Alcoholism and Youth Delinquents

ALCOHOLISM AND YOUTH DELINQUENTS: ISLAM AND ALCOHOLISM

Comment:

That is why in ISLAM, Islam prohibits the consumption of alcoholic drinks, even handling the alcoholic bottles are highly discourage (let alone drinking it).Source from the Quran: "They ask you about alcoholic drinks and gambling. Say, "There is great harm in both, though there is some benefit also for the people. But the harm of the sin thereof is far greater than their benefit. " (Quran, 2:219 and 5:90-91)

Today, the scientific authorities have proven that alcoholic drinks can threaten the health, mind, physical body, and even close families relationships. On a daily basis, many road accidents, divorce cases, youth delinquents (youth offenders), etc. are the direct results of alcoholism. That does not even take into account the high costs of purchasing the alcoholic drinks in the first place.

Note: ITS not just only in NZ that faces this problem (alcoholism), in Australia, UK, and USA, the numbers are on record high over the past years. The question is, when are the government seriously considering banning them, or limiting the age group to says, 21 years and above.

Note: Islam totally probits the consumption of alcohol (100 percent), however, both Christianity and Judaism allows alcohol consumption, BUT in moderation. That's the problem, when can one really says enough is enough ?! (Also can everyone really control their thrist and desire for alcoholic drinks once they gets into it, especially when alcoholic drinks are very addictive, so much so that, top politicians, singers, actors/actress, and even top motivators and doctors, some go into Rehabilitation Centres due to alcoholism problem).

Judaism and alcohol : http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4041118,00.html

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Note: Need more proofs and media coverages, see below:

http://www.islamweb.net/emainpage/index.php?page=articles&id=135814

(Dated: 08-09-2009) Islam & alcoholism In these days, countries that allow alcohol are suffering from it and the number of alcoholics is increasing rapidly. In the U.S.A., for example, the number of alcoholics has increased from four million in the 1960s to ten million in the 1970s. In Britain, the number of alcoholics has increased from half a million to one million. In some European countries, the percentage of alcoholics is 8% of the population! Alcoholic drinks are the only poison that is licensed in those countries. However, Islam took a clear attitude towards alcoholic drinks more than 1400 years ago. Islam prohibits such drinks. Any drink that causes drunkenness is prohibited in Islam regardless of the matter it is made from and regardless of the quantity. According to Islam, if too much of a drink causes drunkenness, then any small quantity of this drink is prohibited, because all alcoholics start with small quantities, then they become the slaves of alcohol. Islam does not only prohibit drinking alcoholic drinks, but also prohibits making them. Islam also prohibits carrying, selling, or buying such drinks. According to Islam, if something is prohibited, all means to it are also prohibited.

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http://au.news.yahoo.com/world/a/-/world/9084545/more-child-alcoholics-recorded-in-nz/ (28th March 2011)

More Child Alcoholics Recorded in NZ

AAP March 28, 2011, 7:52 am

More and more children, some as young as nine, are being treated for drug and alcohol addiction in New Zealand and those referred to health specialists are just the tip of the iceberg, experts say. The number of people under 16 being treated in greater Auckland's Community Alcohol and Drug Services (CADS) increased by nearly 20 per cent to 382 last year. Half of that number were treated for alcohol and the rest for cannabis and other drugs. There were 71 treated at Waitemata District Health Board emergency departments for intoxication, The New Zealand Herald reported. The Auckland and Counties Manukau boards have not responded to requests for figures in their areas. The problem was far worse than the figures suggested, CADS child and adolescent psychiatrist Grant Christie said. "Especially with the younger ones - they are here because they got caught by parents, teachers or police and were referred to us. All their mates who didn't get caught, they were still drinking harmfully." Christie said about half the 382 children treated by CADS had problems with alcohol, 40 per cent with cannabis and 5 to 10 per cent with other drugs, including methamphetamine, or solvent abuse. He said it was common for children to be referred because of cannabis use, but to be found to have a greater problem with alcohol. Alcohol Healthwatch health promotion adviser Chris Rogan said the figures should be no surprise to anybody and the situation would not change unless something was done about people's attitudes to alcohol. The figures represented people who were proactive in getting help and were "the very, very tiny tip of a very big iceberg".

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Study Shows Religion Set for Extinction: End of the World?!

Comment:

I heard it several times before, that - Religion is money, religion is narcotic drugs (opium, heroin), religion is power, religion is pleasure (hedonism), but the worst kind is when they say, religion is dead, or religion does not exists (atheist). Hence, there is no limit to one’s freedom, pleasure, desire, wants, etc... when that happens, one tend to drinks all one wants, having sexes and intercourse with multiply partners, 'no string attached' in a relationships, then we will have ‘expected’ more social ills and social problems in that society. Have it not already started ?! Also the bottom line is, when there is no religion, then you will also have 'emptiness of the soul' !

http://au.news.yahoo.com/latest/a/-/latest/9058938/religion-set-extinction-western-countries/ (23 March 2011)

Study Shows Religion Set for Extinction
Yahoo!7 March 23, 2011, 10:36 am

A US study using census data shows that religion here and in eight other Western world countries is set for extinction. Census data was taken from as far back as a century from countries in which the census queried religious affiliation: Australia, Austria, Canada, the Czech Republic, Finland, Ireland, the Netherlands, New Zealand and Switzerland.

The result, reported at the American Physical Society meeting, indicates that religion will all but die out altogether in those countries. In New Zealand, it's thought around half of all Kiwis claim no religious affiliation. Massey University Associate Professor of History Peter Lineham says in the 1950s, around 10% of New Zealanders had no religious affiliation. He says that increased to 45% in the 2006 census.

"Hopefully the 2011 Census will take place at some point next year and we'll know the latest figures, but it surely will have gone up to over 50%," he told Newstalk ZB. Professor Lineham says the study would have very different results if the study looked at other countries.

"If they took any countries beyond the western countries they've named, they would actually have the opposite phenomenon of religion getting larger."

Comment:

Hahah, the Western world (as quoted above) is falling apart, due to abandoning of religion... thats the results of 'secularization' and 'westernization.' But in the Asian world, these people are now more closer to religion that ever before, due to the - economic crisis, the tsunami, the earthquake, the floods, and droughts! ISN'T that ALL signs of GOD (wrath)! Fools are those that are hit by the natural disasters and still don't learn anything from it !

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Comment:

Would you like to look good (beautiful/handsome), or have a better brain (intellectually better). Does good look guarantee you a ’successful life’ ? NO. And those that do not end with a contract at a modelling industries, will end up ‘selling themselves’ for sexes. And even in the modelling industries, nudity is a must nowadays. So, at the end of the day, where is all the morals and ethics, and social norms of a good society? Gone. That’s what happens in the Western world, to those that do not have a religion as their way of life.

http://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/a/-/offbeat/9068286/eight-year-old-has-botox-wants-boob-job/ (24 March 2011)

Eight-year-old has Botox, wants boob job
The West Australian March 24, 2011, 10:05 am

Single mum Kerry Campbell wants her daughter to become a star, which is why she injects the child with Botox. Eight-year-old Britney also wants a breast enlargement. The child's beauty routine includes climbing onto a beautician's table every three months so her mum can inject her face with Botox and fillers, which beautician Ms Campbell, 34, buys online.

The substances are injected into Britney's forehead and lips and around her eyes. "The beauty-pageant obsessed single mum also takes her to have her body waxed, in a bizarre bid to stop her growing hair when she eventually hits puberty," The Sun reported. Ms Campbell said the treatments would guarantee that Britney would become famous as a teenager. "What I am doing for Britney now will help her become a STAR (??)," she said.

"I know one day she will be a model, actress or singer, and having these treatments now will ensure she stays looking younger and baby-faced for longer. "I'm sure people reading this will think I am being irresponsible, but I ensure that I test the Botox and fillers I buy online on myself first.

[Note: Actress or singer is about 'talent', not child abuse, waxing or botox]

"All I want is for Britney to have the best start in life, so it is easier for her to become a superstar. More mothers should do it for their daughters." Ms Campbell, originally from Birmingham but now living in San Francisco, said her daughter was a lucky little girl. "(She) is going to be famous because of the benefits I am giving her so early," she said. Britney's father, a research scientist who died four years ago aged 83, regarded the beauty treatments as normal.

[Note: Yah right, the old man already died, and it was claimed that he says 'its ok'? ]

The child demanded the top-ups of Botox because she could see wrinkles. "My friends think it's cool I have all the treatments and they want to be like me. I check every night for wrinkles, when I see some I want more injections," Britney said. "They used to hurt, but now I don't cry that much. "I also want a boob and nose job soon, so that I can be a star." Such treatments were common in the competitive world of American child beauty pageants.

"When Britney takes part in pageants, parents talk about how they have given their daughter an extra jab to plump her lips or lose a wrinkle. Everyone is doing it and talking about it," Ms Campbell said. "She also has her virgin wax monthly, which gets rid of her fluffy leg hair and makes sure she won't develop pubic hair in the future. "It will save her a fortune in waxing when she's older."

[Note: I never think it was ok, or a good idea to have 'Child Beauty Pageant' in the first place, but I always support a 'Child Talent Show', child talent is about talent, and child beauty is about beauty, its as simple as that !].

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Air Strikes on Libya !

http://au.news.yahoo.com/world/a/-/world/9041665/west-pounds-libya-with-air-strikes-tomahawks/ (20 March 2011) Also see, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muammar_Gaddafi

West Pounds Libya with Air Strikes, Tomahawks

AFP, March 20, 2011, 9:47 am

TRIPOLI (AFP) - The United States, Britain and France pounded targets in Libya with air strikes and Tomahawk missiles on Saturday, in a campaign to prevent Muammar Gadhafi from crushing a month-old uprising against his rule.

Libyan state television said a French plane was shot down, as an official in Tripoli denounced the "barbaric aggression" despite its announcement of a ceasefire in a month-long showdown against rebels. US and British forces fired at least 110 Tomahawk cruise missiles against Libya's air defence sites, a top US military officer said, two days after a UN Security Council resolution with Arab backing authorised military action.

"Today, I authorised the armed forces of the United States to begin a limited military action in Libya," President Barack Obama said while on a visit to Brazil. The military official said the first strikes aimed at imposing a no-fly zone took place near Libya's coast, notably around Tripoli and Misrata, "because that's where the integrated missile defence systems are."

French planes initially carried out four air strikes, destroying armoured vehicles, France's military said. Libyan state media said Western warplanes bombed civilian targets in Tripoli, causing casualties, shortly after France's launch of the multinational air campaign against Gadhafi mounted with the support of the Arab League.

The strikes also hit fuel tanks feeding the rebel-held city of Misrata, east of Tripoli, a Libyan army spokesman. State television said hundreds of people had gathered at Bab al-Aziziyah, Gadhafi's Tripoli headquarters, and at the capital's international airport, ahead of the widely anticipated air strikes.

"Crowds are forming around the targets identified by France," the television reported, showing pictures of flag-waving people gathering to serve as human shields. Witnesses told AFP that several loud blasts were heard east of Tripoli and that "balls of fire" could be seen on the horizon.

Last week, a highly placed French source referred to Bab al-Aziziya, a military air base in Sirte, east of the capital, and another in Sebha in the south as likely targets of a strike.

Russia's foreign ministry expressed regret over the attacks under a Security Council Resolution 1973 which was "adopted in haste," while the African Union, which opposed military action, aims to send a delegation to Tripoli on Sunday.

But British Prime Minister David Cameron said he held Gadhafi responsible for the situation in his country and that "the time for action" by the international community had come. "Colonel Gadhafi has made this happen. He has lied to the international community, he has promised a ceasefire, he has broken that ceasefire. He continues to brutalise his own people," Cameron told British television. France said the air strikes would continue through the night.

In the rebel camp, celebratory gunfire and honking of car horns broke out in Al-Marj, 100 kilometres (60 miles) from Benghazi, to welcome the start of military operations against Gadhafi, correspondents said. As thousands fled Benghazi amid an assault by Gadhafi loyalists earlier on Saturday, French President Nicolas Sarkozy told a summit of world leaders in Paris just hours before the first strikes that France was poised to attack. But Sarkozy said Gadhafi could still have avoided the worst if he had complied with the Security Council resolution by implementing a ceasefire to allow the diplomatic door to reopen.

UN chief Ban Ki-moon, however, said he was troubled by a telephone call from the Libyan prime minister on Friday night. "He told me that the Libyan government was fully abiding by the Security Council resolution and there will be an immediate ceasefire," said the secretary general. "But at the same time and overnight they were attacking Benghazi. It is very troubling; whatever they say must be verified."

Since Friday, the Libyan government has insisted it was observing a self-declared ceasefire, shortly after the Security Council voted to authorise the use of force against Kadhafi's troops to spare civilians.

The regime said its armed forces were under attack west of Benghazi, including by rebel aircraft, and had responded in self-defence. On Saturday, Foreign Minister Mussa Kussa said Tripoli had met all its obligations under the UN resolution and asked Ban to send observers to monitor the ceasefire.

But the rebels, who have been trying to overthrow the Libyan leader for more than a month, said government troops had continued to bombard cities, violating the ceasefire continuously.

British Prime Minister David Cameron held Gadhafi responsible for the continued violence and said that "the time for action" had come. "Colonel Gadhafi has made this happen. He has lied to the international community, he has promised a ceasefire, he has broken that ceasefire. He continues to brutalise his own people," Cameron told British television.

"And so the time for action has come. It needs to be urgent. We have to enforce the will of the United Nations and we cannot allow the slaughter of civilians to continue."

Gadhafi has defied the threats against, telling Sarkozy and Cameron, main sponsors of the resolution authorising military action, that they would regret interfering in his country's affairs.
Earlier, a huge plume of smoke rose over Benghazi, Libya's second city, as thousands of people fled eastward after a series of air strikes and sustained shelling, said an AFP reporter in the metropolis of one million people.

Correspondents redeployed along with civilians to Al-Marj reported that Kadhafi tanks had entered the Mediterranean city by mid-morning. A warplane crashed in flames in a residential area of Benghazi, triggering celebratory gunfire from the rebels, but an insurgent commander later admitted it was one of theirs and had been shot down by Gadhafi's forces.

Speaking in Brazil, Obama said before the launch of air strikes that "the people of Libya must be protected and in the absence of an immediate end to the violence against civilians, our coalition is prepared to act."

In another Middle East hotspot, medics in Yemen on Saturday raised to 52 the death toll from a sniper attack on protesters in Sanaa the previous day, as thousands rallied despite a state of emergency. The slaughter in Sanaa on Friday was the bloodiest day in weeks of unrest that have shaken the regime of President Ali Abdullah Saleh, a key US ally in its war against Al-Qaeda.

And security forces in Syria fired tear gas on Saturday at mourners burying two men killed in a protest in the southern city of Daraa the previous day, wounding several, rights activists said.

The official SANA news agency said a committee was being formed to investigate the "regrettable" events in Daraa.

In Bahrain, beleaguered King Hamad pledged to bring in reforms as Shiite-led pro-democracy protesters against the Sunni monarchy said they would not give up despite being cleared by police from Pearl Square in central Manama.



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British Girl Smarter Than Einstein ?!

Comment:

Hahahah... ITs not HOW much BRAIN you have, its HOW you USED it that counts ! HOW you used it to help others (other than yourself), to help the poor and needy, to help create an environmental friendly world, invent great tools and machines, and create great theories, that help solve, some of human problems, social science or pure science, or physical science problems.

Thats why, in high school exams, or college exams, or university exams, when the exams are over, and students receieved FIRST CLASS on their tests/exams, its ONLY them that are celebrating (not the whole state, or country, or world)... because the 'excellent results' are just for them (full stop)... unless of course, they decide to use their 'brains' to help others, and do marvellous things with it... I hope this is CLEAR for the readers.

http://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/a/-/world/8991482/british-girl-smarter-than-einstein/

(11th March 2011)

British girl 'smarter than Einstein'

The West Australian, March 11, 2011, 6:54 am

It's the battle of the IQs and a youngster from Britain has come out on top. At the age of just 11, Victoria Cowie has a higher IQ than Einstein. The young girl from Wolverhampton has an IQ of 162 - and has been offered scholarships at four secondary schools, Britain's Daily Mail newspaper has reported.

Albert Einstein had an IQ of 160 - the same as scientist Stephen Hawking and Microsoft billionaire Bill Gates.

Victoria's mother Alison, 44, told the Daily Mail: "We couldn't believe it, but are so proud of her.
"Victoria is a very bright girl and she has worked very hard, but she isn't glued to her studies, she loves drama and music and plays football too.

"We are just a normal family, we haven't cracked the whip. When it comes down to it she's still a child and we have always said she only does what she wants to do." Victoria has now joined the ranks of Britain's brightest people after passing a Mensa test in January.

Mrs Cowie, who runs a health and safety consultancy with husband David, 42, said: "She did the test a few weeks back and the results put her in the top one per cent. "We had a look online and saw that 162 was higher than Albert Einstein's score, we felt incredibly proud." Victoria has set her sights on becoming a vet.


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Bomb Kills 37 at Pakistan Funeral !

Comment:

And one would have thought that the killings would end when a love one dies ...Don't CONFUSE with Islam? Its bl**dy ‘survival of the fittest’ out there in the desert (land) of Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq, Lebanon, and Libya, to name a few. The Syiah kills the Ahli Sunnah and vice-versa, the Taliban kills the pro-government and general public, in the hope to strike ‘fear’, but only end up striking ‘hate’. The government who vow to strike back on terror ‘lacks’ the resources - financial and military (due to resources place elsewhere, and possibly into their own pockets). What crabs!

IF a sincere survey is conducted, one would find that the locals have only minimal religious knowledge, that has somehow translates into a sort of ‘customary practises’, hence, IF you ask them ‘Why sir have you perform this and that? (or what is the philosophy behind doing this and that?)’, they would simply said, ‘Oh our fore-fathers have done them, so we are doing the same thing (no question about it).’ And that’s why, its not difficult to kill others out of hate, or leadership’s orders (because religious/Islam has already been translated or 'mixed-up' into local customary practises and believes.

http://au.news.yahoo.com/world/a/-/world/8981993/bomb-kills-37-at-pakistan-funeral/ (10th March 2011)

Bomb kills 37 at Pakistan Funeral

AFP March 10, 2011, 5:55 am

PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AFP) - A suicide bomber targeting members of an anti-Taliban militia at a funeral in northwestern Pakistan killed 37 people and wounded at least 45 others on Wednesday, police said.

Police and witnesses said the bomber had slipped into the congregation of more than 200 people attending funeral prayers for the WIFE of a known anti-Taliban militiaman in Adezai village, near Peshawar city. Television footage showed bearded elderly men wearing bloodstained clothes rushing from the scene in panic. Prayer caps and slippers lay alongside scattered body parts at the prayer site, which was spattered with blood.

"We have taken 37 dead bodies and 45 injured to the hospital," Kalam Khan, a senior police officer at the site, told AFP. The head of the main hospital in Peshawar city, Abdul Hameed Afridi, told AFP that 36 bodies had been received along with body parts, and warned that the death toll could rise, with several people critically injured.

Police officer Mohammad Ijaz Khan confirmed the bomber's target. "The target of the bombing was members of the anti-Taliban militia," Khan said. "We have sent teams to remove the bodies and shift the injured to the hospital," he added. Villagers brought wooden carts to transport the dead and wounded, an AFP reporter at the scene said.

Adezai village is known for clashes between the Pakistani Taliban and pro-government militiamen, local police officer Siraj Ahmed told AFP. Witness Gul Akbar, 22, told AFP the blast took place as those attending the funeral had lined up to offer prayers. "The suicide bomber very easily came here and joined the participants. There was not a single policeman to check him," said Akbar.

Akbar said that the village, close to the lawless tribal region of Darra Adam Khel, had been attacked several times. "We have had several fights with them (militants) but we cannot stop the suicide attacks. We need the government's help to stop such attacks," he said.

Hamyun Khan, a member of the village pro-government militia, complained that the government had not provided enough arms, ammunition and police to deal with the militant threat. "I was standing in the last row. The blast took place in the middle of the funeral. It was so severe and huge that I still feel deaf," he said.

"The government and police are responsible for such incidents." Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani issued a statement condemning the attack and reiterated the government's "resolve to root out the cancer of terrorism from every nook and corner of the country".

Peshawar city lies at the gateway to the country's remote and militant-infested tribal regions.

The United States has repeatedly urged its key anti-militant ally Pakistan to launch army offensives to combat extremists in the border region, which it says is home to key Taliban leaders. But Islamabad says its RESOURCES are already overstretched by the militant threat across the country.

More than 4,000 people have died in suicide and bomb attacks throughout Pakistan since government forces launched an offensive against militants in a mosque in Islamabad in 2007.
On Tuesday, a car bomb planted by suspected militants at a filling station in the central Punjab region killed 25 people and wounded 154 others.

The last major attack in the northwest hit a packed mosque during Friday prayers last week on the outskirts of Nowshera, close to Peshawar, killing at least 11 people and wounding over 20 others. Taliban and Al-Qaeda-linked militants launch daily attacks across northwest Pakistan and the tribal belt that Washington has branded the most dangerous place on Earth.

The Taliban target security forces in Pakistan, claiming many attacks in revenge for a covert campaign of US drone strikes in the tribal areas. The United States does not officially confirm the controversial missile strikes, which nevertheless take place with Islamabad's tacit approval.



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Police Roll Out Hidden Van Cameras !

http://issues-in-australia.blogspot.com/2011/03/police-roll-out-hidden-van-cameras.html

http://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/a/-/newshome/8975282/police-roll-out-hidden-van-cameras/ (9th March 2011)

Police Roll Out Hidden Van Cameras

RONAN O'CONNELL, The West Australian March 9, 2011, 2:25 am

Speed cameras hidden in parked police vans are being rolled out across WA as part of an aggressive speed enforcement strategy. Insp. Colin Murray said a trial of the new tactic had been successful and police had two vans equipped with cameras on the road, with plans to introduce four more vans in the coming months.

It is the first use of covert speed cameras since the 1990s, when police used a similar set-up involving cameras in a van. The van-based cameras are the latest speed enforcement technology to be rolled out in the past year following the introduction of integrated red-light and speed camera systems at intersections and dual-lens speed cameras which photograph front and rear number plates.

Insp. Murray said the van-based devices were more efficient than the usual roadside cameras because they were constantly set up and ready for use. Older-style cameras had to be assembled and taken apart outside the vehicle. He said this made the new ones safer for operators to use because they did not have to spend time assembling them by the roadside near passing cars. By being housed inside a van, the $160,000 cameras were protected from damage.

[Note: Its TIME consumer and road users PAID for these expensive cameras !]

Monash University researcher Max Cameron recommended the use of covert speed cameras along with fixed, overt and point-to-point cameras in a State Governmentcommissioned report released in 2008. Queensland and Victoria have used speed cameras inside vehicles for several years and NSW recently reintroduced them.

[Note: Doesn't meant that something has been in used for several years, necessarily means that it is absolutely correct, and should not be scrapped].

Shadow police minister Margaret Quirk said police were focusing too much on covert cameras and needed to invest in point-to-point cameras, which can be placed up to 30km apart on highways and country roads and measure a vehicle's average speed between two spots.

"Individuals need to realise that when they choose to speed, they are risking not only their own life but the lives of other road users," he said. "My advice is simple - 'Don't speed and you won't be fined."

COMMENT:

Yap... absolutely a VERY good way to make money... Just fine the poor drivers (who have families to feed) for at least $200, $300, up to $700 (depending on the charges), for speed driving, and others.

Doesn't the police or government know that a common worker only earns so little from his/her salaries, only to be taken away by the police, just for exceeding a few kilometers more (speed fine). And who says the cameras are always correct?!

What is the philosophy behind the Traffic Police Department? Is it to make money and more MONEY... or to educate the public?! IF education is the KEY... then keep the strategy straight and place the CAMERA and more NOTICES/SIGNAGES to help REMIND motorists to be careful of their SPEED limits (as opposed to 'hidden' speed camera!).

Note: Also the way these cameras are 'covertly' placed, at strategic locations, example, down a slope road, necessarily means that cars can simply increase in speed even without the driver pressing on the accelerator, or realising that their car speed has increased (due to the sloping hill road).

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Chan Kong Choy Pula ke Mahkamah !

http://www.utusan.com.my/utusan/info.asp?y=2011&dt=0301&pub=Utusan_Malaysia&sec=Muka_Hadapan&pg=mh_01.htm

(1 March 2011)

Skandal PKFZ: Kong Choy pula didakwa Oleh NORLIZAH ABAS

pengarang@utusan.com.my

CHAN Kong Choy ketika hadir ke Mahkamah Sesyen, Putrajaya, semalam bagi menghadapi tuduhan menipu Abdullah Ahmad Badawi berhubung projek pembangunan Zon Bebas Pelabuhan Klang (PKFZ).

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PUTRAJAYA 28 Feb. – Bekas Menteri Pengangkutan, Tan Sri Chan Kong Choy mengaku tidak bersalah di Mahkamah Sesyen di sini hari ini atas tiga tuduhan menipu Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi berhubung skandal Zon Bebas Pelabuhan Klang (PKFZ) melibatkan kos pembangunan hampir RM1.9 bilion, kira-kira tujuh tahun lalu. Kong Choy, 55, didakwa menyembunyikan fakta mengenai pembiayaan kos pembangunan sehingga Abdullah bersetuju supaya kelulusan diberikan kepada Kuala Dimensi Sdn. Bhd. (KDSB) selaku pemaju siap guna (turn-key developer). Fakta-fakta yang disembunyikan ialah pembiayaan tersebut akan dibiayai melalui terbitan bon oleh KDSB melalui tiga syarikat berlainan dengan sokongan Kerajaan Malaysia menerusi Menteri Pengangkutan. Abdullah selaku Perdana Menteri (ketika itu) tidak akan memberikan persetujuan jika fakta-fakta tersebut dimaklumkan kepada beliau. Ketiga-tiga tuduhan didakwa dilakukan di antara 24 Februari 2004 dan 29 Mac 2006 di Tingkat 4, Blok Utama, Pejabat Perdana Menteri, Bangunan Perdana Putra di sini. Hakim Azhaniz Teh Azman Teh menetapkan kes disebut pada 31 Mac ini. Kong Choy merupakan bekas menteri Kabinet kedua diheret ke mahkamah berhubung skandal PKFZ di Pelabuhan Klang (dahulu dikenali sebagai Mega Distribution Hub) selepas Tun Dr. Ling Liong Sik serta beberapa individu lain didakwa.

Ling Liong Sik kini menunggu dibicarakan kerana dakwaan menipu Jemaah Menteri melibatkan pembelian tanah bernilai RM1.08 bilion, hampir lapan tahun lalu. Kong Choy yang diiringi pegawai-pegawai polis tanpa digari dilihat memeluk isteri, Puan Sri Ann Chan serta seorang anak perempuannya ketika tiba di pekarangan mahkamah kira-kira pukul 2.05 petang. Bekas menteri kanan itu dibawa keluar dari pekarangan mahkamah oleh sebuah kenderaan pacuan empat roda selepas dibebaskan dengan jaminan RM1 juta kira-kira pukul 4.35 petang. ‘‘Saya terkejut dengan pendakwaan ini namun yakin dengan sistem kehakiman negara. Saya akan melaluinya (perbicaraan) demi membersihkan nama,’’ ujarnya ringkas kepada pemberita sebaik sahaja diikat jamin. Sebelum itu, Peguam Negara, Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail yang mengetuai pasukan pendakwaan memberitahu mahkamah, kedua-dua pihak bersetuju agar jaminan RM1 juta dengan seorang penjamin dikenakan terhadapnya. Beliau yang hadir bersama Timbalan-Timbalan Pendakwa Raya, Dzulkifli Ahmad dan Manoj Kurup memohon tarikh sebutan bagi membolehkan beberapa perkara berbangkit dikenal pasti demi mengelakkan isu-isu yang tidak berkaitan ditimbulkan ketika perbicaraan.

Bekas Menteri Pengangkutan itu diwakili peguam-peguam Arthur Wang, Azad Bashir dan Badrul Munir Bukhari. Bagi tuduhan pertama*, Kong Choy didakwa menipu Abdullah sehingga bekas Perdana Menteri itu bersetuju agar kelulusan diberikan bagi projek pembangunan Transshipment Hub di Pulau Indah Free Zone. Ia meliputi kawasan seluas 404.7 hektar dan dibangunkan dalam fasa berasingan dengan anggaran kos kira-kira RM1 bilion. Fakta yang didakwa disembunyikan ialah kos pembangunan akan dibiayai melalui terbitan bon oleh KDSB melalui syarikat Transshipment Megahub Berhad. Kesalahan itu didakwa dilakukan di antara 24 Februari dan 25 Februari 2004 di Pejabat Perdana Menteri.

Tuduhan kedua*, Kong Choy didakwa memperdayakan Abdullah sehingga bekas Perdana Menteri bersetuju agar kelulusan diberi kepada KDSB untuk melaksanakan kerja- kerja pembangunan tambahan bagi projek PKFZ iaitu: * Menaik taraf simpang masuk ke PKFZ berjumlah RM285.38 juta. * Kerja-kerja infrastruktur elektrik berjumlah RM135 juta. * Pembangunan hotel kelas perniagaan berjumlah RM90 juta. Fakta yang didakwa disembunyikan ialah kos pembangunan akan dibiayai menerusi terbitan bon oleh KDSB melalui syarikat Valid Ventures Bhd. Kesalahan itu didakwa dilakukan di antara 11 Oktober dan 28 Oktober 2005 di tempat yang sama.

Tuduhan ketiga*, Kong Choy didakwa memperdayakan Abdullah sehingga beliau bersetuju agar kelulusan diberi kepada KDSB untuk melaksanakan lima fasa pembangunan tambahan bagi projek PKFZ iaitu: * Kerja-kerja membina parit konkrit (concrete trenching) untuk kabel elektrik berjumlah RM140.2 juta. * Kerja-kerja elektrikal untuk bekalan 33 kv ke Presint 2 dan Presint 8 berjumlah RM80 juta. * Kerja-kerja infrastruktur PMU untuk PKFZ berjumlah RM30 juta. * Pembinaan jalan menghubungkan PKFZ ke Pelabuhan Barat berjumlah RM28.1 juta. * Pembinaan jalan menghubungkan laluan masuk utama ke PKFZ dengan CT4 Pelabuhan Barat berjumlah RM57.5 juta. Fakta yang didakwa disembunyikan bahawa kos pembangunan akan dibiayai melalui terbitan bon oleh KDSB menerusi syarikat Free Zone Capital Bhd. Kesalahan didakwa dilakukan di antara 28 Mac dan 29 Mac 2006 di tempat serupa. Bekas menteri Kabinet itu didakwa bagi ketiga-tiga tuduhan mengikut Seksyen 417 Kanun Keseksaan yang memperuntukkan hukuman penjara maksimum lima tahun atau denda atau kedua-duanya. Projek PKFZ yang dibina di atas kawasan seluas 400 hektar sebagai hab penghantaran kargo bersepadu telah menimbulkan kontroversi apabila kosnya melambung daripada RM2 bilion kepada RM4.6 bilion.

Berikutan itu, Jawatankuasa Kira-kira Wang Negara yang mengadakan siasatan telah memperakukan agar Suruhanjaya Pencegahan Rasuah Malaysia (SPRM) dan polis melakukan siasatan selepas mendapati beberapa perkara yang dibuat tidak mendapat kelulusan Kementerian Kewangan.

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http://www.hmetro.com.my/articles/SultantarikgelaranKongChoy/Article (11 April 2011) Sultan tarik Gelaran Kong Choy SHAH ALAM: Sultan Selangor, Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah menggantung Darjah Kebesaran Dato’ Paduka Mahkota Selangor (DPMS) yang membawa gelaran Datuk kepada Tan Sri Chan Kong Choy berikutan tiga pertuduhan yang dihadapi bekas Menteri Pengangkutan itu di Mahkamah Sesyen Putrajaya. Baginda turut menarik balik gelaran Datuk yang dikurniakan kepada bekas Pengerusi Eksekutif Ekran Bhd, Tan Sri Dr Ting Pek Khiing yang diisytiharkan muflis oleh Jabatan Insolvensi Negara (JIN) pada 29 Oktober tahun lalu. Setiausaha Kerajaan (SUK) Negeri Selangor, Datuk Mohd Khusrin Munawi dalam satu kenyataan berkata, Sultan Selangor berkenan membuat keputusan itu selepas berunding dengan Dewan Diraja Selangor. .