TAIPING BENEFIT FROM NCER

Taiping will be a Heritage Town soon? Wouldn't know. Have to wait until 2010. Wettest town for sure. Best place coz cheap food, nearer to town and facilities always available. Can be better without mat rempits, snatch thief or rude drivers.

Reference from themalaysianinsider.com:

Taiping — heritage town in the making

Entrance to Taiping Zoo. There are plans to upgrade the zoo.KUALA LUMPUR, July 12 — The best place to live in Malaysia. The wettest town in Peninsular Malaysia. Soon, Taiping will also be known as a "Heritage Town.''
Under the Northern Corridor Economic Region (NCER) plan which was approved last week, the government will spend nearly RM200 million to upgrade buildings in the town, model the Taiping market after London's famous Covent Garden and revive the Taiping-Port Weld railway service as a back-in-time tourism draw.
Other plans for Taiping include:• Building a museum dedicated to the tin industry.
• Upgrading the Taiping Zoo and Night Safari.
Work on turning Taiping into a Heritage Town will begin in the third quarter of this year and is expected to be completed by 2010. The NCER project — one of the economic growth corridors — was launched by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi last year.
Its main objectives were improving agriculture output, boosting tourism and manufacturing in the northern states of Perlis, Kedah, Penang and northern Perak.
The final plan for the corridor was tabled recently before Abdullah and the menteris besar of Perak, Kedah, Perlis, the chief minister of Penang and other members of the Northern Corridor Implementation Agency (NCIA).
In addition to turning Taiping into a Heritage Town, the tourism master plan includes unleashing the potential of the Royal Belum Forest into a world-class eco-tourism site, marketing the Bujang Valley in Kedah and boosting medical tourism in Penang and Langkawi.
Among the list of to do things is improve access to the Belum forest by building a helipad, improving the runway in Gerik, and building a jetty for visitors to take part in activities on the lake. The Northern Corridor Implementation Agency (NCIA) also aims to make sure that rare species of flora and fauna like the Rafflesia does not become extinct.
In all, the government is expected to spend RM430 million till 2010 to boost the tourism sector of the NCER.

PROTON STILL GOING STRONG (PART 2)

From Malaysia to UK and now Indonesia. With the increase of steel and fuel prices, Proton aiming to sell Gen.2 Persona model for RM 39, 040(reports TheStar/ Bernama)? While in www.paultan.org, Gen.2 Persona is selling at the starting price of RM 42,600. Let’s see the comparison.

The Comparison (starting price):

Indonesia
TheStar/ Bernama: RM 39, 040, www.paultan.org: RM 42,600

Malaysia
Proton Persona: RM 44,999 Proton Gen-2: RM 53,488

Malaysian: paid extra RM 5,955 (refer to TheStar/ Bernama reports)
Indonesian: rebates RM 5,955 (refer to TheStar/ Bernama reports)

Cost to build: Exports Proton cars are cheaper. (All cars exported to other countries)
Quantity: Malaysian buys many Proton cars than other countries.
Quality: Local made cars sold in Malaysia different from exports.

Support Made in Malaysia brand: You decide.

Reference from TheStar:

Proton launches Persona in Indonesia
KUALA LUMPUR: Proton Holdings Bhd yesterday launched its Persona model in Indonesia in conjunction with the 16th Indonesia International Motorshow, the country’s biggest automotive industry event.
The national car manufacturer said in a statement the Persona was being introduced as the "GEN.2 Persona" in Indonesia and it was the fifth Proton model in the Indonesian market which the company entered last March.
"Since our entry into the Indonesian market last year, we have been received warmly by the people here and this latest offering is tangible proof of our intention to have a long standing relationship with the people of Indonesia," said managing director Datuk Syed Zainal Abidin Syed Mohd Tahir.
Priced from 122 million rupiah (RM39,040), the Persona is available in five variants and comes in seven colours.
A year ago, Proton began with three dealerships in Indonesia and now has five dealerships in Warung Buncit, Bandung, Makasar, Pekanbaru and Palembang and one branch in Slipi, Jakarta, all equipped with sales, service and spares capabilities. – Bernama

image from http://www.lowyat.net

HARD DISK DRIVE COMES WITH TERRABIT STORAGE

Seagate unveils 1.5TB drive. WOW! Fantastic! More storage means more documents and files can be store in hard disk. I hope the hard disk won't turn ugly when accidentally dropped. What will happen if the information can’t be recover? More IT people will end up in ‘Hospital Bahagia’. I will be the first one to sign the registration form. HA! HA!

PROTON STILL GOING STRONG

It’s been 23 years since Proton Saga introduced to Malaysian and the world early 80’s. Now new Proton Gen2 is coming to UK. Actually is Proton Gen2 new facelift. I am proud of Proton’s achievement although not owning it before because I can’t endure with the lack of reliability of the accessories such as failure of power window, battery problem or even a minor sound when driving the car. The technology Proton cars developed still can compete to foreign cars. Hopefully Proton can survive another decade and will not need the support from the government. Be competitive by introducing more models and venture into hybrid cars or smaller compact cars. To cut cost, give tender to vendor who is more reliable and offer cheap materials compare to current ones.









Then,

Now,

posted by rocky bru :

Proton is 23 on Wednesday. Once the pride of Malaysians, especially those in the lower income bracket, our national car has today become an embarrassment and, to some, an obstacle.But in the 90s, Sagas were hitting foreign streets from Singapore to London, and there was even a time when left-hand drive Malaysian-made cars were being considered for the US.My first Proton was a brand new Saga hatchback. I traded in my 7th-hand RX-7 for the brand new Proton. Sold it off for the more spacious and sporty Aeroback in 93. When NST, in a bid to tighten its belt, offered to sell its company cars to the senior executives driving them, I decided to buy the Perdana. The Aeroback and the Perdana are still serving us faithfully to this day.Proton's charge on the world auto arena peaked when it bought MV Agusta, the Italian bike maker (after having acquired the Lotus earlier). It was planning to manufacture one of the cheapest cars in the world using bike engines.And then Mr Badawi took over as Prime Minister ....Anyway, Happy Birthday Proton. The company's pioneers are celebrating at Kelab Shah Alam at 8.30 Wednesday night.

MALAYSIA REPEATING HISTORY

I agree the thoughts and future views from Datuk Seri Dr. Chua Soi Lek. Especially sentences in red written below. Can the government see what is going to happen?

Posted by Datuk Seri Dr. Chua Soi Lek

Fuel Hike and Inflation

We are now facing an economic crisis as bad as the 1997 financial crisis, maybe not as dramatic as the depreciation of currency as in 1997. However, impact of the fuel rise and increase in prices in almost all essential goods, creeping inflation, political uncertainty, the US slowdown, all these will definitely affect export sector and will put the Malaysia economy under great stress. The fuel hike will definitely cause the increase in the cost of production and this will definitely eat into the profit margin of the various economic sectors, ultimately, the erosion of their profit margin. This may cause an economic contraction and this will lead to a chain effect, both up streams and down streams. The various industries and services will definitely put expansion on hold. There may be retrenchment, hence unemployment may grow up. Creation of new jobs may come down. Under the RMK9, the yearly creation of new jobs should be 200, 000 per year. I doubt that we can achieve this figure this year. For next year, it could be anybody’s guess for what the employment rate would be, but one thing for sure is that the creation of new work will be much less. Government’s revenue will definitely be affected because corporate tax, individual tax and entertainment tax will be down. Bank will also be confronted with non-performing loans, both from corporate and household loans. Less people will be traveling; both within the country and outside the country and this will affect the whole service sector of hotels, public transportation and entertainment. One area of the service sector which I find illogical is the Ministry of Cooperative and Entrepreneur’s consistent refusal for the taxi fare and transportation fare to be readjusted to cope up with the fuel hike. While they may be provided with subsidized fuel, fuel is only one of the components involved in the public transportation system since many other factors are involved from spare parts, wages of drivers and etc. Hence, it makes no sense that they are not allowed to readjust their fare and transportation changes. Therefore, we can understand why we have dishonest and not so friendly taxi and bus drivers. Hence, we may be facing economic slowdown, rising unemployment, inflation going up, government revenue going down and consumer confidence badly affected and I am sure street demonstration will not resolve these issues.

image from http://www.mydin.com.my/

Advertisement Fraud

Taking an hour or two reading local daily after morning breakfast. An advertisement definitely catches my attention. There are four hypermarkets shown. I think you can definitely guess which it belongs to.

1. Please analyze the advertisement above. Now look at second column. It belongs to Mydin indeed. Will you add up all the prices on 22 items selected? Not in a mood to total up? Same as me! Well, I can see 2 items shown were not added (Those written ‘no stock’). Then, I have a peep on the next column (tricked for the 1st time). Can you see what I mean? There are no ‘no stock’ item. If I add up all the 22 items on the next column, the total of the price will be more than Mydin offered.

2. Play rough with me, eh? So I calculated to prove the price of 20 items sold by Mydin were higher than 20 items sold by the other hypermarket (tricked for the 2nd time). When I looked at the advertisement again, soon I realized item with asterisk ‘*’ were not included. Then I wonder……wo … wo … wo … wo … wonder? Why? ....sorry…back to the topic. I wonder why Mydin advertisement agents include stocks that are not available/ counted. Another gimmick to trick foolish buyers like us?

3. Mydin should advertise essential goods (Malaysians most used brands and items) and compare them with others Hypermarkets. Then we will be pengguna bijak lah Ministry of consumer affairs. How can we afford to support local hypermarts in this condition?

So Mydin’s proven and guarantee the best value for money all year round eh? Why pay more, pay even more!

Tonight, 8 pm at the Blog House, 66 Lorong Setiabestari 2, Damansara HeightsThere's no charge but please do email tonyyew@gmail.com or alizaharyati@gmail.com or vijay211277@gmail.com so that they can keep your space ... and please, for the benefit of others, if you can't make it or am not sure if you can make it, don't book, instead ask for wait-list!

LOOKS FAMILIAR?

It looks like a brand new Honda Civic sold in America. The front lamp looks similar to Honda Civic while the grill looks similar to Honda Accord.

Reference from http://www.paultan.org/

The facelifted Kia Optima (known as the Magentis in Europe) is now on sale in the Korean market as the Kia Lotze Innovation. Interestingly Kia has decided to offer two different stylings for the car like what Honda is doing with its Accord. One has a more mature styling (the original) while the other is sportier, but strangely Kia has decided to offer both in the same market.

Four official product photos of the new Kia Forte sedan has been released by Kia. It will hit Korean showrooms first in August 2008, with the rest of the world to get it later, including Malaysia as a new Cerato or Forte sedan. The current Cerato is sold here as a 5-door hatch, but a sedan from this current generation is not likely to be introduced with Naza Kia management most probably deciding to skip the current generation Cerato sedan and going straight for this new Forte.

TO IMPLIMENT OR NOT TO IMPLIMENT?

First the Seat Belt rule has been post pone. What about tinted now? Delay again? Before any regulations is finalized, please do not make any unnecessary announcement.

Reference from NST Online:
The Road Transport Department has instead been told to review the existing regulations to make it suit local weather, said Transport Minister Datuk Ong Tee Keat."The crackdown is off. We are holding back because we want to review existing regulations. I'm prepared to do away with this ruling, but I need the feedback and co-ordination of the police first."The issue is being studied now and we will make a final decision following the feedback we receive from the police and RTD," he said.It was earlier reported that the crackdown was to start on July 1 with owners of heavily-tinted vehicles to be slapped with a RM200 fine.
RTD enforcement director Salim Parlan had said that those who were allowed to drive vehicles with heavily-tinted glass would have to show proof they had permission to do so."For instance, a billionaire or a person suffering from a skin disease can apply for an exemption from the transport minister," Salim had said.Under current regulations, owners of tinted vehicles needed to show proof, such as a police report, if their life was under threat or a doctor's letter if they were suffering from a skin disease.Under the Motor Vehicles (Prohibition of Certain Types of Glass) Rules 1991, the chief judge and top-ranking police and army officers were allowed to have tinted vehicles.Ong yesterday said there was no reason why tinting should not be allowed and restricted only to a privileged few."I don't see the need for anyone wanting to tint their cars to be politically connected. We are part of the international community and our regulations must reflect this," Ong said."I have asked my director-general to look into all procedures and implications, including the entry of heavily-tinted foreign cars into our country. We will make an announcement when things have been finalised," he said.

FLASH FLOOD CAUSE BY UNPROPER DRAINAGE AND RUBBISH DUMPING CULPRITS

A decade ago, flash floods occurred in Green House Area(Taman Sri Hijau). It is due to a fallen tree against the flowing stream therefore the water overflow to the road. Rubbish dumping is a popular past time for folks here. They just simply throw rubbish into the river or big drain. Another designated area were big drain situated between Taman Panglima(Assam Kumbang Area) and Taman Kami D(Aulong) also towards Giant Hypermarket in Aulong(Taman Tekah Jaya). When a sudden heavy downpour occurred, the drain or river cannot accommodate the amount of water from the sky. Soon water from it will overflow to the road. Factories nearby also contributes to the flash floods which happened lately.

Reference from thestar:

RESIDENTS living along Sungai Tupai bank had a rude shock when their villages were hit by flash floods on Monday afternoon following an hour-long downpour.
Among the affected areas were Pokok Assam, the Tupai light industrial area, Kam-pung Tupai Mas, Kampung Larut Tin, Taman Sri Kota, Taman Kota West and Kampung Boyan.
At some places, the water was reported to be waist-deep.
Traffic police said traffic at Jalan Simpang, the main access road to the town, almost came to a standstill when motorists slowed down and tried to pass the flooded stretch.
Policemen were also deployed to the area to divert and guide the traffic.
The floods subsided at 3pm.
A. Segar, 32, who lived in Kampung Tupai Mas, said he was having lunch at 12.30pm when water gushed into his home.
“All of our furniture and electrical appliances were damaged when the water rose to the waist,” he said.
His neighbour, M. Manimaran, 32, said 11 families in the squatter settlement were badly hit by the flash floods.
He claimed silting in Sungai Tupai had caused the floods.
“The river has never been desilted over the past 20 years,” he said.
Pokok Assam assemblyman Yee Seu Kai, who visited the village and distributed food rations to the victims, said he would check the claim with the district Irrigation Department.
“If necessary, a desilting exercise will be carried out,” he said.

YARIS AND VIOS J-SPEC AVAILABLE IN MALAYSIA

As low as RM6X XXX, Vios is available for everyone. Cheaper brand new Toyota car now can compete with local made cars. Foreign car sales will overtake local car sales soon.

Well Done Selangor MB

Those living in Selangor state earning less than RM1500 should be grateful because free essential goods will be given to them. This is the promises made by Pakatan Rakyat after 100 days since the 8th general election. Eventually SYABAS should keep their mouth shut and not pouring water in a hot soup. Hopefully the Selangor state will train poor earners to be more independent and does not depend on the government to get free goods. The aim to eradicate poverty in the state is by educating them and with the help of social welfare department to find a job where the pay is higher. Selangor MB is also giving away free water to any household using 20 or less cubic water. While, small family is just using ten cubic of water or less. The Selangor MB consider considerate. I do hope those who use more should be charged more so that the government will not be paying heftily RM128mil a year or RM10.4mil a month.

ESSENTIAL ITEMS UP NEXT MONTH

Consumers can expect the prices of many essential items to increase by as much as 10% next month. Stock up goods before next month. Maybe some shops or markets increases their goods before next month. Be prepared to pay higher price. If I'm not mistaken, the prices of some essential goods were increased on the day where the fuel increases. Pray hard it will not increase again.

Reference from TheStar:

Prices to go up 10% next month
IPOH: Consumers can expect the prices of many essential items to increase by as much as 10% next month.
Federation of Sundry Goods Merchant Associations of Malaysia president Lean Hing Chuan said sundry store owners have no choice but to raise the prices of goods not controlled by ceiling prices to survive the impact of the fuel price hike.
Lean said canned food and other items with plastic packaging were likely to be sold at a higher price but declined to disclose the actual list of goods.
“Goods transported long distance by lorries are also expected to increase by at least 10%,” he said yesterday after the 87th anniversary luncheon of the Perak Sundry Shops Guild.
Earlier in his speech, Lean urged the Government to open up more vacant land for cultivation and start measures for rice-producing states like Kedah to improve rice production per hectare.
He also expressed doubt about the effectiveness of the government’s move to place colour stickers on rice sacks enabling consumers to differentiate between price-controlled rice and imported rice.
Perak Sundry Shops Guild chairman Lee Kim Seng urged the state government to set up an air-conditioned “retailing centre” for shop owners to set up their business.
He suggested the lots be rented out cheaply to business owners of all races.
“It will be a place where you can find Chinese medicine, pharmacies, hardware, clothes, shoes and other goods all in one place,” he said.
Perak Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry president Datuk Lim Kok Cheong reminded members that inflation may be inevitable but it was no reason to close down their businesses.

Image from roadandtrack.com

BEIJING AUTO SHOW

This is the latest auto show in Beijing, China. View the recent car concepts by clicking one of the pictures above.

Image from: www.autoblog.com

SENSOR FOR HYBRID CARS

Many diseases are silent killers such as hypertension, heart disease, high cholesterol, diabetes, and also cancer. Remember the song "Killing me softly with his songs'? Perhaps depends on the singer.
Now hybrid cars are one of the silent killers factor. There have been many ideas thrown around in an effort to make hybrid vehicles safer on the road. Therefore, Toyota Corporation in Malaysia is finding ways before introducing the cars in Malaysia.
The Vibering concept, which is able to sense approaching doom by listening for key sounds made by a hybrid car. When worn in conjunction with its companion watch, the Vibering listens and alerts its wearer whenever a vehicle may be coming and how far it is from making impending contact (see www.autoblog.com for details).
For my opinion, place a sensor in the vehicle that will make sounds when it approaches anything. What about Honda Hybrid cars? What will they do so that they will not be silent killer contributor?

SAFETY FOR SCHOOLCHILDREN

How long school busses can operates? Maximum 20 years? Does a school bus operator care for the safety of school children? What you say?

NEW SEAT RULING

Mandatory for rear seat passengers to wear seat belts beginning this month but no summons for the offence will be issued until the end of August. The ruling is only effective for cars registered after January 1995. Owners of cars without rear seat belts have three years to get them installed. Police would work with the Road Safety Department to distribute flyers to motorists. Federal traffic police chief Senior Asst Comm II Datuk Hamzah Taib, when contacted, said police personnel would advise motorists on the new ruling until the three-month period was up, when summonses would be issued. Many suggested that more information be disseminated via the media on the new rule.

Wah....waahh......wahhhhhhhhhhhh! But what's the fuss all about. Only implement the ruling after three years and that's it! Case closed.

reference from TheStar:

Jane Jacob (left) buckling up as her daughter Previtha looks on. Both have always used the rear seat belt and welcome the new ruling

Owners of locally-made cars can get rear safety belts installed

By TEH ENG HOCK and ROYCE CHEAH
PETALING JAYA: Owners of locally-made cars not already fitted with rear seat belts will get them installed for free.
Transport Minister Datuk Ong Tee Keat said an agreement has been worked out with the manufacturers, banks and insurance companies and a memorandum of understanding (MoU) is expected to be inked soon.
“We have deliberated on this systematically as it involves money and engineering. We hope this initiative can help lessen the people’s burden with the new ruling to wear rear seat belts,” he said.
“I wanted original manufacturers involved because fitting anchorage points for seat belts must be done properly,” he said. “It is part of their corporate social responsibility programme.”
A source in a major local car manufacturer said the signing ceremony would take place tomorrow. Details on where to get the cars fitted with free rear seat belts would be announced later.
“I would like to advise passengers in cars already fitted with seat belts to buckle up when travelling and for car owners without rear seat belts to install them promptly and not wait until the last minute,” he said.
The ruling came into force yesterday making it mandatory for rear seat passengers to wear seat belts.
However, no summons for the offence will be issued until the end of August. The ruling is only effective for cars registered after January 1995.
Owners of cars without rear seat belts have three years to get them installed.
The ministry kicked off a media campaign yesterday to inform the public on the importance of wearing rear seat belts. It will run for six months.
Ong said the ministry wanted to drive home the message that enforcement of the ruling was “not so much focused on punishment” but for the safety of motorists.
A Transport Ministry official said the idea is not to pass down the burden of fixing the seat belts to the user wherever possible.
“It should be part of the corporate social responsibility of the manufacturers.”
The official said the idea was to help the public so that there was no excuse for them not to use the rear seat belts and to cover all possible loopholes.
“We do not want the voice of 19% of car owners who do not have rear seat belts to affect the 81% who do have rear seat belts.”
Perodua Kancil and Kenari cars manufactured in 1998 and until mid-2004 will be exempted from the compulsory backseat belt rule.
Road Safety Department director-general Datuk Suret Singh said this was because the models produced during this period did not have anchorage points for rear seat belts.
“Some models which came out between 2004 and 2005 have anchorage points but no rear seat belts.
“The department has proposed that Perodua offer special packages to owners of these Kancil and Kenari models to install rear seat belts.
“They have three years to do that,” he said.

and

Many not aware of rule

By STEVEN DANIEL
PETALING JAYA: Despite the rear seat belt ruling being introduced yesterday, many people still claimed ignorance of it.
Previtha Rajah, 33, said she was unaware of the start of the three-month advocacy period for the use of rear seat belts.
However, the mother of three can afford to “overlook” the ruling – for she has always got her rear seat passengers to buckle up anyway.
“For safety purposes, I have never failed to get my children, maid and other passengers to buckle up,” she added when met at a petrol kiosk here.
Not a problem: Jane Jacob (left) buckling up as her daughter Previtha looks on. Both have always used the rear seat belt and welcome the new ruling.
Roslan Hashim, 34, a technician, said he had heard of the plan but did not know it had already been implemented.
“Betulkah, saya pun tak tahu (Is it, I did not know),” he said, suggesting that more information be disseminated via the media on the new rule.
A 50-year-old businessman, who only wanted to be known as Choy, went one step further by questioned the need for the ruling.
“Most cars have only two rear seat belts. Does that mean I can only drive four people in my car?” he asked.
Federal traffic police chief Senior Asst Comm II Datuk Hamzah Taib, when contacted, said police personnel would advise motorists on the new ruling until the three-month period was up, when summonses would be issued.
“We will advise motorists of the new rule whenever we have the chance. We will not spare any effort,” he added.
He said police would work with the Road Safety Department to distribute flyers to motorists.

PLEASE BUCKLE UP!

All passengers are not exempted from not using rear seat belt. So ‘Kancil’ cannot occupy 7 people already ah? So, more lives will be saved. How many drivers are using it anyway?

Let’s face the facts first. Until now, I still can see bikers not wearing crash helmets, parents sending two or three children to school and yet did not wear crash helmet. This situation proves that there is no enforcement in Malaysia. Only 'hangat-hangat tahi ayam'.

Reference from themalaysianinsider:

Free rear seat belts for locally-made cars

KUALA LUMPUR, June 1 — The government and local car manufacturers have struck a deal to provide and install rear seat belts for free to locally-made cars soon.
Transport Minister Datuk Ong Tee Keat said an agreement had been worked out and that a memorandum of understanding between the government and manufacturers is expected to be inked in the next few days.
"We have deliberated this systematically as it involved money and the engineering part of it. We hope this initiative can help lessen the people's burden with the new ruling to wear rear seat belts from today," he told reporters after opening a Chinese arts exhibition today.
Ong said the government was also working with the corporate sector to set up a fund to subsidise the cost of installing rear seat belts.
From today, rear seat passengers in cars are required to wear seat belts. After a three-month advocacy period, offenders will be fined for breaching the new law.
"I would like to advise passengers of cars already fitted with seat belts to buckle up when travelling and for car owners who have not installed the belts to do so promptly and not wait till the last minute," he said.
The government had given three years grace period for owners of cars without rear seat belts to get it installed. Currently, almost 90 per cent of vehicles are fitted with rear seat belts.
Ong, who is also a MCA vice-president and Selangor MCA chief, said he would meet Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Musa Hassan to get details on last week's incident of a group of thugs attacking Bandar Mahkota residents who were trying to remove concrete barricades built by Grand Saga Sdn Bhd, concessionaire of the Cheras-Kajang Highway.
The controversy ended on Friday following the Cabinet's decision to keep the disputed toll-free access road to Cheras-Kajang Highway open until the issue was settled in court. — Bernama

TEACHERS ALL WORKS AND NO PLAY MAKES THE PRINCIPAL ALOHA!

Some school administrator do not seem to like the teachers spending their holidays with their kids or the most favourite 'bujang' teachers simply 'nothing to do' at home. Especially rural school, the administrator which pursue in 'garnishing' the school more than academics will ask teachers to do some arrangement for form 1 registration before the next term starts, setting up banners, putting up backdrops and take care of students for a day or two during SPM's examination period if they do not apply to invigilate government examinations. Besides that, teachers have to come early for meeting just a week before the school reopen. Well, total up the days at school. Of course it is not even half of the holiday taken but reminds you, some teachers are not local there. Can you imagine how many days taken for the teachers to travel vice-versa?

Reference from TheStar:

Schools area reminded to use only two Saturdays in a monoth for weekend activities, Penang National Union of the Teaching Profession (NUTP) chairman Lim Ming Tzong said.
He said some teachers had complained their schools had imposed upon them to participate in weekend activities, some almost every Saturday.
“In 2006, the Public Services Department (PSD) issued a circular stating that all government departments were allowed to hold activities up to only two Saturdays in a month.
“So, school heads must abide by this ruling and not unduly victimise the teachers,” he said.
Lim said that according to the Education Ministry, schools were also not allowed to conduct curricular activities, including tuition classes, and co-curricular activities on both Saturdays.
The schools, he said, were only allowed to hold parent-teacher association (PTA) meetings, meet-the-parents sessions and staff meetings on Saturdays.
“School heads must be mindful that if they still conduct activities with students after school hours, they could be held res-ponsible if any mishap takes place.
“The state Education Department is closed over the weekend, and it may not provide necessary legal support for the teacher incharge,” he said.
Lim also called on school heads to refrain from unnecessarily recalling tea-chers back for duty during school holidays.
He said unlike teachers, senior assistants and afternoon supervisors, who were not entitled to annual leave, headmasters, principals and office staff were given up to 35 days in annual leave per year.
“So, just because they (the school heads) have to report for duty during the school holidays, it is ridiculous to instruct teachers to do likewise, merely to accompany them.”
Lim said many schools often prepared a roster for teachers to work during school holidays, but the number of days should not exceed half of the total length of the holidays.
He said many teachers had complained they were still unclear over the reasons to return to school during the holidays.

TRAFFIC OFFENDERS ON CANDID CAMERA

Smile, you are on candid camera! If I'm not mistaken, last year the government came out with an idea to punish traffic offenders through a rewarding scheme. Haven't they learned from their mistakes? Some might snap a photo that looks like an offence. Is it better if the traffic police officers take shot on plain clothes? Maybe put on a spy camera somewhere at accident prone area or an area where offenders will make such as jump red lights, over taking double lane and jump queue on a busy street. Then, recruit more traffic police officers.

Reference from http://www.panducermat.org.my

Click and post pictures of road offenders

PUTRAJAYA: The Road Safety Department has created an Internet portal to allow the public to be the private eyes of the department and the police in an effort to reduce accidents.
Among others, the website, www.panducermat.org.my, enables motorists to take snapshots of traffic offenders.It also contains driving tips, sections for suggestions, a forum, a road safety blog and identification of risky or accident-prone stretches in the country, including Sabah and Sarawak. Snapshots of offenders can be posted there and the department will forward them to the relevant law enforcement agencies for further action, said department director-general Datuk Suret Singh after the launching of the portal by Transport Minister Datuk Ong Tee Keat at the ministry yesterday.He added the portal would allow members of the public to interact not only with the department, but also the police.
"We are actually providing an interactive, educational and responsive platform for the public in efforts to reduce road fatalities and accidents. "We believe this interactive engagement will make our motorists more considerate and responsible towards other road users."He said all reports or complaints would be acted upon. "We promise rapid action against traffic offenders and the particulars of complainants will be kept confidential."Suret, however, cautioned that only passengers or pedestrians should use their cellphones to take snapshots on the road.