New Straits Times articles from January 2000, page 19

New Straits Times archives from January 2000

DAP to decide tomorrow on State Assembly issue.
January 12, 2000... PENANG, Tues. - A decision on whether to take legal proceedings challenging the constitutionality of the Penang State Assembly will be made by the DAP on Thursday. Its national chairman Lim Kit Siang today said the party would announce...

Penang CM's father dies after long illness.
January 12, 2000... PENANG, Tues. - The State's long-serving community leader, Datuk Koh Pen Ting, who is the father of Chief Minister Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon, passed away at a private hospital this morning after a long illness. Pen Ting, who was 89, died...

South Korean party delegation keen to learn from movement.
January 12, 2000... KUALA LUMPUR, Tues. - A 22-member delegation from the South Korean Millennium Democratic New Party, led by its Youth Commissioner Kim Hyun, called on Umno Youth today. The movement's assistant secretary Zulkifli Alwi and International...

Umno Youth: Scrap NRS if found not effective.
January 12, 2000... KUALA LUMPUR, Tues. - Umno Youth said today the Government should replace or abolish the New Remuneration Scheme if it is no longer effective. It said the Government should instead undertake a study to ascertain how a more viable scheme...

FT, Perlis endorse 'no contest' advice.
January 12, 2000... PUTRAJAYA, Tues. - The Federal Territory and Perlis Umno committees have endorsed an Umno supreme council suggestion that the party presidency and the deputy presidency be uncontested. Johor and Melaka are the other States that have...

Fire razes 600 squatter houses.
January 12, 2000... KOTA KINABALU, Tues. - About 2,000 people were made homeless when a blaze, fanned by strong winds, destroyed 600 squatter houses at Kampung Lembaga Padi in Inanam today. The fire which began about 10.53am, spread rapidly because the...

Forum on allergies to be held on Jan 28 to raise public awareness.
January 12, 2000... KUALA LUMPUR, Tues. - The Malaysian Society of Allergy and Immunology will hold a free public forum on allergies here on Jan 28. The forum will be held at the Renaissance Hotel at 4pm as part of the society's programme to raise public...

The need to lead.
January 12, 2000... John Kotter is a decidedly world-renowned expert on business leadership. He has previously authored (among other titles) Leading Change, and co- authored, with James L. Heskett, Corporate Culture and Performance. This time he turns...

Klang Valley almost back to normal after holidays.
January 12, 2000... KUALA LUMPUR, Tues. - After the festive lull, life began returning to normal in the Klang Valley with the reopening of Government offices and much of the private sector today. Queues began building up at Government offices including the...

Reckless tourists on jet-skis pose a threat to fishermen.
January 12, 2000... PENANG, Tues. - The Government today was urged to restrict water sports to areas where they would not interfere with fishing activities. Penang Inshore Fishermen's Welfare Association secretary Saidin Hussain said water sports like...

Car dealer's shop and vehicles destroyed in blaze.
January 12, 2000... KUANTAN, Tues. - Fire destroyed a used-car dealer's outlet and 22 cars in Jalan Beserah last night. Damage was estimated at RM800,000. The fire which started at the Yu Seng Auto Enterprise about 8.30pm gutted Proton, Perodua Kancil...

Hartini's touching novel.
January 12, 2000... Hartini Hamzah's Melunas Rindu (Utusan Publication & Distributors, 1999, 223 pages) is an excellent novel dealing with the complicated issues of mixed marriage, bitter separation, attempted reconciliation, filial attachment, and human...

Gerakan disappointed over 6.7pc EPF dividend rate.
January 12, 2000... KUALA LUMPUR, Tues. - Party Gerakan today expressed disappointment over the 6.7 per cent dividend expected to be declared by the Employees' Provident Fund for last year. Its vice-president, Dr S. Vijayaratnam, said the Government should...

Money to rebuild house stolen.
January 12, 2000... MALACCA, Tues. - A man's hope to rebuild his house which was damaged by strong winds recently was dashed when burglars broke into it and escaped with RM3,150 in Kampung Bukit Darat today. The money included RM750 which was donated by the...

Policeman held for another week.
January 12, 2000... KUALA LUMPUR, Tues. - The magistrate's court today extended by seven days the remand order on a policeman to help investigations into the murder of pop singer Sabiul Malik Shafiee. Magistrate Lim Kui Lee granted an application by the...

Lee puts to rest doubts over his stand on park.
January 12, 2000... SUBANG JAYA, Tues. - Subang Jaya State Assemblyman Datuk Lee Hwa Beng has given an assurance that he will fully support any effort to preserve Taman Subang Ria. His response came after earlier reports that Lee had yet to make a stand on...

Thalassaemia alert.
January 12, 2000... Chong Yoke Fong is 20, but she lies - near skeletal - in the children's ward of the Hospital Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (HUKM). Her doctor, Zulkifli Ismail, Professor and consultant paediatrician, and head of the Department of...

Tourists learn how 'lemang' is made.
January 12, 2000... Attentive... Sudau Umin (left) explaining to (from second left) Garardine Lassalan of Ireland, Australian Jill Wheat and Polish television reporter Barbara Olszewska how glutinous rice is cooked in bamboo to produce lemang. Sudau is an...

Low vision centre to get facelift.
January 12, 2000... PENANG, Tues. - The low vision centre at the St Nicholas Home for the Blind here will receive a facelift, thanks to the efforts of the Lions Club of Georgetown. Club chairman Micheal Ong said the centre will be renovated and refurbished...

Egrets stop by Lido beach en route to Japan, China.
January 12, 2000... Stopping over... These lovely snowy egrets are becoming an increasingly common sight at Lido Beach in Johor Baru. Whether stationary or in flight, these birds are indeed a sight to behold. Egrets, a rare coastal species, are...

Slip road passable to heavy traffic soon.
January 12, 2000... CAMERON HIGHLANDS, Tues. - The slip road linking Kuala Terla to Kampung Raja and Blue Valley will be further improved to make it passable to heavy traffic soon. Pahang Public Works Department deputy director Anton Sebastian said today...

Rare rhino spotted in Sedili forest.
January 12, 2000... JOHOR BARU, Tues. - The Johor Wildlife and National Parks Department plans to trap a Sumatran rhinoceros seen wandering in the Sedili forest, near Kota Tinggi, recently. Bernama reported the department's acting director Shahruddin Othman...

Boeing team to inspect plane damaged.
January 12, 2000... PENANG, Tues. - A team of engineers from aircraft manufacturer Boeing in the United States will arrive tomorrow to inspect the damage to a Korean Boeing 747-200 cargo plane, which was found to have a hole in its fuselage when it landed here...

Girl killed, two seriously injured in crash.
January 12, 2000... KUANTAN, Tues. - A girl was killed while her two friends were seriously injured when a four-wheel drive vehicle they were travelling in skidded and crashed into a tree at 6km Jalan Kuantan-Kemaman about 5.30pm yesterday. Siti Norashikin...

Tax-free carnival extended to Jan 16 due to response.
January 12, 2000... KUALA LUMPUR, Tues. - The organisers of the Third Sales Tax-Free Carnival have extended the sales until Jan 16 due to overwhelming response. Carnival exhibitors have agreed to continue offering goods at tax-free prices although the sale...

Fired up to curb pollution.
January 12, 2000... The Department of Environment means business. Those planning to conduct open burning to dispose of infected crops or carcasses of diseased animals need to get its approval under new legislation to be enforced next month. In an effort to...

Japan can become engine of growth.
January 12, 2000... Japan's former Vice-Finance Minister for International Affairs, Eisuke Sakakibara, is outspoken for a Japanese and is known as Mr Yen for his influence on the markets. In an interview with Hardev Kaur at his office in Tokyo, he calls for a...

Galleria Perdana should display simple, meaningful gifts, too.
January 12, 2000... During my recent trip to Pulau Langkawi, I brought my children to Galleria Perdana which houses an impressive collection of state gifts presented to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Mahathir Mohamad and his wife. It is indeed a very...

Harrowing rides on these buses.
January 12, 2000... Since starting work in Johor Baru a few months ago, I have become a regular user of the inter-State express bus service. I leave Kuala Lumpur late every Sunday night and take a return trip after work onFriday. I have no choice since this is...

Resurfacing of road half-done.
January 12, 2000... Jalan Ara in Bangsar Baru, Kuala Lumpur, has just been resurfaced - again. Soon it will be broken up again by some contractor who will not be bothered to restore it to its proper condition. We waited for more than a month for the...

Warning on cybercafe gambling.
January 12, 2000... KUCHING, Tues. - The Kuching South City Council will take action against cybercafe operators if they are found to have allowed gambling activities in their premises. Mayor Chan Seng Khai said today the council would not hesitate to...

Retirement age: What poll reveals.
January 12, 2000... KUALA LUMPUR, Tues. - A public poll by the New Straits Times today revealed mixed reactions over the Cabinet's decision not to extend the compulsory retirement age of civil servants to beyond 55. Businessman Alex Khoo, 57, felt that...

Court remands vice ring suspect.
January 12, 2000... KUCHING, Tues. - A 30-year-old man suspected to be a member of a prostitution ring was today ordered by the magistrate's court to be remanded until Monday to facilitate police investigations. The suspect, from Taman Desa Setapak in Kuala...

Decision not consistent with needs of the people, says Zainal.
January 12, 2000... KUALA LUMPUR, Tues. - The Malaysian Trades Union Congress today expressed dissatisfaction over the Government's decision not to extend the compulsory retirement age of civil servants from 55 to 58. Its president, Senator Zainal Rampak,...

Metropolitan of Mar Thoma Syrian Church dies in Kerala.
January 12, 2000... KUALA LUMPUR, Tues. - The Metropolitan of the Mar Thoma Syrian Church, Dr Alexander Mar Thoma died today in Kerala, India. He was 87. A statement issued by the Mar Thoma Syrian Church in Malaysia said Dr Alexander would be buried on...

15 die on third day of Raya.
January 12, 2000... KUALA LUMPUR, Tues. - There were 15 road fatalities yesterday, the third day of Hari Raya. The first day of Hari Raya saw 25 deaths, the highest since the nationwide traffic operation Ops Statik IV began on Dec 23, followed by 21, the...

Athletic association to raise funds for heart patient.
January 12, 2000... PENANG, Tues. - The Penang Amateur Athletic Association (PAAA) has started a campaign to raise funds for heart patient for NST freelance writer R.V. Veera. PAAA secretary Paul Subramaniam said in Penang today the association would do its...

Penalties in store for coral and sea cucumber thieves in conservation zone.
January 12, 2000... MALACCA, Tues. - Beginning this year, anyone caught stealing corals and collecting sea cucumbers from the coral conservation zone off Tanjung Tuan will be penalised. Fisheries' Marine Parks section head, Kevin Hiew said enforcement would...

KKMC chief assumes duty today.
January 12, 2000... KOTA KINABALU, Tues. - Infrastructure Development Ministry permanent secretary Datuk Abdul Ghani Rashid will tomorrow assume duty as Kota Kinabalu Municipal Council president before his appointment as the State capital's first mayor when it...

(Editor's note).
January 12, 2000... Selamat Pagi! It's time to celebrate again! Just as Malaysians stopped singing the 12 Days Of Christmas and tapering down on new millennium fever, Hari Raya Aidil Fitri is here. By the time you read this, Ramadan is over and there's a free...

Plethora of events for Visit Sabah Year 2000.
January 12, 2000... Those who missed Sabah's new millennium excitement - the midnight dip which is a local annual tradition of self-cleansing and the street party themed "Malaysian Borneo: The New Millennium Nature Adventure Destination" - need not despair. They...

Labu Sayong pride of Perak.
January 12, 2000... Perak's famous labu sayong or earthernware water pitcher, chosen as the State's official mascot in conjunction with Visit Perak Year 2000 campaign, is the undisputed representation of Perak's legacy. State Culture, Arts, Tourism and...

Midnight dip at hot spring.
January 12, 2000... Ever heard of a recreation park where it is most visited after midnight? Even more surprising is that such a place is found in Baling, Kedah. Hidden somewhere near the Malaysia-Thai border some 19km from Baling town, the Ulu Legong...

Discover Kedah's hidden treasures.
January 12, 2000... Hotel Grand Crystal Alor Star, a property of Grand Hotels International, is wooing guests with the Crystal Holiday Package, a trip to the hidden treasures of Kedah. It offers two versions of Kedah Hidden Treasure package which cover the...

Exclusive shopping package for guests at Mandarin Oriental.
January 12, 2000... Tourists who stay at the Mandarin Oriental Kuala Lumpur anytime until March will get to enjoy an exclusive shopping package with Suria KLCC. The hotel has tied up with several shops at the shopping centre offering great discounts and...

Local heritage exhibition at KLIA.
January 12, 2000... Local and international travellers at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport will get a glimpse into Malaysian history at the Malaysian Heritage and Culture exhibition at the Mezzanine Level of the Satellite Building of the airport. The...

Port Dickson's eco-friendly resort.
January 12, 2000... Go-karting under rubber trees? Yes, you can now go-kart under cool shade at the Eco Goodlife Resort along Jalan Pantai, Port Dickson. Scores of go-karting enthusiasts including those from Singapore throng this three-month-old resort for a...