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Showing posts with label MCA. Show all posts
Showing posts with label MCA. Show all posts

Monday, July 17, 2023

Malaysia’s secularism based on Constitution, Alliance Memorandum, its secularism shoudn't be open to misinterpretation

Malaysia's secularism based on Constitution, Alliance ...

PETALING JAYA: Malaysia’s secularism is evidenced in the Federal Constitution and the Alliance Memorandum 1956, says MCA.

It said MCA, as a member of the Alliance Coalition, played a significant role in shaping the Alliance Memorandum submitted to the Reid Constitutional Commission on Sept 27, 1956.

“The memorandum explicitly stated that ‘the religion of Malaya shall be Islam... and shall not imply that the state is not a secular state’,” it said in a statement on Tuesday (July 11).

MCA also emphasised that Islam and the position of Malay Rulers as heads of Islam in their states are protected by the Federal Constitution.

“Article 4 of the Federal Constitution establishes the Constitution as the supreme law of the land, thereby protecting the position of Islam and the Malay Rulers,” it said.

MCA said it unequivocally takes the position that Malaysia is a democratic and secular state with Islam as the official religion - a position that the country has not changed in the last seven decades.

Explaining, MCA said that a secular state is one where the source of law is secular.

“In Malaysia, religious authorities derive their source of authority from secular laws enacted by the Malaysian Parliament.

“Islam is enshrined in Article 3 of the Federal Constitution, which is itself a secular document and forms the foundation of our nation.

“This is unlike a theocratic state like Saudi Arabia, where religious laws and scriptures are the primary source of legislation, rather than the Constitution, Parliament, or the Court,” it added.

MCA said secularism can take different forms, and it is not unusual for secular nations, such as the United Kingdom, to integrate religion into their systems.

“This can be observed through the presence of their state church led by the monarchy, a characteristic that mirrors Malaysia's approach,” it said.

The Barisan Nasional component party said their statement was necessitated by instances where leaders from different political parties often conflate Malaysia's secularism with the notion of "complete separation of state and religion".

“It is our earnest hope that political leaders exercise greater responsibility when discussing Malaysia's legal and constitutional nature to avoid any misinterpretation of their words.

“The resulting confusion could cause unnecessary anxiety among the public and undermine international confidence in Malaysia,” it added. Source link



PETALING JAYA: Malaysia’s secularism is evidenced in the Federal Constitution and the Alliance Memorandum 1956, says MCA.

As one of the founding members of the Alliance (the precursor to Barisan Nasional), MCA played a significant role in shaping the Alliance Memorandum submitted to the Reid Constitutional Commission on Sept 27, 1956.

According to the National Archives, the commission was formed on March 21, 1956, to review and recommend the Constitution of the Federation of Malaya in preparation for Malaya’s independence on Aug 31, 1957.

“The memorandum explicitly stated that the religion of Malaya shall be Islam ... and shall not imply that the state is not a secular state,” it said in a statement yesterday.

MCA also emphasised that Islam and the position of Malay rulers as heads of Islam in their states are protected by the Federal Constitution.

“Article 4 of the Federal Constitution establishes the Constitution as the supreme law of the land, thereby protecting the position of Islam and the Malay Rulers,” it added.

MCA also unequivocally took the position that Malaysia is a democratic and secular state with Islam as the official religion, adding that it did not change its position on this in the last seven decades.

MCA also said that a secular state is one where the source of law is secular.

“In Malaysia, religious authorities derive their source of authority from secular laws enacted by the Malaysian Parliament.

“Islam is enshrined in Article 3 of the Federal Constitution, which is itself a secular document and forms the foundation of our nation.

“This is unlike a theocratic state like Saudi Arabia, where religious laws and scriptures are the primary source of legislation, rather than the Constitution, Parliament or the Court,” it added.

MCA said secularism can take different forms, and it is not unusual for secular nations, such as the United Kingdom, to integrate religion into their systems.

“This can be observed through the presence of their state church led by the monarchy, a characteristic that mirrors Malaysia’s approach,” it said.

The Barisan Nasional component party said their statement was necessitated by instances where leaders from different political parties often conflate Malaysia’s secularism with the notion of “complete separation of state and religion”.

“It is our earnest hope that political leaders exercise greater responsibility when discussing Malaysia’s legal and constitutional nature to avoid any misinterpretation. The resulting confusion could cause unnecessary anxiety among the public and undermine international confidence in Malaysia,” it added.

Source link

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Wednesday, January 5, 2022

Billed RM695,598 for electricity; beware of illegal cryptocurrency/Bitcoin mining operations

 Billed RM695,598 for electricity


` Bitcoin mining op suspected behind shockingly high power usage


 KUALA LUMPUR: An elderly man was shocked when he received a notice from Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB) claiming that he owed nearly RM700,000 for electricity usage.

` Wu Tuan Chiang, 71, said TNB claimed that the meter of the shoplot he had rented out had been tampered with.

` “I have been renting out the shoplot at Bandar Puteri Puchong to an IT solutions company since 2019, and the company was supposedly registered in Ipoh, Perak.

` “On Dec 16, TNB sent me the notice claiming that the meter had been tampered with, and they were claiming RM695,598.10 in electricity charges,” he told reporters at the MCA Public Services and Complaints Department yesterday.

` He said they suspected that the shoplot had been used in a bitcoin mining operation.

` “I have been trying to contact the tenant since Dec 16 last year but to no avail thus far.

` “When I visited the property, it had already been cleaned out,” he said, adding that he had lodged a police report on the matter.

` Meanwhile Ch’ng Yi Quan, 24, said he received a letter on Dec 22 claiming he owned a TNB account for an address at Teluk Panglima Garang.

` “They claimed that the meter at this address had also been tampered with, and were demanding RM77,033.25 in electricity charges.

` “The only problem here is that I have never registered any shoplot for electricity,” Ch’ng said, adding that he suspected someone had misused his personal details to register for electricity supply.

` He claimed that he lost his identity card last year, and suspected that the person who found it had used it for this.

` MCA Public Services and Complaints Department head Datuk Seri Michael Chong said they received 10 similar cases so far involving at least Rm1.75mil in losses.

` “In some of these cases, the syndicates use bogus real estate agents to secure the tenancy so that they cannot be traced.

` “Our advice is that all landlords must be proactive in ensuring their property is used for only legitimate business.

` “They must also only deal with registered real estate agents,” he said, adding that they would contact TNB in order to hold a dialogue on the matter.

` His legal adviser, Datuk Theng Book, said TNB meter readers must be alert and thoroughly check meters monthly.

` “It does not make sense that they read these meters every month, but only detect meter tampering after long periods of time,” he said.

Beware of illegal cryptocurrency/ Bitcoin mining operations

IPOH: Premises suspected to be running illegal cryptocurrency mining operations and stealing electricity should be reported to the police, says Perak police chief Comm Datuk Mior Wahid Faridalathrash.

` These mining operations could usually be identified by the exhaust fan installed at the back of the building, he said.

` “It is part of the cooling system for their mining machines,” he added.

` The police held two joint operations over the past week in Manjung on premises found to be stealing electricity and running illegal cryptocurrency mining activities.

` A Malaysian man was arrested last Wednesday with equipment worth RM3.5mil being seized, while a second operation saw equipment worth about RM1.6mil being seized.

` Police checked 122 premises with 46 of them found to be running these mining activities.

` Comm Mior Faridalathrash said cryptocurrency mining operations would typically take place in densely-populated areas or near industrial zones where electricity consumption was high, to conceal their activity.

` “If they operate in areas that do not have a lot of activity, it would alert Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB).

` “TNB is able to detect such operations if there is abnormally high usage of electricity,” he told reporters yesterday after attending the state police contingent’s monthly gathering at the Police Air Wing unit training base here.

` Comm Mior Faridalathrash said building owners renting out their premises should be aware of their tenants’ activities to ensure no law was being broken.

` “We are working closely with TNB to curtail these operations that are stealing electricity and disrupting other users,” he said.

Source link

 

 https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2022/01/04/cops-bust-illegal-cryptocurrency-mining-ops-in-manjung-seize-rm16mil-worth-of-equipment
 

TNB: Refrigerators, air-conditioners, and water purifiers ...

https://soyacincau.com/2021/03/04/tnb-tenaga-nasional-berhad-refrigerators-air-conditioners-water-purifiers-electricity-bill/
 
 
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Sunday, November 17, 2019

Say ‘no’ to incompetent government, message from Tanjung Piai by election!

https://youtu.be/FaO25i3biEE

https://youtu.be/ZgKFqcG5twc

https://youtu.be/d2DyEfvsIwc

The message from Tanjung Piai is really quite simple and straightforward.

The Malays are willing to vote for BN, MCA, PH or PPBM. To them, which party or coalition to vote for is secondary. Increasingly, they want a government that can work for them, not just good in hoodwinking.

Some pundits claimed that it was Umno-PAS union that pulled the Malay votes for BN. I would prefer to think that it is the “push factors” to vote against PPBM and Pakatan Harapan that caused the swing.

Frankly, I think most are quite fed-up with the PH government by now. Many must have paused to ask themselves which aspect of their life has become better since May 9, 2018.

Maybe they couldn’t find any other than the continued intrigues and infighting within PH component parties.

The Chinese, too, can vote for different candidates and different coalitions at different times. To them, it does not matter if it is PPBM, PH, BN or MCA. It shows Chinese Malaysians are not racist. They just want to be treated fairly; it does not matter which race represents them in the government.

PPBM, Amanah and PKR need to be reminded that the Chinese are not leftovers; they are productive citizens.

No one wishes to be insulted, so let no one tell the Chinese to go back to China again. This is totally unacceptable.

The Chinese value their children’s education very much because they know they can’t depend on the government for jobs. So, forums and congresses threatening to shut down certain schools should stop.

They want multilingual education for their children, so stop telling them what language they can or cannot learn. If the government cannot protect the minority, it does not deserve support, period.

Finally, all Malaysians – Malays, Chinese, Indians and others – hate an incompetent government. So stop talking about flying cars, third national car, crooked bridge, Kulim Airport which is a stone’s throw from Penang, and endless plans for Penang.

TK Chua is an FMT reader.


Read more :

A report card for DAP | The Star Online

 

Roar of TAR UC cannot be ignored 

 

What sugary fate for PH?

 

Wee: Signal sent on TAR UC, yet Lim is stubborn

 

Infighting among Pakatan Harapan members is said to have contributed to the coalition’s heavy loss in the Tanjung Piai by-election

 Tanjung Piai a wake-up call for Pakatan



Wee questions Federal Govt's refusal to give TAR UC grants ...



Wee takes Guan Eng to task over TAR UC issue - MSN.com

 

TAR UC again made political pawn in Budget 2020 

 

Related posts:


Ministers and leaders who benefited from UTAR & TAR UC, removed matching grants to varsity


Arrest decline in productivity and competitiveness in Malaysia

Huge Civil Service Size, Attractive Emoluments and Benefits are costing Malaysia !

 

New anti-graft plan after slew of scandals

 

 

Say ‘no’ to incompetent government, message from Tanjung Piai by election!

https://youtu.be/FaO25i3biEE

https://youtu.be/ZgKFqcG5twc

https://youtu.be/d2DyEfvsIwc

The message from Tanjung Piai is really quite simple and straightforward.

The Malays are willing to vote for BN, MCA, PH or PPBM. To them, which party or coalition to vote for is secondary. Increasingly, they want a government that can work for them, not just good in hoodwinking.

Some pundits claimed that it was Umno-PAS union that pulled the Malay votes for BN. I would prefer to think that it is the “push factors” to vote against PPBM and Pakatan Harapan that caused the swing.

Frankly, I think most are quite fed-up with the PH government by now. Many must have paused to ask themselves which aspect of their life has become better since May 9, 2018.

Maybe they couldn’t find any other than the continued intrigues and infighting within PH component parties.

The Chinese, too, can vote for different candidates and different coalitions at different times. To them, it does not matter if it is PPBM, PH, BN or MCA. It shows Chinese Malaysians are not racist. They just want to be treated fairly; it does not matter which race represents them in the government.

PPBM, Amanah and PKR need to be reminded that the Chinese are not leftovers; they are productive citizens.

No one wishes to be insulted, so let no one tell the Chinese to go back to China again. This is totally unacceptable.

The Chinese value their children’s education very much because they know they can’t depend on the government for jobs. So, forums and congresses threatening to shut down certain schools should stop.

They want multilingual education for their children, so stop telling them what language they can or cannot learn. If the government cannot protect the minority, it does not deserve support, period.

Finally, all Malaysians – Malays, Chinese, Indians and others – hate an incompetent government. So stop talking about flying cars, third national car, crooked bridge, Kulim Airport which is a stone’s throw from Penang, and endless plans for Penang.

TK Chua is an FMT reader.


Read more :

TAR UC a lifeline for needy students 


 


A report card for DAP | The Star Online

 


Roar of TAR UC cannot be ignored 

 

What sugary fate for PH?


Wee: Signal sent on TAR UC, yet Lim is stubborn


Infighting among Pakatan Harapan members is said to have contributed to the coalition’s heavy loss in the Tanjung Piai by-election


 Tanjung Piai a wake-up call for Pakatan




Wee questions Federal Govt's refusal to give TAR UC grants ...



Wee takes Guan Eng to task over TAR UC issue - MSN.com

 

TAR UC again made political pawn in Budget 2020 

 

Related posts:


Ministers and leaders who benefited from UTAR & TAR UC, removed matching grants to varsity


Arrest decline in productivity and competitiveness in Malaysia

Huge Civil Service Size, Attractive Emoluments and Benefits are costing Malaysia !

 

New anti-graft plan after slew of scandals

 

 

Thursday, January 3, 2019

UEC recognition, unequal wealth distribution between ethic groups, TAR UC funding


 UEC recognition: Malays' feelings must be respected,  PM. Mahathir says while it is very easy for the government... See more: http://www.sinchew.com.my/node/1826751


MCA and DAP voice concerns over Dr M's UEC remarks

PETALING JAYA: MCA and DAP have voiced strong concerns over Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s remarks on the Unified Examination Certification (UEC) recognition.

MCA vice-president Datuk Tan Teik Cheng said the issue must take into account the feelings of the Chinese community too as their sentiments about the recognition of the certification appeared to be ignored.

“The people who supported (Dr Mahathir) include Malays, Chinese, Indians and other ethnic groups.

“UEC is not just a Chinese but a national issue, but the government only takes into account the feelings of the Malays and not the Chinese,” he said in a statement yesterday.

Tan questioned why the feelings of the Chinese were not considered in the issue.

“Is it because he considers the Chinese second-class citizens in Malaysia?” he asked.

Selangor DAP secretary and Sungai Pelek assemblyman Ronnie Liu said he read Dr Mahathir’s remarks “with concern” and expressed his disappointment.

“Excuse me but recognising the UEC was part of the Pakatan Harapan pledge. This was a promise made to the voters.

“You can’t just turn around after the election and say you can’t fulfil your promises because you are concerned about how some people might feel about it.

“I’m very disappointed with this and I hope Pakatan leaders will speak up about the importance of keeping promises,” he said.

Dr Mahathir in an interview with Sin Chew Daily said the government needs to address the unequal wealth distribution between ethnic groups before recognising the UEC. http://www.sinchew.com.my/node/1826751

“Recognising UEC is easy, just sign. But we need time to bring two to three racial groups, including natives in Sabah and Sarawak, onto the same position of economic development.

“They (Malays) feel that they are getting lesser, and this kind of imbalance is getting bigger,” he said. - The Star

Why TAR UC should still receive government funding?

Helping TAR UC will heal the nation - Letters | The Star Online

 



Private universities have no political interference because their owners are private citizens. TAR UC is an entity created by a political party and in that sense, I see no difference between it and UiTM. The huge elephant in the room is that TAR UC was gracious enough to allow my niece, daughter and my friend Salahuddin to study at an affordable price while the other allows in only one race.


Helping TAR UC will heal the nation - Letters | The Star Online

By Prof Dr Mohd Tajuddin Mohd Rasdi

I read with sadness that this year, Tunku Abdul Rahman University College (TAR UC) will not be getting some of the financial assistance it received over the past 50 years.

The Pakatan Harapan government, on Dec 6, said in Parliament that the government would only provide TAR UC with a development fund of RM5.5 million, not the RM30 million matching grant it had been getting under the previous Barisan Nasional government.

The reason for this retraction of funding was that TAR UC has political ties with MCA. My utmost respect to the principle behind the reason given, as well as to Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng who has foiled critics who would like us to think that he favours one race.

But I would like to go on record to say I believe the funding for TAR UC should be continued. My reasons are as follows.

Firstly, TAR UC has never indulged in any extremist activities that would destroy our nation-building efforts to create a harmonious society.

I have read that Universiti Teknologi Malaysia once held a seminar attacking the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community, while Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) held a conference attacking our fellow Christian citizens. Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia also held a forum on the conditions to kill Malaysian citizens who are considered, under Pahang mufti Abdul Rahman Osman’s classification, “kafir harbi”.

These three shameful acts of bigotry and extremism have no place in a Malaysia where tolerance and respect for diversity form its two main anchors of co-existence. I do not remember TAR UC acting in this shameful manner, which is a testament to its commitment to producing level-headed Malaysians devoid of a sense of bigotry or racial and religious extremism.

Secondly, TAR UC has been providing high quality education at a most affordable fee that has put hundreds of thousands of young Malaysians into the job market and created a good and tolerant society.

Agriculture and Agro-Based Industry Minister Salahuddin Ayub is one such character. A man of strong Islamic faith and commitment, he follows the true path of Islam, not the brand touted by his former party, PAS, which supports leaders who have been tainted with massive corruption and hurtful messages of extremism.

I, too, sent my niece and daughter to TAR at one time. My niece was studying for a certificate in fashion design and my daughter took a diploma in Mass Communications. Both have turned out to be well-rounded citizens. My niece once worked in the office of former Skudai assemblyman Dr Boo Cheng Hau while my daughter became a journalist with BFM and is now a full-time lecturer at First City University College, having obtained a masters degree from Monash University.

Neither of them ever said a word to me about being discriminated against while they were there. Both enjoyed studying there and have no qualms about recommending TAR to other Malay families.

For that, I wish to credit MCA for being a party that has put the interest of the country above any racial ideology, although the party is one which supports a race-based philosophy.

I would like to go on record again to say that I am against any race-based or religious party and would not hesitate to support a law that disallows any political party to be based on religious or ethnic grounds. I would not hesitate to sign a memorandum outlawing the existence of parties like Umno, MCA, MIC, PPBM and PAS.

Although each of these political parties, except for the new PPBM, has made great contributions to its members and the country, we must move on and disregard these entities as we enter a new future. Having said that clearly and in no uncertain terms, I praise MCA for being a moderate party which contributed greatly to nation-building during Malaya’s formative years, and for its sacrifice in setting up and sustaining TAR UC until now.

With respect to Lim’s principle that TAR UC can be given funding if it severs ties with MCA, I would say that while the minister’s principle is most admirable and idealistic, non-political interference in some universities in Malaysia is impractical.

As long as UiTM exists, there will always be political interference. As long as public universities have 80% funding and not 50%, there will be interference simply because these entities belong to the people of Malaysia.

Private universities have no political interference because their owners are private citizens. TAR UC is an entity created by a political party and in that sense, I see no difference between it and UiTM. The huge elephant in the room is that TAR UC was gracious enough to allow my niece, daughter and my friend Salahuddin to study at an affordable price while the other allows in only one race.

I therefore have no problem with TAR UC being “politically connected” to MCA. Has MCA ever raised a sword in the halls of TAR UC, shouting slogans of abuse against Malays and Islam? Have its vice-chancellors spoken to derail our nation-building efforts by uttering statements that would jeopardise national harmony? I seem to recall one vice-chancellor of UiTM indulging in racial statements that, to me, were totally unbecoming of a civil servant of the nation.

Finally, if for nothing else, I wholeheartedly believe that TAR UC’s funding should be continued in memory of the father of our nation, the humble and easy-going but hardworking Tunku Abdul Rahman. The Tunku was a unique individual who did not indulge in building mega projects such as the Petronas Twin Towers, the Penang Bridge or a whole city called Putrajaya. His simple sense of tolerance, compassion and balanced political experience brought him the trust of all communities. There were other leaders during his time but they were too “ultra-Malay” to gain the trust of the whole nation of diverse faiths, cultures, languages and expectations.

The simple concrete building of TAR UC boasts no special architectural characteristics. The landscaping of the campus boasts no requirement of maintenance like Putrajaya. The students drive Kancils and Myvis as opposed to the Vios and Civics seen at other private universities. The whole atmosphere of the campus is compact, full of simple life and gurgling with enthusiasm for study towards an assured future.

The Tunku promised that we would live a life of calmness, dignity and happiness in a moderate existence of financial stability, social respectability and political honesty. TAR UC, in my opinion, speaks volumes of the legacy of the Tunku.

Let us all continue to support TAR UC as a manifestation of the true spirit of Malaysia. - Malaysia Today

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Ministers and leaders who benefited from UTAR & TAR UC, removed matching grants to varsity 

 

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 WHEN Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng, in his Budget 2019 presented early this month, removed the RM30mil matching grant for Tunku Abdul Rahman University College (TAR UC), it hurt not just the MCA but also the Chinese community. The government will provide a mere RM5.5mil as development fund to TAR UC.