A Kadir
Jasin
PREAMBLE: Views expressed herein are entirely
mine. I am writing in my personal capacity as a blogger. It has nothing to do
with whatever position I may hold.
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| Unaffordable: Property glut is getting worse |
IT has been a while the Kedai Kopi Assembly (KKA) has not
been convened. Members are busy. Some have even gone on to become ministers and
deputy ministers after the May 9 General Elections.
Some are as easy as ever to meet or exchange WhatsApp
messages while others have surrendered to officialdom and are difficult to
reach.
[Anonymous
comments will not be published. Please use real or pseudonym. Thank you.]
For those who we can easily meet, we advise them
directly. Nobody has to know. But for those who are hard to meet or to reach,
we advise them publicly. Everybody knows.
A former minister of Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s 1st
administration (1981-2003) asked me who drafted the 2019 Budget and the budget speech of Finance
Minister Lim Guan Eng.
He said
he received feedback that Treasury officials were not involved instead and the
Budget was the handiwork of the “12th floor boys (and girls)”.
I am not
very sure if the 12th floor is where the Finance Minister’s office
is situated. I have been there only once.
But when
I accompanied Chairman of the Council of Eminent Persons (CEP), Tun Daim
Zainuddin, to Affin Hwang Capital investment conference in Kuala Lumpur, on
Nov. 8, I heard him saying that the Finance Ministry in particular and the
government in general have many clever people.
He then pointed
in the direction of Dr Ong Kian Ming, Deputy Minister of International Trade
and Industry, who was present. I have not the slightest doubt that Dr Ong is a
clever chap.
Back to
the angry former minister, he argued that budget is a highly confidential
document as it involved taxes and critical policies. As a general rule, even
ministers are not involved or are in the know. They are only generally briefed
about it.
But he
noticed that a deputy minister had gone on television to discuss the budget
before it was presented. Maybe it happened by mistake. Thus he wondered who
else outside the Treasury were involved.
What this
former minister is driving at is that confidentiality is important when
planning and drafting the budget, and that the civil servants must be given due
respect and recognition.
Crowd
Funding
Another example
of a possible “leak” is the crowd funding for housing. The budget was delivered
on Friday and on Sunday the parties believed to have submitted the proposal
revealed themselves to public.
While it
is customary for the government to accept proposals from the public, the manner
the people-to-people funding was made public exposes the government to
allegation of cronyism and nepotism.
Yes
Finance Minister can announce this as a policy. But the right way to go about
doing this is to request for proposals from as many parties as possible so that
the government has many options to choose from.
Of course
we want this project to succeed. But this is the first ever such financing
scheme in the world and we cannot stop the people from wondering and asking
questions.
A Singapore-based
fund manager commented: “I read this property crowd funding thing. There is no
such thing as get-fixed-quick scheme. Usually these schemes end up badly with poor
moms and pops losing money and ultimately government bailout like the sub-prime.
“I hope
Malaysian government looks at this carefully and not allow unscrupulous
businessmen make money off the unsuspected.”
Well, I
am still essentially an atomic person. Although I have gone partially digital, I
still visit my bank managers, make phone calls to check my bank
balance and issue cheques to pay my credit card bills.
These
online banking, crowd funding and cloud storage things still do not convince
me.
On that
score, I salute the PNB for bringing back the passbook for its unit trust
funds. Apparently going digital and paperless did not go down well with the
pensioners and the old-timers who incidentally are also its high net worth
customers.
On the
hot subject of housing, the real issue is affordability. Prices have
skyrocketed but incomes have not. Profiteering makes the situation worse.
Daim
recalled at the Affin Hwang conference that back in the sixties he sold a
three-bedroom link house in Taman Maluri, Kuala Lumpur, for RM40,000. Today the
price could be as much as RM500,000.
I will
leave the clever people at Bank Negara and the Economic Planning Unit to figure
this out. But I think if we solve the problem of low wages and incomes we will solve
the housing problem.
Technology
helps. There must be better and cheaper ways of building or, shall I say, mass
producing affordable homes. I understand that at least one large
government-linked property developer is experimenting with the idea of
manufactured houses and apartments.
On
the political front, many people had expressed their views on the Parti
KeAdilan Rakyat’s leadership election. Thank you for the feedback. I think
there are other people who are more competent who are already commenting on this
subject.
In
the meantime the Education Minister, Maszlee Malik continues to bewilder me
with his actions – the latest being the appointment of the former PNB chairman,
Tan Sri Abdul Wahid Omar, as chairman of the UKM board.
Maybe
Maszlee wasn’t aware that Abdul Wahid was removed from PNB or he didn’t agree
with the latter’s removal. Or just that Maszlee is too clever for the
comprehension of ordinary mortals.
Wallahuaklam.
32 comments:
tun daim has made a succinct comment that 'hit d nail on d head'.
he said, "ministers must work very closely wth civil servants". ignore his advice at our own peril.
i hv also heard that this budget speech was almost entirely prepared wth very little input from officers n relevant sections of d treasury. if true, than d this is bad n sad.
i m worried that d need 4 confidentiality wil b greatly compromised. my 4 yrs stint as a budget officer has taught me d importance of this basic requirement.
it may deteriorate if not checked, into 'a ministry wthin a ministry'.
i stil maintain that prior 2 d presentation of d budget requirements 2 parliament, d PM who is d head of government (ketua kerajaan) must give his annual 'ucaptama'.
based on d fed constitution, (artcle 99) its not stated who shld deliver d budget speech 2 parliament. as such, why cant we consider giving this important task 2 d PM himself. it wld kill 2 birds wth one stone i.e, ucapatama n pembentangan belanjawan tahunan.
d three wise men in govt (ksn, ksp n kppa) must put their thinking cap n start help make d civil service d real advisers 2 govt n not 2 allow d govt b guided by ministerial advisers.
wallahu'allam.
Salam Datuk,
Terima kaseh kerana mengutarakan isu buku tabungan TNB. Terima kaseh kepada TNB kerana mengembalikan buku tabungan PNB. Orang lama dan orang baru pasti gembira.
Ketua BOD UKM sepatutnya menceburkan diri dalam dunia perniagaan. Pengalaman menjual aset, penjenamaan semula membeli plet number dan penyokong GST sepatutnya digunakan dan dibuktikan untuk perniagaan yang dibina dengan hasil usaha sendiri. Kami tak mahu perkara yang sama berulang semula di UKM.
Is Dr Maszlee testing his power as minister? He might want to know what the most worst thing if he is going against the flow
The problem with our finance minister is that he's trying to pull a fast one like he did during his time as Penang CM with the undersea tunnel project.
If I say he is grossly incompetent as a government head, many people would get angry, but it's the truth.
Not sure if PM's people are reading this, but suggest he be moved to a "safer" ministry.
Dato', don't you hear this proberv "too many cooks spoil the broth" ....?
This is what happened in the Ministry of Finance.
Ramai sangat orang cerdik pandai menawarkan diri untuk membantu Lim Guan Eng.
Dan Lim Guan Eng tidak berani berkata 'TIDAK' kepada mereka.
Akibatnya, itulah baget tahun 2019........hehehe
Harap masih ada masa untuk memperkemas dan memperbaikinya.
Semua orang kena belajar dari kesilapan.
Harap ia tidak terlalu mahal sampai menyebabkan kerajaan PH tumbang dalam PRU15 nanti.
A very interesting article by you Dato. It's good if we try to nib in the bud of unprofessional practices before they become our norms and destructive. Our country's interest must take the front seat as We come and go but the nation remains.
Datuk,
you write your personal opinions, nevertheless I feel you should tone down certain issues lest you fall guilty to the current syndrome of our PH MPs who want to voice their concerns loudly and stridently to the rakyat. Kepong MP Lim Lip Eng, Zaid Ibrahim must learn they are not in opposition to the govt any longer. What they say in public now does not resonate well with us the rakyat. So stop it.
Lateefa is an exception, she's got one of the strongest reasons to demand that the Julau polls be suspended. Come on, 30 divisions in Sarawak have only about 9,000 PKR registered members, and you have this one division Julau which grew overnight from a dwarf to a giant 66 members to over 13,000 members. What else can go terribly wrong?
He has the gall to ask why media spotlight on Julau? Simple stupid, Batu, Selangor branches had complaints too but these pale in comparison with this Julau stink.
Malaysiakini has weighed in, in the name of justice, and you have this moron
PKR secretary-general Saifuddin Nasution (above) who disputed a Malaysiakini report alleging that 11,339 PKR members in Julau PKR membership list were sharing 11 dubious looking addresses. Is he doing his job?
Are Anwar, Azizah, Saifuddin qualified to serve us in the PH govt?
The following is the response by Political Secretary to the Finance Minister, Tony Pua to my comment on the home crowdfunding as published by Free Malaysia Today (FMT).
KUALA LUMPUR: Tony Pua has defended peer-to-peer crowdfunding platform, FundMyHome, against fears that it is a monopoly.
Pua’s remark came just hours after PPBM Supreme Council member A Kadir Jasin suggested that he wasn’t fully convinced by the scheme.
FundMyHome is not a monopoly,” the finance minister’s political secretary said at a forum on Budget 2019 organised by AmBank here.
The Securities Commission, he said, will regulate the initiative as more exchange platforms will come in.
Under the FundMyHome scheme, buyers pay 20% of the property price which will then be placed in a trust account to pay off the 5% annual investment return to the participating institutions for a five-year period.
The balance of 80% will be contributed by participating banks. There is no monthly repayment for the first five years, after which buyers either sell the home, buy out the remaining portion of the property not owned by them at market price, or refinance the home.
Property experts are sceptical of the scheme, and have questioned if it would benefit buyers.
Earlier today, Kadir suggested he was not fully convinced about the new home ownership scheme but said he was placing his trust in the “clever people” who are working with Lim and the relevant agencies.
Pua, who is the Damansara MP, said the main aspect of the scheme is to protect both house buyers and investors.
“So we expect the rules to be finalised by the first quarter next year after which the first exchange can take place.”
But he admitted that there were a lot of issues to consider, like ensuring the initiative does not lead to a property bubble, which will see the prices of homes balloon.
“Then you have another crisis.”
Speaking to reporters, Pua said the reason behind the speedy launch of the FundMyHome scheme, operated by EdgeProp Sdn Bhd, was because the company was the one that had come up with the idea.
He said the launch was to publicise the scheme which had yet to be used by other countries.
“They (EdgeProp) were the ones who came up with the idea. Let’s not deny it. They came up with the innovation and they launched it because they wanted to publicise the mechanism.”
He reiterated that the peer-to-peer (P2P) housing scheme is a platform that any parties are welcomed to set up as long as they comply with SC guidelines.
Salaam Datuk.. I am seriously unable to fathom why did the Minister appoint Wahid to that post. Is it possible that he did it with Tun Mahathir's blessings? I doubt so. If Wahid was asked to vacate his Chairmanship at PNB because of his open support and reverence for the biggest thief and liar in the world, there is no logic for Tun to give Maszlee the green light to make Wahid the Chairman of UKM's Board of Directors.
No supporter of the King of Thieves should be given any significant role to play in rebuilding this nation. It makes a mockery of the true principles that the rakyat stand for very dearly. The Minister's oversight in this affair is an insult to the rakyat. As if there is no one else better than Wahid who can be appointed to occupy that seat.
If there is any dignity left in Wahid, he should step down and relinquish the seat to save himself and Maszlee from further humiliation as the rakyat heap more nasty insults on them.
Wahid cannot expect to have the best of both worlds where he was given the previlege to enjoy life of respected social status in the previous kleptocratic regime and also in the current administration that is working hard to repair the catastrophic damage. Either he publicly denounces Najib and state his regret and remorse for supporting the plunderings and treacherous acts of the Bugis Pirate who has brought untold infamy to our beloved nation, or just disappear from the public scene. Our new Malaysia has no need and place for those who do not have the moral conscience to discern between truth and falsehood, to play any role in her rebuilding.
And as for Maszlee, he needs to find a way to quickly unwind and repair his gross error in this case if he hopes to be spared from the rakyat's further ridicule and distrust in him. Removing Wahid from the seat would be a good start.
Perhaps Datuk Kadir can share some of your thoughts here on how to remedy this situation.
Thank you.
Assalamualaikum DAKJ,
My quick response:
1. At the first place, if it is a private initiative, why government bother to announce it in its budget speech?
2. If the initiative is viable, why let one developer company have a headstart? Why not give due consideration on the proposal and let all the property developer companies to join the program?
3. What is the issue that government wish to address by promoting this blurry and risky scheme? Is it the unsold property issue? Unaffordability of rakyat to buy a property? Financial institution? Which one? What is the real problem and what cause the problem? Can the scheme solve the problem? Who is the real winner? Developer? Investor? Banker? Buyer? If there are a lot of issues with regard to the scheme, why announce?
4. What is the main responsibility of the political secretary? Why political secretary involve so much into ministry's business? Responding on behalf of ministry some more. Even deputy minister is rarely involve with day to day business of mof. This is a very bad governance where other than minister of finance could involve directly in ministry's business and giving instruction or bypassing officer. If something wrong is happening, lge will be laughing and said it is not his decision just like mof official statement issued in mandarin.
5. Lge and team is not doing his job well. If it is not because of rm30 billion petronas money, the budget is nothing. Minus the 30 billion and tax refund the government cut its budget a lot. If it is a pure saving, it does not matter, but if the cut is merely a blind cut, then service delivery will be affected. Btw, where is the saving that they claimed easily could reaches 30 to 40 billion?
6. Why did ministers and deputy ministers need so many special officer? They are talking about 1.6 million bloated civil servant, yet they hire so many officers and advisors and run the ministries like their apak punya company.
7. The reality is, government is in a deep shit during najib administration. It got another shit when the government decided to abolish gst. Why? Because government loss revenue, yet the price of goods and services are not declining. Not to mention steady increase of cost of living. Worst when sst implemented, rakyat have to face another round of price hike.
8. So called targeted fuel subsidy is just as good as previous scheme where government float the price and give br1m to selected household to cushion the impact. In fact previous mechanisme is more efficient and does not need high administration cost like introducing card and blablabla.
9. Why abolish toll payment to singapore? Are we helping the rakyat or the government of singapore?
10. The only good thing i am excited about is no limit public transportation card. It is really a good move. Even so, im puzzled with the move to curb intracity toll hike. Both seems contradicting each other. Why not negotiate with the concessionaire company to get better term like govt did with lrt3 and mrt2 even if they need to pull contractors arm.
Overall, nothing to be proud of and boast about. Please try harder. Less talk more work ya lge.
Salam
Kadiag, السلام عليكم assalāa mu 'alaikum,
Aku rojog ‘coretan’ hang pasai Bank Negara (BNM) dgn Economic Planning Unit (EPU) :
“ I will leave the clever people at Bank Negara and the Economic Planning Unit to figure this out. But I think if we solve the problem of low wages and incomes we will solve the housing problem.”
Aku tau kadang2 coretan hang ada unsog2 perli, sindiag, kosek dan sebagainya kpd sapa2 yg hang nak sasag.
Tapi hang boh ungkapan ‘clever people’... orang laa ni bulih kata “adalah mengelirukan”.
Kita baru saja lalui zaman yg cukop perit yg kesannya munkin beteruihsan buat beberapa keturunan...
dua benda yg depa (BNM & EPU) ni telibat secara langsong hang sedia maglum adalah IMDB dan
penjana letrik swasta (IPP). Mintak maghap Kadiag, tapi kalu hang perli ka sindiag ka, aku rasa
hang pi buboh ‘clever’ ke depa semua ni memang tak kena.
Pasai harga romah dok melambong, hang punya ‘coretan’ pon munkin sikit ringkaih (‘simplistic’),
aku kopipeh : “ But I think if we solve the problem of low wages and incomes we
will solve the housing problem. “ Kalu ikut tiori ekonomi klasik, aku rasa depa nanti kata kalu gaji dan upah naik,
harga romah akan teruih melambong. Hubungkait harga romah dgn kadag gaji dan upah yg tinggi
macam di New Zealand tonjoikan masaalah yg hampiag sama. New Zealand laa ni begerak untuk sekat orang luag
beli romah di sana. Munkin lagu PM Malaya cuba nak buat di Iskandag, di JB.
Munkin ini satu cara yg bulih bantu selain membendong sistem bank dan ekonomi bedasagkan riba’ dan kapitalisme.
Pasai lantikkan mantan menteri (BN) jadi pengerusi lembaga UKM, aku pon pelek, macam depa lantik mantan kepala
mata2 (asai Serkam tak salah aku) jadi ‘pemudahcara’ ka apa ka di selatan Siam....
Terima kasih dan mintak maghap,
Aku
The real cause of of excessive price rise in property is the inability to control the rise in land prices,the never ending rise in compliance costs from the opportunistic politicians trying to increase their states' coffer and bureaucratic overegulations and poor income growth of Malaysians over the last 30years.I think most property developers are still making the same percentage of profit over the last 30years but if the costs keep on increasing,the same percentage of profit will result in higher profit but not the increasr in actual margin.The real culprits are politicians for their failure to control cost of development and their inability to increase the per capita income of the bottom 90%.
Sallam Dato'
On the Crowdfunding thing, I don't think they invented the idea.
I read somewhere that this had been implemented in Europe although it is still relatively new.
There will always be some clever chaps in this world try to think on how to get money from people.
It is an interesting concept.
So supposing I want to buy an apartment, these days in KL at least RM400k. Using this model, I just need to fork out only 20% or RM80k, I can have my apartment under my name.
But, the rest of the house or 80% do not belong to me. The investor who want to make money top up the remaining money for the house.
There will be questions arise from the whole idea, the partial ownership of the house, how long can we stay in the house, etc.
How can the govt regulate this is another matter.
The forces that drives house prices is from supply and demand. This will definitely effect supply and demand, tipping the prices of houses on the high side as investors pump up money to property market.
We just hope there will not be a property bubble like the subprime crisis in US.
There should be more discussions of the practicality of the idea in Malaysia and whether this will effectively resolve the housing ownership problems.
This old man kadir had his fact on wahid blatantly wrong. Wahid was not removed from pnb. He voluntarily resigned. High time kadir muhasabah diri and writes justly and truthfully before he kicks the bucket rather than playing politics. Dah tua dah.
As the saying goes, a closed mouth catches no flies. We are expected to be submissive and keep mum or suppress your feelings, and never speak your mind lest you be threatened, condemned or even charged. Here it goes again, never trouble trouble till trouble troubles you. I assume, that's the way life is all about regardless of which age you are in, whether the past or present. In order to be in the safe side, just comply and go with the flow. That's it.
And, that determines, one of the reasons why the rate of mental illness shoots up like rocket nowadays.This illness does not develop over-night though. Instead, it is a long-running endurance of all form. The nervous civilians of the yesteryear are the depressives of today, and the cycle goes on and on.
Apparently, whoever possesses money, power or both is entitled to seize the world and conquer the universe and claim the ultimate throne. I suppose, that's the norm to how things go about in the society to subjugate others and manipulate the opportunities in a so-called new-reform-government, to serve their own interests. To date, the people insist to demand the promises the likes of transparency etc. which PH had vowed during its struggles to oust BN. So it is just that, saying is one thing, doing is another.
Everyone knows, not only has PH inherited an astronomical debt and a practically demolished administrative machinery but the atrocious political cultures as well. The issues of money politics, abuse of power and position, and misuse of government assets happen every now and then. These are the unacceptable scenarios which the people loathe and reject altogether.
Perhaps, it is timely for Tun M to execute a solid stratagem to draw the line clear to stop PH being rotted away prematurely. What a shame, if that really happens.
Salam Datuk
Firstly, it seems that your site is designated by Google as not secure.
Secondly, I am also not convinced with this crowdfunding property purchase plan. It may help developers solve their problems (I have no pity as they brought it to themselves for building premium homes vs affordable ones), but wouldn't the buyer be at high risk of default after 5 years when the funds leave him with a debt and a property he couldn't afford or sell? I also would like to see this plan work but we need the government to explain more.
As for the budget, I am glad that the education ministry gets the most fund. But I am wary that LGE is using the same tactics as he did in Penang by placating Malays with funds for suraus and madrasahs when what they need most is to improve their economy.
This is where PPBM must play its role in making sure Malays are not losing out economically with the new government. The change of governance to a more transparent, meritocracy style will hit the Malays the most. They were used to operate under the UMNO style for 60 years. The transition will be painful and some may not survive.
Another reason why I am asking PPBM to take up this role is that ever since the election, I see PPBM as a party that is drifting without anchor. When was the last time we heard PPBM did or say anything for peribumis? At most, it reacts to issues brought up by UMNO or PAS.
Leading Malays through the above transition is a critical, but also positive, role that PPBM can take on. Malays do not want to go back to the corrupt culture under the previous government but they need to be guided out of it. Taking this up will demonstrate to Malays that PPBM is worthy of the void left by UMNO.
Let me also say that Malays are already looking beyond Tun Mahathir. They are thinking what will happen after he is gone. The younger generation of PPBM leaders must therefore start to show their worth now. Do not wait until it is too late.
Datuk,
pls clarify why jumbeaux said that your site iss designated by Google as not secure.
Further to the scandal surrounding the Julau PKR polls,
the following is another credible statement, instead of half-baked, quarter baked statements from that sec general Saifuddin Nasution who said he personally went through page by page of the 13,000 applications - simply ridiculous and unbelievable.
PRESS STATEMENT BY YB SIVARASA RASIAH
MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT SUNGAI BULOH
MEMBER OF POLITICAL BUREAU AND CENTRAL LEADERSHIP COUNCIL, PARTI KEADILAN RAKYAT.
THERE IS CREDIBLE EVIDENCE TO SHOW THAT THE MEMBERSHIP ROLL IN JULAU DIVISION, SARAWAK, IS MANIPULATED AND ILLEGAL.
Parti Keadilan Rakyat started in 1999, and with the merger in 2003 with Parti Rakyat Malaysia, has stood in the vanguard of the struggle for democratic reform in Malaysia. It championed clean and fair elections, a true democracy, and an accountable and equitable government protecting, in particular, the oppressed and the downtrodden.
Today aspects of the current party election show a gross disregard for these principles. Most of the weaknesses that have attracted public comment and criticism have been administrative and sincere attempts have been made by the party’s Election Committee to overcome these. Running a one-member one vote election involving some 800,000 members with a new e-voting system with limited resources is not easy.
However, the current state of the membership roll in the Julau division in Sarawak is quite something else. It enters the realm of manipulation, fraud and illegality. It displays the features of corporate capture where dubious corporate figures use their wealth and influence to manipulate the election process. Proceeding with the election in Julau has serious implications for the party.
The facts challenging the membership roll in Julau are compelling. Phone numbers of 6474 out of the 13,178 members suddenly added to the roll on 27 June 2018 were called over a 3 day period in October to verify how they became members. 5018 did not respond to the call.
What is shocking is that out of the balance who answered the call, 1310 ( almost 90% ! ) said they had no knowledge of themselves joining the party recently. Furthermore, out of this group, 237 said that they were interested in joining the party but had never applied. And finally, out of these 237, 65 were actually long-standing members of the party who had been “joined” again without their knowledge.
It is also alleged, separately, that the 13,000 plus new names were registered using only 11 addresses which, again, reaffirms the manipulation.
These facts have not been rebutted in any credible manner. They indicate a gross and organised attempt to illegally register persons in large numbers as members without their knowledge. On polling day, those responsible for this will probably attempt to round up these “members”, incentivise them and transport them to the polling centre to vote. Links have been made to member/s of the well known Sng family who have been linked to similar dubious practices in the past in other political organisations.
It is of great regret that the party election process has sunk to condoning this after two decades of championing a clean electoral roll.
I call upon our members in Sarawak to rise up tomorrow and to vote to reject those candidates and leaders who are behind such manipulation of the membership roll. We must stay true to our party’s struggle for justice and democracy and to our reform agenda.
Sivarasa Rasiah
9th November 2018
The following is a Fecebook posting by Dr Ong Kian Ming, Deputy Minister of International Trade and Industry, commenting on my blog post. He forwarded it to me and I am publishing it in full (untouched).
"I refer to A Kadir Jasin's blog post entitled "Post Budget Jottings and Scribblings" (http://kadirjasin.blogspot.com/2018/11/post-budget-jottings-and-scribblings.html?m=1) I also noticed that the Star newspaper had gone on to report the following based on Kadir Jasin's blog post: "On another matter, Kadir said a former minister had pointed out to him that Deputy Minister of International Trade and Industry Ong Kian Ming had gone on television to discuss the budget before it was presented. Kadir said the “angry” former minister had argued that the budget was a highly confidential document as it involved taxes and critical policies. (https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2018/11/10/be-transparent-or-discreet-at-times-kadir-hints-to-ministers-on-how-to-deal-with-matters-depending-o/#YmHruTFLtLXlBqPt.99)" If you were to read Kadir Jasin's blog post carefully, he DID NOT say that I was the deputy minister which the former minister allegedly accused of going on TV to talk about the budget before it was announced on the 2nd of Nov, 2018. What Kadir Jasin wrote was the following: "But when I accompanied Chairman of the Council of Eminent Persons (CEP), Tun Daim Zainuddin, to Affin Hwang Capital investment conference in Kuala Lumpur, on Nov. 8, I heard him saying that the Finance Ministry in particular and the government in general have many clever people. He then pointed in the direction of Dr Ong Kian Ming, Deputy Minister of International Trade and Industry, who was present. I have not the slightest doubt that Dr Ong is a clever chap. Back to the angry former minister, he argued that budget is a highly confidential document as it involved taxes and critical policies. As a general rule, even ministers are not involved or are in the know. They are only generally briefed about it. But he noticed that a deputy minister had gone on television to discuss the budget before it was presented. Maybe it happened by mistake. Thus he wondered who else outside the Treasury were involved. What this former minister is driving at is that confidentiality is important when planning and drafting the budget, and that the civil servants must be given due respect and recognition." I reached out to Kadir and he confirmed to me that the former minister he spoke to DID NOT mention which Deputy Minister he was referring. I'm guessing that the Star jumped to this conclusion since I was the only Deputy Minister named in the blog post. For the record, I DID NOT go on TV to talk about the budget before it was announced. I did appear on Astro Awani to talk about the budget on the evening of the 2nd of Nov, AFTER the budget was announced. I did give a pre-budget talk at a dialogue session organized by The Associated Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry of Malaysia (ACCCIM) where I emphasized that I WOULD NOT be revealing any details of the budget. What I did say, which was reported in the Chinese press, was that the government had been emphasizing the need to making housing loans for accessible especially for the B40 and the M40. I referred to the statements made by Housing Minister, Zuraidah on this matter (https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2018/06/16/zuraida-banks-must-consider-all-incomes-of-housing-loan-applicants/) as well as the statements made by the Minister of Finance, Lim Guan Eng (http://www.theedgemarkets.com/article/lim-guan-eng-no-foreignersonly-townships) I call upon The Star Online can call Kadir to confirm my story and to correct their story naming me as the Deputy Minister in Kadir's blog post. I have also reached out to Kadir to ask him to let me know the name of the Deputy Minister so that I can confirm that the former minister was not referring to me."
Hi, I can confirm that since this morning the connection is secure again.
Sallam Dato'
I am still optimistic the new Pakatan team can deliver to the people.
There were talks earlier that the existing government servants were still loyal to previous party. So, maybe LGE team have to improvised to deliver. Maybe they had to bring their own people to get the job done.
I still do not see they made any "gross" mistakes , unlike the previous government.
Its still puzzling about Abdul Wahid Omar story but, comparing PNB, UEM and MAybank, UKM is chicken feed.
So far the budget focuses on the right things. The education, health and etc that will bring benefit to the people.
After the budget have been allocated, we want to see it distributed so that the rakyat will reap the benefit.
We do not want to hear stories about, screwdrivers or wall clock, etc bought at ridiculous price like before.
Datuk,
Dr Ong Kian Ming has fully clarified that he DID NOT reveal details of the budget before it was tabled.
It was the former Minister who made the baseless accusation to Datuk who is at fault, I would suggest this person needs to be further educated and not to be so hasty in laying blame.
On another matter it is sad the former de facto law minister Zaid Ibrahim has said he will cease to make public statements henceforth and stop participating in politics.
He is sincere in what he writes and says, nevertheless his greatest fault and thus his weakness is that he has "knee jerk reactions" almost all the time. Being in politics for such a long while should have given him the ability to pause and consider how his statements could be provocative and fodder for the opposition.
I would urge him to take a short break to refresh himself. Writing is in his soul.
Datuk,
and so the circus goes on until Rafizi finds the votes he needs to win?
For the wrong reasons, Julau polls are suspended.
A virus implanted by whom? His own team ? His rivals?
Hysterical really, finding excuses and phantom reasons now to suspend Julau polls.
The rakyat die laughing.
Enough said about Tan Sri Wahid. He is history in PNB.
We wish to see significant changes on PNB's management, human capital & working culture upon Wahid's departure.
Please don't lose our trust and hope.
Salam
Firstly i appreciate DSKJ's courage to speak the truth without fear or favour
Secondly i also appreciate the 'processes' involving policies and implementation eg of electric power production industry above
Pointing out whats wrong is much easier than trying to find ideas to solving problems
Many people go around and comment about
problems
Few find ideas to solve these problems
Tq DSKJ
Datuk,
we fully agree and support this statement from Dep MinisterFuziah:
LYNAS Malaysia has been urged to return its radioactive waste to Australia, failing which its operating licence should be withheld.
Kuantan MP Fuziah Salleh said at a public hearing with Lynas’ operating review executive committee today that this was in line with the Pakatan Harapan government’s promise to protect the environment.
Minister of Environment Yeo Bee Yin and Local Govt Minister Zuraidah, please take note and ensure we Malaysians do not have to live in a toxic environment!
Send all the waste back to Australia.
Send all other waste back to UK, USA and other countries where they come from.
Datuk,
Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng is not completely sold that Malaysia’s most wanted man Jho Low is not in China.
Lim said the Chinese ambassador to Malaysia has said the fugitive financier did not enter the republic using his Malaysian passport.
Politically correct answer because Jlow would have used one of his other passports/different alias to enter China.
Nevertheless I urge the Chinese authorities not to think we are stupid.
China has state-of-the-art technology and equipment to verify face/head identity and would have already detected JLow going into China. They know where he is and want to use him for leverage purposes.
1. Who is our FM ? LGE or Tony Pua ? Why is it the latter has so much things to say ?
2. The real issue is affordable homes for the rakyat. But, we have the government helping developers to make money by selling unaffordable properties. There should be efforts in pushing property developers to develop more affordable homes. Give these developers incentives. Both the developers and the rakyat will be happy.
3. Dr Maszlee should just resign from his post as the IIUM President immediately. No need to worry about the convocation or finding his replacement. These can be done by those IIUM people.
4. I wonder if there are strategic plans in improving the economy of the bumiputeras ? Which ministry is championing this ?
Datuk,
what Rafizi and his team are now saying does not make sense.
A PKR leader from the camp of Rafizi Ramli today claimed that 11,422 votes for the post of PKR deputy president had gone missing.
Candidate for PKR Youth chief Akmal Nasrullah Mohd Nasir claimed the votes were missing from 17 divisions. He said nine divisions were in Sabah while the remaining eight were in Selangor.
Akmal said it was as if the results had been “erased” in a systematic manner.
“We are not trying to reject the decision or deny the process but what is being disputed now is that what happened was unusual, as if planned. What happened in the affected divisions only favours one side.”
Saifuddin Nasution in charge of the e-voting is on Rafizi's team, so why is Saifuddin silent on this? The e-voting process has been defective from day one and Saifuddin is to be blamed for insisting on going ahead with the e-voting.
The PKR central election committee chairman Rashid Din has announced there is no reason for him to have re-elections in the Julau division and the committee
stands firm with its decision not to hold fresh elections at the Julau division in Sarawak.
“In Julau, the data is intact, and only 19 did not complete the voting process. They took the QR code, but they did not vote.
Over 1,600 voters cast their votes in Julau.
Rashid was responding to candidate for deputy party president Rafizi Ramli’s statement that the election committee’s decision not to hold fresh elections was not fair to him and the members.
“Just because he (Rafizi) failed to get the numbers the first time, so he wants a second chance? Come on, we have to be realistic, we have to be rational.
“If you failed to get the numbers there, now you want a second chance? I don’t know, but that is how I read it,” said Rashid.
In comparing the Pensiangan division election, Rashid said a re-election had to be done as many people did not managed to vote in time.
“In Julau, at 1pm to 2pm, nobody came out to vote. Between 2pm and 4.30pm, only 20 plus people came to vote.
“In Pensiangan, even at 7pm, about 500 people came to vote. That is why we needed to re-do the election.
“But Rafizi is not making noise about Pensiangan, because he won with a big margin there.
So despite all the shenanigans in getting 13,000 registrations for Julau, Rafizi, Larry Sng and his father did not get the voters out to vote for Rafizi.
Who to blame?
Larry Sng and his daddy. Did they make false promises?
Look at the big picture. Most of Azmin's team won, wasn't it obvious the voters would also give their votes to Azmin for the deputy presidency?
The difference is, instead of borrowing from the bank, you are "borrowing" from the investors.
https://www.thestar.com.my/business/business-news/2018/11/14/crowdfunding-not-homebuying-scheme/
Cagamas: Crowdfunding is investment not house owning scheme.
https://rebuildingmalaysia.blogspot.com/2018/11/disappointingly-new-chiefs-in-our.html
I don't care about other ministries, but this is one ministry that affects my children's future. As a matter of fact, Datuk Kadir, we are contemplating of moving our kids to some private schools. You are absolutely right that our kebangsaan schools have become like religious schools. Canteens are separated into halal canteen and non-halal canteen. What the heck is Maszlee doing about the complaints? I have written to Tun about Maszlee's obsession with the swimming as a co-curriculum activities. I would not want my children to come under the supervision of the school teacher in a swimming pool!
Please do not publish this Hope to talk to you more, Datuk. Stephen.Ng.EJ@gmail.com or my mobile number is 012-3347880
Kallau investment sebutlah investment. Dah yang sebut nak menyelesaikan masalah perumahanlah, untuk pembeli pertamalah dalam ucapan belanjawan tu dah kenapa? Ini menteri menipu ka?
Dan kalau memang investment plan, private driven, kenapa kerajaan nak umum dalam belanjawan kerajaan? Endorsement? Ada conflict of interest ke? Come on lah.
Dint dissapoint people who vite for better government. This is plain stupid.
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