4 theSun | TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 15 2009

PUASA TIMES news without borders

PERLIS Break Fast 7.20pm
Imsak (tomorrow) 5.43am

KOTA SETAR Break Fast 7.20pm

Imsak (tomorrow) 5.43am

PENANG Break Fast 7.19pm

10 accident-prone areas upgraded
KUALA LUMPUR: Ten areas along federal Musang-Kuala Krai.
Imsak (tomorrow) 5.43am
roads that have been identified as blackspots Shaziman said the upgrading of the roads
or high accident risk areas are being upgraded did not involve a large cost.
KUANTAN Break Fast 7.08pm and improved to prevent road accidents, Works “Sometimes we just need to
Imsak (tomorrow) 5.34am Minister Datuk Seri Shaziman make changes to the geom-
Abu Mansor said yester- etry of the roads or increase
KUALA Break Fast 7.08pm day.
Seven d ie o n traffic lights and that does
TERENGGANU “Until now, upgrading
ik ap not cost much,” he said.
Imsak (tomorrow) 5.32am
and improvement work Day 1 of Op s S He said he had also is-
has been 40% completed PU R: Se ve n deaths sued directives to highway
KOTA BARU Break Fast 7.12pm KUALA LU M
and will be fully completed ts were recorded concession companies to
and 874 acciden
Imsak (tomorrow) 5.40am by the end of November,”
the first da y of the 20th Ops temporarily halt all up-
he told reporters after on grading and improvement
Sikap on Sunday. a Bukit Aman
IPOH Break Fast 7.16pm launching the Works Minis- According to works for 10 days begin-
of the deaths
Imsak (tomorrow) 5.40am try 2009 Road Safety Cam- statement, five ents on federal ning Sept 17 to smoothen
paign at the north-bound occurred in accid on state roads road users’ journeys
ch
PETALING JAYA Break Fast 7.14pm Dengkil rest and recreation roads and one ea ds. home.
/SHAH ALAM area here. and municipal roa s were travel- “We also asked them
Imsak (tomorrow) 5.39am The areas are Jalan Four of the victim were pillion to ensure that all lanes
two
Serting Tengah in Negri ling in vehicles, s a pedestrian. at toll plazas were open
KUALA LUMPUR Break Fast 7.14pm riders an d one wa
Sembilan, Jalan Damar recorded the and to prepare additional
/PUTRAJAYA Laut-Pantai Remis in Perak, Municipal roads cidents with lanes if needed to reduce
Imsak (tomorrow) 5.39am nu mb er of ac
Jalan Alor Setar-Kangar, Jalan highest fed er al roads congestion,” he said. “cermat” (careful), A for “adab sopan” (courteous),
430, follo we d by
Butterworth-Alor Setar, Jalan s (122), highways Shaziman said that to R for “berfikiran rasional” (rational thinking) and E
SEREMBAN Break Fast 7.12pm (186), state road
Kuala Terengganu-Kuantan, ds (46). reduce road deaths, his for “etika” (ethical).
Imsak (tomorrow) 5.38am (90) and other roa 4 summonses
Jalan Kuantan-Segamat, A total of 11,10 ministry had launched “This campaign is to instill noble values as their
Jalan Batu Pahat-Kluang, were issued. pt a road safety initiative driving lifestyle. This campaign is not a spur of
MALACCA Break Fast 7.11pm on until Se
Jalan Klang-Teluk Intan, Jalan The operation is based on noble values the moment thing as to instill the C.A.R.E. culture
Imsak (tomorrow) 5.36am Muar-Melaka and Jalan Gua 27. – Bernama called C.A.R.E. – C for needs continuous effort,” he said. – Bernama

JOHOR BARU Break Fast 7.05pm

Selcat praises district office

Imsak (tomorrow) 5.30am

KUCHING Break Fast 6.40pm

Imsak (tomorrow) 5.06am

KOTA KINABALU Break Fast 6.17pm

for detailed records

Imsak (tomorrow) 4.40am
www.islam.gov.my/portal/puasa.php

by Maria J. Dass Marzuki suggested that assem- Klang district of-

newsdesk@thesundaily.com
SHAH ALAM: The Selangor Select
Committee for Competency, Trans-
parency and Accountability (Selcat)
praised Sabak Bernam district officer
Marzuki Hussin and his team yes-
terday for their “detailed upkeep of
records” on how the assemblymen in
that district spent their allocations.
Selcat member Edward Lee said
the committee is impressed with the
records kept by the district office.
He said the system used is one
of the best among the district offices
that have appeared before the com-
mittee.
Testifying in Selcat’s public hear-
ing on the 2008 and 2009 constitu-
ency allocations, Marzuki agreed with
the committee members it was not
prudent for assemblymen to spend
their entire year’s allocation in the
first two months of the year.
“This is the same as spending
one’s salary before the end of the
month and that is how we end up
with other ills, like people borrowing
money from Alongs and so on, all
because of poor management,” he
said.
blymen present their forecasted
expenditure to a committee set
up to monitor the spending of the
allocations, and that the money be
released according to a fixed sched-
ule, for example half yearly.
He said that just before the last
general election, the district office
received a “storm” of applications for
the assemblymen’s allocations.
“I approved the applications as
long as they adhered to the proce-
dures and requirements,” he said.
Selcat chairman Teng Chang Khim
said the Malaysian Anti-Corruption
Commission (MACC) should inves-
tigate the use of assemblymen’s
allocations for political parties or
election campaigns.
“If there are false claims or
misappropriation of funds for party
or campaign purposes, or proof of
criminal breach of trust, this comes
under the purview of the MACC,” he
said.
He said this when asked what
action will be taken against as-
semblymen who use their allocation
for political parties and election
campaigns.
This followed disclosures in the
fice records which
showed that the
former Kota Alam
Shah assembly-
man had sought a
total of RM30,000
for dinners and
meetings with
representatives
of MIC, People’s
Progressive Party
(PPP) and Barisan
Nasional component parties.
The records were scrutinised by
Selcat at its second hearing held to
look into the expenditure of assem-
blymen’s allocations and especially
how the annual RM500,000 alloca-
tion for 2008 was used up by BN
representatives within the first two
months of that year, just before the
state fell to the Pakatan Rakyat in
March 2008.
The records also show that
payments were made to provide
the facilities for operations centres
in Selat Kelang, Pelabuhan Kelang,
Pandamaran and Sungai Pinang.
In addition, the Seri Muda assem-
blyman at that time had submitted
17 claims for a total of RM42,500 to
Marzuki ...
praised for
upkeep of
records
contribute to polling district centres.
Allocations were also used to
contribute towards the maintenance
of vehicles belonging to the police
at the Shah Alam district police
headquarters.
The Selcat hearing continues in
October after the Hari Raya festivi-
ties with another five more district
offices scheduled to appear before
the committee.
Three PR assemblymen have also
been summoned to testify as to how
they spent their 2009 allocations.
Teng said: “This is not to find
fault with anyone but to determine
if there is a pattern where the same
mistakes are being repeated by PR
assemblymen or if new mistakes are
being made.”

Hearing of Herald application on Oct 14 MIC man faces action over

by S. Tamarai Chelvi
newsdesk@thesundaily.com
KUALA LUMPUR: The High Court (Ap-
pellate and Special Powers) set Oct 14 to
hear an application to set aside an order
allowing nine religious organisations to
become interveners in an application for
a judicial review on the ban on the word
“Allah” in the Catholic weekly Herald.
The new date was fixed after the
religious organisations said they needed
time file an affidavit-in-reply to the ap-
plication.
High Court judge Datuk Lau Bee Lan
made the decision in her chambers.
Last month, the High Court allowed
the Islamic religious organisations from
seven states and the Federal Territory,
together with Malaysia Chinese Muslim
Association, to be interveners in the ap-
plication filed by Herald’s publisher, the
Catholic archbishop of Kuala Lumpur.
The Islamic religious organisations
had established that they had legal in-
terest as they are advisers to the head
of state, sultan or yang di-pertua of the
states. The Malaysia Chinese Muslim
Association also established that it had
legal interest.
On Feb 16, Archbishop Tan Sri Murphy
Pakiam, as publisher of Herald, filed for a
judicial review to quash the decision of
the Home Ministry and the government
dated Jan 7, 2009, that the applicant’s
publication permit for the period Jan 1 to
Dec 31, 2009, is subject to the condition
that he be prohibited from using the word
“Allah” in Herald.
The archbishop is also seeking to de-
clare that the decision of Home Ministry
and the government is illegal and ultra
vires the Printing Presses and Publica-
tions Act 1984.
‘garland of slippers’ proposal
KUALA LUMPUR: The MIC will take disciplinary action
against one of its delegates who had suggested that a
garland of slippers be placed on the portrait of former prime
minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad at the party’s general
assembly on Sunday.
MIC president Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu said yesterday
he deeply regretted the statement and would ask the
delegate to give an explanation to the party’s disciplinary
committee.
He said in a statement he had asked the delegate to
end his speech immediately but his instruction was not
reported by the media. – Bernama
Tankers foil pirate attacks
SINGAPORE: Two tankers anchored south of Tanjung
Ayam on the southern coast of Johor narrowly escaped
pirate attacks in separate incidents early yesterday.
The pirates failed to board the ships after they were
sighted by the crew who raised the alarm, according
to the Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combat-
ing Piracy and Armed Robbery Against Ships in Asia
Information Sharing Centre (RECAAP ISC). – Bernama