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MyKad can now be processed within a day in Sandakan BorneoPost Online | Borneo , Malaysia, Sarawak Daily News » Sabah - New 2 Borneo

MyKad can now be processed within a day in Sandakan

Posted: 02 Dec 2013 12:01 PM PST

by Winnie Kasmir, reporters@theborneopost.com. Posted on December 3, 2013, Tuesday

SANDAKAN: The National Registration Department (NRD) here has installed a new printing machine that allows identification cards (MyKad) to be processed within a day.

State National Registration Department (NRD) director Ismail Ahmad said the printing machine started operation yesterday.

"NRD hopes the printing machine will meet the needs of residents of this district in response to the government's call to renew their MyKads," he said during the official launching of the printing machine at the NRD office here yesterday.

The one-day processing period is also expected to benefit people from nearby districts such as Beluran, Kinabatangan, Telupid and rural areas as it saves time while reducing transportation cost for people who commute from rural areas.

Kota Kinabalu was the first in the state to have the printing machine last year while Keningau received one on Oct 21.

Tawau is also expected to have the machine this month.

In other development, Ismail advised employers who are doubtful of the citizenship status of their employees to check with the NRD.

"Although there were cases of new MyKad been cloned, but the authenticity status of a real MyKad can be still be verified by the NRD.

"Most of the MyKads used by illegal immigrants are from lost or stolen cards, therefore employers who doubted their employees' identification documents are encouraged to come to the nearby NRD offices," he said.

Ismail added the NRD would always give cooperation to any operation by enforcement agencies in tackling the issue of fake MyKad in the state.

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Five sen up or 16.9 pct increase in electricity tariff for Sabah and Labuan FT from Jan 1

Posted: 02 Dec 2013 12:00 PM PST

KOTA KINABALU: Effective Jan 1, 2014, electricity tariff in Sabah and Labuan FT will be increased by five sen/kWh from 29.52 sen/kWh to 34.52sen/kWh.

"This is a 16.9 per cent increase from the current rate," Energy, Green Technology and Water Minister Datuk Dr Maximus Ongkili said yesterday.

Maximus said after taking into consideration the need to rationalise energy subsidies and to improve the weaknesses in the current tariff structure, the government decided to review the electricity tariff in Sabah and Labuan FT.

He added that the restructuring of the electricity tariff was aimed at reflecting the true cost of electricity supply to consumers and at the same time to also enable SESB to increase investments that would improve the infrastructure in order to provide better and more reliable electricity supply in Sabah and Labuan.

Maximus in a live conferencing with SESB staff and the media here yesterday said: "The government has approved the restructuring of electricity tariff for Sabah and Labuan effective Jan 1, 2014. The restructuring of the tariff is required to close the increasing gap between generation costs and current tariff rates so that Sabah Electricity Sdn Bhd (SESB) is able to continue a reliable supply of electricity in Sabah and Labuan.

"In determining the new electricity tariff, the government has taken into consideration the needs of consumers by introducing several special initiatives and exemptions. This includes no increase in the electricity bills of domestic consumers who use 300kWh/month and below. This covers 62 per cent or more than 260,000 domestic consumers from the total 418,000 domestic consumers in Sabah and WP Labuan," he said.

He added that the introduction of attractive peak/off-peak tariffs and Off-Peak Rider/Sunday Tariff Rider was to encourage Demand Side Management (DSM) activities and pointed out that new and existing Commercial and Medium-Voltage Industrial consumers could benefit from DSM by shifting their operations to off-peak hours or Sundays, which would potentially reduce their electricity bills.

Maximus said a discount of up to 50 per cent for Consumer Connection Charge (CCC) will be given to all new lines for commercial consumers to reduce their initial start-up costs while penalties for the Connected Load Charge were limited to five years with an exemption given for the first year.

According to him water and sewerage operators would qualify for the tariff rate under the Industrial Tariff category and special packages of 10 per cent discount for registered welfare institutions, officially-designated religious premises, higher learning institutions that were partially or fully funded by the government, as well as missionary and private schools, would continue.

"Domestic consumers who use RM20 and below will continue to be exempted from paying their electricity bills through government rebates. This will benefit approximately 70,000 consumers in Sabah and Labuan," he said.

He explained that the current average electricity tariff was implemented on July 15 2011, when the average tariff was increased by 15 per cent from 25.50 sen/kWh to 29.52 sen/kWh.

Prior to the review in 2011, the tariff rate had remained unchanged for 25 years since 1986.

However, the tariff review in 2011 was only able to cover 80 per cent of SESB's operation costs.

SESB's true cost of electricity generation is 43.46 sen/kWh.

Taking into account the current fuel subsidy of 12.35 sen/kWh, SESB still absorbs 1.59 sen/kWh for each unit of electricity sold to consumers.

However, the current state of electricity supply in Sabah and Labuan has improved compared to previous years, he pointed out adding that this was due to the federal government's efforts to provide allocations for the improvement of electricity supply in Sabah and Labuan.

This, Maximus said, could be seen in the reduction of the System Average Interruption Duration Index (Saidi), which is an index that measures the duration of electricity interruption experienced by a consumer in a year.

In 2009, Saidi in Sabah was 2,867 minutes/customer, and with concerted efforts taken by the government and SESB, the Saidi was reduced to 687 minutes/consumer in 2010 and 557 minutes/consumer in 2012, he said.

Through ongoing efforts and assistance by the government, it is targeted that Saidi will improve this year to less than 450 minutes/consumer/year.

According to Maximus, the encouraging performance of Saidi was the result of investments by the government to strengthen all segments of the electricity supply industry, which includes the generation, transmission and distribution sectors.

Therefore, the restructuring of the tariff is necessary to enable SESB to continue providing reliable and sufficient electricity supply with support from the federal government, he said, and disclosed that from the 8th to the 10th Malaysia Plan, the federal government had allocated RM3.352 billion in the form of grants and soft loans to develop the electricity infrastructure in Sabah and Labuan.

Maximus said fuel for electricity generation in Sabah currently depended on diesel and medium fuel oil (MFO).

"The global market price for these fuels has reached approximately US$110 per gallon compared to US$20 per gallon in the 1980s. This has resulted in an increasing gap between generation costs and the revenue from electricity sales.

"The difference between the market price of fuels and the price paid by SESB has been borne by the federal government. The total cost of fuel subsidies given by the federal government to SESB from 2005 to October 2013 amounted to RM4.617 billion. In addition, Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) has also channelled RM1.8 billion worth of financial assistance to SESB since 1998," he said.

Maximus added that in order to enhance the promotion of Renewable Energy (RE) in Sabah's electricity generation, the collection for the RE fund for the Feed-in-Tariff (FiT) fund would be introduced at a rate of 1.6 per cent of the monthly bill effective Jan 1, 2014.

However, domestic consumers who used 300kWh and below would be exempted from having to contribute to the FiT fund, he said.

"Considering SESB's challenging financial situation, the government will continue to give SESB exemptions on sales tax, import duties for capital goods, equipment, machinery as well as replacement parts for the development and maintenance of the electricity supply system," he stressed.

"Federal government assistance is still needed to help SESB carry out new infrastructural projects, including the Southern Link Transmission Line as well as other critical transmission projects from 2014 to 2016.

"Towards this end, the federal government has agreed to allocate RM1.812 billion in grants to implement the said critical projects. Besides that, the government has also allocated RM230.6 million during the period 2013-2014 to finance projects aimed at improving Saidi throughout Sabah.

"The government will continue to provide the fuel subsidy to the tune of RM570 million in 2014. Out of this, RM155 million/year is attributed to domestic consumers in the 0-300kWh/month category.

"The subsidy of 33.09 sen/kWh will be maintained for domestic consumers under the 0-200kWh/month category, equivalent to 186 per cent of the average tariff for that consumer category.

Likewise, the government will also provide a subsidy of 30.04 sen/kWh or 144 per cent of the average tariff to domestic consumers in the 201-300kWh/month bracket.

Maximus added that with this approved restructuring of the electricity tariff, the government hoped that SESB would continue efforts to improve the quality of electricity supply.

"At the same time, the government hopes consumers will use electricity wisely and adopt energy efficient practices in their daily lives. This is in keeping with the nation's policy of encouraging sustainable and efficient electricity usage," he said.

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Police nab two suspects in Pom Pom Island murder and kidnap case

Posted: 02 Dec 2013 11:29 AM PST

KOTA KINABALU: The police have arrested two men believed to be linked to the kidnapping of a Taiwanese woman and the murder of a man, believed to be her husband, in Pom Pom Island, Semporna last month.

Sabah Police Commissioner Datuk Hamza Taib said the suspects, in their 30's, were picked up in Kampung Bangau-Bangau, Semporna about 3am yesterday.

"We believe the two men who do not have any identification documents were also involved in other cases, as well," he said, adding that the suspects were working in the island area at Semporna.

The duo have been remanded for two weeks to facilitate investigations.

About 1am on Nov 15, a 57-year-old Taiwanese man was found dead with gunshot wounds while the 58-year-old woman was abducted by a group of armed men.

Meanwhile, Hamza said the police would continue to carry out 'Ops Cantas' at several areas such as holiday resorts in the islands nearby.

In his Twitter account yesterday, Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar congratulated Sabah's 'Ops Cantas' team over the arrest of the suspects. — Bernama

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Signature drive against Kaiduan Dam

Posted: 02 Dec 2013 10:53 AM PST

by Amy Dangin. Posted on December 3, 2013, Tuesday

PENAMPANG: Moyog assemblyman Terence Siambun has accepted the suggestion of the Huguan Siou or paramount leader of the Kadazandusun Murut community, Tan Sri Pairin Kitingan, to register grievances against the Kaiduan dam project by starting a signatory campaign.

Siambun told reporters after launching the project, called Projek BANTAH, at his office here yesterday that the signatures of protest collected from the campaign would be submitted to Pairin.

He said that if Pairin was not going to protect the ancestral lands of the Penampang people, he should step down as Huguan Siou.

The campaign, he said, is a collaborative effort between the leaders, human rights advocates, community heads in Penampang, NGOs, volunteers and the Moyog assemblyman's office.

Siambun pointed out that Penampang has 'given enough' by letting the Babagon Dam and another project, Penampang Sewerage Treatment Plant, to be built in the district.

Chairman of the Projek BANTAH, Kenny Chua, said that the communities of Ulu Papar have every right to protest the dam as it concerns their rights.

"All the community are asking is that their ancestral lands, their homes and heritage be left alone. They're not asking for money or for anything else, just for their rights to be respected and to leave their homes alone," said Chua.

The RM2 billion Kaiduan Dam will cover a 350 square kilometers area in Ulu Papar, including Terian, Buayan, Babagon Laut, Timpayasa, Tiku, Pongobonon, Kalanggaan, Kionob, and Longkogungan, where about 2,000 people reside.

The Projeck BANTAH committee said the dam would threaten the natural resources and landscapes, completely altering the lifestyles of the affected communities, resulting in the permanent loss of culture and traditions, sacred sites and the forced relocation of the communities.

Kaiduan Dam will have a 3.75m diameter tunnel to channel water to a proposed water treatment plant in Kampung Maang. The tunnel would traverse through the territories of eight indigenous communities including Timpangoh, Sugud and Limbanak, a densely populated area.

The project is also said to go against the United Nations Declaration for the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, of which Malaysia is a signatory. According to the declaration, indigenous peoples have the right to determine the use of their lands and governments need to obtain their free, prior, and informed consent before embarking on any projects of this nature, which the task force claimed had never been done before.

Although Pairin has yet to confirm the implementation of the mega dam project, he has been making statements regarding the issue, asking those who protest against the project to think about safeguarding the interest of the greater good, rather than just that of the affected communities.

And, despite saying that the project is only at the planning stage, the Task Force Against Kaiduan Dam had been receiving visits by the appointed company and consultants from alleged independent bodies to conduct feasibility studies and Social and Environment Impact Studies (SEIA).

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Youths sign up for night safari ‘fun’

Posted: 02 Dec 2013 10:52 AM PST

by Jenne Lajiun. Posted on December 3, 2013, Tuesday

KOTA KINABALU: Forced to live without electricity and their handphones, five participants of the one-night safari at Sabah Museum which began yesterday can only think of a word to sum up their experience – 'fun'!

Adrian Teong, 15, Maximilian Amex, 16, and Erik Joannes, 17, who are cousins from Papar, signed up for the night safari yesterday.

"We are expecting to have a fun time!" said Adrian, who is studying at SM St Joseph Papar.

Maximilian thought of the same idea.

"It is not the first time we are sleeping without the basic amenities in life such as electricity. Our grandfather has brought us to stay at his 'sulap' (a small wooden shack) at the paddy fields," said Maximilian.

He added that the shack was without electricity and they had to use candles to find their way around.

"It was fun, although we were made to work hard and helped him harvest the paddy. We got to play in the mud and ride on buffaloes!" exclaimed Maximilian.

Aside from spending several nights at the shack at the paddy fields, the trio also joined their grandfather for several nights at his other shack inside his fruit farm.

"The fruit farm is in Kimanis (Papar), and we were plagued with so many mosquitoes," he said.

Eric also chipped in saying he could not wait for the activity to start whereby they would be staying at traditional houses.

"That activity is very interesting," he said.

Shannon Audry Donny, 16, also from SMK St Joseph Papar, meanwhile, was signing up for the night safari for the second time in her life.

"I came for the first night safari last year and it was wonderful. I had the chance to experience staying inside a traditional house, which was infested with mosquitoes, and learn of their hardships," she explained.

She added that they were only allowed the very basic of amenities – a torchlight and their sleeping bags.

"It was frightening to live in a condition where it was dark and lacking in so many ways," she said.

However, she signed up for the night safari again because she expected it to be as fun as it was the first time.

Shermerlyn Casey, 15, from SMK Bahang, was also joining the night safari for the second time.

As a cadet, she did not find the experience of sleeping at the traditional house perturbing.

"I met a lot of new friends. The first time I joined, we didn't sleep at all because we spent the whole night talking."

She added that she was excited about the treasure hunt activity that would be carried out in the dead of night at the museum.

"That particular activity was a bit scary, but it was exciting at the same time. We went out in threes and armed with just one torchlight. We went out into the jungle, as well as into the museum to search for clues. It was scary because we heard a lot of sounds that we were not used to," she said.

The night safari at the State Museum is a programme organised for members of the public and for youths keen on experiencing life prior to the introduction of modern amenities such as electricity and television.

More than 80 participants signed up for the night safari. Among the activities that were lined up in the one night event are visits to the museum gallery in search of clues during the treasure hunt, following the fixed trail to the Ethnobotanic Park, and spending the night at the traditional houses.

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Senior citizen seeks help to end alleged bullying

Posted: 02 Dec 2013 10:52 AM PST

KOTA KINABALU: A senior citizen in Taman Seputeh who was allegedly being 'bullied' by his Datuk neighbour, is appealing to the relevant authorities to solve his problem.

The 81-year-old Wong Mui Su, who has been staying at Taman Seputeh since 1985, said his family had been living in fear since 2012 after his neighbour had built a huge bungalow next to his land.

"The Datuk is very arrogant and even threatened my family to move out of our land because our house and the fruit trees that I had planted around my land are not beautiful. He said if I do not move out he would skin me alive.

"I have made 13 police reports since 2012 and even brought him to court but he never stopped harassing me. He recently poisoned my fruits and warned my family to leave our property," he said in a press conference at the DAP Sabah headquarters yesterday.

Wong also said the plants around his water tank were also allegedly poisoned by his neighbour.

He said the reason he was bringing the matter to DAP was to ensure that his voice was heard by the relevant authorities so that they could help him end the 'bullying'.

"I have made police reports but the police also could not do anything. The Datuk is not afraid of the police. I have brought him to court but he is not afraid of the court because he is a rich man. I do not know where to go.

"My mother bought the land in 1946, and we started planting fruits in the area since 1981. I built my house there in 1985 and have stayed there with my wife and my son until today. The Datuk only built his house in 2012 but did not respect me," he said.

Likas assemblyman Junz Wong, who was at the press conference yesterday, said DAP Sabah urged the relevant authorities to take action against the Datuk.

"The relevant authorities should protect the people as Malaysia is a country of law," he said.

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