia to proceed with the Proposed LCCT Project.

The Proposed LCCT Project is an integral part of the Company's development plan for its Negeri Sembilan Vision City ("NSVC"). NSVC is part of the Company's Central Vision Valley ("CVV") property development project spanning Selangor and Negeri Sembilan.

This announcement is dated 5 January 2009.

Berapakah harga nyawa seorang wakil rakyat BN?

Berapakah harga nyawa seorang wakil rakyat Barisan Nasional? Inilah persoalannya setelah kerusi Parlimen Barisan Nasional di Kuala Terengganu dirampas oleh PAS minggu lepas.

Pilihan raya kecil Kuala Terengganu diadakan berikutan kematian Ahli Parlimennya Datuk Razali Ismail semasa bermain badminton di Institut Aminuddin Baki, Genting Highlands November lepas.

Nyawa seorang Ahli Parlimen Barisan Nasional di Perak, Kedah, Selangor, Wilayah Persekutuan, Pulau Pinang, Kelantan dan di negeri-negeri di mana pembangkang mempunyai pengaruh yang kuat seperti Terengganu dan Perlis secara tiba-tiba menjadi lebih berharga berbanding negeri-negeri lain di mana BN mempunyai kuasa penuh.

Hidup dan mati di tangan Allah SWT. Allah memberi, dan Allah mengambilnya semula. Inilah hakikatnya.

Walaupun kekalahan BN di Kuala Terengganu tidak boleh dijadikan ukuran samada populariti BN semakin menurun, tetapi nampaknya Umno dan Barisan Nasional menghadapi risiko yang amat besar kalau ada pilihanraya kecil yang lain. Dulu lain, sekarang lain.

Oleh itu, nasihat saya pada Ahli-ahli Parlimen BN ialah:
Sayangilah nyawa. Jangan mengundang pilihanraya kecil di mana pun anda berada. Janganlah bermain badminton dan sebagainya kalau keadaan fizikal tidak mengizinkan. Pandulah kereta mengikut had laju, dan pakailah talipinggang keledar di depan dan di belakang (kalau kereta dipandu oleh drebar).

Kalau berpenyakit, ikutlah nasihat doktor. Nyawa anda begitu berharga.

Kempen di Kuala Terengganu

Pada hujung minggu lepas saya telah mengikuti kempen Barisan Nasional di Kuala Terengganu. Kebetulan pula, apabila saya tiba di Kuala Terengganu pada pagi Sabtu, YB Dato' Shaziman Abu Mansor, Menteri Tenaga, Air dan Komunikasi sedang berkempen disana.

Saya telah berpeluang untuk mengikuti rombongan beliau dari rumah ke rumah untuk menemui para pengundi. Saya kagum dengan semangat Dato' Shaziman yang berkempen dari pagi sampai ke pagi tanpa henti selama beberapa hari berada di Kuala Terengganu.

Kalau semua pemimpin BN bersemangat seperti Dato' Shaziman, saya rasa Senator Datuk Wan Farid Wan Salleh akan memperolehi kemenangan mudah pada pilihanraya kecil Kuala Terengganu pada Januari 17 ini.

Tapi seadanya peluang BN untuk memenangi kerusi parlimen itu ialah 60-40. Saya rasa mesej yang dibawa pada hari-hari terakhir kempen akan menjadi penentu siapa akan menyandang kerusi Parlimen tersebut.

Nampaknya ramai pemimpin lama BN saja yang berada di sana. Anak-anak muda seperti tidak bersemangat. Di mana pemuda, di mana putera dan puteri?

Sime Darby abandons IJN bid, reputation battered

Sime Darby has decided to drop its bid to purchase 51% of Institut Jantung Negara, a decision welcomed by every Malaysian I know.

It was a non-starter, a no-brainer. Like I said in my earlier posting, IJN is literally close to the hearts of every Malaysian who lived through the days of its inception in 1992. It saved the lives of millions of Malaysians including former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, the Malay Rulers, community leaders, the civil servants and the poor.

The proposal to takeover IJN was a fatal miscalculation on the part of Sime Darby. Why IJN? It is doing well on its own. If Sime Darby's intention is noble and if it "can provide affordable healthcare to the poor", then it should take over every district hospital in the country.

Perhaps, given Sime Darby's sheer size, deep pocket and influence in the Government, it thought it could move mountains. But how wrong it was.

Now, Sime Darby is left with a deep visible scar, an irreversible damage to its reputation. It is now known all over the world as a parasite organisation the bloggers dislike. I know that some bloggers and writers wanted to go to the extent of calling for a boycott of Sime Darby products, a move I didn't agree with simply because Sime Darby is a Malaysian company, a GLC at that.

The damage control is going to be tough. It is going to take many years for Sime Darby and its leaders, especially Chairman Tun Musa Hitam and President Dato' Seri Ahmad Zubir Murshid to regain their reputation and the people's respect.

The people lost their respect for Sime Darby simply because it insulted their intelligence by saying that the privatised IJN will continue to provide affordable service for the poor. Service, perhaps, but affordable?

It simply doesn't make sense. A vast majority of IJN patients are poor, tens of thousands of them, and civil servants who are entitled for free treatment. It doesn't fit the equation.

If the 24-year-old Sime Darby-owned Subang Jaya Medical Centre had a good record for helping the poor, then Sime Darby would have had something to show. Unfortunately, it doesn't.

Tahniah Tuanku!

Ampun Tuanku,
Sebagai anak watan Negeri Sembilan, patik menjunjung kasih dan mengucapkan setinggi-tinggi tahniah kepada KDYMM Tuanku Muhriz Ibni Almarhum Tuanku Munawir sempena pemasyuran Tuanku sebagai Yang di Pertuan Besar Negeri Sembilan ke 11 pada hari Isnin lepas.

Patik percaya dengan pemasyuran dan seterusnya pertabalan KDYMM Tuanku sebagai Yam Tuan Besar dan dengan pemerintahan Tuanku yang adil dan saksama, Negeri Sembilan akan mencapai kemajuan demi kemajuan.

Patik melajazkan ikrar taat setia kepada KDYMM Tuanku.

Ampun Tuanku.