The investigation report on the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) Nuri helicopter which crashed in Genting Sempah in July has been released. The report indicates that the copter hit the canopy of trees thrice while flying low over the area before going down.
The investigation also found that bad weather, which had reduced visibility to less than two kilometres, and the hilly terrain in the area had also contributed to the mishap. There was no evidence pointing to any technical fault in the helicopter. [Bernama]
Termuzi Abd Aziz, father of the deceased pilot, Capt Norazlan Termuzi, said that the board of inquiry had not conducted the investigation in a comprehensive manner, claiming that the probe was only conducted at the scene of the crash without considering “other factors”.
Deputy Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak was fast to respond that the probe was conducted professionally. [Bernama]
The report is obviously trying to load all the responsibilities to the deceased. It could be true that the pilot’s mistake could have cause the accident eventually… but as the elder Termuzi mentioned… shouldn’t we look a bit beyond that?
For example, who was giving the order for the crew to take the flight? When did the weather report come in? Did the crew know about the weather condition prior to lifting off? If they did, whose call was it to continue the flight anyway… the captain, the crew or higher ranking officers? Why were they flying so low… was they forced to because of the copter’s ability? Could the accident be avoided if they had a better chopper?
I won’t call the report a cheat, but there are lots of unattended questions. I strongly doubt that it could be regarded as a professional report.
The gruesome murder of 8-year-old Nurin Jazlin has been the talk of the town lately; the suggestion from some parties to charge her parents with negligence has been poorly responded by the public.
I am perhaps one of the rarities that agree on charging parents with negligence in various cases. I am not directing this idea in particular to Nurin’s parents, but in general sense.
Today there is a news that 4 kids are drowned in a canal near Kepala Batas. These kind of cases happen every once in a while, but never received much media and public attention. Don’t you think that these kinds of accidents could be avoided if the kids are watched more closely by their parents?
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More than 2000 members of the Malaysian Bar and some concerned citizens have joined the Walk for Justice this morning at Putrajaya, from Palace of Justice to the Prime Minister’s office to hand over the Bar’s memorandum urging the government to set up a Royal Commission of Inquiry to probe the state of judiciary and memorandum on the establishment of a judicial appointments and promotion commission.
More details, pics and videos…
Malaysianbar ll Malaysiakini ll AFP ll Jeffooi ll Wengsan ll Rockybru
World number 1 and 2 tennis players Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal will play against retired legend Pete Sampras and Frenchman Richard Gasquet respectively in series of exhibition matches in Malaysia in November.
The games are part of Malaysia’s 50th Merdeka celebration.
Federer will play Sampras on Nov 22, while Nadal vs Gasquet on Nov 20; both matches will be held in Melawati Stadium, Shah Alam. The tickets’ price is ranged from RM83-RM443.
A former Chief Judge of Malaya will head a three-member independent panel to probe and determine the authenticity of the VK Lingam video clip, said Deputy Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak today.
The independent panel will be headed by former Chief Judge of Malaya Tan Sri Haidar Mohd Noor; National Service Council chairman Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye and former Court of Appeal Judge Datuk Mahadev Shankar are the other two members.
Najib said panel member, who had accepted their appointments, would soon start investigating the matter with the support and cooperation of all agencies concerned. Their findings would be made public later.
[Thestar & Malaysiakini]
Former Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has released a video that was recorded in 2002, showing senior lawyer VK Lingam in a phone conversation, purportedly with current Chief Justice Ahmad Fairuz Sheikh Abdul Halim, allegedly fixing the appointment of ‘friendly’ senior judges.
I am not surprised with the scandal, but am surprised that something like that was caught on tape (or video, whatever). Our judiciary system is losing faith among Malaysians since former PM Mahathir Mohamad fired the chief judge in 1988. Since then Malaysia no longer have a judiciary that is independent from government administration.
It is therefore no surprise that money and relationship play a greater part in determining the position of senior judges rather than based on pure merit.
The main media has been extremely quiet on this saga; the news is not completely blackout, but the scale of the reports is pathetic.
Meanwhile DPM Najib Abdul Razak has said that the government will first confirm the authenticity of the ‘VK Lingam’ video before deciding on the next course of action. [Malaysiakini]
You can read the draft transcript via PKR’s website or Malaysiakini.
[Follow this tag for updates about Lingam Tape Scandal]
Dr Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor is set to become the first Malaysian to travel into space.
Sheikh Muszaphar will blast off aboard a Russian-built Soyuz space craft en route to the international space station along with Russian cosmonaut Yuri Malenchenko and US astronaut Peggy Whitson. They blast off from the Russian-leased Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on October 10.
I have mix feeling about this… it’s a good thing that Malaysia is sending someone into the space finally, but I don’t really applaud on how it is (going to be) done. I mean, what have Malaysian contributed towards the space project besides funding it? Does Malaysia really benefit anything significant besides having a colourful page in our record book?
In fact I have problems calling Muszaphar an astronaut; for me he is merely a government sponsored space traveller… does that make him an astronaut? I am not sure… I always think astronaut is something special.
Regardless, Sheikh Muszaphar is going to be in Malaysia record book for his achievement. I don’t have any problem with this man in person; the government offered an opportunity, he went for it and got it… kudos for that. I wish him all the best.
I just hope that years after this event, the Angkasawan project could meet its objective of spurring the interest of younger generations into science and technology development, and prove that it is not a money wasting idea.
University Putra Malaysia security personnel allegedly broke into a student’s room and illegally confiscated a laptop computer and other electrical items and documents. [Malaysiakini]
Friday night, 4 staff members of the student affairs department (HEP) in Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM), Serdang, raided the room of Yee Yang Yang, a first-year student in Hostel 13 who is a member of a pro-student grouping.
He was interrogated from 11pm to 1am, and his laptop, handphone, MP4 player, 2 pendrives, leaflets and personal documents were confiscated. [Jeff Ooi]
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