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Posts Tagged ‘Economy’

KL to get official Little India

April 9th, 2010

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Hopefully the new project would be a success. Earlier Saravanan said the new traffic dispersal would solve the problem and DBKL/FT Ministry did not consider the input from public but based on consultants. Now he is saying:

On the point that certain roads will be converted into one-way streets, Saravanan said based on feedback and suggestions from traffic experts, turning the roads into one-way streets would help ease congestion.

“However, we are sensitive to the people’s needs and views and if it does not work, there is always room to re-look at it again.

“Nothing is set in stone as it is only a traffic dispersal system that can always be reverted,” he said, adding that the aim was to bring some order into a chaotic township and turn it into a tourist destination of choice in Kuala Lumpur

So, going back to trial and error, I guess.

Also important is the maintenance culture of the public need to be improved. No point having new things when we end up throwing rubbish everywhere.

FINALLY! The Federal Capital’s unofficial Little India will soon become official when it undergoes a complete makeover by the end of the year.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh are scheduled to launch Little India in December.

Deputy Federal Territories and Urban Wellbeing Minister Datuk M. Saravanan, who made the announcement yesterday, said the project had received the final endorsement from Najib who wanted it ready by the end of the year.

“This is the BN government’s gift to the Indian community and once the project is ready, the Brickfields township will sport a new look reflecting the 1Malaysia concept,” he said.

“Work is expected to start anytime now as traders and hawkers who will be affected by the upgrading work have already been given notices to relocate to a temporary site at the Chan Ah Tong field,” Saravanan said, adding there would be a ground-breaking ceremony to kick off the project this month.

Saravanan said about 30 traders — mainly food, fruit and flower sellers — would be affected and the Chan Ah Tong field was only about 100m away, which would not disrupt their livelihoods.

The traders have been given 30 days to move out and developer Malaysian Resources Corporation Bhd (MRCB) will be preparing the site for them.

“Let us work together on this. Once everything is ready, this place is going to look good and everyone will benefit. But we can’t start if the traders are operating at the site,” he said.

Saravanan, who is also MIC vice-president, said the project was estimated to cost RM35mil and contractors would be working round-the-clock to meet the year-end deadline. He added that it was his KPI to ensure its success.

The new look will feature an entrance archway located at the tail-end of Jalan Brickfields near the Naga restaurant and the Brickfields police station and a fountain at the junction of Jalan Travers and Brickfields.

There will also be an information pavilion and food bazaars in Jalan Chan Ah Tong, fruit kiosks in Jalan Thamby Abdullah and flower kiosks behind the KFC.

The whole of Jalan Tun Sambanthan will also sport Indian-style street lighting akin to the Kuthu Velluku (Indian Lights) and Kolam designs of many colours.

The first fruits of the mega project could be seen with the widening of the inner roads in Brickfields, as well as the beautification of Jalan Berhala.

On the point that certain roads will be converted into one-way streets, Saravanan said based on feedback and suggestions from traffic experts, turning the roads into one-way streets would help ease congestion.

“However, we are sensitive to the people’s needs and views and if it does not work, there is always room to re-look at it again.

“Nothing is set in stone as it is only a traffic dispersal system that can always be reverted,” he said, adding that the aim was to bring some order into a chaotic township and turn it into a tourist destination of choice in Kuala Lumpur.

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Posted in BornInMalaysia, Indian

Tags: Economy KL Politicians

new petrol subsidy scheme cancelled

March 5th, 2010

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Looks like my source was correct! 🙂 There was rumours about the scheme being at least postponed and today it became a reality. The public can imagine the nightmare at petrol stations if use MyKad. Worse still, if your MyKad suffers from wear and tear, the hassle to renew it…

But I like the spin by minister: “The government does not want to implement something which does not have the support of the people because the government of today is a government of the people”. Quite creative I say 🙂

This thing needs more study, and in fact, there’s not news of its implementation scheme till date. All we get is speculation from newspapers. Talk about being transparent! Obviously people will be skeptical.

Hopefully the lab method will come out with something realistic and beneficial.

The government confirmed today that the proposed tiered fuel subsidy has been scrapped and there will be no fuel price increase for now.
Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumerism Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob, who made the announcement today, said the current system of subsidising fuel would be maintained.

He said a Subsidy Rationalisation Lab, which has been set up, would review all forms of subsidy in the country, including for fuel.

The government decided to scrap the proposal on the new fuel subsidy management system after considering the response from the public, he said.

“The government does not want to implement something which does not have the support of the people because the government of today is a government of the people,” he told a news conference.

He said the outcome of the study, conducted by the Subsidy Rationalisation Lab, would be used by the government as the basis to determine future subsidies.

The government had planned to introduce a tiered pricing system for petrol on May 1, together with the removal of subsidy to foreigners.

The mechanism would have required Malaysians to use their MyKad to get the subsidy at petrol stations based on the engine capacity of vehicles.

The current price of petrol is RM1.80 per litre for RON95 and RM2.05 per litre for RON97, while diesel is sold at RM1.70 per litre.

Last year, the minister said, the government provided subsidy of RM3.4 billion for petrol and RM1.9 billion for diesel.

“So far, the government has provided 30 sen and more of subsidy per litre.

“As for February 2010, the subsidy borne by the government was 39 sen per litre for RON95, 16.56 sen per litre for RON97 and 32.12 sen per litre for diesel,” he said. – Bernama

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Posted in BornInMalaysia

Tags: Economy

Working in restaurants

March 1st, 2010

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Would you work in a restaurant (be it kopitiam or nasi kandar or Indian restaurant) if offered good salary (more than RM900, chefs can earn RM2,500) and perks like free food, free lodging, SOCSO and EPF deduction? Working hours are long (maybe 12 hours shift) and probably very little days off.

The restaurant operators say Malaysians are not interested, with nasi kandar operators saying less than 60 inquiries for 25,000 vacancies. Why?

How to make it “interesting” or “attractive” to work in restaurant industry?

Why youths prefer to work in fast food outlets or shops in shopping centers? Air-conditioned environment? Cleaner? Structured work? Better customers? More decent?

Let me see, RM700++ is considered poverty rate for household income. Earning nearly RM4000 is considered average family income. So, earning about RM1000 with free food and lodging may be good deal if you are single (married doesn’t help with the lodging part). How about medical coverage and insurance? Overtime pay and 5 days work may be attraction options too. Malaysians need rest and off days for thousand and one reasons – birthday to funeral. Invest in technology to help with cleaning work, dish washing, cooking, POS, billing, etc., will reduce some of the workload.

All this will increase operating cost for business owners. Bottom line, more expensive to dine out.

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Posted in BornInMalaysia

Tags: Economy Employment

PM predicts economy on the road to recovery

February 28th, 2010

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PM Najib predicted that the economy is recovering. This is considered good news as the country can see more money, and public can spend more, and producers can make more profit. Obviously, another reason for price hike. Due to demand in industries, more foreigners may be brought in to meet production quotas and also since the locals may not like such jobs.

The employment in some industries will increase, so graduates can find job after graduating next few months. That may lead to lower crime rates too.

PUTRAJAYA: The worst is over for the Malaysian economy, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said, predicting a five per cent expansion this year.
The economy expanded well above expectations in the fourth quarter of last year on higher domestic and external demand.

It rose 4.5 per cent in the three months ended Dec 31, marking an end to three straight quarters of contraction.

For the full year, however, the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) shrank 1.7 per cent, which was narrower than the three per cent previously forecast. The GDP for 2008 was 4.6 per cent.

“With the positive performance (in the fourth quarter), the worst is over and, yes, I am bullish for 2010, provided nothing unexpected happens in the global economy, like any major power collapse and barring other unforeseen circumstances.” Najib spoke after witnessing the signing of a memorandum of understanding between Risda, Felda and Felcra here yesterday.

“We have recovered from the crisis and I expect strong growth in 2010. I am confident we can achieve five per cent this year, one or two per cent more than the earlier forecast of three per cent.” Najib, who is also finance minister, said exports recovered to expand by 5.1 per cent in the fourth quarter compared with a 22.4 per cent decline in the previous quarter.

All economic sectors recorded improved performance. In the services sector, growth was broadbased with almost all sub-sectors recording higher rates.

The manufacturing sector recorded positive growth of 5.3 per cent, reflecting the improvement in both external and domestic demand.

Activities in the construction sector expanded 9.2 per cent.

Najib said sustained growth in private consumption and increased public sector spending contributed to higher domestic demand during the fourth quarter, helped by the holiday and festive seasons.

Public sector consumption expenditure expanded further by 1.3 per cent while public sector capital spending increased substantially as the implementation of projects under the fiscal stimulus packages gained further momentum during the quarter under review.

During the quarter, development expenditure of the government amounted to RM17.6 billion (RM11.6 billion in the third quarter), up 9.5 per cent from a year ago.

Najib said to date, over 113,000 projects under the government’s two fiscal stimulus packages had been, or were being, implemented, involving RM17 billion. Of this, RM13.9 billion had been paid by the government. On average, the government has pumped about RM1 billion per month into the economy from January last year.

Foreign direct investment amounted to RM7.2 billion in the fourth quarter, up from RM6.7 billion in the third quarter.

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Posted in BornInMalaysia

Tags: Economy Najib Tun Razak Statistics

Department for Indian Development?

February 12th, 2010

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This article interests me for three reasons:

1. Proposal by MIC to set up a government agency for Indians. Now, this may be possible since there’s such department for Orang Asli community. However, there’s severe lack of funds for government, so I doubt this proposal will be a reality. Then the other communities like Chinese, Siamese, Indian Muslims, Peranakan Melaka etc. will be requesting their own departments. Maybe a middle path would be some sort of project monitoring office set up for the duration of the 10th Malaysia Plan. The question of its membership would also be a problem. One can imagine it to be crowded with MIC-affiliated people, which will reduce the credibility. If such a department does materialise, it should have non-partisan members, preferably multi-racial. However, I still think its wishful thinking.

2. The second thing is the statement by Samy Vellu that “progress had been made as many of the party’s recommendations were implemented by the Government in the Ninth Malaysia Plan”. I wonder how to prove this statement. Was the intended outcome achieved? “Many” of the recommendations may be implemented, but how well and how effective?

3. I still don’t agree to a measly 3% equity. We should put a higher target of at least 8%. That will create a sense of urgency on the seriousness of the problem.

The MIC has proposed the setting up of a Malaysian Indian Development Agency (Minda) to monitor and implement government initiatives for the Indian community, especially in the 10th Malaysia Plan (10MP).

The proposed government agency is expected to complement the Special Cabinet Committee for the Development of Indians chaired by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.

MIC president Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu said the party had proposed that Minda be made a government agency.

He told reporters after chairing a special MIC Central Working Committee (CWC) meeting here yesterday that Minda would ensure that the party’s recommendations for Indians under the 10MP would be implemented.

Samy Vellu also said that the party would be submitting its recommendations later this month. The recommendations include setting up a cooperative for Indians to be run by the Government with an initial capital of RM100mil, identifying the actual number of poor Indians, developing a Youth Visionary Programme with a government grant of RM100mil for school dropouts and the unemployed and having yearly allocations for Tamil schools.

Samy Vellu said the party’s recommendations would also be discussed at the next meeting of the Special Cabinet Committee for Indians.

“Within the next five years, the equity participation of Indians must be increased so that we can reach the target of 3% by 2020,” he said.

To a question, Samy Vellu said progress had been made as many of the party’s recommendations were implemented by the Government in the Ninth Malaysia Plan.