Memorandum to TNB

Memorandum sent to TNB to pressure for the reduce of electricity tariff as below:

31 Oktober 2008

Yang Berbahagia Dato’ Seri Che Khalib bin Mohamad Noh
Presiden dan Ketua Pegawai Ekskutif
Tenaga Nasional Berhad.

Melalui;

Pengurus Besar,
TNB Negeri Sembilan.

Dato’ Seri,

MEMORANDUM UNTUK MEMINTA TNB MENGKAJI SEMULA TARIF ELEKTRIK

Adalah saya dengan segala hormatnya merujuk kepada perkara yang tersebut di atas.

2. Saya bagi pihak wakil rakyat-wakil rakyat daripada Pakatan Rakyat Negeri Sembilan yang mewakili suara rakyat ingin mengemukakan memorandum ini kepada pihak pengurusan tertinggi TNB supaya mengkaji semula dan menurunkan tarif elektrik yang dikenakan ke atas pelanggan-pelanggan TNB. Kenaikan di antara 12% hingga 26% tarif elektrik ke atas pengguna domestik dan sektor perindustrian telah meningkatkan beban pengguna dan juga kadar inflasi secara keseluruhannya.

3. Semasa tarif dinaikkan, TNB memberikan alasan bahawa kos bahan bakar meningkat dengan mendadak. Namun, rakyat secara umumnya tidak faham mengapa apabila harga minyak di pasaran dunia turun sehingga kurang daripada USD70 setong, tarif elektrik masih kekal sama dan tidak dikurangkan. TNB menyatakan bahawa 60% penjanaan elektrik ialah menggunakan gas dan 30% lagi dengan arang batu dan kos kedua-dua bahan bakar ini masih tinggi. Namun, rakyat tidak dapat menerima alasan tersebut kerana sepatutnya TNB mengambil inisiatif untuk membincangkan semula subsidi gas dengan pihak kerajaan kerana penurunan harga pasaran bahan bakar dan penjimatan tersebut sepatutnya dinikmati oleh pengguna.

4. Tambahan pula, TNB sepatutnya mengkaji semula perjanjian dengan “Independent Power Producer” (IPP) yang pada hemat umum lebih menguntungkan IPP. TNB perlulah meningkatkan keefisienan operasi dalaman supaya kos operasi dapat dikurangkan dan menawarkan tarif yang lebih kompetitif kepada rakyat. Sebagai pembekal tenaga tunggal di Semenanjung Malaysia, TNB juga mempunyai tanggungjawab sosial untuk memastikan kos elektrik kekal di tahap yang rendah dan ini juga dapat membantu mengurangkan kadar inflasi.

5. Kami amat mengharapkan permintaan ini untuk mengkaji semula tarif elektrik dapat dipertimbangkan secara serius oleh pengurusan tertinggi TNB memandangkan kemungkinan negara kita akan terjejas oleh krisis ekonomi di Amerika Syarikat dan kadar inflasi mesti dikawal untuk memastikan keharmonian kehidupan rakyat Malaysia dapat dipelihara.

Sekian. Terima kasih



Berkhidmat untuk rakyat,


LOKE SIEW FOOK
AHLI PARLIMEN RASAH
. Read more!

Budget Debate (2)

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Budget Debate (1)

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Prices of petrol

I led a Pakatan protest this morning in the Seremban market to pressure the government to further reduce the prices of petrol and electricity tariff to ease the burden of the rakyat. Besides DAP MPs and State Assemblymen, a few state PAS and PKR leaders were also there.

No government in the world can ignore the global economic crisis hitting the US and Europe currently. Being a trading nation, Malaysia will surely be affected and it is just a matter of degree. I was asked by the moderator of Sudut Pandang 2 nights ago what is the single most important thing the government should do in the current situation. My answer is to reduce the prices of petrol.

By reducing the prices of petrol, it can help to check on the rising inflation and ease the monthly burden of consumers. The savings from a cheaper bill for fuel means more disposable income to spend on other items. More money will be circulated in the market and that will keep domestic consumption going. Simple economics.

I argue that we are paying above market price for petrol currently. When the government announced the hike of petrol prices to RM2.70 per litter, the market price was around USD130 per barrel and the government said it was RM3.00 per litter. The government continued to subsidize 30 cents per litter to consumers and promised that the price will be revised according to market fluctuations minus 30 cents subsidy.

With the current market price of around USD70 per barrel,isn't the price per litter is less than RM2? If the government keeps its promise to subsidize 30 cents, then the pump price should be RM1.70 the most. We are paying for RM2.30 per litter now. By reducing 10-15 cents each time, it is not going to give a huge impact to reduce inflation. Therefore, we call on the government to reduce 50 cents per litter one shot by next week. I dare to say that no one will oppose it except some petrol kiosk owners.

The tariff for electricity is another issue. TNB raised the tariff with the reason of higher fuel costs. Now the prices of fuel have come down, then why is it the tariff cannot be reduced? TNB said it will not. Where is the government? As TNB is the sole power supplier in the Peninsular and regulated and partly owned by the government, the government should immediately order TNB to revise the tariff on the downside.


. Read more!

Trade Missions

Tuan Loke Siew Fook (RASAH) minta MENTERI PERDAGANGAN ANTARABANGSA DAN INDUSTRI menyatakan secara terperinci semua misi perdagangan yang telah dijalankan dari 8 Mac 2008 sehingga kini termasuk jumlah kos dalam setiap misi dan jumlah nilai pelaburan yang direalisasikan. Adakah pihak Kemnenterian menjemput Menteri Besar atau Ketua Menteri Pakatan Rakyat menyertai misi-misi tersebut.

JAWAPAN:

Dari 8 Mac 2008 sehingga kini, sebanyak 5 Misi Galakan Perdagangan dan Pelaburan yang dianjurkan oleh Kementerian Perdagangan Antarabangsa dan Industri telah diadakan di:

1) Amerika Syarikat, dari 13 hingga 23 Mei 2008;
2) Hong Kong, dari 15 hingga 17 Jun 2008;
3) Jepun, dari 5 hingga 12 Julai 2008;
4) Vietnam, dari 27 hingga 30 Julai 2008;
5) Singapura, pada 12 Ogos 2008

Kos yang terlibat bagi melaksanakan setiap Misi Galakan Perdagangan dan Pelaburan tersebut adalah seperti berikut:

1) Amerika Syarikat : RM1,541,494
2) Hong Kong : RM144,385
3) Jepun : RM739,639
4) Vietnam : RM808,830
5) Singapura : RM284,245

Jumlah pelaburan berpotensi yang dikenalpasti daripada misi-misi ini adalah seperti berikut:

1) Misi ke Amerika Syarikat : RM2.1 billion
2) Misi ke Jepun : RM2.604 billion
3) Misi ke Vietnam : RM2.068 billion
4) Misi ke Singapura : RM489.4 juta

Disamping pelaburan berpotensi berjumlah RM7.36 billion, jualan barangan secara langsung berjumlah RM1.2 juta telah dicapai. Jualan berpotensi berjumlah RM28.8 juta telah dikenalpasti.

Sebanyak 200 syarikat, termasuk agensi-agensi di bawah kerajaan negeri telah menyertai Misi-misi Galakan Perdagangan dan Pelaburan ini.

Kementerian Perdagangan Antarabangsa dan Industri belum lagi menjemput Menteri Besar atau Ketua Menteri dari negeri-negeri di bawah Pakatan Rakyat untuk menyertai Misi Galakan Perdagangan dan Pelaburan. Walau bagaiamanpun, Kerajaan tidak mengamalkan diskriminasi terhadap mana-mana negeri dalam usaha menarik pelaburan asing ke Malaysia. Peluang yang sama diberikan kepada semua agensi-agensi kerajaan negeri untuk turut serta dalam di Misi Galakan Perdagangan dan Pelaburan yang dianjurkan oleh Kementerian Perdagangan Antarabangsa dan Industri.Agensi-agensi Kerajaan Negeri dibawah Pakatan Rakyat telah turut menyertai Misi Galakan Perdagangan dan Pelaburan, sebagai contoh:

1) Invest Perak dalam Misi Galakan Perdagangan dan Pelaburan ke Amerika Syarikat;

2) Perbadanan Pelaburan Negeri Selangor dalam Misi Galakan Perdagangan dan Pelaburan ke Jepun; dan

3) Invest Perak dan Invest Penang dalam Misi Galakan Perdagangan dan Pelaburan ke Singapura.

The above answer was given by the Deputy Minister during the one and a half hour Q&A session this morning. In my supplementary question, I raised up that the Deputy Prime Minister had recently called on the Opposition to work together with the Federal Government to face the current economic challenges. I said this is "Cakap tak serupa bikin" as they talk about cooperation but when come to international trade missions, why the Head of State Governments under Pakatan are not invited. I said that the current competition is not between Pakatan states and Barisan states but between Malaysia and the rest of the world.

I quoted the "World Investment Prospects Survey 2007-2009 FDI by United Nations on Trade and Development (UNCTAD)" which stated that Malaysia is at the 14th spot in terms of most attractive FDI destination. Among South East Asian countries, we are behind Vietnam (6th) and Thailand (12th) in terms of attractiveness for foreign investors. I asked him what are the new strategies to attract investors and whether the Ministry will put aside political differences and invite the Pakatan leaders to go on international trade missions together?

The Deputy Minister merely answered that they have yet to invite the MBs from Pakatan but will not discriminate against the state run by Pakatan. . Read more!

Watch Astro Awani tonight!

I am invited to appear on Astro Awani live tonight to take part on the weekly TV debate programme "Sudut Pandang". I will be debating with Datuk Ruhanie Ahmad, former UMNO MP for Parit Sulong. The topic for tonight will be "Pimpinan Politik Mengharungi Krisis Ekonomi Dunia". The debate will be in Bahasa Malaysia.

The details as follow:

Date: 23 October (Thursday)
Time: 8.30 p.m.
Channel: Astro Awani 501

I will be giving my thoughts and the principles of DAP and PAKATAN in economics management. Catch me on Awani tonight! Read more!

Khazanah Nasional Berhad

Tuan Loke Siew Fook (RASAH) minta MENTERI KEWANGAN menyatakan secara terperinci semua aset dan tanggungan yang dimiliki oleh Khazanah Nasional Berhad dan 10 pelaburan terbesar yang sedang diceburi oleh Khazanah termasuk jenis industri, nilai pelaburan dan lokasinya.

JAWAPAN:

Untuk makluman Yang Berhormat, jumlah aset dan tanggungan (liabiliti) Khazanah Nasional Berhad (Khazanah) bagi tahun kewangan berakhir 31 Disember 2007 adalah seperti berikut:

Khazanah (peringkat syarikat) Jumlah (RM'000)

Jumlah Aset 41,218,484
Jumlah Liabiliti 24,271,807

2. Portfolio pelaburan Khazanah adalah pelbagai dari segi sektor ekonomi dan geografi. Lebih dari 85% pelaburan Khazanah adalah di Malaysia. Berikut adalah 10 pegangan pelaburan umum yang terbesar dan terpenting Khazanah, mengikut nilai pelaburan semasa:

Syarikat Industri Nilai pelaburan semasa* (RM billion)

1) Tenaga Nasional Bhd -Utiliti (11.551)
2) UEM Group -Konglomerat (11.058)
3) TMI Berhad -Telekomunikasi (10.430)
4) Bumi Commerce Holding-Kewangan (7.253)
5) Penabangan M'sia/MAS -Pengangkutan (4.101)
6) Telekom Malaysia -Telekomunikasi (3.853)
7) PLUS -Infrastruktur (3.644)
8) Lippo Bank -Kewangan (3.241)
9) Iskandar Investment -Hartanah (2.550)
10)Malaysia Airport -Pengurusan (2.528)

* mengikut nilai pasaran pada 31 Mei 2008 . Read more!

The cost for street lights from Nilai to Seremban

Tuan Loke Siew Fook (Rasah) minta MENTERI KERJA RAYA menyatakan berapa jumlah batang lampu jalan yang telah dipasang di antara Plaza Tol Nilai Utara dengan Seremban, kos setiap batang, jumlah perbelanjaan, siapa yang menanggung perbelanjaan tersebut, siapa kontraktor yang menjalankan projek dan jenis tender yang dilaksanakan. (15 Oktober 2008)


Butiran bagi perkara-perkara yang dibangkitkan:
1) Jumlah tiang lampu bagi Nilai Utara - Seremban adalah sebanyak 940 batang

2) Kos seunit tiang lampu (tidak termasuk kos kabel dan lain-lain kos) adalah
sebanyak RM2,400 satu batang tiang

3) Kos projek sepanjang 22 km ini adalah RM22.54 juta

4) Projek ini adalah sebahagian dari kerja-kerja pelebaran lorong ketiga lebuhraya
Seremban ke Ayer Keroh. Kerja ini diberi kepada PLUS sebagai kontraktor dan kos
projek ini ditanggung oleh pihak kerajaan.

The above is the answer from the Works Ministry. If you calculate 940 street lights X RM 2400 each, it will be amounted to RM 2,256,000 (2.25 million). That means the cabel costs and "lain-lain kos" are about RM 20 million!

I fully welcome the project to fully light up the KL-Seremban Highway especially the Seremban - Nilai part but the amount spent for the project is questionable. The ministry did not answer whether the project was awarded through open tender or otherwise.

Any street lights contractor out there who can give a quotation? Read more!

BOROBUDUR

Came back from Yogyakarta last night after a 2-days conference on social democracy. The direct flight by AirAsia departs daily at 4 pm local time so i have a couple of hours free in the morning. A few local Indonesians whom we met at the conference brought Janice Lee (SA for Teratai, Selangor) and I to the famous heritage site of Indonesia - Borobudur. The place was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site about 30 years ago. It is a Buddhist monument constructed in the 9th century! It is located between Jogja and Magelang in Central Java. It was about an hour drive from Jogja.

Well, it was an interesting visit and it is a nice place to go for heritage lovers and avid photographers. Some pictures taken by my little N95 to be shared with you here :)
For those who are interested to know more about the place, just go to Google and type "Borobudur". Read more!

Anwar's maiden speech as Opposition Leader

I am in Yogyakarta currently to attend a regional conference on social democratic parties in Southeast Asia hosted by Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (a German political foundation that commits to the development of social democratic values). DAP’s political ideology is based on social democracy and therefore we are invited to share our recent electoral success.

I arrived here yesterday afternoon after attended the morning session in Parliament. I was eager to hear the maiden speech of Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim in Parliament in his capacity of Opposition Leader yesterday. Well, as usual Datuk Seri Anwar did it so confidently and “charmingly”. This is the charisma of a PM’s material. His choice of words was powerful and elegant. I only managed to follow 40 minutes of the speech as I have to rush to the airport. Not many in the BN’s bench dare to stand up to challenge him. The famous son-in-law just sits there quietly.

Anwar started off his debate by whacking the Finance Minister cum DPM for not present to listen to the views and criticism of the Opposition Leader. He jibed that maybe Najib was too occupied with his UMNO’s election campaign. He mentioned that when he was Finance Minister, he never left the chamber while the Opposition Leader (Kit Siang at that time) was debating the Budget

One key point he raised up was the projection of the government’s revenue for 2009 that is already outdated. When the budget was presented on 29th August, the revenue projection was based on the oil price of USD125 per barrel. 44% of our revenue derived from oil and gas related taxes and incomes. Today, the price of oil has dropped to below USD80 per barrel. That means our federal revenue will not be as high as projected.

With much smaller revenue, how are we going to finance our large government spending? This means our budget deficit will widen and be much bigger. This if not managed properly will surely have a big impact to our economy. It was a simple argument that everybody can easily understand.

The Opposition Leader urged the Treasury and the Finance Minister to table a fresh budget plan and take into consideration the current scenario and changes. All the projections for income and expenditure must be revised. Is that something too much to ask? It was a valid criticism but as usual BN will never take it seriously – in the words of Anwar – “keangkuhan kuasa” or pure arrogance of power!. Read more!

The end of Pak Lah's era

Our 5th Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi announced on 8th October 2008 that he will not be defending his UMNO Presidency hence will step down as PM by March 2009. What do you feel with his announcement? For me, I don't have much feeling. The sooner he steps down, the better. There is not much hopes left that Pak Lah can bring any goods to the country or realize the many promises he has made. When Tun Mahathir announced his retirement in June 2002, i did have some mixed feelings. Although he has done a lot of damages in our various branches of government, his contribution to the country's economic development in the 90s cannot be denied totally.

Pak Lah? Can anybody tell what Pak Lah has done to make Malaysia a better place in the last 5 years? He made a lot of "nice to hear" speeches in the first few months of his administration. Can you recall all these rhetorics?

"I want to heal the malaise of First World Infrastructure, Third World Mentality"
"Work with me, not work for me"
"All out war against corruption" "Pak Lah is Modern Justice Bao - courtesy of MCA's 2004 Election propaganda".

Did he delivers any of the above promises?

If he has done 50% of what he has promised, I doubt we can have 4 new state governments under Pakatan's belt in 2008. Pak Lah has not given up in his spins. He said that he will make full use of his remaining 5 months in office to push for his reform agenda; reform the judiciary, formation of a "Malaysian ICAC ala Hong Kong", etc..etc..

If he can't do it in the last 5 years in the height of his mandate and popularity, do you think he can do it in the remaining 5 months more so when he is considered a lame duck PM where nobody will really pay attention to?

We have now a new "incoming PM" - Datuk Seri Najib Razak.

Do you think he can bring about genuine reform? My answer is NO
Do you think he is sincere to be a PM for all? My answer is NO
Do you think we can place our trust in this man? I don't think so
Do you think BN can ever change? You answer yourself

The only way forward for this country is the realization of a 2-Party system soonest possible. We must reach a stage where rival political parties must compete in terms of ideas, policies, trustworthiness, integrity and the ability to perform to win your votes. In short, we need the best men and women to govern the country! . Read more!

Guangzhou at night!

Sorry for not updating this blog for the past 2 weeks. I went to China with a DAP delegation 2 weeks ago and was back before Hari Raya. Rested at home during the Raya break and is now back into action. Hope everyone had a good holiday and "interesting" period is going to begin soon with Parliament resume on Monday!

Would like to share some pictures of Guangzhou at night with all of you. Just one word to describe the few cities i visited in Guangdong province - magnificent! Read more!