Thesun 2009-07-20 Page04 6337 Complaints Against Govt Agencies

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theSun

| MONDAY JULY 20 2009

news without borders Police question two reporters KUALA LUMPUR: Two reporters from a local newspaper were questioned by police for two hours on Saturday night over a false report about sexily-clad women entertaining patrons at a restaurant. Kuala Lumpur CID chief Datuk Ku Chin Wah, when contacted, confirmed that the police had questioned the two over the report. The reporters had claimed in their report that the service was reserved for members of the restaurant and it was provided only on certain weekends. The newspaper had claimed that

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6,337 complaints against govt agencies

the information was obtained from an e-mail sent to the daily and the reporters, after a month-long stakeout, had smuggled themselves into the restaurant to be among the VIPs. Ku said investigations showed such a restaurant did not exist and the picture the reporters had used had been obtained over the Internet and was of a restaurant in a neighbouring country. He said the case was being investigated under the Printing Presses and Publications Act 1984 for the publication of false news with malicious intent. – Bernama

tence and a fine of RM5,000. In another raid on an entertainment joint in Jalan Changkat Imbi, police detained 13 Chinese women working as hostesses and 11 customers. – Bernama

32 gay club patrons tested positive for syabu

Uthayakumar sets up political party

KUALA LUMPUR: Police raided a gay club in Jalan Yap Kwan Seng early yesterday and detained 32 people, 28 men and four women, aged between 20 and 50, after they tested positive for syabu or methamphetamine. Kuala Lumpur narcotics police investigating officer ASP Mohd Ashril Md Johar said the premises were packed with about 500 patrons, mostly men dancing in an erotic manner. The raid at 1.30am also found the drug Eramin 5 strewn all over the floor, believed to have been disposed by patrons of the club which began operations last year. The 32 people were detained under Section 15(1)(a) Dangerous Drugs Act 1952 which carries a three-year jail sen-

KLANG: Lawyer P. Uthayakumar, the brains behind the outlawed Hindraf (Hindu Rights Action Force) movement, yesterday launched a political party named Human Rights Party (HRP). Describing HRP as a party which will champion issues affecting all races, especially the Indians, Uthayakumar said Hindraf was moving into politics now because it was the only option available to continue its struggles. “I’m not a politician. I’m just a political activist, a political worker,” said Uthayakumar. “We need more political clout. Without entering mainstream politics, we can’t accomplish anything … can’t make our voices heard,” he said.

KOTA BELUD: The Public Complaints Bureau (PCB) received 6,337 complaints against public sector agencies in the first six months of this year over unsatisfactory service delivery. Its director (complaints), Aziz Ismail, said yesterday 4,281 cases, or 67.6% of the complaints, were resolved. He said complaints over delays or inaction made up 31.5% of the total, followed by poor service including at the counters or through the phone (18.4%) and failure to enforce (10%). “Although not all the complaints were on delays in taking action to resolve problems, they nevertheless give a negative public perception that the civil service is more of a bane than a boon. “Therefore, public servants must give satisfactory service to the public as that is what the service is for in the first place,” he said when officiating at a programme on the Integrated Mobile Counter for Complaints organised by

Developer threatens to sue for at least RM150m pg 6

the PCB and Kota Belud district office. Sabah PCB director Georgie Abas and Kota Belud district officer Mohd Najib Muntok were also in attendance. Twenty-one state and federal government agencies will take part in the programme. Aziz said by going to the ground to meet the people, it was hoped public service delivery could be enhanced as the community could directly forward complaints, pose queries or make suggestions to improve services. “This programme is a people-friendly approach to also prove the government’s seriousness in providing efficient, quality service to the public towards improving their quality of life in line with the concept of ‘1Malaysia, People First, Performance Now’,” he said. Aziz also urged the public not to make wild accusations that could tarnish the government’s image, but to use the right channels to forward their complaints or suggestions for the good of the nation. – Bernama

Undergrads ‘dismissed’ 10 months into degree course by Charles Ramendran [email protected]

PETALING JAYA: To be thrown out of a university 10 months into a degree course for not having the required entry paper qualifications can be traumatic. That is what four students of Universiti Industri Selangor (Unisel) who were studying industrial psychology in a degree programme since July last year went through when told the news by the head of their faculty in April. The students were served the bad news after an auditing carried out by the university authorities on the academic credentials of its undergraduates showed they only had a principal in the STPM examinations instead of two required to pursue the programme – an oversight by the university which led to the students being accepted for the course. The female students, all from the Unisel Batang Berjuntai campus, were issued letters ending their studies and another which they were expected to sign, indemnifying the university of legal action. M. Kalaavathi, 21, of Perak who was among those affected has lodged a police report over the matter. “I have lost 10 months of hard work which

I had put into the course and now I am told I have to resit my STPM to obtain another principal to continue the course. This will take another year,” she said. She also said the university had informed her that only the study fees would be refunded. The students have approached Saravanan Muniandy of the MIC’s Education Welfare Bureau to seek a solution to their plight. Saravanan said he has written to the Education Ministry and will also meet Selangor Mentri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim to resolve the matter. Meanwhile, a Unisel official told theSun that it was a tough decision the university had to make to safeguard its standards and credibility. “If we allowed the students to continue, the MQA (Malaysian Qualifications Agency) will reprimand us and this will lead to hundreds of other students being affected,” he said. When asked why the university did not spot the mistake earlier, he admitted that it was an “oversight”. He said the students may continue the degree programme at the university after re-sitting the STPM and obtaining another principal.

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Unhealthy air in Seberang Jaya, Klang KUALA LUMPUR: The air quality in various areas in the country deteriorated with two of 50 areas monitored showing unhealthy air quality, namely Seberang Jaya 2 in Penang and Port Klang. Meanwhile, 80% or 40 of the areas registered moderate air quality, while eight others (16%) enjoyed good air quality, according to the website of the Department of Environment as at 11am yesterday. The Air Pollutant Index (API) for Seberang Jaya 2 was 106 and for Port Klang it was 107. Among areas that recorded moderate API readings were Muar (72); Bakar Arang and Sungai Petani in Kedah (81); Pengkalan Chepa

in Kelantan (71); Port Dickson in Negri Sembilan (72); Seri Manjung (81) and Taiping in Perak (84); Prai in Penang (79); Petaling Jaya (68), Kuala Selangor (85) and Shah Alam (73). In Kuala Lumpur, the Cheras and Batu Muda areas recorded readings of 73 and 66 respectively, while Putrajaya charted 68. Eight areas that registered clean air were Langkawi (39), Kangar (47), Kota Kinabalu (49), Sandakan (30), Tawau (44), Limbang (29), Miri (40) and Sri Aman (44). The classification for the API is as follows: 0-50 (good), 51-100 (moderate), 101-200 (unhealthy), 201-300 (very unhealthy) and 300 and above as hazardous. – Bernama

Three new influenza A(H1N1) cases PETALING JAYA: Three new cases of the Influenza A(H1N1) were reported in the past 24 hours. According t a press statement posted on the Health Ministry’s website, two of the cases were imported while the third is a local transmission,

bringing the total number of cases to 874 as at 8am yesterday. So far, 775 patients have recovered while eight are seeking treatment at hospitals. Another 91 patients have received outpatient treatment.