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Litrak denies water channels it manages caused Puchong floods
Lima goes on in March – even if GE13 is held
Cops raid karaoke, rescue 23 scantily-clad Vietnamese women

Litrak denies water channels it manages caused Puchong floods

Posted: 23 Feb 2013 03:33 AM PST

KUALA LUMPUR: Lingkaran Trans Kota Holding Berhad (Litrak), the concessionaire of the Damansara-Puchong Highway (LDP) denied claims that flash floods caused along the LDP near the IOI Mall on Monday, was due to underground drain malfunction.

Litrak's Chief of Operations Richard Lim Kim Ong said only 45m of the 2km underground channel was managed by Litrak.

"For almost 14 years we have provided facilities for motorists and this is the first time such an incident had occurred.

"Various studies were carried out in detail. The flash floods could have been caused by the construction of an uneven water channel by Sistem Transit Aliran Ringan (LRT)," he told reporters after giving out Chinese New Year goodies to about 20 children from a welfare home, here, on Saturday.

He added that the 68mm of rain recorded on that day, which was an abnormal occurrence, could also have contributed to the cause since the water channels were unable to accommodate the rising quantity of water following a heavy downpour.

Richard Lim said that a day before the incident, Litrak had carried out scheduled maintenance.

He added that on Wednesday, the Selangor Economic Action Council (MTES) had during a meeting with Majlis Perbandaran Subang Jaya (MPSJ) and Syarikat Prasarana Berhad (Prasarana), directed both to clear the clogged drains to prevent a similar incident.

During the incident at about 6pm on Monday, about 140 vehicles were reported trapped in a car park near IOI Mall and traffic was brought to a standstill at several main roads in the area following flash floods that saw the LDP resemble a river.

The flashfloods hit KM21.36 and 23.50 of the southbound-side of the LDP at 5.22pm on Monday while the basement floors of IOI Mall Puchong, opposite the affected section, were also flooded. Bernama

Lima goes on in March – even if GE13 is held

Posted: 23 Feb 2013 02:08 AM PST

Published: Saturday February 23, 2013 MYT 6:08:00 PM

PETALING JAYA: Next month's Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace (Lima) exhibition will not be affected even if the event ends up colliding with the 13th general election, the Defence Ministry has assured.

Ministry secretary-general Datuk Seri Dr Ismail Ahmad said Lima will not be disrupted if the Dewan Rakyat is dissolved on a date close to the bi-annual exhibition which will take place from March 26-30.

"It will not be the first time that Lima is organised soon after the dissolution of Parliament as it has happened before, and this will not have any effect on the exhibition if it happens," Ismail told reporters at the Ministry's Open Day held at a shopping mall here.

First held in 1991, the 1999 edition of LIMA opened on Dec. 1, one day after polling in the general election held that year.

Ismail was responding to Election Commission chairman Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Mohd Yusof who said Saturday that he expected Parliament to be dissolved after the Lima exhibition in March.

The EC chairman was commenting on rumours that Lima exhibitors will withdraw if the Dewan Rakyat is dissolved before the event.

Parliament's term ends on April 27 but speculation is rife that Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak may seek the Yang di-Pertuan Agong's consent for an earlier dissolution in the coming weeks to pave the way for a general election.

Cops raid karaoke, rescue 23 scantily-clad Vietnamese women

Posted: 23 Feb 2013 01:19 AM PST

KUALA LUMPUR: Police raided a karaoke near here and rescued 23 scantily-clad Vietnamese women believed to be victims of human trafficking.

Led by the Bukit Aman Anti Traffiking in Persons (ATIP) (D7) unit chief Deputy Superintendent Nor Omar Sappi, the team raided the two-storey karaoke center located in Menara PGRM at Cheras at 1am Saturday.

He said the women were aged between 19 and 35 had used social visit passes to enter the country but he said it was an offence under the Immigration Act as they had abused the pass to work in the country.

"However, we believe the women are victims of a human trafficking syndicate that had lured the women with hope of finding jobs in Malaysia and instead sent them to the Klang Valley to be involved in seedy activities including offering sex services," he said.

There were about 40 customers in the premises when the police team of 20 personnel including six officer raided the karaoke center.

The karaoke joint, which possessed valid operating licenses, had over a dozen rooms in their premises for customers to rent.

Kredit: www.thestar.com.my

Sabtu, 23 Februari 2013