realpolitikasia

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

Malaysian university student's protest against VC subject of police investigation: Australians should not laugh,similar rules exist in Australia ,sanctioned by the legal establishment

by Ganesh Sahathevan

Malaysian Police have confirmed that they are investigating a graduate of Universiti Malaya (UM) who protested against his Vice-Chancellor at his graduation ceremony.

Universiti Malaya graduate Wong Yan Ke was reported to have carried a placard to the stage during UM's convocation ceremony while receiving his bachelor's degree. ― Picture via Twitter/ Mesin Taip Buruk

While Australians might consider a police investigation and the likelihood of criminal charges for that sort of student protest fascist, the fact is the same occurs in Australia.

One such incident involving this writer has been reported by The Australian in January this year. This writer can confirm that complaints against the College Of Law Sydney's delivery of its PLT course were considered threatening and intimidating by the NSW Legal Profession Admission Boar, which is chaired by the Chief Justice Of NSW, Tom Bathurst, and the Attorneye General NSW,Mark Speakman SC. The story in The Australian provided at the link above needs to be read in full to understand how the legal system has been used in an attempt to silence this writer,who was also a student at the College.

The complaints were also put by this writer as a journalist,and concerned as well the use of tax payers funds by the College Of Law for overseas expansion, at the expense of its PLT courses which it conducts under the authority of the LPAB, the Chief Justice,and the AG NSW MArk Speakman.

That expansion is now the subject of an investigation in Malaysia.

In Australia these has been absolute silence from all involved.
END

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

NSW AG Mark Speakman and his LPAB's defence of Malaysian businessman Vincent Tan remains unexplained despite Tan's colourful history of interfering with Malaysia's judicial system

by Ganesh Sahathevan

NSW Libs received donations of $44,275 from TOP Education Grosup

just before after TOP was granted the "first & only" licenset issued a private

company to award law degrees: AG Speakman and his LPAB refuse to disclose

all details in the LPAB Annual Reports.

Earlier this year this writer explained how the AG NSW Mark Speakman and his officers at the LPAB, which is chaired by the Chief Justice Of NSW, Tom Bathurst, undermined the protection provided journalists, whistle blowers and sources by the Carlovers v Sahathevan ,Bond v Barry decisions.

The Carlovers' decision and the surrounding facts which were put before the NSW Supreme Court, which included this writer's highly publicised sacking from The Sun in Malaysia, included one of Malaysia's most colourful businessman, one Vincent Tan Chee Yiuon,who owned The Sun.

Tan has a history of judicial interference, which is even more widely publicised. In 1998 his interference with the judiciary led to the current Attorney General of Malaysia, Tommy Thomas being found in contempt of court.

in 2008 Tan's interference with the judiciary, via his lawyer VK Lingam, became the subject matter of a Royal Commission into judicial corruption.

All of the above and more are matters of public record, but ignored by Speakman who seems intent on drawing ever closer to Asian businessmen of Chinese origin.
END

TEQSA CEO McClaran warned against " business plans over reliant on a single market" but TEQSA sees no issue with Zhu Minshen's China focussed Top Education Group -More evidence of special treatment for Zhu

by Ganesh Sahathevan

This was TEQSA CEO Anthony McClaran is June this year as reported by the AFR:

"We will want further discussion if we see business plans over-reliant on a single market. If we see a pattern of risk, we will say show us your financial plans, show us how you plan to mitigate that risk. We might see a plan that is wildly optimistic.

"We will want further disucssion if we see business plans over reliant on a single market." Anthony McClaran, chief executive Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency Arsineh Houspian

Meanwhile, TEQSA has had no difficulty in approving Zhu Minshen in his Top Group education venture, despite the collapse in share price and other issues. As previously reported, Zhu Minshen's Top Group IPO placed heavy reliance on its TEQSA and LPAB approvals, as evidenced in its prospectus:

Top Education Group share price movements require explanation from NSW LPAB, TEQSA,and AG Speakman; Top's declining cash flow from operations adds to worries

TEQSA, together with the LPAB, have refused to clarify matters:

TOP Education Institute's Bachelor of Laws : Political donations,HK Stock Exchange IPO seem to have left regulators confounded, speechless

END

1MDB witness Shahrol confirms Sahathevan blog story of 2017: Najib,Rosmah conducted 1MDB business with Turki on a yacht: Guan Eng & co now duty bound to determine why Robin Tan,Bustari Yusof were on that trip

by Ganesh Sahathevan

The photo above obtained by Sarawak Report shows PM Najib, wife Rosmah and Petrosaudi's Prince Turki Abdullah and Tarek Obeid in discussion, on board a yacht somewhere off the coast of the south of France.

In February 2017 this writer reported, with reference to photos published by Sarawak Report:

Photos show Najib, Rosmah , conducted 1MDB business with PetroSaudi on their own, without 1MDB management, or board present

In September this year The Star reported:

The High Court here was told on Wednesday (Sept 25) that the joint-venture project between 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) and PetroSaudi International Ltd (PSI) came about and was discussed during Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s vacation in Southern France on board a yacht with Prince Turki bin Abdullah in August 2009.

Former 1MDB chief executive officer Datuk Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi, 49, said he only came to know of the discussion between the two leaders through fugitive businessman Low Taek Jho, better known as Jho Low.

"Jho Low informed me before the discussion that Najib had met with Raja Abdullah and both leaders had agreed to form a joint-venture worth USD2.5 billion for investment in both countries.

"Jho Low also stated that he was personally present during the discussion with Prince Turki, and Najib directed him (Jho Low) to manage and provide coordination between 1MDB and PSI," he said.

The confirmation that Najib and Rosmah discussed 1MDB business on that yacht trip again raises questions about the others, namely Robin Tan and Bustari Yusof, who were reported to have been present on that trip.It is now for Lim Guan Eng, Tony Pua and others involved in the 1MDB investigation to determine and publicly explain what these two were doing on that trip.

END

See also

Is the Vincent Tan Raya photo-op getting in the way of arresting Jho Low: Interrogating Robin Tan can provide significant intel

Sunday, October 13, 2019

Communist Party Of China interference: What of the civil servants? TEQSA,LPAB dealings with Zhu Minshen requires stripping away of civil service secrecy,civil servants must be investigated like politicians

by Ganesh Sahathevan

TEQSA

@TEQSAGov

#TEQSA is proud to be celebrating the Mid-Autumn Festival and 70th Chinese National Day, with #students and #scholars from 

@MonashUni
 

@RMIT
 and 

@unimelb
 tonight

5:40 PM · Sep 24, 2019 from Melbourne Town Hall·

▲ party scene

Ms. Emily Goode, Representative of Mr. Anthony McClaran, Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Institute of Higher Education Quality Management and Standards (TEQSA) attended this celebration of the Communist Party Of China's China 70 celebrations

China's interference: LPAB, TEQSA and universities show that Australia's civil servants warrant further scrutiny ;public service secrecy cannot be a shield against decisions made in China's interests

While much of the public scrutiny of China's interference in Australia's affairs has concerned politicians, elected representatives and to a lesser extent the universities little if any attention has been paid to Australian civil servants who have proven not immune to China's charms.

The usual civil servant's appearance of impartiality has been set aside, for example, by TEQSA and its senior officers who participated in the recent China 70 (70th Chinese National Day) celebrations organised by the Communist Party Of China.

TEQSA and its chairman Nick Saunders have refused to explain why any of the above was appropriate, especially given the fact that TEQSA has not been known to celebrate any other foreign country's national day in this way.

TEQSA,along with the NSW Legal Profession Admission Board have also been responsible for favouring Zhu Minshen, who has been closely linked to the Communist Party Of China, with the first and only license issued a non-university to grant LLB degrees that qualify holders for admission to practise law in NSW, and Australia.

The LPAB has as a consequence also granted Zhu powers under the Legal Profession Admission Rules to effectively determine that anyone who opposes him or his views, including his views of China, is denied admission to practise law in Australia.

The LPAB, and the AG NSW Mark Speakman who oversees the LPAB have recently renewed Zhu's liceneses and resisted all attempts at having them disclose the details of the approvals provided Zhu.There is evidence that Speakman has tabled in the NSW Parliament LPAB annual reports that have not disclosed fully the circumstances surrounding the unique and singular treatment accorded Zhu.

Under the circumstances the secrecy allowed the civil service so that it might fearlessly provide frank and impartial advice to the government of the day ought to be stripped away.

TEQSA and the LPAB are of course not alone.Other examples include the civil servants responsible for approving the sale of the Port Of Darwin to Landbridge of China,and those who approved the sale of defence contractor John Holland to China Communications Construction Company.

END
See also

China-HK protest on Australian campuses but not at Minshen Zhu controlled campuses-Are legal profession admission rules being used (again ) to suppress complaints and protests

Singapore is getting hotter-think trees,people and Singapore's physical limits, before fossil fuels and "climate change".

by Ganesh Sahathevan

The nocturnal canopy-layer UHI intensity – measured as the difference between the commercial urban core and undeveloped areas close to primary or secondary rainforests for example – doubled in magnitude between 1965 and 2004

As a visitor to Singapore over a period of some five decades it does seem to this writer that Singapore is at present noticeably hotter than Kuala Lumpur.

The heat coincides with a clearly more congested space, more building and less natural growth (simply replanting cleared land with GIS mapped trees and shrubs does not work).

This writer noted in 2011(see article below) that at some point Singapore will come its physical limit.The hotter environment may well be an indication that that time is near.

In that regard a climate tax may well be what is needed;not to curtail the use of hydrocarbons but as literally a tax on the living.

That might provide the revenue needed to build up, build down and maybe buy surrounding islands.

END

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

Trees,people and Singapore's physical limits

When Singapore's former Minister for National Devepoment Mah Bow Tan suggested that the country's optimal population would be about 6.5 million people, none other than Lee Kuan Yew himself argued against the idea, asserting that a lower number of 5.5 million people would be more bearable, allowing for the preservation of open spaces and comfort.As he put it 'I think there's an optimum size for the land that we have, to preserve the open spaces and the sense of comfort.'
(http://app.mfa.gov.sg/pr/read_content.asp?View,9332,).

As a largely built environment Singapore is susceptible to the phenomena of heat islands, which is defined as "the phenomenon whereby urban areas are warmer than rural areas,largely due to the replacement of natural land cover with pavement,buildings and other infrastructure".
(http://app.mewr.gov.sg/data/ImgUpd/NCCS_Full_Version.pdf)

While "comfort" is somewhat difficult to define, there is little argument that
humans do not usually cope well with rising temperature.The extent of heat islands might then be a proxy for uncomfortable conditions, and their study could perhaps provide some guidance as to what an optimal population might be.

Heat islands can be measured using remote sensing data, as shown in this satellite image:

Anyone familiar with Singapore will immediately recognize the large red spot to the east as Changi Airport,clearly a "hot" area given the tarmac.It is then easy to recognise that much of Singapore is "hot".

That rising temperature due to heat islands will be an issue of national concern,quite apart from global warming ,has been acknowledged by the Singapore Government in its
National Climate Change Strategy which states among others:

Heat Stress
2.13. Warmer temperatures due to both climate change as well as the
urban heat island effect can lead to greater use of air-conditioning and
increase Singapore’s energy demand. Higher annual temperatures may also
mean more frequent and more severe episodes of warm weather, leading to
increased occurrences of heat stress and discomfort, particularly among the
elderly, the sick and those without access to air-conditioning.

The solution as the Government sees it:

2.14. Measures that can lower ambient temperature include increasing
the amount of greenery in the city (e.g. city parks, rooftop gardens, vertical
greening in buildings) and modifying building layouts and designs (e.g. using
building materials with better thermal properties, lighter-coloured building
surfaces, designing building interiors and exterior building layouts for better
ventilation and maximising the wind tunnel effect).

2.15. The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) and the National Parks
Board (NParks) have been working closely to plan and provide greenery
islandwide, such as providing parks and green open spaces, and planting
along roads and around developments. URA and NParks have also been
promoting rooftop and vertical greenery on our residential and commercial
buildings through planning guidelines and incentives. The Housing
Development Board (HDB) is in the process of introducing rooftop greenery to
multi-storey carparks and residential buildings where feasible.
(http://app.mewr.gov.sg/data/ImgUpd/NCCS_Full_Version.pdf)

Singapore's population stands at about 5.1 million.Given Lee's optimum population of 5.5 million Singapore would appear to have capacity for just another 400,000 people.In other words,it appears that Singapore has almost reached the physical limits of its ability to sustain people.

However the argument outlined in the National Climate Change Strategy is for more greenery,which would probably require more open spaces,and less room for people.
The idea that HDB flat rooftops might be greened is admirable, but these are hardly going to qualify as green cover.Hence, even Lee's estimate may appear too high.

Be that all as it may Singapore Government policy as stated by PM Lee Hsien Loong is to grow the population in order to grow the economy.
It is difficult to argue with that logic, especially as the population ages.
Equally difficult to argue with is the country's physical limits.

Singapore is faced with a unique problem in that its people have nowhere to go.The consequences of the problem are complex and will have to be matters for discussion in a separate posting.
END

Singapore ,1 MDB,a change of leadership & the water agreements:Singapore may even have to take blame for the impact of climate change on Malaysia's catchments

Tuesday, October 8, 2019

"AmBank purposely hid facts on bond subscribers from 1MDB - Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi, former 1MDB CEO, in court under cross examination about the ANZ managed AMBank

by Ganesh Sahathevan

------------------

- ◾ "AmBank purposely hid facts on bond subscribers from 1MDB - Shahrol

10.30am - AmBank Group purposely hid facts from 1MDB on Aktis Capital and Country Group being secondary subscribers of 1MDB bonds in 2009, a witness tells the court.

Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi, who is a former 1MDB CEO, testifies this under cross-examination by lead defence counsel Muhammad Shafee Abdullah.

He, however, declines to speculate on why the bank might have wanted to do so.

Shafee: So you are going on record that you were never informed by Ambank that Aktis and Country Group was involved as secondary subscribers?

Shahrol: Yes.

The witness then agrees to a suggestion by Shafee that given the hindsight of the situation now, AmBank had purposely hidden the facts.

Earlier, Shahrol testifies that 1MDB board of directors had in Oct 2009 summoned AmBank to explain why 1MDB only received some RM4.3 billion for its RM5b Islamic medium-term notes (IMTN), instead of its face value.

He says that presentation by AmBank to the board did not reveal about Aktis and Country Group being 1MDB's secondary board subscribers. ❗

According to Shahrol, they were only told that 1MDB bonds were subscribed by the EPF, Socso, and insurance companies.

The witness adds that the most vocal board member who queried about the IMTN value was 1MDB chairperson then, Bakke Salleh (above).

Jho Low was sole link between 1MDB, ex-CEO and Najib, court hears

10.15 - Jho Low was the sole link between then 1MDB CEO Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi and its sole shareholder Najib Abdul Razak, the High Court hears.

Shahrol, the 9th witness, says this during cross-examination by lead defence counsel Muhammad Shafee Abdullah.

Shafee is asking Shahrol about wanted businessperson Jho Low's role in 1MDB meetings.

"He (Low) was the sole link between 1MDB, me and sole shareholder Najib," Shahrol testifies.

When Shafee asks who was the sole shareholder of 1MDB in 2009, he replies it was Minister of Finance Incorporated.

Najib was finance minister and later prime minister in 2009.

Verbal spar erupts between Shahrol and Shafee over RM5b bond issue

9.57am - Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi and lead defence counsel Muhammad Shafee Abdullah verbally spar over whether the former 1MDB CEO had tried to find out what happened to the sovereign wealth fund's RM5 billion bond issue in 2009.

It happens during cross-examination when Shafee asks Shahrol whether the witness had queried AmBank, which was arranging the bond issue, on the breakdown of the bond issue.

When Shahrol answers "I do not know", Shafee (photo) reminds the witness that he, as then 1MDB CEO, had the right to ask about it.

Shahrol: I did not (ask) at the time.

Shafee: You have the right to ask.

Shahrol: I do not know. You are telling me as a defence counsel. I need advice from counsel (prosecution).

Shafee: Why do you need to ask (prosecution)? You were 1MDB CEO.

Shahrol: I do not know.

Matters calm down when Shahrol reveals that the 1MDB board on two occasions in 2009 called AmBank to explain the matter."

https://www.malaysiakini.com/news/494987