Posted: 13 August 2005 at 1:27am | IP Logged

>> I meant that a free press would help to reduce corruption. Malaysia does not have a free press now, as you rightly pointed out. Hence the difficulty in exposing corruption, particularly at the higher levels..

Changes will have to come from within, from participation of honest citizens in public affairs & public forums. Dare we hope for concientious writers & newpaper editors to advance this cause?... <<

Why Malaysia with Vision 2020 never have a free press, I see no reason the government do not want to achieve Vision 2020, if free press would help to reduce corruption, then we should have a free press now, immediately. I suggest The Star come out a new THE STAR FREE.

Posted: 16 July 2005 at 8:07pm | IP Logged

BY KULDEEP S. JESSY

LUMUT: Greed, corruption and mismanagement caused the failure of PSC-Naval Dockyard Sdn Bhd to build six offshore patrol vessels (OPV) for the Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) under a RM5.4bil contract. 

According to the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), the Government needed to pump in at least RM80mil to pay the local vendors, suppliers and contractors and another RM120mil to salvage the first two vessels, which were nearing completion after seven years. 

The PAC will recommend to the Government that it takes over management of PSC-Naval Dockyard to avoid “good money from being used to chase after bad money”. 

Committee chairman Datuk Shahrir Abdul Samad said PAC had found the management of PSC-Naval Dockyard to be weak, causing a hitch in building the six OPVs for the RMN. 

Shahrir: ‘The failure is not due to the workers’

He added that the company also owed RM80mil to local contractors, vendors and suppliers. 

The conclusion was made, he said, after a briefing by the Economic Planning Unit (EPU) on the privatisation of the naval dockyard to PSC-Naval Dockyard at a cost of RM300mil. 

The PAC team comprising six members headed by Shahrir was also briefed by PSC-Naval Dockyard workers, union officials and officers of the naval base on the effects of the privatisation. 

Shahrir said one of the main causes for the failure of the privatisation was greed and weakness on the part of the top management of the company. 

“The failure is not due to its workers, the skills of the workers or the management at the lower or middle levels, but at the top level. 

“When it (PSC) paid RM300mil to take over the privatisation project, it was promised a contract of RM5bil (to complete the construction of six patrol vessels) at the initial stage, followed by another RM25bil (to build 21 more vessels) later. 

“He (the person given the contract) saw (and said) ‘wow, I am going to be rich’ and ate it fast but did not think that this was a big and heavy responsibility which had to be carried out in the best manner,” Shahrir told newsmen after the briefing and a visit to the dockyard here yesterday.

The above is a good example of why there shoul be competitive bidding for all government contracts, rather than negotiated contracts with a few favoured individuals or companies. Please note the magnitude of the total contract (25 billion) & imagine the impact it will have on the national budget (your taxes). Letters in bold are my comments .....Mantua39

Posted: 15 July 2005 at 11:27am | IP Logged

I meant that a free press would help to reduce corruption. Malaysia does not have a free press now, as you rightly pointed out. Hence the difficulty in exposing corruption, particularly at the higher levels..

Changes will have to come from within, from participation of honest citizens in public affairs & public forums. Dare we hope for concientious writers & newpaper editors to advance this cause? Even MP's within Barisan itself, many of whom seek a fairer society in spite of the existing constraints under which they have to operate.  

This is not an easy task but, for the country's sake, I hope  it is not a pipe-dream.

Posted: 15 July 2005 at 9:51am | IP Logged

>>  FREE & VIGILANT PRESS

We all know about the restrictions on the Malaysia press. <<

Mantua39 and others, please tell us what exactly was this about? I imagine how restrict it could be? Any website we can read to learn more?

Posted: 15 July 2005 at 4:23am | IP Logged

>> A change for the better has to come from within. It will be slow, painfully slow. Perhaps too slow for those with less patience who will seek greener pastures elsewhere. Good luck to those who choose to stay. <<

Mantua39, now that Selangor will become a 'Developed State' this coming August, what do you think?

Posted: 14 July 2005 at 5:16am | IP Logged

mantua39

I am impressed too.

Posted: 13 July 2005 at 6:39pm | IP Logged

Sure, you can. And correct the typos while you're at it. Rgds.

Posted: 13 July 2005 at 2:55pm | IP Logged

mantua39

I am impressed.

Can I have your permission to reproduce yr post below in a new thread (in this forum) perhaps entitled, "Malaysia, the way forward" or something like that?

I think it's too good to languish or be restricted to discussion in this thread alone.

Posted: 11 July 2005 at 9:12pm | IP Logged

Thanks for your post mantua39, the longest I have read so far, about 10 minutes at one go, well, let me read again and again before I reply to you, meanwhile, more opinions are welcome, as usual.