วันเสาร์ที่ 24 มกราคม พ.ศ. 2558

Isis pamphlet on sex with female captives shows abuse of Quranic verses


The weakening ringgit is among the economic woes Malaysia is facing. – The Malaysian insider file pic, January 23, 2015.Rarely do Malaysia's politics set off reverberations in the financial markets.But now, falling oil prices and the ringgit's slide couldn't have come at a worse time for Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak who is faced with a revolt from within his own ruling party and is losing the confidence of financial markets over his management of the economy.The drop in the price of crude has spotlighted nett oil exporter Malaysia as the weakest of Southeast Asia's major economies and has also set off alarms among foreign investors who own more than 40% of the domestic bond market, The Edge Review reported today.The ringgit is at its lowest in six years, dropping 10% in the past four months, and Malaysia's foreign currency reserves have also shrunk.A weak ringgit might help the country's export-driven manufacturing sector, but the shrinking revenue from gas and petroleum exports have led Najib to recently tweak the national budget for 2015.He also revised GDP growth to a slower rate of 4.5% and raised the fiscal deficit to 3.2%, compared to 3% previously.But more worrying was the possibility of a credit downgrade, The Edge Review noted. Already, Malaysia has a long-term foreign currency credit rating of "A-", assigned by Fitch Ratings, which found that the budget revision still showed the government's dependence on oil revenues – a "key sovereign credit weakness"."The big question is whether international rating agencies will follow suit and potentially spark a stampede," the digital weekly said.Malaysia holds external debts of around US$47 billion (almost RM170 billion) in bonds "happily soaked up" by foreign investors three years ago when problems like household and government debts, and now, lower revenue from oil and gas earnings, were non-issues, the Edge Review noted.But now there is fear that these problems could see the country's current account fall into deficit, it said.How does all this tie into Malaysia's politics?The political attacks against Najib this time are centred around "ticking financial time-bombs", as The Edge Review called them, including the controversial strategic development fund, 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) which is wholly owned by the Finance Ministry.It's also not just the usual critics from the opposition bench – leading the assault is former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, and of late, other veterans from the strongman's league, including former finance minister Tun Daim Zainuddin.With old players emerging from the shadows of retirement, Malaysian politics is in for interesting times ahead, and surely, the markets are watching. – January 23, 2015.* For the full story, click here.
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Seorang maut, 4 parah MPV langgar lori

Seorang maut, 4 parah MPV langgar lori

Seorang lelaki maut manakala empat sekeluarga parah selepas kenderaan pelbagai guna (MPV) yang dinaiki mereka melanggar belakang sebuah lori di KM107 Lebuhraya Utara-Selatan menghala utara, di Alor Setar, hari ini.
    
Ketua Polis Daerah Kuala Muda ACP Khalil Arifin berkata dalam kejadian pada 9.30 pagi itu, Muhamad Asyran Mohd Najib, 20, maut di tempat kejadian akibat kecederaan parah.
    
Empat sekeluarga yang cedera parah ialah pemandu Nissan Grand Livina Mohd Fauzan Mohd Zaini, 22, adiknya Mohd Naufal, 20, ayah serta ibunya, Mohd Zaini Zainol Abidin, 52, dan Narizah Ismail, 52.
    
Muhamad Asyran merupakan rakan kepada Mohd Fauzan.
    
Ketika kejadian semua mangsa sedang dalam perjalanan dari arah Kuala Lumpur ke Jitra dan kenderaan MPV berkenaan dipercayai cuba memotong sebuah lori di hadapan, namun gagal, katanya ketika dihubungi Bernama hari ini.

Menurut Khalil, kenderaan itu gagal memotong lori berkenaan kerana terdapat kenderaan lain yang datang dari arah belakang sebelum MPV itu masuk semula ke laluan asal sebelum melanggar belakang lori berkenaan.
    
Akibat pelanggaran itu, MPV berkenaan terperosok di bahagian belakang lori sebelum diseret sejauh 150 meter, katanya.
    
Mayat Muhamad Asyran dihantar ke Hospital Sungai Petani untuk dibedah siasat sementara mereka yang cedera dirawat di hospital sama.
    
Pemandu lori tidak mengalami sebarang kecederaan.
    
-Bernama
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Between 'divine’ punishments and taxpayers’ rights


PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang believes local government elections can lead to racial discord. – The Malaysian Insider file pic, January 23, 2015.In PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang's worldview, punishments like chopping off hands and stoning for crimes are par for the course but taxpayers cannot elect local government representatives because it can lead to racial discord.He also subscribes to the view that most Malays still remain in rural and semi-rural areas while the Chinese are the majority in urban areas, if his comments against the DAP's proposals to have the third vote is anything to go by."What more when we look at it from a racial aspect which could cause the gap to widen and polarisation to happen, as well as tensions between residents in a town with a Chinese majority."Just compare the RM250 million annual income of a local council in Selangor with the RM50 million of another local council in the same state where the majority is of a different race," Hadi said."We should not see political victory and economic power as being for one race only in a multiracial society."We should not support something that can be a catalyst for instability, or something that would widen the divide between urban and rural communities, and more frighteningly, something that could result in a repeat of the May 13 riots that is a black mark on our country's history," he said.Really? This from the leader of a party that once pushed for an Islamic welfare state as its mission in the last general election, only to once again go back to insisting on hudud for the only state it runs.Is it any wonder that PAS can only be one-term governments in other states than Kelantan? It's insistence for "divine" punishments over taxpayers' rights is a turn-off, even for urban Malays in Terengganu where it ruled for one term from 1999 and Kedah from 2004.From Hadi's comments, one can only surmise that he is not above canvassing for votes among all races but will cite racial factors to deny something as democratic as choosing one's own local government.Or is he against the DAP's proposal for the third vote because that party is against PAS's push for hudud? It this a case of tit-for-tat between the two allies in Pakatan Rakyat (PR)?Perhaps Hadi should get up to speed on the fact that more Malays are now in urban areas, and that urbanisation has spread to more areas in Malaysia – even his sleepy fishing village of Marang in Terengganu.And that local government elections and policies cut through race and religion – it is about services and facilities, and planned development rather than a case of racial supremacy.If one didn't know better, Hadi sounds more like an Umno man rather than a PAS politician who talks about Islam rather than race.Hadi's view reflects that of a man and politician still stuck in the race-and-religion divide, the urban-rural gap politics of a developing Malaysia. But this is Malaysia of the 21st century where Malaysians of all stripes just want a government that represents their wishes.After all, the PR alliance has agreed on local government elections but not hudud.If Hadi truly believes that Malaysians want hudud, why can't he see that they also want local government elections. Or, at the very least, put it to vote in Parliament – the same way he wants hudud to be debated.But, Hadi rather take potshots from his fishing village home and be content with preaching from the pulpit every Friday, instead of confronting his allies in a PR leadership meeting and thrash out all issues.If that is the case, PAS has to review its options of whether to remain in PR. It cannot have a village ustaz leading a party of scholars and professionals in the 21st century. Malaysia deserves better politicians than those who just harp on racial discord as a reason not to have more democracy. – January 23, 2015.
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6-year-old sets rodeo record for sheep riding

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6-year-old sets rodeo record for sheep riding

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