MY: Bernama news 14 July 95
Faruq abd ul-Rafi
* .. (Friday, July 14, 1995)
*
1. EDUCATION ACT TO BE AMENDED ON PRE-SCHOOL EDUCATION
2. NO COVER-UP IN "SEX-FOR HIRE" PROBE
3. DR MAHATHIR TO LAUNCH FELLOWSHIP PROGRAMME
4. ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY ACT TO BE AMENDED
5. MUHAMMAD: WE NEED YOUTHS TO BUILD MODEL STATE
6. DRAUGHTSMEN MAY BE REQUIRED TO SIT EXAM
7. EUROPEANS KEEN ON LEARNING OF ISLAM'S SUCCESS
8. RAPID ACTION TEAM FOR FIRE SERVICES DEPARTMENT
9. ANOTHER NAVAL BASE IN SABAH ONLY IF NECESSARY
10.BE OPEN-MINDED ABOUT MODERN MEDICINE
11.NO CHARGES AGAINST SABAH SIX
* 1. EDUCATION ACT TO BE AMENDED ON PRE-SCHOOL EDUCATION
*
* KUALA LUMPUR: The Education Act will be amended soon to
enhance provisions relating to pre-school education in line with
the policy to democratise education in the country, Education
Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said.
* He said that under the amendments, pre-school education would
be made available to more children especially those in the rural
areas.
* "The existing pre-school education system is such that it is
not within the reach of some children especially those from the
lower-income group," he told reporters after launching "Cerdas
Pintar", a monthly magazine for primary school pupils published
by the Utusan Group here.
* Najib said that the system therefore had to be reviewed to
ensure that it was implemented in a systematic and effective
manner.
* "Pre-school education is vital as it forms the foundation of
a person's education. Whatever weaknesses at pre-school level
will have a negative effective on education at the primary,
secondary and tertiary level," he said.
* Najib said that the conditions of issuance of licences or
registration of private pre-school institutions by the Schools
Division of the Education Ministry would be further streamlined
under the amendments to the Act.
* He said that among the factors to be taken into account would
be the minimum qualification of pre-school teachers who should
have at least passed the Sijil Rendah Pelajaran and having
undergone pre-school education training.
* "We feel that we should no longer have pre-school teachers
who have only studied up to Standard Six and without any
training," he said.
* The minister said that the amended Act would provide for
better monitoring of kindergartens whether they were run by the
government or private companies.
* Government kindergartens in the rural areas are mainly run by
Kemas under the Rural Development Ministry while those in the
urban areas are run by the National Unity and Social development
Ministry.
*
*
* 2. NO COVER-UP IN "SEX-FOR-HIRE" PROBE
*
* KUALA LUMPUR: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Mahathir Mohamad
said there will be no cover up in investigations into the
exclusive "sex-for-hire" ring allegedly involving important
people.
* "The government will not cover up anything in this matter,"
he told reporters when asked to comment on the "high-class
prostitution" ring which was busted by the police in a sting
operation at a luxury hotel here last month.
* However, Dr Mahathir pointed out that the government would be
fair in carrying out its investigations "because we can't have
one set of action against people who are well-known and another
set for people who are not well-known."
* Police detained eight members of the ring, all described by
press reports as young and beautiful television drama actresses
and advertising models. They were believed to have charged their
clients, comprising the rich and famous, RM5,000 each for their
services.
*
* The Prime Minister said action would be taken against those
found guilty no matter who they were.
* "But, what we are afraid is that sometimes people go to town
with the story because the person is a certain well-known
personality."
* "You go to town and hammer him out of shape and in the end
you find out that he is not guilty," he said.
* Dr Mahathir added: "Even then you still won't admit...that is
not fair, not fair to the people. We want to be fair to everybody
whether they are poor or rich, important people or not. We don't
care."
* He said there was a feeling of "just envy or jelously or even
hatred" against people who were successful in their life.
* "What for...Whether you are successful or not, the law must
be equally applied to everyone," he added.
*
*
* 3. DR MAHATHIR TO LAUNCH FELLOWSHIP PROGRAMME
*
* KUALA LUMPUR: A fellowship exchange programme, specially
formulated to raise the standard of education of local students
and intellectuals to the level of excellence, will be launched
Saturday by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
* The programme's Board of Trustee Chairman Raja Tun Mohar Raja
Badiozaman said a trust fund would be set up to grant
scholarships to the best Malaysians to go for higher education in
the world's prominent universities.
* "The programme's priority is for students pursuing their
Master's degree or Doctor of Philosophy," he told a news
conference on the launching of the "Prime Minister of Malaysia
Fellowship Exchange Programme".
* He said to-date, RM32 million had been donated by private
companies to the fund.
* The disciplines emphasised by the programme are engineering,
architecture, communication, research and development, economy,
petro-chemical, information technology, aerospace technology,
transportation and medicine.
*
*
* 4. ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY ACT TO BE AMENDED
*
* KUALA LUMPUR: The Environmental Quality Act 1974 will be
amended to include a provision that makes it compulsory for
companies to use recycled materials and practise environmental
labelling in keeping with the international coding system.
* Science, Technology and Environment Minister Datuk Law Hieng
Ding said the amendment would also allow the Department of
Environment (DOE) to facilitate stricter surveillance for
enforcement against those responsible for operating polluting
activities.
* "While we are leading the way in environmental control by
having complied with environmental laws and regulations, it is
the small- and medium-size industries (SMIs) that present the
greatest worry and concern.
* "SMIs are located everywhere and we are therefore faced with
the potential threat that these SMIs can cause," he said when
opening the International Symposium on Industry and the
Environment.
*
*
* 5. MUHAMMAD: WE NEED YOUTHS TO BUILD MODEL STATE
*
* SHAH ALAM; Selangor carries a heavy responsibility of being a
model to other States especially in the field of industrial and
human development, Menteri Besar Tan Sri muhammad Muhammad taib
said.
* To be a model State, he said, there was a need to identify a
target group among the present and future young generation who
could help and work closely in industrial development and
progress of the nation.
* He said industrial development was the road the country has
to take to become a developed nation and to achieve this, skilled
human resources were needed.
* He added the State needed youths who possessed resilience,
mental and physical capabilities and the right mind and spirit.
* "Selangor needs youths who are committed in carrying out the
task of ensuring that the State and the country achieve their
aims for the year 2005 and 2020 respectively."
* Muhammad was speaking after opening a one-day dialogue themed
Selangor Youths: Proactive programme to build young generation
torwards Selangor 2005 at the Pan Pacific Glenmarie Resort. -NST
*
*
* 6. DRAUGHTSMEN MAY BE REQUIRED TO SIT EXAM
*
* KUALA LUMPUR: All registered building draughtsmen may be
required to sit a proficiency examination every five years, Works
Minister Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu said.
* He said the examination was not aimed at depriving them of
their livelihood but was intended to assess their skill.
* "We will discuss with architects, engineers and other
relevant bodies before the examination is introduced."
* He said the examination would make them more efficient and
aware of their duties, responsibilities as well as their
obligations to their clients.
* "I will discuss with the Malaysian Board of Architects and
the Association of Malaysian Architects and seek their
co-operation in setting the examination.
* "The examination will be compulsory. If they were to fail the
test, it does not mean we are going to withdraw their licences.
We will ask them to try again and again," he told reporters after
attending a closed-door dialogue with over 100 registered
building draughtsmen at his Ministry here. -NST
*
*
* 7. EUROPEANS KEEN ON LEARNING OF ISLAM'S SUCCESS
*
* KUALA LUMPUR: The Council of European Union plans to send
representatives to a seminar to be organised by the Institute of
Islamic Understanding, Malaysia (IKIM), next March.
* IKIM director general Datuk Ismail Ibrahim said the European
countries were interested to learn how Islam played a role in
maintaining peace and harmony among the races while at the same
time encouraged development in this country.
* He added that this was important as many Muslims live in
Europe and the governments of these European countries would like
to learn from the Malaysian experience.
* Speaking during the institute's third third anniversary
celebration, he said the seminar would be held in March next
year.
* Ismail also said social problems such as money politics and
graft had reached a level which warranted serious attention. -NST
*
*
* 8. RAPID ACTION TEAM FOR FIRE SERVICES DEPARTMENT
*
* SHAH ALAM: A rapid intervention team has been proposed for
the Fire Services Department to face any emergency, Housing and
Local Government Minister Datuk Dr Ting Chew Peh said.
* He said that the proposal was thought to be necessary in view
of the existence of the North-South Highway, the soon-to-be
completed light rail transit (LRT) and the electric commuter
trains that revolutionised the nation's transportation system.
* "The department feels that such a team is necessary in order
to be ready when emergencies occur," he told reporters after
presenting certificates to 21 fire personnel who were involved in
the Genting Highlands tragedy search and rescue operation on
June 30.
* Ting said the formation of the team would largely depend on
the government's finan#ihl capability and it required skilled
personnel and modern equipment to deal with emergencies speedily.
* On the team to deal with hazardous materials (Hazmat), Ting
said it would be set up latest by the end of the yea2 eith the arrival of the
equipment from overseas.
* He said the department now had 30 trained personnel including
19 officers who attended training in Britain and Sweden.
* Ting said Hazmat teams would be set up in high density areas
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and later extended to other states.
*
*
+0 9. ANOTHER NAVAL BAQ[ IN SPBAH ONzV IF NEhQ**P)
*
* KOTA KINABALU: The government has no plans to set up another
nar!6 base x~DMB h as)Tje existing bases in Labuan and Sandakan
are sufficient for surveillance activities in the area, Defence
Minister Datuk Syed Hamid Albar said.
* Speaking to reporters after visiting the Institute for
Development Studies (IDS here, he said however the government
would consider it if the situation warranted.
* Syed Hamid said the government would constantly upgrade the
facilities at the existing bases as part of efforts to strengthen
the nation's armed forces.
* "The armed forces is presently undergoing a modernisation
process based on the development in military technology," he
said.
* He said Malaysia's move to equip its military should not be
construed as a threat but a fact that Malaysia should be able to
stand on its own in the defence arena.
* "Such progress in the armed forces happens to every country
and should not be viewed as an arms race," he added.
* He said the cost of refurbishing the military was an on-going
exercise to upgrade the country's defence and the best time to do
it would be when the country was peaceful and its economy robust.
*
*
* 10. BE OPEN-MINDED ABOUT MODERN MEDICINE
*
* KUALA LUMPUR: Muslims should keep an open mind in accepting
approaches towards modern medicine and healing and not to expect
a cure without undergoing proper treatment.
* This point was reiterated at the ongoing Third International
Convention of the Islamic Medical Association of North America
(IMA) here.
* "We want to discard the thinking that Muslim medical
treatment lingers only on prayers or verses from hadiths," said
Dr Lokman Saim, the president of the Islamic Medical Association
of Malaysia.
* "The main objective of this convention is to promote better
understanding, appreciation and propagation of medical treatment
in Islam," he said.
* "Here, we gather findings by Muslim doctors through the
Islamic perspective," Dr Lokman said.
* He said in modern medical practice, an abortion for example,
could be carried out without any hesitation but it is wrong from
the Islamic point of view.
* "Abortion however will be allowed if the pregnancy is found
to do harm to the mothers' life or the foetus is not
well-formed," he explained.
* Attended by 400 Muslim doctors from the North America and
other Muslim countries besides local doctors, the convention also
emphasises on clinical applications and medical research from
Islamic perceptions.
* It also updates general and specialist physicians on a broad
range of medical scientific topics including the emerging trends
in diagnosis.
*
*
* 11. NO CHARGES AGAINST SABAH SIX
*
* KOTA KINABALU: The Attorney General's Chambers, citing
insufficient evidence, have directed that no charge be preferred
against the six Sabah Premier League players arrested for
alleged match-fixing.
* In a brief statement to the Press yesterday, Senior Federal
Counsel Nurchaya Arshad said: "From our perusal of the
investigation papers, the Police have not been able to come up
with sufficient evidence to warrant a charge under any offence
against the players. The Attorney General's Chambers have,
therefore, directed that no charges be preferred against them."
* The six players concerned were Matlan Marjan, Gerard Mojiliu,
Junaidy Tuah, Matussin Bowie, Charles Tindi and G. Raveychandran.
-Bernama/NST
--Bernama