Day: June 9, 2024

KUCHING, Malaysia adopts a comprehensive approach, rather than just treating the problem, to solve the issue of river pollution in the country, said Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof.

Fadillah, who is also the Minister of Energy Transition and Water Transformation, said preventive measures against river pollution have been actively pursued through state governments, local authorities and the establishment of committees at the district level to ensure the preservation of river ecosystems.

“These preventive measures can only be carried out at the community level, so here is where we bring in every agency involved and raise awareness so that everyone feels responsible for protecting rivers… a small action, yet it can save our rivers from being polluted,” he said when approached by reporters after officiating Perayaan Duan Wu (a Dragon Boat festival) here today.

He said this in response to the views of an environmental expert who reportedly said that Malaysia tends to adopt a treating approach
rather than preventing, resulting in the issue of river pollution being endless.

Fadillah said the recently established Special Committee to Address Deterioration of River Water Quality at the state level will detail integrated enforcement measures involving state, federal, and non-governmental bodies.

Furthermore, he said the direct disposal of sewage into rivers, especially in rural areas, is among the factors contributing to river pollution.

“There are still many villages and settlements along the rivers, including illegal ones, so the discharge (of sewage) goes directly into the river. it should be cleaned up and prevented from being discharged directly into rivers,” he said.

On Thursday, Fadillah announced that 25 out of 672 rivers identified in Kedah, Penang, Selangor, Kuala Lumpur, Johor, and Sarawak were categorised as polluted, involving the classification of river water quality (IKA) as class three and four.

Additionally, 72 percent, or 486, of the monitored rivers by the Department of Environm
ent were categorised as clean, while 24 percent, or 161 rivers, were classified as moderately clean.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

JOHOR BAHRU, Four elephants found dead together in Kahang Timur near Kluang on June 1 have been confirmed to have suffered respiratory and organ failure.

The Johor Department of Wildlife and National Parks (Perhilitan) said that the four elephants, discovered within 50 metres of each other, also showed signs of internal bleeding.

“The cause of death is likely due to respiratory and circulatory failure as a result of haemorrhaging and blood accumulation in various organs.

“The exact cause is still under investigation, pending laboratory test results. Bacteriological/virological, histopathological, parasitological, toxicological, haematological and other tests are currently underway,” the department said.

State Health and Environment Committee Chairman, Ling Tian Soon was reported to have previously said that the female elephant and three male calves found dead on June 1 were suspected to have been poisoned based on initial post-mortem results.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

PUTRAJAYA: The price of diesel at all retail stations in the Peninsula is set at RM3.35 per litre effective 12.01 am on Monday (June 10), which is the unsubsidised market price based on the May 2024 average according to the Automatic Pricing Mechanism formula.

Finance Minister II Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan said the fixed price and implementation of targeted diesel subsidy would see the government save RM4 billion per year, besides strengthening the country’s financial position in the long run.

“The targeted subsidy decision (by the government) is not an easy step, but one that has been given particlar attention.

“We want to curb the leakages, which have resulted in a loss for the people and the country. We have suffered huge losses yearly and that can impede the country’s economy,’ he told a media conference here today.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, in his National Address on May 21, stated the Cabinet had agreed to implement the targeted subsidy for diesel, thus saving the government about
RM4 billion annually.

However, the targeted subsidy does not affect consumers in Sabah and Sarawak.

Amir Hamzah said that for the following periods, the diesel price will be announced every week according to the current practice of the Ministry of Finance and the government will continue to monitor the current situation to avoid price instability.

He said diesel subsidy had increased 10-fold from RM1.4 billion in 2019 to over RM14.3 billion in 2023.

On the diesel subsidy landscape in Malaysia, he said that at present, with the huge amount spent on diesel subsidy by the government, the diesel retail price in Malaysia is among the lowest in the world.

For the record, diesel is sold at four different prices in Malaysia according to subsidy, namely RM1.65 for fishermen; RM1.88 for land public transport; RM2.15 for commercial and private vehicles; and unsubsidised market price for the commercial sector which reached RM3.60 earlier this year.

“At the same time, it is priced higher in neighbouring countries, a
bout RM4 in Thailand, RM4.50 in Indonesia and almost RM9 in Singapore. This situation invites smuggling to neighbouring countries and misappropriation in commercial sectors that are not eligible to use subsidised diesel,” he said.

Amir Hamzah also reiterated that the amount the goverment saved would ensure more resources could be channelled to other critical sectors which will directly improve the people’s quality of life, including public infrastructure, healthcare and education.

As such, he said that through the targeted subsidy, smuggling and misappropriation of diesel would no longer be lucrative activities, which could then, logically, be reduced drastically.

“I want to emphasise that what the government is doing today is re-target the subsidy to those who are eligible only. We want to stop the leakages which have resulted in a loss for the people and the country.

“Every year, we suffer huge losses and this can hamper the prosperity we deserve. This is a government decision to strengthen the country’
s long-term financial position,’ he said.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

SEPANG, New Zealand Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters has departed for the Philippines today after concluding a four-day working visit to Malaysia.

The republic will be Peters’ third stop of a four Southeast Asian nations tour after Vietnam and Malaysia, a trip that demonstrates New Zealand’s policy of prioritising cooperation with the dynamically developing region.

The Malaysia Airlines MH 704 flight carrying Peters and his delegation departed from the Kuala Lumpur International Airport Terminal 1 here, at 10.07 am.

Also present during the sending off ceremony was Foreign Affairs Ministry’s Cambodia-Laos-Myanmar-Vietnam (CLMV) and Oceania Division Undersecretary Ismail Mohamad Bkri.

During his visit, Peters paid a courtesy call on Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim on Friday (June 7) where both leaders expressed the commitment of Malaysia and New Zealand to strengthen and further expand bilateral cooperation, especially in the energy transition, trade and investment,
education and defence sectors.

Peters also visited the iconic Masjid Negara yesterday in Kuala Lumpur and spent around 20 minutes exploring the mosque, learning about its history, design, and various programmes of the National Mosque.

Malaysia and New Zealand established diplomatic relations on Sept 25, 1957, and the ties have remained strong and stable.

Malaysia consistently welcomes an increasing number of tourists from New Zealand each year, with 18,238 New Zealanders visiting Malaysia in 2022. Additionally, over 17,000 Malaysians are residing in New Zealand.

In the Pacific region, Malaysia is New Zealand’s second-largest trading partner, with the total trade volume between the two countries reaching RM6.32 billion (US$1.42 billion) as of June 2023.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

KUANTAN, A school operation assistant who tragically perished in an accident at Jalan Kuantan-Segamat early this morning was scheduled to go on a mandatory retirement next month after working at the school for over 20 years.

Siti Zulaikha Hamzah, 25, said her father, Hamzah Ahmad, 60, a staff member at Sekolah Kebangsaan Jeram, Masjid Tanah, Melaka, was supposed to start his retirement on July 7.

‘At first, he was reluctant to join the trip to Terengganu because he was not keen on travelling, but his friends insisted as he was scheduled to retire,’ she told reporters when met at the mortuary of Tengku Ampuan Afzan Hospital here today.

Siti Zulaika said her father became reserved in the days leading up to the trip.

Hamzah, who passed away while receiving treatment at the hospital, will be laid to rest at the Kampung Londang Muslim Cemetery in Masjid Tanah, Melaka after the post-mortem is completed.

In the accident, a teacher, Hasnatul Adilah Hassan, 48, died at the scene, and the second driver of the tou
r bus, Hadi Asyraf Mad Idris, 29, passed away en route to the hospital.

The crash between the bus and a trailer near the Bahau junction also injured 36 others.

The bus that carried 39 passengers comprising Sekolah Kebangsaan Jeram’s teachers and their children went out of control, hit the trailer lorry laden with iron coils, and overturned on the road at about 1.30 am.

The group was on its way to Terengganu to attend a programme.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency