The Star Online: Metro: South & East
The Star Online: Metro: South & East |
- Dompok: Intrusion in Lahad Datu must serve as a lesson in ensuring safety
- Kuantan is set to be a major trade centre in the east coast
- MCA likely to retain Kuantan parliamentary seat
| Dompok: Intrusion in Lahad Datu must serve as a lesson in ensuring safety Posted: 07 Mar 2013 03:24 AM PST KOTA KINABALU: The intrusion in Lahad Datu and past crisis that happened in Sabah's east coast should serve as a lesson. United Pasokmomogun Kadazandusun Murut Organisation (UPKO) president Tan Sri Bernard Dompok said the Lahad Datu incident is not a new matter, as people have been getting in and out of Sabah coastline and yet nothing was done. "What happened in Sabah's east coast areas proves a policy lax and poor enforcement of law, and the skirmish between Malaysian security forces and Sulu gunmen in Tanduo village, Lahad Datu on Friday should serve as a lesson to the Government, " he said. "Don't keep telling me the coastline is too long and that is why you can't look after all of it," he said at the launching of the Penampang Traditional handicraft, food and beverage festival recently. Dompok said repeating statements like that and not improving or preventing similar issues from occurring is like saying "I can't take care of the sovereignty of the country because it is too huge". He added that it was time to reflect, change and act based on the rule of law in ensuring the safety of the country. He said it was very sad to see police personnel losing their lives and several others wounded in defending the sovereignty of the country. "This has been an unnecessary encounter. The Government has to find a way to look after the Sabah coastline," Dompok said. "We have to come up with something to look after our long coastline, the rule of law must apply and letting people in and out of Sabah, and later let them become citizens shows the laid back attitude of the Government," he stressed. Meanwhile, Dompok said the suggestion by Former Chief Minister Tan Sri Harris Salleh to pay RM200 million in lump sum as compensation to settle the long-standing issue raised by the so-called Sulu Sultan was ridiculous. "This is a baseless suggestion because Malaysia is a sovereign country," he added. |
| Kuantan is set to be a major trade centre in the east coast Posted: 06 Mar 2013 03:41 PM PST KUANTAN: Once a small fishing hamlet, Kuantan has undergone major changes throughout the past years to quickly emerge as a trade, commerce, tourism and transportation hub of the east coast. The most populated town in Pahang had been earmarked for rapid progress under the East Coast Economic Region (ECER) due to its position as the gateway to the Asia Pacific region. Most recently, Kuantan had seen advancement in the establishment of the Malaysia-China Kuantan Industrial Park (MCKIP). Launched by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, the RM2.5bil park jointly developed between a Malaysian and Chinese consortium had already attracted investment commitments worth RM10.5bil and is expected to be fully completed in two years. Some 8,500 jobs are also expected to be created for locals from the setting up of the MCKIP. Other than the MCKIP, Kuantan would also have another landmark tourist attraction with the development of the Kuantan Waterfront Resort City in Tanjung Lumpur. The RM1.6bil project is expected to boost not only the tourism sector but provide some 5,000 job opportunities, in addition to economic spill-over activities for locals. The project sited on a piece of reclaimed land off the Tanjung Lumpur beach would cover a 202ha land area, some 2.5km from the shore. The waterfront project will be constructed in five phases over a period of between 10 years and 15 years, comprising of hotel, residential, commercial, business, medical and health centres. Some 25% of the project will have a marina and among the facilities available include a water theme park, aquaria, shopping outlets, duty free shops, terminal, floating restaurant, convention centre and hotel. In terms of services, Kuantan would have its own Urban Transformation Centre (UTC) soon, the fourth to be created in the country. The conversion of Terminal Makmur into the UTC is expected to be complete by March 15 and the centre will go into full operation a week after. Designed to house 32 federal and 16 state departments, 12 statutory bodies, five banks and six non-governmental organisations, the UTC would centralise these agencies under one roof. The strategic location of the UTC in the town centre would also makes it easier for the people to deal with the agencies up to 10pm daily. Recreational facilities such as a gymnasium, archery range, aerobic studio and a library as well as a 1Malaysia clinic would also be made available in the UTC. Late last year saw the introduction of the RapidKuantan bus service in a town which had not had an adequate public transportation system for quite some time. RapidKuantan, which commenced operations on Dec 1 last year, now had 47 buses to serve seven routes. Following the cessation of services by the Bee Huat Omnibus Company and the Seng Heng Bus Company, RapidKuantan had also taken on four new routes from January 7. Kuantan was believed to have existed since the 1850s. Initially known as Teruntum Village, it was situated around the banks of the Kuantan River, facing the present Tengku Ampuan Afzan hospital. Following the discovery of tin in Gambang and Sungai Lembing, the Kuantan township was established to become a centre for trade and collection of the mined ore. In 1955, the British authorities moved the state capital from Kuala Lipis to Kuantan and the town had come a long way since then with its importance growing to include the industry and tourism sectors as well. Residents interviewed by Star Metro were generally satisfied with the facilities and the development of Kuantan. Politeknik Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah student Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Azhar, 21, felt the MCKIP would present opportunities for him and his fellow students. "In times where there are a lot of graduates who are jobless, we have the MCKIP being established right at our doorsteps.. Local university and polytechnic graduates can easily get themselves absorbed as skilled workforce. "Even if the students want to continue their studies, they can at least begin by gaining experience at the enterprises at the park," said the third-year electrical engineering student. Civil servant Shahrul Ismail, 31, opined that the park would put Kuantan on the world map as Malaysia becomes a significant trade ally of China. "China is fast rising as a world economic superpower. I think the move to work together with the Chinese can benefit the locals here tremendously by giving a boost to businesses and provide job opportunities," said the father of two. However, Shahrul complained that the state government was not doing enough to promote tourism in Kuantan. "Teluk Chempedak still looks the same to me after all these years. We also have Cherating which is among the most beautiful beaches in the world but I do not see anything done to capitalise on that," he said. Teacher S. Indu, 29, said Kuantan's development and facilities had improved a lot ever since Najib became the Prime Minister. "It is small wonder because Najib is from Pahang. Kuantan has seen an increase in quality of living which I would say is equal to Kuala Lumpur now," she said. Although businessman Hang Chong Leung, 29, felt that the MCKIP could give a boost to Kuantan's economic growth, he was uncertain on the implementation and potential part of it. "If it can bring business in, then the town can grow, which is good but I think the Government need to review the prospects because most people still do not know what it is about. "I do welcome foreign investments but the Government has to put in more effort in explaining such mega-projects to the people. It is quite evident by the lack of public awareness on the Lynas rare earth project until recently," he said, hoping that the MCKIP was sustainable and could provide opportunities for the people and not just built for the sake of commercial value. The Kuantan parliamentary seat is constituted of three state assembly seats namely Tanjung Lumpur, Inderapura and Teruntum. Except for the Kuantan seat which was won over by PKR in 2008, the state seats are controlled by Barisan Nasional. There were 55,347 registered voters, predominantly Malays, in the constituency as of the third quarter of 2012. |
| MCA likely to retain Kuantan parliamentary seat Posted: 07 Mar 2013 03:24 AM PST KUANTAN: The Kuantan parliamentary seat is likely to remain with the MCA representing Barisan Nasional for the coming 13th general election. A party insider said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak had expressed hope to see all seats in the state to remain "status quo." "During a closed-door meeting with several divisions in Kuantan last month, the issue of swapping of seats were brought up and discussed. "There was no decision made and it is up to the Prime Minister to evaluate the situation before concluding," said the insider, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. It is reliably learnt that among the divisions involved in the meeting were Kuantan, Indera Mahkota, Bera and Jerantut. The insider said the Prime Minister wanted the four divisons to further strengthen their elections machinery and go all out to secure a handsome win for Barisan. Kuantan Umno division had also expressed its readiness to re-contest the seat, which was given to the MCA to contest in 2004, as part of a nationwide seat-swapping exercise. In the 2008 elections, a political tsunami saw incumbent Datuk Fu Ah Kiow losing the seat to Fuziah Salleh of PKR with just a 1,826-vote majority. Pahang Barisan also lost the Indera Mahkota parlimentary seat as well as five state seats namely Tanah Rata, Kuala Semantan, Beserah, Tras and Triang. The party insider pointed out that both Kuantan and Indera Mahkota parliamentary seats have over 30% Chinese voters. "Since the official launching of the Malaysia-China Kuantan Industrial Park on Feb 5, support from the business fraternity is increasing. "The issue of Lynas is also watering down and there are signs that Chinese voters as well as those from the Indian community are returning to the Barisan's fold" said the insider, adding that to drive home the message of "inclusiveness," the Prime Minister did not want to create a perception that "Umno is robbing a component party of a seat." Furthermore, the insider noted that the Opposition MP had taken up the Lynas issue and over-politicise it to gain political mileage. Going beyond market talk, a decision is expected soon which may well see a candidate from the MCA getting nominated to wrest back Kuantan. |
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