2 theSun | WEDNESDAY APRIL 1 2009

news without borders

A leaner cabinet
under Najib?
KUALA LUMPUR: Datuk Seri
Najib Abdul Razak, who is set
to take over the prime minister-
ship from Datuk Seri Abdullah
Ahmad Badawi, is expected
to introduce a leaner cabinet,
analysts say.
They said a smaller cabinet
would be more in tune with the
current situation and in line with
the new Umno president’s vision
to have a line-up that is solid,
efficient and with integrity.
They also expect several
ministries to merge to address
redundancy among agencies
and create a better coordinated
as well as efficient administra-
tive machinery.
“With a smaller cabinet,
wastage of resources can be
avoided. The delivery system
can also be improved further,”
political analyst Associate Prof
Dr Mohammad Agus Yusoff told
Bernama yesterday.
Abdullah said last week he
would seek an audience with the
Yang di-Pertuan Agong Tuanku
Mizan Zainal Abidin tomorrow
to convey his intention to step
down as prime minister and
pave the way for the leadership
transition. Apart from the prime
minister and his deputy, there
are 29 ministers in 27 ministries,
including five in the Prime Minis-
ter’s Department.
Mohammad Agus foresees
that based on the current situ-
ation, Najib is expected to trim
down the cabinet to between
20 and 24 ministries, which he
said was the ideal size of the
government.
Universiti Malaya’s media
and communications lecturer
Associate Prof Dr Abu Hassan
Hasbullah said the cabinet
could be restructured further,
especially ministries in charge
of functions involving several
ministries,” he said, citing the
creative industry as an example.
The industry is now being
overseen among others, by the
Filem Negara under the Informa-
tion Ministry, Film Censorship
Board (Home Ministry), National
Film Development Corporation
(Unity, Culture, Arts and Herit-
age Ministry) and the Malaysian
Communications and Multime-
dia Commission (Energy, Water
and Communications Ministry).
He suggested the Informa-
tion Ministry be retained to take
charge of the dissemination of
government information, cover-
ing television and radio stations
as well as the Malaysian National
News Agency (Bernama).
Veteran politician Tan Sri
Abu Zahar Ujang said the prime
minister had the prerogative to
determine the cabinet size.
Saying that it would be of
little use to have a large but
inefficient cabinet, Abu Zahar
said the cabinet line-up would
reflect Najib’s leadership style.
“This is the first thing which
the people see and judge,” Abu
Zahar said, adding how people
assess Najib’s cabinet would be
reflective of their support for
Umno and Barisan Nasional.
In the Umno General Assem-
bly last week, six ministers lost
in the contest for posts – one for
the deputy presidency, three for
the vice-presidencies and two
for the Supreme Council seats.
Mohammad Agus said the
new line-up would determine
the country’s direction in the
years to come before the people
would again make their choice
in the 13th general election.
“Cabinet appointment is not
for the prime minister to seek
popularity but to put in place
Najib makes symbolic visit
to Sin Chew Daily HQ
by Tim Leonard remarks during the Permatang Pauh official statement is issued by the Prime
newsdesk@thesundaily.com by-election campaign last year. She was Minister’s Department.
later released from detention. He said he could not make any com-
PETALING JAYA: Newly-appointed Sin Chew was also issued a show- ment as long as the official statement
Umno president Datuk Seri Najib Abdul cause letter by the Home Ministry last was not issued.
Razak yesterday made an unprecedented year for its news coverage which was “This has to wait for the official
visit to the headquarters of Chinese news- deemed sensitive and provocative. statement, I can’t make the official state-
paper Sin Chew Daily in what could be When asked about talk that he would ment,” he said.
described as a symbolic gesture to forge be taking his oath of office as prime Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah
closer ties with the Chinese community. minister on Friday, Najib said any ques- Ahmad Badawi is scheduled to have
Najib spent more than an hour there, tion on the actual date of the transfer an audience with the Yang di-Pertuan
visiting the press and sitting down for a of power will only be known after an Agong tomorrow.
short discussion with senior editors of
the newspaper at Jalan Kemajuan near
here.
Speaking to reporters later, Najib said
the purpose of his visit was to explain
the concept of “One Malaysia” to the
editors and also to form a conducive
working relationship with the Chinese
media.
One Malaysia is also the name of
Najib’s web portal which promotes
unity and “oneness” among Malaysians
from all walks of life, regardless of race
and religion.
“I want to be in a better position to
understand the needs of the Chinese
community and I wish to foster a closer
relationship (with the Chinese media).
“As the administrators of the coun-
try, it is important for us to have a close
relationship and a cooperative engage-
ment (with the media),” Najib said,
adding the discussion with the senior
editors was fruitful.
Sin Chew Daily is one of the largest
newspapers in the country and is read
by several hundred thousand Chinese
nationwide. Najib poses with
The paper takes a liberal view of (from left) Sin Chew
Malaysian politics. executive editor-
Last September, Sin Chew journalist in-chief Kuik Cheng
Tan Hoon Cheng was arrested under the Kang, group editor-

SIN CHEWPIX
of media, communications and leaders who are capable of car- Internal SecurityAct after she reported in-chief Siew Nyoke
information technology. rying out the trust given by the former Bukit Bendera Umno division Chow and editor-in-
“As it is, there is an overlap people,” he said. – Bernama chief Datuk Ahmad Ismail’s racist chief Pook Ah Lek.

Selangor gears up for water battle Four escape

by Maria J. Dass
newsdesk@thesundaily.com
SHAH ALAM: Selangor is gearing up
for a battle against water tariff hikes if
the federal government returns water
operations in the state back to conces-
sionaire Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor
Sdn Bhd (Syabas).
For now, the state is asking for ar-
bitration of the matter with all parties
concerned. If all else fails, it is prepared
to take the matter to court.
On a report that the Cabinet will
discuss today whether a scheduled
tariff hike should be allowed, Mentri
Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim
said there should not be any unilateral
increase of tariffs.
“If the Energy, Water and Commu-
nications Ministry wants to allow the
tariff increase, they should meet the
state through arbitration as provided
for in the concession agreement,” he
said, adding discussions should include
the state and federal governments and
the water concessionaire.
“From this, we can decide if a water
tariff hike is justified.”
The scheduled tariff hike of 31%
(brought down from the original 37%)
was supposed to kick in on Jan 1 but
was postponed to April 1 to allow the
state to initiate a takeover of the water
concessionaire’s equities. However, the
negotiations have reached a stalemate.
Abdul Khalid said he hoped the fed-
eral government will take on the state
government’s suggestion to restructure
the industry so that water tariffs can be
brought down.
Earlier, the state had found that the
concession companies failed to adhere
hangman’s noose
to the terms in the contract and that it
had failed to follow guidelines stipu-
lated in the concession agreement,
such as conducting direct negotiations
instead of via open tender.
“Syabas has also failed to keep to its
end of its deal to reduce non-revenue
water in the state,” Abdul Khalid said.
He said the state had already re-
quested that the federal government
terminate the contract but there has
been no response so far.
“We are ready to initiate legal action
as a last resort.”
Selangor had made an offer of
RM5.71 billion to water concession
companies Puncak Niaga Holdings
Bhd, Syabas, Konsortium Abbas Sdn
Bhd (Abbas) and Syarikat Pengeluar
Air Sungai Selangor Sdn Bhd (Splash)
to take over the water concession on
Feb 13.
However, on Feb 18, two days before
the deadline for the concession compa-
nies to respond to the state’s offer, the
Energy Water and Communications
Ministry via Span CEO Datuk Teo Yen
Hua announced that the federal gov-
ernment would negotiate directly with
Selangor water concessionaires via the
Finance Ministry-owned Pengurusan
Aset Air Bhd (PAAB).
PAAB offered RM6 billion to take
over just the assets of the company.
Under the asset light model, companies
which migrate to the water licensing
regime under the restructuring, need
not worry about loans for assets as
these will be undertaken by PAAB.
SHAH ALAM: Four people escaped the hangman’s noose
in three separate court cases yesterday.
In the first case, a cook, who was charged with murder,
was instead found guilty by the High Court of culpable
homicide not amounting to murder.
Judicial commissioner Mohd Yazid Mustafa instead or-
dered Yap Kok Liang, 35, to be jailed seven years for causing
the death of Anthony Puvendran Suppiah, 36.
Yap was alleged to have stabbed the victim with a “rambo”
knife in front of a pub in Petaling Jaya on June 29, 2006.
In his judgment, Mohd Yazid said Yap had no reason to
kill the victim, but that he had acted in self-defence.
Mohd Yazid said the court accepted Yap’s testimony that
he stopped there to have a drink after a fishing outing, and
went to a table where the victim and three others were
sitting to ask for a cigarette.
A fight broke out during which Yap took a knife from his
table and stabbed Anthony Puvendran in self-defence from
further assaults by the victim and his friends, he said.
Yap is to serve the sentence from the date of arrest.
In the second case, two men, including a Thai national,
were given six-year jail sentences each by the Kuala Lumpur
High Court after they pleaded guilty to the amended charge
of causing death, from the original charge of murder.
Judicial Commissioner Azman Abdullah ordered Mohd
Khairul Annuar Abd Kadir, 23, and the 22-year-old Thai, both
hawkers, to serve their sentences from the date of their
arrest on Feb 24, 2004. They and several others still at large
had caused the death of of Halim Abdul Rahman, 53, also a
hawker on Jalan Tun Tan Cheng Lock at 2.45pm on Feb 22.
In the third case, a gravedigger had the drug traffick-
ing charge (which carries the death penalty) against him
amended to one of possession by the prosecution.
Othman Borhan, 46, pleaded guilty to having 0.14gm of
heroin and 0.03gm of monoacetylmorpines and also morphine
abuse. Azman ordered him to serve a six month jail term from
the date of his arrest on Aug 25, 2008 for the offences and to
undergo supervision after his release. – Bernama