VOXPOP ‘The government in effect is declaring, ‘Look, we know you have neither the technical nor financial muscle, but we award it to you in the spirit of ‘I help you, you help me'.'

MP: Rail project derails PM's pledge

vox populi small thumbnail FellowMalaysian: Why is there a need for a RM1 billion 20-station railway when the six-lane Iskandar Coastal Highway costing RM900 million has started operation early this year?

This railway project sounds even more fishy as all the negotiations, including financing structures, were carried out surreptitiously between the government and the concessionaire, Masteel.

This was done with intent to obfuscate the public and to avoid public scrutiny as this directly-negotiated deal harbours elements of subterfuge and duplicity.

The Ampang LRT extension was also a contract clinched by George Kent Malaysia Bhd (GKMB) at a cost of RM1 billion in late 2012 and similar controversies clouded the manner it was given to this company.

It appears that BN cronies have won the upper hand in clinching one seedy deal after another as PM Najib Razak and his administration chose to renege on their pledges in order to appease their benefactors.

Malaysian Joe: What's new, Petaling Jaya Utara MP Tony Pua? That pledge of Najib's for transparency was just for GE13. After that, everything is back to normal.

There is no need to keep to such loose commitments because there has been a lot of funds raised during the elections and these need to be ‘settled' with public funds.

We continue to increase the national debt with large chunks going to the intermediaries.

Toonarmy: The elections are over. It's ‘Janji Diketepikan' time. Why would the illegitimate regime keep their promises when there are plenty of kickbacks to be made?

Who cares about the rakyat anyway - so ungrateful of us not to give them the two-thirds majority that they deserved, which is their birthright.

Heavywater : If the government has to lend money to these companies for the project to take off, it might as well the government do the project itself.

What nonsense is this, another Cowgate? The idea of awarding these projects is to lessen the financial burden of the government and not to pile it up.

Dudeno: Apart from the obvious corrupt practices, the users of the railway are the nation's people. Safety is a real concern here.

This contract is basically the rakyat paying to endanger their own lives. The willingness of the government to gamble the lives of the people with inexperienced contractors just to benefit their cronies is abhorrent and to be condemned.

Fourtan: So where is Transparency Minister Paul Low? This, along with the YTL internet learning deal, is so murky and muddy that I can't see the bottom of this ‘pork barrel'. Some transparency please, Low?

Gen2indian: I curse the people concerned every time I use the (PLUS) North-South highway. Built at a cost of RM6 billion, it was revealed in Parliament that RM24 billion has been collected thus far.

Even after allowing for overheads, the profit margin is obscenely staggering and we hard-working, honest people have to keep feeding the cronies and their future generations. This is what awaits you, good people of Johor.

Malaysiawatch4: The government in effect is declaring, "Look, we know you have neither the technical nor financial muscle to do this mega-project, but we award it to you in the spirit of ‘I help you, you help me'."

MCA up in arms over low intake of Chinese students

Jiminy Qrikert: MCA did not just suddenly find their guts. They have always been in the game. But the last round they lost so badly, they need to ask their partners to create some extent of 'racial problem' to allow them to come to the rescue of the 'poor oppressed' Chinese.

They desperately need Umno-BN to create some reason for MCA's continued existence, so at this moment, the most expedient opportunity is 'racist education policy' and 'discrimination in university intake.'

MCA leaders are keeping their balls close to them even as Umno thrashes the Chinese. Umno will carry out this role with gusto and passion as it delivers a double-whammy advantage in their axis of racists:

1) The hawks in Umno domain, and Najib needs to be a hawk to stay as president in the coming party AGM.

2) MCA needs to be seen once again as the saviour of the Chinese and we will see more of such racist issues where MCA will seemingly be very ballsy, whereas the real truth is Umno still has their balls squeezed.

TakeMiddlepath: This is what Umno has promised after GE13 since Najib said it was a "Chinese tsunami". So are the Chinese surprised with this?

After all, this had been happening since 1970 and getting worse and worse. I have heard that a top student from Perak with CGPA (Cumulative Grade Point Average) 4 couldn't get his choice of study but was given Applied Science in UMK (Universiti Malaysia Kelantan).

To all these students, please look south or elsewhere for better education. Then the Talent Corp will go round hunting for the professionals and ask you to come back.

Goh Pick Ting: Sigh, if BN had won a two-thirds majority and MCA won most of its seats, it would still be keeping silent on this issue as has happened in the past.

Now that MCA has decided to open its mouth, what can they do? Umno doesn't even respect them as a BN component.

Anonyxyz: On this issue, MCA will claim this due to its self-imposed non-representation in government.

That is true, so MCA should do the honourable thing by dissolving the party and all its MPs should resign to give Pakatan Rakyat the majority to form government and then, the rights of all Malaysians would be managed properly.

Dudeno: This is an example of how ineffective BN is as a coalition. MCA and MIC can only publicly moan and groan after the fact when policies are carried out.

Privately, they beg Umno for concessions and delight themselves with the thought of gaining some political mileage with their constituents. Absolutely pathetic.

If they really cared, they would be making sure this is done right in the first place. As it is, hundreds have been denied places in the public universities this year and their lives irrevocably changed forever.

Dood: Funny to hear MCA complain about this when they are in the government themselves and they have been for decades, propping up their big brother Umno-BN on issues of racial quotas, discrimination and bigotry.

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