The Star Online: Nation
The Star Online: Nation |
- PM's first female political secretary
- Tolerance is the key to Allah issue
- Man who accused wife of being a man now has to pay her RM12,000 in costs
| PM's first female political secretary Posted: 07 Jan 2014 08:00 AM PST KUALA LUMPUR: Her appointment as political secretary to the Prime Minister came as a pleasant surprise to Datin Paduka Norhayati Onn (pic), who believes it will pave the way for greater involvement of Malaysian women in politics. Norhayati, 50, who was sworn in to the post on Monday, is the first woman to serve the country's Prime Minister as political secretary. The mother of three said her appointment came as a surprise even though Wanita Umno, under the leadership of Datuk Seri Shahrizat Jalil, had been pushing for more women to be actively involved in mainstream politics. "I have served Umno for more than 30 years and never expected to be given this opportunity. "I am truly humbled to be chosen for the job and I am honoured to be serving Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak as his political secretary," she said in an interview yesterday. Norhayati, who entered politics at the tender age of 16, has been the Klang Wanita Umno chief since 1992. She is currently the Selangor Wanita head and is also in the exco line-up of the national Wanita Umno movement. The daughter of former Umno permanent chairman Tan Sri Onn Ismail had served as a senator for two terms. Her appointment reflects Najib's confidence in women for all fields in the workforce, including politics, she said, adding that she had been given the task to look after women's issues. The first thing she plans to do is organise a meet-up between political secretaries of Cabinet ministers and the Wanita leadership of Barisan Nasional component parties, beginning with Wanita Umno. "Once we know each other, the better we can work together to serve the people," she said. Welcoming Norhayati's appointment, Shahrizat said it had created history as it was the first time a woman was appointed to fill the post. "It marks another milestone in the Barisan Wanita's struggles towards mainstreaming women's participation as policy makers in the political arena," she said in a statement here yesterday. The Wanita Umno chief expressed hope the appointment would inspire women in Malaysia to continue playing their roles to ensure success for the national transformation agenda. |
| Tolerance is the key to Allah issue Posted: 07 Jan 2014 08:00 AM PST PETALING JAYA: Tolerance is the formula that has enabled Muslims and non-Muslims in Sabah and Sarawak to share the usage of the word "Allah" without any problems. Sarawak Assistant Minister in the Chief Minister's Department (Islamic Affairs) Datuk Daud Abdul Rahman said Christians in the state had been using Allah to refer to God for over a hundred years because the bibles were in Bahasa Indonesia and Bahasa Malaysia. "The Muslims are never confused about this and this does not bother us. After all, we all believe in one God. "We are firm in our belief and the Christians are firm in their belief," he said. He said statistics showed that there was no major conversion in religions from both sides just because Muslims and Christians in the state used Allah to refer to God. Daud hoped that Muslims and Christians in the peninsula would stop hurling threats at each other. "Nobody will win if we continue like this. Let us discuss it peacefully as there is always a way out. It was not a problem 40 to 50 years ago, so what's the problem now?" he asked. Dayak leader Tan Sri Dr James Masing said Sarawakians achieved religious harmony because they recognised and respected religious differences and practices without resorting to the "holier than thou" attitude. He said the most vicious wars had always been fought in the name of God and religion. "We must never allow it to happen in Malaysia," said the State Land Development Minister and Parti Rakyat Sarawak president. In KOTA KINABALU, Sabahans are puzzled by the fuss over the use of the word Allah. Sabah Council of Churches chairman Bishop Datuk Thomas Tsen said the use of Allah in the al-Kitab has been done for generations of Christians. "We have lived in harmony. Sabah has always had the 1Malaysia spirit even before it was coined," he said. Sabah STAR chairman Datuk Dr Jeffrey Kitingan said failure to honour the agreement would lead to the perception that the Government had no intention of doing so. "Religious freedom was a matter close to the hearts of the founding fathers of Malaysia especially from Sabah and Sarawak. "If there were no guarantees, including Constitutional safeguards, Sabah and Sarawak would probably not have agreed to form the Federation of Malaysia in 1963," he added. Related stories: Uphold 10-point solution Govt urged Ti: NUCC should have asked Jais to return bibles Seizure of bibles in line with dept's SOP, says state councillor Perkasa: Do not hold protests outside churches |
| Man who accused wife of being a man now has to pay her RM12,000 in costs Posted: 07 Jan 2014 08:00 AM PST KUALA LUMPUR: A former university dean, who accused his wife of being a man, has been ordered by a Syariah High Court to pay RM12,000 in costs in four instalments over his four failed applications against the beauty care boutique owner. Dr Bahrom Sanugi, 63, a former Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia dean, is to pay Sri Wani Choo Abdullah RM3,000 monthly before the 7th of each month following the ruling made by Syarie judge Amran Md Zain yesterday. Dr Bahrom's four applications, among others, sought to compel Sri Wani to undergo a DNA test to verify her gender. On Aug 30, 2012, Syariah High Court judge Abdul Walid Abu Hassan ruled then the court had no jurisdiction to conduct the case as Dr Bahrom had failed to reply to an affidavit in relation to his rented house in Taman Dato' Senu here. The judge said the respondent had also failed to reply to an affidavit on the issue although he had been given sufficient time to file it and this had wasted the court's time Dr Bahrom had also applied to validate a solemnisation and temporary separation (faraq nikah) from his wife. The other applications were for an injunction to prevent Sri Wani from making press statements and a committal order to jail her. Judge Amran Md Zain instructed Dr Bahrom to pay the costs in instalments after meeting the parties in chambers yesterday. Syarie counsel Datuk Amli Embong, who acted for Sri Wani, told reporters: "Today, Dr Bahrom paid RM3,000 in cash as the first instalment to Sri Wani." |
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