TwoSen

WE refer to “Upset KLIA Ekspres User” (The Star, Jan 15), and would like to clarify some of the points raised.

There are 19 surveillance cameras at the KL City Air Terminal departure hall in KL Sentral, with digital recording 24hrs a day. Nevertheless, given the large area and structure, it is impossible to cover 100% of the area with no blind spots. All these recordings are network-enabled, and are accessible by authorised personnel.

Our CCTV showed a different story from what was reported. We have contacted ‘User’ to view the recordings to ascertain what actually happened.

When ‘User’ approached our staff and asked to see the duty manager, our staff immediately went to notify the duty manager, who attended to ‘User’ within two minutes, as recorded in the CCTV.

While we have taken every possible measure to mitigate such incidents, however, from our observations of previous cases, the loss is sometimes due to the negligence of customers.

We would therefore like to remind the public not to leave their baggage and valuables unattended at any time. There are announcements every 20 minutes over our public address system as well as signages reminding the public of this.

Dr AMINUDDIN ADNAN,
Chief Executive Officer,
Express Rail Link.

Source: The Star – January 21, 2008

WHY is it that DBKL is busy ripping apart Bukit Kiara?

We have seen article after article in the papers about Kuala Lumpur becoming a “modern green city” with proposals such as “Hyde Park of KL” etc.

Well that’s now out the window with the latest attack on the precious little green space in the city today.

While I am of the opinion that well-crafted trails within the confines of Kiara is a good thing, as it draws people in to use the facilities, what is being done today could never be described as “well-crafted”.

Trees felled unnecessarily, wide roads with no regard to water control and erosion, and no support to prevent further landslides mean that these trails will be unsuitable for both man and beast and will become riddled with Aedes breeding playgrounds.

There are organisations that look after the precious trails network within Kiara in a planned, coordinated and professional way ensuring conservation of the soil, plant and animal life. They are professional in what they do and how they do it.

They take feedback from the community who use them by the hundreds on a daily basis. Why is it that DBKL cannot do the same? Why has there been no community consultation?

DISMAYED,

Kuala Lumpur.

I READ the letter by Heartbroken Trail User (The Star, Jan 17) and agree with him on the condition of the trails in Bukit Kiara.

I have been using the trails frequently since coming back from Australia and taking up mountain biking. What concerns me is that after the widening, the condition of the trials has become terrible. It is impossibly muddy and dirty, and now the trails are rarely used by hikers/joggers and bikers alike.

What used to be a nature heaven for hikers/bikers and joggers is being turned into a muddy and mosquito infested place. And I pity those who have put hundreds of hours into maintaining the trails only to see their work gone in a matter or weeks.

Consultation with experts should be made to reduce the effect of erosions and land slides due to the excavation.

BKT KIARA TRAIL USER,
Subang Jaya, Selangor.

Source: The Star – January 21, 2008

I SHARE the views of Marina Mahathir in “Oh, for some dirt somewhere” (The Star, Jan 16) about elderly people working in Changi Airport.

Elderly people working at the taxi lines was the first thing that impressed me the minute I stepped out of the airport.

The senior people working in Changi airport neatly dressed in their uniforms are so helpful and so cheerful. From their smiles and their mannerism, you can feel that they are proud of what they are doing.

Clearly they are teaching us that being old doesn’t have to be grouchy and useless.

It is a real contrast to “some” of our “warga emas” here. To them it is degrading to work after retirement, more so if they work in a public place where relatives and friends, or their children or grandchildren may see them and start probing whether they are giving enough money to their father or grandfather.

I suppose that is the reason some children do not allow their parents to work after a certain age, not because they are mentally or physically unable to, but to “save face”.

There is a famous Chinese saying which is basis of one of the 9PP for MCA: Chi Dao Lao, Xue Dao Lao, which means as long as we are able, we must continue to learn.

In this age of globalisation, continuing to learn is not enough. To be competitive we must continue to contribute to society and the nation.

The MCA Life Long Learning campaign is very appropriate and will benefit the nation.

It will be even more successful if it is able to convince senior citizens to continue contributing in their own ways, especially those who have taken part in the Life Long Learning campaign.

Find a place for senior citizens and make them role models to others and let them feel proud of themselves. Hopefully this will help reduce the influx of foreign workers.

FIDEL HO FAI FONG,
Penang.

Source: The Star – January 21, 2008

I REFER to “200,000 to go” and “Foreigners ‘colonising’ our estates” (Sunday Star, Jan 20).

It is indeed gratifying to read that the Government plans to reduce the number of foreign workers in the country, to 1.8 million next year and 1.5 million by 2015.

There are now 500,000 in plantations and estates, and according to Plantation Industries and Commodities Minister Datuk Peter Chin Fah Kui, we need to reverse this trend or the plantations and estates will soon be controlled by foreigners.

The influx of foreign workers has caused a lot of problems to our country. Because of the cheap labour these foreigners provide, our locals – especially the unskilled ones – are deprived of jobs in the construction and manufacturing sectors, the commodities-related fields, or other areas.

Without a means of livelihood, our unskilled locals are depressed, frustrated and desperate, so they resort to illegal activities and crime.

The foreign workers, too, play a part in the increasing crime rate of our country.

Besides doing what is legal, some are involved in clandestine activities like prostitution among other things.

Besides that, foreign workers also spread infectious diseases, among which is tuberculosis, which our country had been cleared of before they came.

They compete with our locals for the use of facilities and amenities, like transportation and medical care, to name a few. Often, they do not adhere to rules and regulations relating to their use.

Our country’s priorities should be the needs of our poverty-stricken rakyat, whether in the rural or urban areas with regard to employment, housing and proper healthcare. Charity begins at home!

TAN LEE HUAN,
Bukit Mertajam, Penang.

Source: The Star – January 21, 2008

THE Government and local authorities must do more to rid society of the Mat Rempit menace. The police must have the authority to seize and destroy vehicles, increase fines and impose deterrent jail sentences.

The Mat Rempit should have their licences suspended for a specific period. Repeat offenders should have their licences revoked. Amend the Road Transport Act now! Enough is enough!

Please, to every reader concerned about this menace, contact your local authorities and government officials and demand they act without delay!

EDWARD,
Kuala Lumpur.

Source: The Star – January 21, 2008

WE refer to the article on Malaysia Airlines by Dr Muhammad Izanee Mohamed Mydin, of Kingston-upon-Hull (”Revise strategy or lose out” — NST, Jan 14).

The business turnaround plan (BTP) of Malaysia Airlines, launched in 2006, clearly articulates the sequence of the objective from financial survival to profitability and then to profitable growth in the final year.

We have come a long way from our loss of RM1.3 billion in 2006 to a record profit of RM610 million in 2007 (January-September only).

As we enter the final stretch of the BTP, we have exceeded the original targets of the plan by selectively expanding our network, offering newer, better and more frequent connections to our passengers.

Despite the rationalisation in 2006, we remain a dominant force in the domestic market, having moved ahead to build our network.

Ever since we took back the domestic operations, this segment of our business has been profitable and we have, in fact, increased frequencies to Miri, Sibu and Tawau as well as maintained our services to other cities in Malaysia.

We have been aggressively expanding through Firefly from Penang and Subang as well as through MASwings in Sabah and Sarawak.

In less than three months of operation, Firefly now offers from Subang, thrice daily flights to Penang, twice daily flights to Langkawi, a daily flight to Kuala Terengganu and Kota Baru with more destinations in the pipeline.

In the Asean region, we have increased our frequencies to Bangkok and Jakarta from three to five times daily.

In addition, we provide a double daily service to Phuket, progressively adding services to Singapore and Ho Chi Minh as well as increasing capacity on the Manila route.

We constantly monitor all our routes and redeploy our aircraft to destinations with stronger passenger demand.

For example, due to weaker demand, we reduced our weekly frequencies to Surabaya but in turn, redeployed aircraft to Yogyakarta.

The decision to increase or decrease flights on a specific route is primarily driven by the economics of operating that service.

We have adopted a hub-and-spoke strategy for our European operations. Together with our code-share partners — KLM, Alitalia and BMI — we offer our passengers more than 50 connections across Europe from our hubs in Amsterdam, Rome and London.

During this BTP phase, we have implemented many initiatives to turn around unprofitable routes. As a result, many routes are now profitable and we have increased frequencies to some European destinations such as Paris and Rome. However, once we have exhausted all options, we will suspend operations on unprofitable routes such as Kuala Lumpur-Zurich.

Our London route is profitable and we operate double daily B747 flights. By mid- 2008, two additional weekly frequencies will be mounted.

Dr Izanee is right in pointing out that carriers are scrambling for “valuable” slots. However, these slots are only “valuable” during the peak morning and evening periods, and Malaysia Airlines possesses slots for both these periods.

Slots during non-peak periods in London are not difficult to obtain but are not aligned to our customer requirements.

Our network also grew in the Australia and New Zealand markets as well as in the Indian sub-continent region.

Last year, we launched additional weekly flights to Perth and Auckland during peak periods to meet increased demand. Likewise, we also increased weekly frequencies to New Delhi and Chennai.

While we recognise that Emirates offers a strong schedule between Europe and the Middle East to Asean, Australia and New Zealand, we will continue to optimise our schedule and pricing to ensure that we match effectively with not only Emirates but other carriers as well.

Dr Izanee rightly pointed out that business passengers value good connectivity and frequency. As outlined above, we have been adding frequencies as well as establishing code-sharing agreements and partnerships for destinations that we cannot serve alone.

Beyond an improved schedule, we have improved our product by retrofitting both our first and business class cabins with new seats.

Ultimately, we are guided by what our customers want and not by what our competitors pursue. Continuous building of customer loyalty is critical as it ensures that our current profitable growth strategy is sustainable. Our customers are our number one priority.

At the end of this month, we will announce our Business Transformation Plan which will provide more clarity on our five-year strategy and we will make this document available in the public domain.

DATUK RASHID KHAN Commercial director Malaysia Airlines

Source: NST – January 21, 2008

THERE are some two million foreign workers, of whom half are believed to be illegal immigrants.

Male workers are involved in the construction, plantation and services sectors while female workers are usually brought in as maids.

These foreign workers are willing to perform tasks which, in many instances, are dangerous, demeaning and dirty.

In most cases, foreign workers would have paid hefty sums to agents back home to get permits to work in Malaysia.

They also pay for their own air tickets. They arrive with heavy debts. At the airport, many unscrupulous agents and employers take advantage of their naivety and ignorance.

Many workers find themselves stranded at the KLIA because the agents or their employers absconded with their money.

Last year, a floor of the car park in the airport terminal was converted to a place of refuge for these stranded workers.

The fortunate ones are picked up by their agents at the airport on arrival and sent to their employers.

Some employers provide them with decent accommodation, food and working conditions. Some foreign workers, however, are not so lucky.

The media has highlighted the plight of some foreign workers who have been subjected to abuse.

A few years ago, the nation was shocked over a foreign worker who starved to death.

There have also been cases of foreign workers who were physically and emotionally abused.

In some extreme cases, workers have been found chained, locked up and starving.

It is cruel and inhuman to deny any man his wages. Unfortunately, there are employers who cheat these workers of their hard- earned money. There have been many reports of wages not being paid to these workers for months. Maybe that’s why some foreign workers resort to crime.

When foreign workers demand for their wages, drastic action is taken by the employers, as in the incident involving 30 Bangladeshi workers in Juru recently (”Bangladeshi workers locked out of their hostel” — NST, Jan 11).

Even professional workers have not been spared, as in the case of the two professional dancers from India (”Abused dance teachers get their money, returning home” — NST, Jan 8).

There have been many cases of foreign maids who have been abused by their employers. Many have run away or risked life and limb by jumping from buildings to escape.

On the other hand, there are families who treat their maids well, regarding them as part of the family, giving them days off and paying them good allowances.

Yet, some run away.

This is no surprise as a live-in maid’s work in this country often entails 24 hours of work a day, seven days a week, involving everything from taking care of children to washing cars for a mere RM400 a month. We are paying them a pittance compared with what maids get in Singapore and Hong Kong. It is no wonder that local girls do not opt to be maids.

Knowingly or unknowingly, some of us have subjected these foreign workers to injustice, pain and misery.

Though these incidents do not happen often, they occur often enough to warrant concern about our attitudes and values towards lowly-paid foreign workers.

Source: NST – January 21, 2008

I REFER to your report on the death of famous Mount Everest conqueror Sir Edmund Hillary (”Everest legend Hillary dies” — NST, Jan 12).

Hillary and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay were my childhood heroes. When they conquered Mount Everest, I was in primary school but was old enough to appreciate their feat.

The photograph of Tenzing clad in an oxygen mask standing on the summit holding up the flags of three nations is permanently etched in my mind.

I have never seen a photograph of Hillary on the summit. I was informed this is because only Hillary knew how to use a camera.

Tenzing had never used a camera before. Given the conditions of the moment, Hillary thought the time was not opportune to start teaching Tenzing how to use a camera. So Hillary took all the photographs, and so got left out.

Today, he could have digitally edited himself into the photograph but it would never be the same.

WAN ABU BAKAR WAN TEH IBRAHIM, Petaling Jaya

Source: NST – January 21, 2008

YOUR report on public transport requirements in the Klang Valley (”Brainstorming for plan to tackle traffic jams” — NST, Jan 15), stated that every day about 200,000 vehicles — 60 per cent of them being single-occupancy vehicles — enter and leave Kuala Lumpur during peak hours, causing congestion not only in the city centre but also its suburbs.

This raises the question of why many of us prefer to drive to work rather than use public transport.

Perhaps my daily experience in travelling to work will provide some insight into the problems commuters face every day in the Klang Valley and provide some feedback for those working on solutions to our transport problems.

On normal days, I leave my home in USJ 11 at 6.45am. The trip to Dayabumi complex, where I work, takes 30 minutes via the New Pantai Expressway. The journey home in the evening takes no longer than 45 minutes via the same route, if I were to leave office between 5pm and 5.15pm.

I decided to take the KTM Komuter last Wednesday. As usual, I left home at 6.45am and drove to the Subang Jaya Komuter station. I took the 7.10am train and reached the old KL Railway Station at 7.30am. I was at my office by 7.45am. I thought a one-hour commute, point-to-point, was not a bad deal.

Going home was something else. I left my office at 5.05pm, missed the 5.15pm train but caught the next train at 5.50pm. (That’s 35 minutes after the earlier train.) How is it that KTMB can provide only one service in 35 minutes during peak hours, I wondered then.

In the train, I overheard a conversation indicating that there was a delay and that delays were quite normal with the KTM Komuter.

I reached the Subang Jaya station at 6.20pm. From then on, it was chaos all the way. Getting out of the parking lot to reach the Subang Parade-Carrefour junction took 20 minutes! This is a short trip that would take less than five minutes on foot.

What I observed was that cars, especially taxis, were parked indiscriminately on both sides of the road leading out of the station.

To make matters worse, the road arrangements (if I can call it that), the traffic lights, and the traffic flow system could not cope with the sheer volume of traffic during that period. These small access roads, which have not been improved or changed since the 1980s, cater to vehicles to and from the railway station, Carrefour, Subang Parade and those from the Federal Highway entering Subang Jaya through the Subang Jaya Medical Centre exit. Talk about keeping with the times!

Once I negotiated this short and tricky section, I had to face the expected traffic snarl from Subang Jaya to USJ.

I reached home at 7pm, almost two hours after I left office. Contrast that with the 45-minute trip home if I were to drive. That’s a trade-off most drivers won’t even consider.

So on Thursday, I rejoined the 200,000 vehicles, there to stay until and unless things start to change drastically.

Now, do I hear any proposition worth considering?

A. RIZAL, Subang Jaya

Source: NST – January 21, 2008

THE government initiative to introduce insurance coverage for foreign maids is laudable.

The proposed scheme, which covers accidents, death and healthcare, gives added protection to maids and employers as well as the maid agencies.

It is noted that apart from the scheme announced by the Home Affairs Ministry, the Malaysian Association of Foreign Housemaids Agencies (Papa) has proposed another insurance scheme which is much cheaper and appears to meet the set criteria. (”Group: Our scheme for maids better” — NST, Jan 18).

In view of this, I suggest the government select two or more companies, fix the premium and let the employers, who pay the premium, decide on the company in the same way as life and general insurance policies are purchased.

S. SUNDARESON, Petaling Jaya

Source: NST – January 21, 2008