SOME LOCAL NEWS

Here are my comments on some news which you can only find in Malaysia.
News No.1 - Right.....not me.
News No.2 - Incredible.....
News No.3 - I see potholes everywhere in JB no matter how 'hardworking' they are trying to cover them. Driving in JB is like the Burnout game but with potholes everywhere. At least in Burnout, you still have a good quality road to race on.
News No.4 - Let's move on please, settle this thing already! Unemployment and economic recession are more serious issues.

From personal experience, I came across the biggest pothole I ever seen, measuring at approximately 1metre in diameter! It is at least 5cm deep! Sometimes there are so many potholes in front of you that the only thing you can do is to find the most shallow ones to aim your tyres to drive through. You can't avoid them all and you really need to memorize their positions everywhere! I hope somebody invents a pothole scanner or a GPS device which can track deep potholes! They are in great need in Malaysia!

Inform cops before going on CNY break

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 18 – Selangor residents planning to be away for the long Chinese New Year break are advised to inform the police to help prevent break-ins.

Selangor police chief Datuk Khalid Abu Bakar said they can do so by filling up special forms that will be made available at police stations.

"This will help police effectively patrol their housing neighbourhoods or business premises as the case may be," he told reporters after launching a crime-prevention campaign in conjunction with the festival in One Utama, Petaling Jaya near here today

Also present was Malaysian Crime Prevention Foundation (MCPF) vice chairman Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye.

In conjunction with the festive period, Lee said, the foundation was distributing leaflets on crime prevention across the nation to help people take preventive steps to ensure their property remained safe during the long break.

The first day of Chinese New Year this year is on Jan 26. – Bernama


Man dies during police interrogation

SHAH ALAM, Jan 20 - A man who was being detained to help investigation into cases of car thefts died suddenly when he was being interrogated at the Taipan Police Station, Subang Jaya, near here today.

Selangor Police Chief Datuk Khalid Abu Bakar said the incident occurred at about 11 am when the man was being questioned about robberies and thefts involving luxury cars by a gang operating in the Klang Valley.

"During interrogation, the man asked for a glass of water and upon drinking the water, he collapsed and lost consciousness.

"A doctor from a clinic nearby who was summoned to examine the man later confirmed that he had died," he said.

Khalid disclosed this to reporters after receiving a mobile police station donated by the Selangor government, which was handed over by State Secretary Datuk Ramli Mahmud at the Shah Alam District Police Headquarters, here.

He said the 22-year-old man from Puchong was detained on Jan 15 on suspicion of being involved in robbing and stealing luxury cars such as the Toyota Camry and Honda Accord in Sungai Chua, Kajang near here.

The suspect's remains had been sent to the University of Malaya Medical Centre (UMMC) for a post-mortem and the case had been classified as sudden death for the time being.

Khalid said family members of the suspect had informed police that he was suffering from asthma. "We don't want any party to speculate as cases of custodial deaths were a sensitive issue.

The man had also given his cooperation throughout the interrogation. "No matter what the case may be, I give my assurance that a thorough investigation will be carried out and we are waiting for the outcome of the post-mortem," he said.

Earlier, Khalid received a van which had been refurbished to become a mobile police station costing RM140,000 contributed by the Selangor government which is equipped with a communication network connecting it to the Section 15 Police Station in Shah Alam to monitor the industrial areas in Section 22, Section 26 and Section 27, here.

Meanwhile, Ramli said he would propose that more mobile police stations be donated to the police to control crime especially in high-risk areas such as in Shah Alam and Petaling Jaya. - Bernama

Johor Baru council sued by parents of dead son
By BEH YUEN HUI

JOHOR BARU: Parents of a man, who died after the motorcycle he was riding pillion hit a pothole, have filed a suit against Johor Baru City Council (MBJB) claiming the council’s negligence cost their son’s life.

Retiree Tan Nguang Chiang, 52, and Kok Yoke Hing, 53, also named MBJB Mayor as the second defendant when they filed the suit at the Sessions court registrar office on Wednesday.

In the negligence suit, they said their son Tan Cheng Ming fell from the motorcycle after it hit a pothole at Jalan Daya, Taman Daya here about 3am on Aug 17, 2007.

They said Cheng Ming died at Sultan Ismail Hospital some six hours later of severe head injuries.

Tan and Kok claimed that the accident was due to the negligence of the defendants who failed to cover or patch up the pothole.

They claimed the defendants also failed to put up relevant signage to warn motorists of the danger.

In their statement of claim, the couple said Cheng Ming was a chef earning RM1,400 per month and had given them half his wages.

They were seeking RM134,400 in compensation for the loss of income for 16 years.

They also sought RM5,680 in special damages and other damages.

The couple were represented by counsel Norman Fernandez.

Home Ministry to probe Catholic paper’s action

PUTRAJAYA, Jan 21 – The Home Ministry will investigate claims that the “Herald – The Catholic Weekly” was still using the word “Allah” despite the government’s decision prohibiting the publication from doing so.

Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar said the decision to disallow the weekly from using the word “Allah” was a government’s decision and not that of the ministry.

“The case is not yet disposed of by the court. They should have waited for the court’s decision and not think as if they have all the rights and others don’t,” he told reporters after attending the ministry’s monthly gathering today.

“We have been tolerant towards other religions; If we decide to ban the publication, they will get angry and accuse us of stifling freedom.”

In May, the High Court granted leave to the Archbishop of Kuala Lumpur to apply for a judicial review against the Home Ministry’s decision to prohibit the weekly from using the world “Allah”. – Bernama