Day: May 7, 2024

KUALA LUMPUR, A 47-year-old was confirmed dead while a 26-year-old man suffered serious injuries when a huge tree came crushing down on 17 vehicles along Jalan Sultan Ismail, just outside the Concorde Hotel, during a thunderstorm and heavy rain, at about 2.19pm here today.

Apart from damaging vehicles passing by the busy segment of downtown Kuala Lumpur, the fallen tree also damaged a bus stop and disrupted the monorail service temporarily as debris and branches of the fallen tree had damaged the monorail track.

Rapid KL says its monorail services were currently disrupted after a tree fell onto the tracks between the Bukit Nanas and Raja Chulan stations during bad weather.

The Kuala Lumpur Traffic Movement Operations Centre in a statement said a report about the incident was received at 2.19 pm and 27 officers from the fire and rescue department were deployed to the location.

‘Upon arriving at the location, the team reported that a large tree had fallen on the road, crushing 17 vehicles and damaging the
monorail track at the location. The fallen tree had also caused damages to public facilities, including a bus stop.

‘Two victims were removed from damaged vehicles. The first victim was a 47-year-old who was later confirmed dead by Health Ministry officers while the second victim was handed over to paramedics at the location for treatment,’ said the statement.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

The Royal Government of Cambodia is always open to and supports the strengthening and expansion of the relationship between the Kingdom of Cambodia and the State of Qatar.

The commitment was underlined by Prime Minister Samdech Moha Borvor Thipadei Hun Manet when he received a courtesy call from H.E. Khalid Ali Abdullah Abel, a non-resident Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of the State of Qatar to Cambodia, at the Peace Palace in Phnom Penh this afternoon.

Both sides discussed and agreed to continue boosting their relations and cooperation in key areas such as diplomacy, trade, investment, education, and vocational training.

The Cambodian Premier also encouraged business meetings between Qatari companies and relevant ministries and institutions in Cambodia, and asked the ambassador to act as a facilitator to bridge this relation.

H.E. Khalid Ali Abdullah Abel pledged to do his utmost to promote and enhance the relationship between the two countries to a higher level during his diplomatic miss
ion in the Kingdom.

At the same time, H.E. Ambassador informed Samdech Thipadei Hun Manet about the intention to coordinate and encourage Qatari investors to visit Cambodia to seek investment opportunities and business partners.

Source: Agence Kampuchea Presse

KUCHING, Consolidating separate port authorities under a central authority is a positive step in port management, said Ba’kelalan assemblyman Baru Bian.

He said that this consolidation would enable the government to streamline port operations, planning and development in Sarawak.

“It will also facilitate the implementation of a single vision and uniform policies for port development.

‘Crucially, by harmonising port dues, vessel dues, port charges and fees, users will benefit from consistent services and charges regardless of the port they use,” he said during the debate on the Sarawak Ports Authority Bill at the state assembly sitting today.

Regarding the composition of the Board Authority, Baru Bian said that appointments must be based on merit and should not be politically motivated.

‘Sarawakian business and professional sectors or stakeholders must possess the relevant knowledge and expertise to contribute effectively.

“Ports play a crucial role in rural economic growth, so the management of ports i
n Sarawak must be entrusted to the most capable and knowledgeable professionals,” he said.

On Jan 8, it was reported that Bintulu Port, currently under the purview of the Ministry of Transport (MOT), will be officially handed over to the Sarawak government in June this year.

Following this decision, the Sarawak government plans to establish a centralised port authority to systematically oversee all ports in the state.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

The docking of two Chinese naval vessels in Preah Sihanouk province is to prepare for a joint military drill dubbed “Golden Dragon” between the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces (RCAF) and the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) scheduled for mid-May.

This is not a Chinese military base in Cambodia, underlined H.E. Chhum Socheat, Spokesperson of the Cambodian Ministry of National Defence in a Facebook post this evening in response to a foreign radio station which has recently continued to completely exaggerate the fact by accusing the presence of the two Chinese naval vessels at Cambodia’s Ream Naval Base of “China’s military base in Cambodia and the second Chinese military base in the world.”

This foreign radio’s report is a complete distortion of the actual situation and is intended to mislead the national and international public into misunderstanding the activities and sovereignty of the Kingdom of Cambodia, he added.

The spokesperson further explained that the presence of the two Chinese vessels is an
agreement between the Cambodian and Chinese Ministries of National Defence, with China training the Cambodian naval forces on technical skills in the use of ships as well as other new technologies, which contributes to modernising the Cambodian Navy as the two countries are comprehensive strategic partners and are building a Community of Common Destiny.

Besides, he continued, the docking is a test of the Ream port, being built by the Chinese aid, and Cambodia also plans to buy such ships to serve the military in the future, not a Chinese military base in Cambodia as reported by some foreign media with political tendencies.

The previous and current Royal Governments of Cambodia has repeatedly stated that the Kingdom does not allow any foreign military bases on her territory and that the country does not act contrary to its Constitution.

The ‘Golden Dragon’ military exercise, the 6th of its kind, will be held under the theme “Joint Counter-Terrorism Operation and Humanitarian Relief.”

Source: Agence Kampuc
hea Presse

KOTA BHARU, The Kelantan government will standardise the salary hike for its civil servants in line with the public service salary hike announced by the federal government.

Menteri Besar Datuk Mohd Nasuruddin Daud said the matter was indeed in their consideration.

‘We will emulate the federal government and standardise the increase (of state civil servants’ salaries), Insya-Allah,’ he told reporters after attending the Aidilfitri do hosted by Kumpulan Perbadanan Kemajuan Iktisad Negeri Kelantan here today.

On May 1, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced a salary hike of more than 13 per cent for federal civil servants beginning December 2024.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency