Thursday, 17 January 2019

MAKING THE PEOPLE PAY FOR PROBLEMS OF THE PALM OIL INDUSTRY

So it looks like come February 2019, diesel powered car owners will have no option but to use B10 biodiesel blend, even if it is not compatible with their car's engines.

The price of palm oil has been down amidst an oversupply and palm oil stocks have been building up, so the Primary Industries Minister, teresa Kok's mandate that all petrol stations nationwide must switch to supplying the B10 blend of biodiesel from the current B7 blend by February 2019 is believed to help raise the price of palm oil.

B10 blend biofuel contains 10% of palm methly ester and 90% regular diesel, B7 a 7% and 93% blend resepctively, B20 a 20% and 80% blend respectively and so forth.






B10 programme mandatory for petrol stations by Feb 2019, minister says

Published 17 January 2019

PUTRAJAYA, Jan 17 — Petrol stations nationwide will have to switch to B10 biodiesel from the current B7 diesel blend by February 2019, said Primary Industries Minister Teresa Kok.

She said the B10 biodiesel programme was rolled out in December last year for the transportation sector, and has been implemented in phases. 

"The B10 programme targets to increase the blending ratio of palm biofuel in diesel from seven per cent to 10 per cent.

"The government has announced the B10 mandate for the transportation sector as part of the crude palm oil supply management mechanism to stabilise palm oil prices by reducing the high domestic stock level and increasing the sustainability of energy sources," she said in her keynote address at the Palm Oil Economic Review and Outlook Seminar 2019 here today. 

Her speech was read by her deputy, Datuk Seri Shamsul Iskandar Md Akin.

Kok said the B7 programme for the industrial sector would be implemented starting July 1 this year, which would boost local demand for palm oil to 386,993 tonnes per year from the current 373,512 tonnes. 

"The mandatory implementation (of the programmes) in both sectors is estimated to require 760,505 tonnes of palm oil annually and is expected to have a positive impact on palm oil prices," she said.

Kok said the government also planned to increase the biodiesel blend from B10 to B20 by 2020.

She said the local palm oil industry's performance last year was somewhat mixed, with the industry recording a 3.6 per cent growth in the export of palm oil products. 

"But the crude palm oil (CPO) price declined to an average of RM2,232 a tonne in 2018 from RM2,783 in 2017, influenced by the weaker soybean oil price, its main competitor in the world market, and a high domestic palm oil stockpile," she added.

As a result, the revenue from palm oil products dropped by 12.3 per cent to RM62.68 billion during the January -November period in 2018, compared to RM71.44 billion in the corresponding period of 2017. 

"Overall, it was a very challenging year for the trade in vegetable oils and fats. 

"The Malaysian palm oil industry is facing numerous challenges arising from the build-up of domestic palm oil stocks, the United States-China trade tensions and the weakened ringgit against the US dollar. Collectively, this has caused the downtrend in the palm oil price," Kok said. 

To ensure sustainable production, Kok said the government was committed to implementing the Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil (MSPO) certification that would become mandatory on Jan 1, 2020.

The certification will elevate the country's palm oil industry to international standards and widen its market access in the wake of changing global consumer concern. 

It would also mark a significant step towards aligning and branding the Malaysian palm oil to globally accepted sustainability practices.

Kok said the government has also launched the "Love My Palm Oil" campaign this year as part of efforts to change the negative perception on Malaysian palm oil.

"Attempts to discredit palm oil will continue to crop up from time to time.

"We cannot afford to act alone to face all the challenges. Therefore, both Malaysia and Indonesia, are working together to address various issues and biased allegations related to the palm oil trade under the Council of Palm Oil Producing Countries," she added. — Bernama


Whilst this three percentage points increase in the percentage of palm methyl ester in B10 biodiesel compared to B7 biodiesel is expected to increase the price of crude palm oil, which in turn will help raise the income of oil palm smallholders, however, however according to automotive blogger Paul Tan, B10 biofuel potentially poses risks of some negative impact on the diesel engines of certain car models which the manufacturers say are not compatible with B10 biodiesel, and at the same time negatively impact the warranty terms, even though Tan concludes that these risks of long term damage to the car's engines are not as bad made out to be.

Paul Tan writes:-  

B10 biodiesel in Malaysia – separating fact from fiction

In Cars, Feature Stories, Local News / By Jonathan Lee / 27 January 2017

Ever since the nationwide introduction of B10 biodiesel was first mooted back in 2015, there's been a lot of conjecture regarding the fuel's suitability for Malaysia's diesel-powered vehicles.

So far, a number of companies including BMW Group Malaysia, UMW Toyota Motor, Volkswagen Group Malaysia and Isuzu Malaysia have stated that their cars will not be able to use the fuel, with BMW in particular citing international studies on the potential engine damage biofuels can cause. As such, the wider perception is that the higher biodiesel blend is harmful to engines.

Not helping matters is the fact that the B10 rollout has been delayed several times – originally slated to come into force in October 2015, it was pushed back to June last year, then to December. Last we heard, the implementation has been deferred indefinitely, although that is said to have been due to the unfavourable price of crude palm oil versus that of regular diesel.

The Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) has sought to clear any misconceptions and address public concerns regarding B10 biodiesel, and as such it has shared its research and findings with paultan.org in order to present a clearer picture on just what kind of effect the fuel will have on diesel engines.

B10 biodiesel – a background

The B10 blend that was slated to be introduced at petrol stations nationwide consists of 10% palm methyl ester and 90% regular diesel fuel. Cleaner Euro 5 diesel will remain on a B7 blend, as will all diesel fuels sold in the highlands such as Cameron and Genting Highlands.

There are a number of reasons why Malaysia is pushing for higher biodiesel blends. The first is the potential of reduced air pollution – it is claimed that the switch to B10 biodiesel could cut emissions by an amount equivalent to 100,000 diesel vehicles on the road.

Increasing the blend would also reduce the dependency on fossil fuels, which would better safeguard the country against foreign exchange volatility. But of course, one very big reason is that Malaysia is the world's second largest producer of palm oil, and the use of local resources as renewable fuel would indirectly support oil palm smallholders and related industries.

Biodiesel blends aren't new here, of course. The country introduced B5 biodiesel in June 2011, followed by B7 in December 2014. But Malaysia has lagged behind certain countries, particularly Indonesia – the latter has been using B10 since 2013, then moved to B15 in 2015 and B20 last year. In fact, MPOB claims the usage of B20 there is at 90% versus regular diesel (B0).

Engine damage concerns regarding B10 biodiesel

Car manufacturers have raised issues with the use of B10 biodiesel, specifically the damage the fuel could cause to diesel engines. The list of potential problems is fairly long and includes fuel filter plugging, deposits on fuel injectors, material deterioration, engine oil dilution and degradation as well as component damage.

BMW Malaysia went one step further, highlighting a 2012 joint statement by five diesel injector manufacturers, Delphi, Denso, Bosch, Continental and Stanadyne, detailing the possible effects of fatty-acid methyl ester (FAME) biofuels – which includes palm methyl esters – on diesel engines.

While the companies did not specifically single out any 'bad' blends, and understood the need for continually revising standards, they raised issues regarding reduced fuel stability (leading to "plugged filters, sediments and sticking moving parts"), impurities in the fuel and compatibility issues with older vehicles (most likely affecting filters, hoses and seals) with the use of FAME in fuels.

However, MPOB pointed out that the statement itself stated that the European FAME standard EN 14214:2009 is being revised extensively to facilitate blending of up to B10, which the manufacturers support.

The board also drew our attention to fuel trials that it has conducted. The first phase, involving 31 vehicles running on regular diesel and B100 palm methyl ester, took place from 1986 to 1989, while the second phase with 36 buses running B0, B50 and B100 blends was conducted between 1990 and 1994. The ongoing third phase, involving 25 vehicles running on B10 and B20, has been going on since 2013.

Other bodies have also conducted tests, including DBKL and the Malaysian Biodiesel Association (MBA); Colombia also held trials on B5, B10, B20, B30 and B50 palm methyl ester blends from 2009 to 2010. But by far the most thorough test was conducted by the Japan Auto-Oil Programme (JATOP) and the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association (JAMA) from 2007 to 2011, which tested six different methyl esters.

All tests observed little to no fuel filter plugging or injector deposits. There was some degradation of engine oil using palm methyl esters, but they were within the acceptable limit of the used oil performance test. The tests also showed regular component wear and tear, as well as no significant impact on engine performance.

However, MPOB found issues with material deterioration, such as the peeling of fuel tank coatings and paintwork, hardened fuel hoses, erosion on copper and lead and the dissolving of chloroprene materials – the board suggested switching to Teflon coatings and stainless steel braided hoses.

Meanwhile, JATOP and JAMA's testing of different methyl esters showed that palm methyl ester performed better than soy, walnut oil, coconut, rapeseed and jatropha methyl esters. In fact, in a B10 blend palm methyl ester was deemed to be slightly better than regular diesel in certain aspects, including fuel flow and engine torque, and was shown to have cleaned fuel injectors, whereas regular diesel did not.

Another test was conducted with B20 biodiesel on Denso fuel injectors in Japan, witnessed by an Indonesian government delegation in 2014. While the fuel was found to have deteriorated more quickly under high temperatures and affected the diamond-like carbon (DLC) coating of one injector, there was no change in fuel flow, nor any biopolymer deposits, after the test. Oxidation stability was quoted at 79 hours, lower than regular diesel at 113 hours, but way higher than B100's eight hour figure.

JAMA's feedback and conditions

For what it's worth, JAMA has stated that it does not oppose Malaysia's implementation of B10 biodiesel, so long as its conditions were met. These include a water content of less than 200 parts per million (ppm) and an oxidation stability of more than 35 hours, both of which MPOB has managed to accommodate.

The association also wanted the B10 blend to be limited to grades Euro 4 and below, so the Euro 5 diesel fuel currently sold in selected stations nationwide will remain on a B7 formulation. Diesel fuels sold in the highlands, such as Cameron and Genting Highlands, will also stick to a B7 blend, due to concerns over the gelling of biodiesel at lower temperatures.

However, JAMA has also stated that warranty coverage would be provided at the discretion of vehicle manufacturers, and is not guaranteed by the association.

So, is it safe?

As far as MPOB is concerned, the bevy of laboratory and real-world engine testing conducted both locally and in other countries shows that there will be no problems that will arise from B10 biodiesel. It has also stated that both it and the ministry of plantation industries and commodities (MPIC) will continue to engage relevant stakeholders in order to ensure a smooth implementation of the B10 programme.

During the presentation, it stressed that the B10 blend only represents a 3% increase in biodiesel content, and said that it believes carmakers would provide the same level of warranty after the B10 rollout. Of course, we would recommend that users clarify with the respective companies before using B10 biodiesel.

So far, Mercedes-Benz Malaysia has stated that its diesel-powered vehicles, which consist of the CLS 250d and GLE 250d, as well as the discontinued E 300 BlueTEC Hybrid, would be compatible with B10 biodiesel – rescinding an earlier, contradictory statement. Nasim has given the same reassurance for the Peugeot 508 GT HDi.

Manufacturers providing conditional coverage for vehicles powered by B10 biodiesel include Toyota, Nissan, Mitsubishi, Scania and Volvo Trucks, while BMW, CAMC, Ford, Grand Tiger, Hyundai, Isuzu, JLR, Mazda, Mitsubishi Fuso, Kia, Porsche and Chevrolet have said that their cars cannot be powered by the fuel. However, Isuzu has stated that its light- and medium-duty lorries (not pick-ups or older models, which cannot use B10) will be compatible with B10 biodiesel after a change of hoses.

Overall, while consumers should still be cautious about using B10 biodiesel and make sure that their vehicles are compatible with the fuel before using it, it does appear that the issue has been made more serious than it actually is. For those of you who are wary, or own a car that cannot be run on B10, there's always B7 Euro 5 diesel as an answer.


The problem here is that with all petrol stations being mandated to supply B10 diesel, owners of cars whose engines are deemed incompatible with B10 will have no choice but to use B10 biodiesel.

Can't the minister find other ways to boost palm oil usage to raise crude palm oil prices without putting car owners at risk of having to bear higher cost of maintenance of their vehicles?

This is a case of making ordinary people pay for problems of the palm oil industry.

Yours trully


Politischeiss

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Tuesday, 15 January 2019

GOOD! AT LAST THE GOVERNEMNT IS DOING SOMETHING TO REIN IN THE DEBT



PUTRAJAYA, 15 Jan — The Prime Minister's Office (PMO) today announced the establishment of the Debt and Liability Management Committee, which is tasked with reducing the government's debt and liabilities to a manageable level within 18 months.

PMO in a statement today said the committee would report directly to Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

The five committee members are experts in finance, economics, and law.

They are Treasury secretary-general Datuk Ahmad Badri Mohd Zahir,  Attorney General's Chambers head of advisory division To' Puan Azian Mohd Aziz, economic adviser to the Prime Minister Dr Muhammed Abdul Khalid, Bank Negara Malaysia board member Gooi Hoe Soon and Securities Commission board member Faris Rabidin.

PMO said the appointments were effective immediately.

The committee was proposed during the tabling of the 2019 Budget in November last year. — Bernama


POLITISCHEISS

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Monday, 14 January 2019

WHY DOES THE PAKATAN GOVERNMENT STILL ALLOW CHICKEN EXPORTS???

The high and rising cost of living was one of the reasons why Malaysians voted out the former Barisan Nasional government and voted in the present Pakatan Rakyat government which promised to reduce the cost of living, but the cost of living remains high and has risen slightly in some instances.

Now we learn that the high prices of chicken is because there is a shortage in the domestic market due to chicken being exported.

What is the Pakatan government doing about chicken and other foods being exported whilst we have shortages and high prices at home?

Is Malaysia so hard pressed for foreign exchange that we must export chicken or is it the opportunism and greed of the chicken farmers? 

Free Malaysia Today article follows below:-




Mydin boss cries fowl over chicken export amid supply shortage

Robin Augustin - January 13, 2019 7:00 AM

PETALING JAYA: Retail tycoon Ameer Ali Mydin has called for a ban on export of chickens as a supply shortage threatens to push up prices of the popular food.

Ameer, who owns Mydin hypermarkets, said there had been a 50% drop in the supply of chickens to his stores.

"The chickens are sold out by afternoon at our hypermarkets," he told FMT.

"This shortage has likely contributed to the RM3 increase in prices in just one month, from RM6 per kg to RM9 per kg."

Ameer also referred to reports that the price of chicken has shot up from RM7.70 to RM10 per kg in Johor Bahru.

A daily recently quoted a seller as saying that most chickens were exported to Vietnam which is facing a shortage due to the outbreak of the H5N1 bird flu.

Ameer said the situation in East Malaysia was also bad, where chicken prices have increased.

"But the government allows the exports which caused a drop in supply, It is the people who suffer. Despite our supposed shortage, Malaysia is still exporting chickens to Vietnam."

Ameer repeated his call for the government to do away with approved permits in the chicken trade.

"Why is it not doing anything to address the issue head on?" he asked.

He said the relevant ministries did not learn anything from the recent hike in egg prices.

Last month, Ameer urged the government to stop the export of eggs to Singapore.

Putrajaya had then said it was studying a temporary ban on export of eggs.

Ameer meanwhile said the Malaysian Islamic Development Department (Jakim), which issues halal certification, must address the chicken shortage by certifying more foreign markets as halal.

FMT's attempts to reach the Federation of Livestock Farmers' Associations of Malaysia for comment were unsuccessful.

FMT is also awaiting a response from the domestic trade and consumer affairs ministry.


Yours trully


Politischeiss
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Thursday, 10 January 2019

MALAYSIA - WITH CHILDREN IN CHARGE OF THE KINDERGARTEN

If one cares to read articles in Malaysian mainstream media, alternative media and blogs on both sides of the political divide, one will find more or less the same news about speculation and opinion pieces on whether or not Anwar Ibrahim or Azmin Ali will be Malaysia's next prime minister after Mahathir, rampant speculation on who will be Malaysia's next Agong (Supreme Head), on how many UMNO members of parliament will jump ship to the ruling Pakatan Harapan coalition, especially Mahathir's party Pribumi which is one of the four parties within the Pakatan coalition, whether Barisan National coalition members the Malaysian Chinese Association and the Malaysian Indian Congress will collapse, who next will be hauled up for investigation by the Malaysian Anti Corruption Commission, whether someone with deep pockets buys the yacht Equanmity at a good used yacht price or whether it will end up becoming a glorified sampan, the latest whereabouts of Jho Low and so forth.

And whilst all this juvenile politicking is going on amongst politicians at the top who should instead be working to strengthen Malaysia's economy and business prospects, as well as working to reduce prices for consumers, Japanase stockbroking company, Nomura Global Research downgraded Malaysian equities to "underweight", the second downgrade since the Pakatan Harapan coalition won Malaysia's general election on 9 May 2018, and one of the reasons Nomura gave for its second downgrade is the politicking which has been going on, which only serves as free entertainment for coffee shop, tea shop, pub, bar and social media politicians, and which helps sell newspapers, a major one which I hear is offering about 40 experienced staff a Mutual Separation Scheme (MSS) in the wake of a second consecutive quarter of wafer-thin profits.

Below is an article in TheEDGE Financial Daily of 10 January 2019, with key paragraphs highlighted in yellow.

(If you cannot view the embedded image of the article, please enable "view images" in your e-mail client)



On 9 January 2019, Free Malaysia Today reported:-

Growing political tensions are also seen as putting downward pressure on rating.

Below is a key excerpt from the article.
 
"Downward rating pressures could also arise if growing political tensions and diverging views within the government undermine the effectiveness of policies or impair the government's ability to adhere to its fiscal consolidation objectives, and/or threaten the stability of capital flows to Malaysia."


Malaysia risks downgrade if debt burden increases, says Moody's

FMT Reporters - January 9, 2019 12:48 PM

PETALING JAYA: International rating agency Moody's says Malaysia's current A3 stable rating could be threatened if the government's debt obligation increases.

"We would consider downgrading the rating if Malaysia's fiscal prospects weaken, or its debt burden increases," it said in its annual analysis of the country's credit rating.

It added however that Malaysia's A3 stable credit profile reflected a large and diversified economy with healthy medium-term growth prospects.

"The relatively high government debt is partly offset by a favourable debt structure and large domestic savings," it said.

This follows the transfer of federal power to a new government following the 14th general election in May last year. It marked the country's first transition away from Barisan Nasional, which had ruled Malaysia since independence.

The Pakatan Harapan administration had signalled a significant shift in policy priorities, some of which are expected to affect the country's credit profile.

Moody's said it expects real GDP growth to slow to 4.7% and 4.5% in 2019 and 2020 respectively, after averaging around 5.0% from 2015 to 2018. The rating agency said external headwinds from trade protectionism would weigh on trade activity, while a review of infrastructure projects and slowing public spending would be a further drag on growth.

Moody's also said the new government's fiscal policy choices, particularly the move to abolish the goods and services tax (GST), would narrow its revenue base and reduce fiscal flexibility. Malaysia's debt burden, which is significantly higher than the A-rated median, is also expected to remain a credit constraint.

The rating agency sounded a caution on pervasive corruption which it said was likely to remain a challenge for the government.

Downward rating pressures could also arise if growing political tensions and diverging views within the government undermine the effectiveness of policies or impair the government's ability to adhere to its fiscal consolidation objectives, and/or threaten the stability of capital flows to Malaysia.

The moderation in growth incorporates the cancellation or postponement of several infrastructure projects and slowing domestic public spending, it said. Continued trade tensions between China and the US will also weigh on the growth outlook, given the large share of trade in the overall economy.

Moody's said the Malaysian economy had transformed since the early 1980s, moving away from a reliance on commodities. Diversification has been both horizontal, away from primary sectors to manufacturing and services, and vertical through a move into high value-added activities, which has reduced commodities' share of exports.

Some of the fiscal policies that the new government has implemented are expected to undermine its policy effectiveness. Abolishing the GST will have a long-lasting impact on revenue collection in terms of both magnitude and quality, while also increasing Malaysia's reliance on more volatile oil-related revenue.

Partly because of these policy choices, a steady path of deficit reduction has been disrupted. Future consolidation will be more difficult to implement with an eroding revenue base, particularly in a weaker global environment, it said.


I guess we voted to put children in charge of the kindergarten and now have to live with the consequences of THEIR frivolous actions.

Yours most truly

POLITISCHEISS

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Friday, 21 December 2018

HONG KONG BASED URBAN PLANNING EXPERT TELLS PENANG NOT COPYCAT HONG KONG

Ha Ha!!! Now didn't I say so in my blog post of 16th November 2018???

"WHAT HAS PENANG LEARNED FROM HONG KONG, Y.B. CHOW KON YEOW?"

Penang Chief Minister, Y.B. Chow Kon Yeow may choose to ignore IT.Scheiss and other Malaysians in Penang but will he listen to this expert from Hong Kong Alain Chiaradia who advises Penang with facts and figures why it should not try to be a cut and paste of Hong Kong?

However, from my experience of Malaysians, many of us are very good at cutting and pasting and of not using our brains. I suppose that's due to our rote learning education system which has been going downhill into the abyss since I left school.

It's no rocket science to come to such a conclusion. All it requires is to study the historical materialist differences between Penang and Hong Kong to understand the materialist (real world) differences between the two island cities with regard to public and private transport to be able to derive a viable solution to real-world problems in Penang.

Some years back, a well-known Malaysian sociologist and NGO activist with a PhD, argued that Penang should not install an LRT network on elevated tracks but instead should install trams running at grade on the roads.

Sure, Penang had trams running at grade (at road level) circa in the1890s but did it not occur to this sociologist and NGO activist that Penang had few cars on the roads back then which allowed those trams to run relatively unimpeded along relatively clear roads?

Did it not occur to this sociologist and NGO activist that trams would not be able to move freely at grade along Penang's roads which are already clogged with traffic today and moreover that they would only add to traffic congestion on Penang's roads already clogged with cars, buses, lorries and motorcycles?

Free Malaysia Today article follows. 



We are not a model, HK expert tells why Penang shouldn't copy it

Predeep Nambiar
-

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Thursday, 20 December 2018

WHAT A BIG MESS IN MALAYSIAN POLITICS RIGHT NOW!

When the Pakatan Harapan (Pact of Hope) won the federal government in Malaysia's 14th general elections on 9 May 2018, members and supporters of the four-party pack (Amanah, DAP, PKR and Pribumi) were ecstatic and looked forward to the much awaited reforms which would save Malaysia from the effects of two or more decades of alleged kleptocracy under Barisan Nasional rule, including the supposed dire effects on Malaysia's economy due to the 1MDB issue.

The Barisan Nasional (National Front) coalition of 13 parties (UMNO, MCA, MIC, Gerakan, PPP and other in Sabah and Sarawak) broke up, with the Sarawak and Sabah members of the coalition leaving, followed by PPP and Gerakan, leaving a rump of three members - UMNO with 76 seats, MIC with 2 seats and MCA with 1 seat, with another opposition party PAS with 18 seats.

Recently, Prime Minister Tun Dr. Mahathir said he was open to some UMNO members of parliament first resigning from UMNO to become independents, after which they can apply to join his party Pribumi and will be duly considered for suitability.

They can also choose to join other Pakatan Harapan components parties which will accept them.


(Graphic - source Sin Chew Daily)

Lim Kit Siang, DAP advisor and a prominent leading member from the party's founding also welcome former UMNO members to join the Pakatan Harapan. 

By their defection, apart from strengthening Pakatan's reach into the crucial predominantly ethnic Malay heartlands in rural and semi-rural areas, it is also believed the Pakatan Harapan hopes to gain a two-thirds majority in parliament, thus allowing it to amend Malaysia's constitution and also that it would be able to gain a majority in the still Barisan Nasional dominated Senate, which right now can refuse to approve bills passed by the Pakatan Harapan dominated parliament.

A shocker came on 18th December 2018 when PKR President, Anwar Ibrahim's daughter Nurul Izzah announced her resignation as PKR vice-president, as Penang PKR head and relinquished her various roles in the federal government, to focus her duties as PKR member of parliament for Permatang Pauh.

Heck! News and speculation over this has gone regional, if not international.


Nurul did not give clear reasons for her shock resignation from leading PKR party positions, though her tweets and postings on social media, speculation has it that it has to do with her unhappiness with the direction PKR and more broadly, Pakatan Harapan is going in. 

The next day (19th December 2018), various media were abuzz with reports that Nurul, Rafizi Ramil, her fellow prominent PKR party comrade and former PKR member of parliament for Pandan and tad-a-a--a-a-a-a - Khairi Jamaluddin, UMNO member of parliament for Rembau were photographed having lunch together at the Alexis Bistro in Bangsar Shopping Centre in Kuala Lumpur.

This led to speculation that the threesome were discussing the formation of a new political party but Rafizi has denied that.

So Malaysians are left guessing what the trio from both sides of the political divide were up to apart from having lunch together.

Meanwhile, earlier on 18 December 2018, UMNO president Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamid, who is facing a number of graft charges in court, stepped aside and handed over his duties to UMNO deputy-president Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan.

However, not all members and leaders of the respective Pakatan Harapan component parties welcome this move and especially leading DAP politicians have spoken up against it.

For instance, today - 20th December 2018, The Star reported that Ramkarpal Singh, DAP member of parliament for Bukit Gelugor, Penang, warned that the Pakatan Harapan government is falling apart, due to the issue of possible acceptance of up to 40 UMNO members of parliament who cross over.

Pakatan government is failing, DAP MP warns

Published 3 hours ago on 20 December 2018

By Justin Ong

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 20 ― Public meetings of PKR and Umno leaders are distracting attention from Pakatan Harapan's possible absorption of nearly 40 lawmakers from the Malay nationalist party, Ramkarpal Singh asserted today.

The Bukit Gelugor MP urged both the public and the ruling coalition not to let themselves be drawn by the public meetings involving Nurul Izzah Anwar, Rafizi Ramli and Khairy Jamaluddin, calling these "wayang" that pulled focus away from impending disaster.

"Well, let me remind you, what's going on is dire. What's going on is a new PH government failing," he said in a statement today.

Ramkarpal said he was being plied with questions on rumours that PH parties were contemplating the entry of Umno lawmakers who have left or will leave the party as well as the ruling coalition's stewardship of the country.

The Malay nationalist party has lost 17 federal lawmakers since the general election and some, such as former minister Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed and former Puteri Umno chief Datuk Mas Ermieyati Samsudin, have since found their way into PH component PPBM.

The issue has split the ruling coalition in two, with DAP and PKR resistant to the idea, PPBM open to accepting the former Umno leaders, and Amanah saying it would consider this.

Ramkarpal stressed today that taking in the Umno representatives would be to betray the will of voters from the general election, asserting that he was recently asked by a constituent why the coalition was even thinking of taking in the defectors.

"He was absolutely right. Why? Because we are no different from Umno if we can consider accepting the very people we voted out, all of whom so far are from Umno, into PH.

"It is like saying to the Rakyat, 'Thank you for your vote but to hell with you. I have my own plans,'" he said.

Some including PH component leaders have expressed concern that Umno lawmakers were seeking to join PH via PPBM to escape possible prosecution for corrupt practices they may have indulged in while Barisan Nasional had been in power.

Senior BN figures such as former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, Umno president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, former minister Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Mansor, and former Sabah chief minister Tan Sri Musa Aman, among others, have all been charged with corruption.

PPBM president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin previously gave his assurance that entry into his party would not prevent these lawmakers from being prosecuted if they were previously corrupt.

There are only 37 Umno MPs left now, down from the 54 after the May 9 polls.


In a more detailed opinion piece in the English language section of Sin Chew Daily on 18th December 2018, the daily speculates:-

Now, who's breaking up PH?

2018-12-18 14:35

By LIM SUE GOAN

Sin Chew Daily
The mass exodus in Umno has spawned the conspiracy theory of an imminent ouster of PM Mahathir.

I have tried to figure out why Umno has been divided into three different sects and why Mahathir's ouster to pave the way for Anwar Ibrahim to take over when the parliament sitting resumes next March has been implicated.

A group of Umno leaders have been meeting over their court cases and possible dissolution of Umno. Those against Mahathir argue that the PM is not someone you can negotiate and they are therefore more inclined to support Anwar's early ascension to power because they believe Anwar will keep Umno and help them with their cases.

As for those without court cases or are unhappy with Anwar, they are more likely to continue supporting Mahathir as PM because they don't trust Anwar.

The meeting of these Umno leaders ended with no conclusion, and soon afterward we have all kinds of rumors.

It has been reported that Umno president Ahmad Zahid is more towards supporting Anwar, and may have instructed Padang Rengas MP Mohamed Nazri to talk divisional leaders into supporting the PKR president. and to form a coalition government with PKR and DAP.

The move has nevertheless backfired among the grassroots.

Larut MP Hamzah Zainudin is strongly against Anwar. He claims that 36 BN reps have signed a letter in support of Mahathir.

It is also said that Hishammuddin called a secret meeting last week that included among others Hamzah and PKR's deputy president Azmin Ali, who was accused of trying to stop Anwar from becoming PM during the recent party elections.

If Pakatan Harapan remains disunited, it will not be able to focus on dealing with Umno, allowing the latter to take advantage of the chaos to gain a backdoor access to federal administration.
PH will become BN 2.0 if these people were to be allowed to join the coalition and have their court cases forgiven. This will deal a lethal blow to the country's judiciary.

Why are PH component parties still willing to accept worthless Umno politicians? Very simple: they want to strengthen themselves by absorbing Umno MPs and Malay votes will go to them if Umno is eventually dissolved.

Doing so will also ensure that PH secures a two-thirds majority advantage in Dewan Rakyat so that the Constitution can be amended and their political agendas fulfilled.

Also, bills tabled by the PH government will no longer risk rejection in Dewan Negara following the side-changing of Umno senators.

If these Umno reps are not allowed to join PH, they may eventually defect to PAS, making the Islamic party all the harder to fight in future.

That said, ship-jumping will have very severe impact on the country, as the acceptance of political frogs will invariably trigger renewed political tug-of-war within PH in addition to betraying the public mandate.

Can Lim Kit Siang sit alongside Abdul Rahim Thamby Chik, who has applied to join PPBM and who he said was the culprit for his son Guan Eng's imprisonment for helping an underage Malay girl? Will Anwar pardon someone who in 2011 wickedly 
distributed his fake sex video clip?

We can judge from their recent public comments that indeed some PH leaders' stand has already softened. They are more willing now to accept these frogs on the grounds of political interest.

As a matter of fact, the PH leadership's position has swung away from that of ordinary citizens who are frustrated that corrupt Umno leaders can be whitewashed and allowed to join PH. This has contravened the coalition's pledge of battling corruption and upholding clean governance.

Unfortunately, the PH leadership appears to have turned a deaf ear to the rakyat's views dutifully reflected by the elected reps from DAP and PKR.

If Umno eventually goes bust and the opposition is significantly weakened, who are there to oversee the government?

Lest we forget, BN was so powerful in the past and could deliberately amend the Constitution because we had a weak opposition.

PH leaders are humans and are thus susceptible to temptation. The country's reforms will never materialize in the absence of a healthy checks and balances mechanism.

New Malaysia must reject immoral political deals. The new government must draw a line between itself and treacherous politicians.

Some PH leaders seem to have lost their directions as they are engrossed with the game of engaging Umno reps, putting behind their priority of revitalizing the country's economy.

PH will have nowhere to go but down if it steers off course and forgoes its principles.


All this politischeiss is happening when the Pakatan Harapan government should be focussing its efforts and energies on addressing Malaysia's economic and other issues affecting the Malaysian people, instead of politicking amongst themselves.

Then again, who knows what Mahathir has up his sleeve for Malaysia, should Pakatan Harapan manage to gain a two-thirds majority in parliament with the help of its former rivals and be able to amend the constitution.

We can only stay tuned and watch what results from all these political wheelings and dealings.

Malaysian politics is a more than world-class reality soap opera (reality show and soap opera) which can beat the BBC's Yes Prime Minister TV series hands down.

Yours truly

POLITISCHEISS


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Sunday, 16 December 2018

MALAYSIA'S 1,049 BILLION RINGGIT WHALE?

​Postings and forwardings gone viral on social media both before and after Malaysia's 14th General Elections on 9 May 2018 created the perception in many people's minds that all of Malaysia's financial and economic troubles are due to RM42.26 billion debt owed by the 1MDB sovereign wealth fund owned 100% by the Malaysian government .

However, according to this infographic by The Edge Markets article of 25 May 2018 based upon a breakdown of Malaysia's over RM1 trillion national debt provided by the Finance Ministry, 1MDB contributes only RM38 billion to Malaysia's national debt, whilst federal government debt is worth RM686.6 billion, plus debt due to other government companies, mostly infrastructure-related, whilst the rest are attributed to government guarantees and commitment to lease payments for public-private partnership (PPP) projects.



So that RM38 billion debt owed by 1MDB is around 3.8% of Malaysia's RM1.087 trillion national debt and financial commitments, and is small change compared to Malaysia's total national debt.

Also, now that former Goldman Sachs banker Roger Ng has been arrested on allegations related to 1MDB and the US Department of Justice (DoJ) has charged his former colleague Tim Leissner and Jho Low over alleged wrongdoing related to 1MDB, doesn't Malaysia have legal grounds to not repay whatever debt 1MDB owes Goldman Sachs or a substantial part of that debt?

The Star wrote of 2 November 2018:-

"Leissner pleaded guilty to conspiring to launder money and to violating anti-bribery laws. He has been ordered to forfeit $43.7mil (RM182.27mil) as a result of his crimes."

Heck! RM182.27 million is small change compared to RM38 billion, let alone RM1 trillion.

And:-

"In 2016, the DOJ had reportedly recovered over US$1bil (RM4.17bil – current conversion rate) that was allegedly stolen and sought the forfeiture of property including a Bombardier private jet, a Manhattan penthouse, a Beverly Hills mansion and paintings by Vincent Van Gogh and Claude Monet."

OK! RM4.17 billion is more substantial but still is just 10.97% of RM38 billion. 


The EDGE Markets of 18 January 2018, gives us a breakdown of government guaranteed loans.


Yet the public perception created by the politicians, coffee shop and tea shop politicians, bar politicians, social media politicians, the mainstream media and the alternative media all paint the 1MDB issue as the scapegoat for all of Malaysia's current financial woes, when whilst the RM38 billion owned by 1MDB and the issue itself is significant, it's not big enough to almost bankrupt Malaysia.

However, I expect that the chattering classes will continue to chatter on social media, coffee and tea shops, in bars and so forth about how 1MDB's debt owed is "solely responsible" for Malaysia's current financial woes, even though the anti-ICERD rally on 8 December 2018, the riots at the temple in Seafield in late November, the resignations of members of parliament from the UMNO party and the possibility that they will later join Prime Minister Mahathir's Pribumi party have somewhat overshadowed 1MDB in public discourse lately.

Anyway, as I've oftentimes said - Malaysian politics is full of scheiss. 

Meanwhile, for a refreshing change from politisceiss, let's take a look at what the Gilets Jaunes (Yellow Vests) movement in France is doing.

15 décembre : Edition spéciale RT France. Suivez en direct les manifestations des Gilets jaunes

LIVE: Yellow Vests march under 'Macron resign' motto, huge numbers of police deployed

Down with that neo-liberal globalist Macron !

Yours trully

POLITISCHEISS
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Wednesday, 12 December 2018

CAN YOU BELIEVE THIS WORLD BANK CRAP?



Malaysia on track to high-income status, says World Bank
Bernama - December 12, 2018 2:35 PM

KUALA LUMPUR: The World Bank today said Malaysia is well on its way to becoming a high-income and developed country.

Vice-president for East Asia and Pacific, Victoria Kwakwa, in a statement, said Malaysia's economy was well diversified and stood on solid foundations, which were primed to take the country to the next level.

"We welcome the government's efforts as part of this process to strengthen institutions, develop human capital and protect the vulnerable in the society. The World Bank Group stands ready to support Malaysia during this important transition process," she said.

Kwakwa concluded an official four-day visit to Malaysia on Monday during which she met Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad, Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng and Bank Negara Malaysia governor Nor Shamsiah Mohd Yunus.

The World Bank senior official and her delegation also met Deputy Yang Di-Pertuan Agong Sultan Nazrin Muizzuddin Shah with whom they exchanged ideas about development trends in Malaysia and the wider region.

These trends include the rising significance of the digital economy and skills development for future competitiveness in all countries in the region.


My questions:

"....primed to take the country to the next level."

By when, 100 years time?

Also,what does "the next level" mean?

And,

"....with whom they exchanged ideas about development trends in Malaysia and the wider region."

"These trends include the rising significance of the digital economy and skills development for future competitiveness in all countries in the region."

How far has Malaysia progressed in our development of the "digital economy" and in "skills development for future competitiveness" after the over 20 years in which these terms have been bandied around by national decision makers?

Last night, I was chatting with a friend who had worked and developed training programmes at a Malaysian government vocational training centre back in the 1990s and he was disappointed at the state which vocational training in Malaysia had descended to today, especially with the privatisation of vocational training.

At the same time, Malaysia has allowed for the mushrooming of whole slew of private universities and university colleges and we now read and hear much about graduate unemployment, whilst graduates complain about their inability to repay their PTPTN study loans due to starting income levels which have not risen much - an issue which has been much in the news recently.

Does "rising significance of the digital economy" include people going around with faces buried in their smartphone screens, their competency and addiction to social media?

I know people who know access to social media on their smartphones and tablets backward but can't even check their e-mail, do a Google search or write a letter with a word processor on their PC. So what rubbish is Ms Kwakwa talking?

Anyway, knowing how send and receive e-mail, to use a word processor (such as Microsoft Word), a spreadsheet (such as Microsoft Excel) and presentation graphics (such as Microsoft Power Point) on a PC, as well as photocopying, basic printing, scanning and filing away of documents and other content on the PC are all latter day clerical and secretarial skills, similar to typing and filing skills back when there were no desktop PC's smartphones or tablets.

What is the World Bank?

According to its website, the World Bank is an international development organisation of over 189 member countries, with its headquarters in Washington DC.

"With 189 member countries, staff from more than 170 countries, and offices in over 130 locations, the World Bank Group is a unique global partnership: five institutions working for sustainable solutions that reduce poverty and build shared prosperity in developing countries."


Wikipedia provides more information about the World Bank's history:-

"The World Bank was created at the 1944 Bretton Woods Conference along with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The president of the World Bank is, traditionally, an American The World Bank and the IMF are both based in Washington, D.C., and work closely with each other."

"Although many countries were represented at the Bretton Woods Conference, the United States and United Kingdom were the most powerful in attendance and dominated the negotiations. The intention behind the founding of the World Bank was to provide temporary loans to low-income countries which were unable to obtain loans commercially. The Bank may also make loans and demand policy reforms from recipients."

"The first country to receive a World Bank loan was France. The Bank's president at the time, John McCloy, chose France over two other applicants, Poland and Chile. The loan was for US$250 million, half the amount requested, and it came with strict conditions. France had to agree to produce a balanced budget and give priority of debt repayment to the World Bank over other governments. World Bank staff closely monitored the use of the funds to ensure that the French government met the conditions. In addition, before the loan was approved, the United States State Department told the French government that its members associated with the Communist Party would first have to be removed. The French government complied and removed the Communist coalition government - the so-called tripartite. Within hours, the loan to France was approved."

"When the Marshall Plan went into effect in 1947, many European countries began receiving aid from other sources. Faced with this competition, the World Bank shifted its focus to non-European countries. Until 1968, its loans were earmarked for the construction of infrastructure works, such as seaports, highway systems, and power plants, that would generate enough income to enable a borrower country to repay the loan. In 1960, the International Development Association was formed (as opposed to a UN fund named SUNFED), providing soft loans to developing countries."


So it is pretty clear that the World Bank was established after World War II to provide funds for post-war redevelopment of countries in Europe which had been devastated by the war and it's scope was later extended to countries outside Europe.

The World Bank can and has also dictated terms to recipients of its loans, as we can see with its first loan recipient - i.e. France, and based purely on political grounds.

As for the Bretton Woods Conference where the World Bank was established:-

"The Bretton Woods Conference, formally known as the United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference, was the gathering of 730 delegates from all 44 Allied nations at the Mount Washington Hotel, situated in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, United States, to regulate the international monetary and financial order after the conclusion of World War II."

"The conference was held from July 1–22, 1944. Agreements were signed that, after legislative ratification by member governments, established the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF)."


"... to regulate the international monetary and financial order"

Yes. They give you a loan to a country and then dictate to that country how it should be run.

Whilst the Washington DC based World Bank is in principle a multi-lateral, membership-based organisation of countries around the world, it in practice, western imperialist countries have the biggest say in the World Bank, which dictates the politics of its Third World member countries through pressure of finance capital.

This is just a more "refined" form of old-style colonialism, or what is called neo-colonialism, in which these western imperialist powers control Third World member countries - their neo-colonies through the dictates of finance capital to force them to implement neo-liberal economic policies.

I have avoided using the politically correct term "emerging markets" to refer to Third World countries and the more palatable sounding term "globalisation", which in reality is imperialism.

Remember, that Anwar Ibrahim was a good friend of neo-conservative Paul Wolfowitz, one of those who supported the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq and Anwar supported Paul Wolfowitz chairmanship of the World Bank.

"Indeed, Wolfowitz's desire to overthrow Saddam Hussein's regime and replace it with a democratic government in the mold of a Western power was shared by the Washington foreign-policy establishment. We tend to forget, for instance, that President Bill Clinton signed the Iraq Liberation Act , which made regime change U.S. policy. In Wolfowitz's eyes, the Bush administration was merely implementing a policy that a Democratic president signed into law five years prior."

"What grates on many realists is that Wolfowitz, twelve years removed from the U.S. government and over fourteen years since Operation Iraqi Freedom commenced, still refuses to admit that the Iraq War was a mistake. Wolfowitz's belief has been stubbornly consistent: Saddam, a bloody tyrant, a war criminal and a human-rights abuser—who gassed the Kurds, gassed the Iranians, invaded two of his neighbors and took pot-shots at U.S. planes patrolling no-fly zones—deserved to be taken down. If bad decisions were made, they occurred during the execution of the strategy"

"Wolfowitz's long interview today with Politico's Susan B. Glasser demonstrates that he indeed hasn't learned many lessons from the past fifteen years."

"He suggests that the Trump administration could use its Tomahawk missile attack on an Assad regime air base as a jumping-off point to initiate a Dayton-like peace agreement to end the civil war."


And here is the full transcript of the interview with Wolfowitz:-

The Neo-conservatives are liberal interventionists who want U.S. imperialism to use its military force to impose "democracy". "human rights", "free speech", "free press" and so forth on other countries, including through military invasion to topple governments, irrespective of local conditions and circumstances faced by those governments.

Many of Malaysia's liberal, liberal-left or social democratic NGOs and political parties have accepted funds from various western imperialist funding organisations such as the United States-based, very much governmental "non-governmental" organisations such as the National Endowment for Democracy and non-profit organisations such as the International Republican Institute, the National Democratic Institute, Freedom House and so forth, as well a non-profits associated or funded by the likes of George Soros.

Many of them hate me for highlighting this video:-

"IRI chief admits helping M'sian opposition since 2002"

Screw them!

This is not to deny that there are no genuine domestic grievances in Malaysia. There certainly are, and such foreign imperialist funding organisations exploit these domestic grievances to achieve their own imperialist geo-political and economic agenda in various countries, including Malaysia.

This is how modern imperialism works and we have many useful idiots here who either innocently fall for it or knowingly go along with it.

Yours trully

POLITISCHEISS

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