Taib: The man who would be king

By Mariam Mokhtar

Sarawak Chief Minister Taib Mahmud is in effect, already king. To his right, sits his “arm-candy” wife. All that is missing from the royal portrait are the jewelled crown, the ermine robes, the coat of arms, sceptre and orb.

Spread before the wannabe king and his consort, is his kingdom – Sarawak – which is both blessed and cursed with an abundance of natural resources; blessed because it has the means to benefit the Sarawak people; cursed because the riches serve to benefit only one man – Taib.

Of illegally crossing borders and the Malaysian border !

Recently our friend Daniel John Jambun forwarded what we believe originated from an observation by creative alert Malaysian. Here it is for our readers' grading :

• If You Cross The North Korean Border Illegally You get 12 years Hard Labour.
• If You Cross The Iranian Border Illegally You Are Detained Indefinitely.
• If You Cross The Afghan Border Illegally You Get Shot.
• If You Cross The Saudi Arabian Border Illegally You Will Be Jailed.
• If You Cross The Chinese Border Illegally You May Never Be Heard Again.
• If You Cross The Venezuelan Border Illegally You Will Be Branded As a Spy And Your Fate Will Be Sealed.

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is in the US ahead of his last speech to the UN as Iranian president Wednesday, and he's already living up to his reputation as a provocateur.

Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad gestures as he attends the
high level meeting on rule of law in the United Nations General
Assembly, at U.N. headquarters Monday, Sept. 24, 2012.
(AP Photo/Richard Drew)

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad takes his final bow at the United Nations this week, and he’s likely to go out more like a lion than a lamb.

The global provocateur may be winding up his second and final term as president in dispute with Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and held in low esteem by the Iranian public as Iran’s economy falters under tough international sanctions.

But if his first comments after landing in New York for this week’s UN General Assembly are any indication, Mr. Ahmadinejad can be expected to outrage again when he speaks Wednesday from the UN podium.

‘I will contest’ Pairin walking a tightrope

Joseph Pairin Kitingan, 72, while wanting to scale
back on his politics, is not prepared to risk his
party, PBS, losing in the 13th general election.

KOTA KINABALU: In the interior towns in the state, Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) and its septuagenarian leader, Joseph Pairin Kitingan, are greeted with either scorn or grudging respect, depending on who you talk to.

Ask Joseph, a youth in Tambunan who declined to give his full name, and he is unequivocal in his answer about the failings of the “huguan siou” or paramount chief of the Kadazandusun community.

“What has he done since becoming deputy chief minister?” he asks as he decries the politics of the ruling Umno-led Barisan Nasional coalition to which Pairin hitched his party some 20 years ago.

600 Nepalis strike in Malaysia

PRABHAKAR GHIMIRE 

Demand better food, accommodation KATHMANDU, Sept 23: About 600 Nepali workers have staged a protest against a Malaysian employer firm demanding quality food and better accommodation. The action has brought the company´s operations to a standstill for the last three days.

The agitating workers at Maxter Glove Manufacturing Company based in Perak of Kelang Neru near Kuala Lumpur, were recruited through a Nepali manpower agency named Lucky Human Resource Solution.

SAPP stands by its Sabah IC plan

KOTA KINABALU: The Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) has justified its plan to issue ‘Sabah identity cards’ to bona fide Malaysians in Sabah as the only solution to overcome the illegal distribution of national identity cards to foreigners.

The opposition has insisted there is an urgent need to differentiate Sabahans from the dubious document holders who are on the electoral rolls as voters and have managed to sway past elections in favour of the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition.

Pairin may not defend Keningau seat

By Luke Rintod of FMT

Indications within PBS are that its
president Joseph Pairin Kitingan
is ready to retire but is being
held back by worried party leaders.

TAMBUNAN : It is almost certain now that Sabah’s longest- serving assemblyman and Deputy Chief Minister, Joseph Pairin Kitingan, will not be defending his parliamentary and state seats in the coming 13th general election.

Although Pairin, who is president of Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS), has in the past said that he was prepared to defend both his Keningau parliamentary and Tambunan state seats, signals from within his PBS indicate otherwise.

Pairin, 72, has been the Tambunan state assemblyman since 1976 when he first won the seat for Berjaya at the age 36. Ten years later in 1986, he started winning the Keningau parliamentary seat.

Pemimpin Pakatan mohon ampun pada rakyat Sabah

By Luke Rintod of FMT

Presiden PAS memohon ampun bagi pihak pemimpin
Semenanjung hingga menyebabkan rakyat Sabah
menderita hidup dalam kemiskinan.

TUARAN: Dalam apa yang disifatkan sebagai jujur dan tidak dijangka, Presiden PAS, Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang memohon ampun dan maaf kepada rakyat Sabah atas segala perangai buruk para pemimpin dari Semenanjung selama 49 tahun sehingga rakyat Sabah kini menderita miskin walaupun negeri mereka sangat kaya.

Pemimpin ulung PAS itu dalam nada suara yang tersekat, berkata demikian ketika berucap pada sambutan memperingati ulangtahun

penubuhan Malaysia kali ke-49 di sebuah restoran di Tuaran pada malam Ahad.

Sabah BN confident of retaining Kota Belud seats

The State BN says judging from the progress the party
has brought and the sentiments of the people, it can
keep all three and one parliamentary seats.

By Luke Rintod of FMT

KOTA BELUD: Sabah Barisan Nasional (BN) is confident of retaining all four seats in the Kota Belud area in the coming general election.

The four seats are the three state constituencies of Tempasuk, Usukan and Kadamaian, and the sole parliamentary seat of Kota Belud. They are currently held by Sabah Umno and its strongest ally Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS).

Chief Minister Musa Aman, who was here for the BN Hari Raya open house celebration on Saturday, said he was happy to see the show of support here led by state Umno deputy chief, Salleh Said Keruak, who is also Umno divisional head for Kota Belud.

September 16th Is Historic But A “Black Day” For Sabah/Sarawak: STAR

“September 16th could have been more than a historic day for Malaysia had the Malaysia Agreement, 1963, the promises, assurances and undertakings by the senior partner to the Federation had been fulfilled but, alas, this was not the case, thus making September 16th as a Black Day for Sabah and Sarawak” said Datuk Dr. Jeffrey Kitingan, Chairman of STAR Sabah in response to the various comments on Malaysia Day.

Sabah’s founding fathers of Malaysia had great hopes of and expectations for Malaysia.  They were even prepared to sacrifice Sabah’s new found independence in favour of a new federation in the hope that this partnership would bring far more (than) benefits, in terms of security, economic prosperity and development without compromising too much of their rights as a sovereign nation.