The Star Online: Nation
The Star Online: Nation |
- Hunt is on for more Tamil Tigers at large
- Errant developers face jail and RM500,000 fine
- Shopping mall hit by blackout
| Hunt is on for more Tamil Tigers at large Posted: 25 May 2014 09:00 AM PDT PETALING JAYA: The Bukit Aman Special Branch Counter Terrorism Division is hunting down more suspected members of the Liberation Tigers Of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) believed to be hiding in the country. The operation comes in the wake of the arrests of three Sri Lankan men on May 15. The men, believed to be members of the terrorist group also known as Tamil Tigers, were held after raids conducted here and in Klang. Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar said they were believed to have been in the country since 2004. "They were using Malaysia as a base to secure funds, spread their propaganda and were attempting to revive the defunct terrorist group," he said in a statement yesterday. Among the items seized were LTTE propaganda materials, media equipment and foreign currency notes valued at RM20,176.53. "We managed to track them down using the identities given on their United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) cards," he said, adding that all three had been detained under the Immigration Act. Khalid said Bukit Aman would work closely with UNHCR to prevent terrorists from exploiting the refugee card to enter and remain in the country. "We will not allow Malaysia to be used as a place for them to hide or conduct terror activities here or on foreign soil," he said. It was learnt that the Sri Lankans had assimilated themselves well in Malaysia, including holding regular jobs. According to a source, one of them worked for an IT company while another owned a business supplying tents for weddings. "One of the suspects was previously jailed in Singapore for theft. "He served his sentence and fled to Malaysia," he said, adding that members of the LTTE had been mingling among the 4,300 Sri Lankan nationals in the country. The source said police had detained eight LTTE members since 2009, including a man believed to be the second in command of the group. All have since been deported to Sri Lanka, where they face prosecution for terrorist acts. The source said some of the Tamil Tigers had obtained their UNHCR cards through legal channels while the cards of others were sourced illegally. Police believe that Malaysians, who are sympathisers to the cause, have been harbouring them. |
| Errant developers face jail and RM500,000 fine Posted: 25 May 2014 09:00 AM PDT PETALING JAYA: Errant housing developers can now be hit with hefty fines and jail terms if they abandon their projects. Under the amendments to the National Housing Development (Control and Licensing) Act 1966, which would take effect from June, developers of abandoned projects may be fined RM500,000 and jailed for up to three years. The changes also enable house buyers to terminate sale and purchase agreements with developers if there was no progress for six consecutive months or more and seek a refund of deposits within 30 days. House Buyers Association secretary-general Chang Kim Loong said the changes offered house buyers more legal safeguards against errant housing developers. He said it was a reflection of the Government's concern for house buyers' rights and a move to ensure that developers kept to their obligation of completing projects. He commended former Urban Wellbeing, Housing and Local Government Minister Datuk Seri Chor Chee Heung for helping to pave the way for the amendments in 2010. "The pertinent changes include making errant developers criminally liable by meting out jail sentences upon conviction. "The new laws also enforces liquidators, as de-facto developers, to abide by the Act," he said. However, Chan said changes should also be made to other laws to further streamline the construction industry. He said among the laws being reviewed where those pertaining to housing developers regulations and sale and purchase agreements under Schedule (G,H,I,J) together with the Strata Management Act, Strata Title Act and Strata Tribunal Act. "Since all these laws relate to the welfare of house buyers and cross-reference each other, they should be launched simultaneously to avoid potential conflicting legal views," he said. Chan said the drafting process involving the amendments were nearing completion and that the changes were expected to be announced by the ministry. On April 3, Deputy Urban Wellbeing, Housing and Local Government Minister Datuk Halimah Mohd Sadique announced to the Dewan Rakyat that the amendments to the Housing Development (Control and Licensing) would come into effect on June 1. From 2009 to Feb 28 this year, the ministry had classified 206 housing projects as abandoned. Out of these, 149 had since been revived with 22,868 homes built. |
| Posted: 25 May 2014 09:00 AM PDT PETALING JAYA: Shoppers and movie-goers at the 1 Utama Shopping Complex had their outing cut short when a sudden blackout hit the mall. Disgruntled netizens posted photographs of the shopping mall shrouded in darkness. Engineer Kensim, 29, said he only managed to watch the first five minutes of the movie X-Men: Days of Future Past when the screen suddenly went blank. "We waited for about 15 minutes in the cinema before someone came in and told us that the shopping mall was experiencing a blackout. "Many people demanded refunds for the movie but we decided to leave," he said. During the incident at 3.15pm, many roads near the mall were congested as shoppers scrambled to exit the mall. Student Lim Xu Fern, 16, said she felt it was best to head home as "a lot can happen in the dark". "I was worried that the security here might be compromised due to the blackout," she said. Her friend, Naomi Kung, also 16, said she was watching a movie with Lim and another friend when the blackout happened. Restaurant manager Elaine Chia said she was upset that business was interrupted. "Since it is a Sunday, there were many patrons but most of them decided to leave immediately. It became very hot and humid as air-conditioning was cut off," she said. A spokesman for the complex said the incident was not caused by the mall's internal electrical system. "Some other parts of Bandar Utama also experienced the power disruption," he said. The power was gradually restored at about 4.55pm using a generator. When contacted, Tenaga Nasional Bhd said they had received many complaints from residents in surrounding residential areas which have also been affected by the blackout. As of 5.30pm, it said the cause of the power failure had not been determined yet. |
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