news on 01.06.2007
SABAK BERNAM: A trailer driver and attendant miraculously escaped death when their vehicle overturned and totally crushed the driver’s cabin in an accident in Sungai Panjang here on Friday.
Trailer attendant K. Saravanan, 25, said they had been travelling from Johor Bahru to Lumut with a load of poultry feed and were passing through Sungai Panjang at about 8.30am when the accident occurred.
He claimed an oncoming car had crossed into the trailer’s path to overtake another vehicle but could not return to its own lane in time. The driver, he said, slammed on the brakes to prevent a collision and one of the back tyres of the trailer exploded due to the friction, causing the trailer swerve and overturn before landing in the trench at the side of the road.
“We are extremely lucky to escape without even a scratch, although the driver was complaining of a neck ache,” he said.
Thieves struck by 'heavenly bolt'
KOTA KINABALU: An attempt to steal metal bars from a steel factory here turned tragic for two men when one of them was killed after being struck by lightning. The dead man's 33-year-companion was seriously injured in the noon mishap on Thursday at Kampung Minintod, Penampang district police chief Asst Supt Azhar Hamin said.
He said the factory owner alerted the police about the incident after noticing the two victims near his premises. ASP Azhar said the injured man who was rushed to the Queen Elizabeth hospital sustained burns in the right thigh and in the stomach. He said the dead man also suffered burns in the stomach and right hand as well as in the face.
Cleaner fuel from now
PETALING JAYA: Starting today, Malaysians will be able to breathe cleaner air and by 2009, the air may be even cleaner. This is because the Government will start enforcing a law today that requires the sulphur content in fuel not to exceed 0.05%.
The Government is trying to ensure that the sulphur content will be only 0.005% by 2009. All this will be achieved without any increase in the price of fuel. Lower sulphur content means engines will emit less pollutants.
With 0.05% sulphur, the engines will comply with Euro II emission standards, while 0.005% will make engines Euro IV-compliant.
The current sulphur content for petrol and diesel in Malaysia is 0.15% and 0.3% respectively. Euro emission standards are enforced throughout the European Union and the higher the standard, the lower the emission of pollutants.
Euro II was introduced in 1995 and replaced by Euro III in 1999. Euro IV was then introduced in 2005. Natural Resources and Environment Minister Datuk Seri Azmi Khalid confirmed that his ministry would begin enforcement of the new emissions standards today. He said oil companies had agreed to comply with the ruling and would start selling cleaner fuel that complied with the Euro II emission standard by this month.
Azmi added that the Government would not allow any more deferment to the oil companies, as the ruling should have been enforced in April.
The date, however, was postponed because the petroleum companies asked to be allowed to finish non-compliant fuel stocks.
“The oil companies must comply with the ruling by now. They have been given some time to clear their stocks,” he said.
Azmi added that fuel prices would remain the same. The ministry’s parliamentary secretary Datuk Sazmi Miah, who also confirmed the start of enforcement, said the Government wanted to implement the emission standards because motor vehicles contributed 60% of emission to air pollution.
Meanwhile, Petrol Dealers Association president Alang Zari Ishak said he did not know about today’s compliance date.
He said negotiations for the deferment of enforcement was still ongoing.
“We did not receive any notice but if the Government really wants us to comply, there will definitely have to be adjustments in the price,” he said.
Malaysia moving in the right direction, say auto firms
PETALING JAYA: Auto companies have welcomed the news that the Government is planning to bring forward the implementation of fuel compliance to Euro IV emission standards.
“The attempt to introduce Euro IV fuel standards, especially for diesel, by 2009 is definitely something we welcome because then, our diesel models will be able to offer even better performance, efficiency and emissions,” said Wolfgang Schlimme, managing director of BMW Group Malaysia.
“It would be a positive move as it indicates that the Government is following the global trend. Perhaps it might even look at rewarding consumers for adopting ‘green’ behaviour, by offering duty or tax incentives, as opposed to ‘punishing’ diesel owners with higher taxes and prices.”
Schlimme said the most significant impact would be in emissions and clean motoring.
“The diesel engine is a core technology used by the BMW Group in its strategy toward efficient dynamics and the availability of Euro IV diesel promises a much more environmentally sound future for Malaysia,” he added.
Volkswagen Group Malaysia also welcomed the effort.
“We believe that there is a fair bit of interest in diesel-powered vehicles in Malaysia, and upgrading the standard of fuel would be a positive move towards having a higher adoption rate for diesel-based platforms,” Karen Cheng-Yoong, its director of PR & Marketing, said.
Kyoya Kondo, chief executive officer of Isuzu Malaysia, said the company fully supported the Government’s call for the industry to offer better and cleaner fuel complying with current world standards.
“The Government’s call to reduce the sulphur content in fuel is a move in the right direction as we will be taking positive steps towards reducing the effect of greenhouse gases and global warming.
“The move will also boost interest in diesel vehicles, as manufacturers will be able to introduce advanced technologies into the Malaysian market without fear of repercussions from extended exposure of precision components to high levels of sulphur,” Kondo said.
The sentiment was echoed by Ford Malaysia’s managing director Mike Pease.
“In line with Ford’s global environmental commitment, Ford Malaysia welcomes the initiative to provide improvements in emissions and a better environment in Malaysia.
“This move will not only lower harmful emissions and provide cleaner air, it will provide Malaysian motorists access to new global products with advanced powertrains which are not able to be sold here today,” Pease said.
Ministry: Assunta not at fault
PETALING JAYA: Assunta Hospital fulfilled its legal obligation of providing emergency treatment to Yek Yow Ngan, who died in a car accident after being allegedly pursued by a gang of armed men.
In a statement here yesterday, the Health Ministry's medical practice division said facts showed that the hospital had taken all necessary steps in arranging proper transfer and referral of the patient to the Kuala Lumpur Hospital (HKL).
The division conducted an investigation following allegations that it refused to provide emergency treatment to Yek unless a deposit was paid.
Division director Dr Mohd Khairi Yakub met up with the hospital management and interviewed the attending medical officer and the two staff nurses on duty at that time.
Yek's son Yeong Hon had claimed that Assunta Hospital had demanded a RM10,000 deposit from him before his mother could be treated. However, the statement said Yeong Hon was informed by hospital of the cost of further treatment only after emergency treatment was rendered.
“The patient, who was in critical condition, was brought in by her son at about 4.10am to 5am on Sunday and was immediately resuscitated by the medical officer and his staff,” the statement said.
It said the patient was revived at about 5am and her condition was stabilised before she was sent for a CT scan and chest X-rays to determine any internal injury.
The medical officer then decided that the patient needed further intensive treatment and had to be monitored at the intensive care unit.
The hospital then informed Yeong Hon of the cost of further treatment. “However, the hospital was told that the patient's son could not afford the cost and was requested to transfer the patient to Universiti Malaya Medical Centre or HKL,” the statement said.
The medical officer then made the necessary arrangements by paging the two hospitals.
At 5.45am, the patient was transferred by ambulance, accompanied by Yeong Hon, a medical officer and a staff nurse.
On Wednesday, Yeong Hon called for justice and hoped that truth behind Yek's death would be revealed.
Give Chinese maids a chance, urges Papa
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysians should give Chinese maids a chance and not object to the move to bring them in, said Malaysian Association of Foreign Housemaids Agencies (Papa) president Datuk Raja Zulkepley Dahalan.
“Not all Chinese girls who come here are pretty. So, if you are not comfortable with Chinese maids, then just don’t take them.
“After all, the employer is given the bio-data with the photo of the maid, and both husband and wife, as employers, can see what the girl looks like. If she’s pretty, then don’t choose her, “ he said in an interview.
He added, however, that not all those who employed maids were Chinese, and it was not right to stop others from employing these maids.
Women leaders in Chinese-based parties recently objected to bringing in domestic help from China, saying that mainland Chinese women could break up marriages and cause social problems.
They said husbands could take these women as mistresses.
However, Raja Zulkepley pointed out that if husbands wanted to stray, they could do so even with Indonesian, Vietnamese or Filipino maids.
“When we first brought the Indonesian maids in, there was initially a fear among the Malay women that their husbands could fall for the maids and take them as another wife because Muslim men are allowed four wives. But while there might have been a few such cases, you don’t hear of this problem anymore,” he said.
He questioned why the Malaysian Chinese women were not objecting to the Government’s move to bring in maids from Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan as well.
“The women from Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan are prettier and cuter than those from China,” he said.
There has been a shortage of maids in the country, with a 50% drop of those from Indonesia. To overcome the shortage, the Government is looking at allowing the hiring of maids from China, Laos, Nepal, Myanmar, Timor Leste, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan and India.
Raja Zulkepley said 94.8% of the maids here were from Indonesia and pointed out one of the reasons for the 50% drop was the better wages in countries like Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan and those in the Middle East.
No comments:
Post a Comment