No irregularities, the allegation is either mad or drunk

No irregularities, says Tourism Minister

Excerpt:

The Star (19/1/2008): An internal probe carried out by the Tourism Ministry on its two officers who allegedly misused government funds showed no irregularities.

Its minister Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor revealed the probe showed the officers had followed procedures stipulated by the ministry.

"They (those conducting the internal investigations) have given the report and it looks like the two officers had adhered to procedure but since a report had already been made, the Anti-Corruption Agency (ACA) has to investigate. There are two or three issues that are still unclear and this will be investigated by the agency," he told reporters here on Saturday.

Related:
'Korean scandal': No irregularities, says minister (Malaysiakini)

'Korean scandal': PM tells minister to talk to ACA (Malaysiakini)
Adnan: Lingam either mad or drunk (Malaysiakini)
Lingam "lelaki mabuk"? (Ahirudin Attan)
A drunkard always speaks the truth (Dr.Chris Anthony)
Abomination (KTemo)
Visit Malaysia Year scandal exposed (CJCM)
Korean scandal only a drop in the ocean (Malaysiakini)

Avoiding wastage, price hikes touched on at delegates' briefing

Bernama (5/11/2007): Avoiding wastage, hikes in the prices of essential goods and fuel and efforts to make the economy more resilient were among the issues touched on by Umno President Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi at the presidential briefing for delegates prior to this year's Umno general assembly.

Umno secretary-general Datuk Seri Radzi Sheikh Ahmad said Abdullah also asked party members to exercise restraint when debating sensitive issues as it could affect racial harmony.

Asked whether Abdullah asked members against raising any sensitive issues, Radzi said the president did not stop them from doing so but merely asked them to be more careful when deliberating on issues which could be deemed sensitive by other races.

Radzi was asked to comment on the closed-door presidential briefing for Umno delegates attending the party's general assembly at the Putra World Trade Centre here beginning today.

A Supreme Council member Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan said Abdullah reminded the delegates on the need for the people to brace themselves against the pressures of price hikes.

Mohamad, who is also Negeri Sembilan Menteri Besar, said Abdullah stated that at times the government had to make unpopular decisions.

The Prime Minister said that the government had given a lot of subsidies to the people to ease their burden, he said.

"So the Prime Minister reminded the people to be wise in their spending," said Mohamad.

Umno Youth chief Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein said the delegates were reminded to exercise caution when debating on religious and racial issues.

Umno Youth vice chief Khairy Jamaluddin said the briefing reminded the delegates on the need to preserve harmonious relations among the races.

"A lot of critical issues were raised by the president. The delegates wore a worried look when the challenges were laid before them," he said.

Umno information chief Tan Sri Muhammad Muhamad Taib said Abdullah told the delegates to strengthen the party and bolster its unity.

Related: ECER: Hasil belum ada, belanja pelancaran cipta jutawan - Husam

Malaysia mulls buying historic Russian spacecraft to boost youths' interest in science

AP (6/11/2007): Malaysia is thinking of buying the Russian craft that carried the first Malaysian into space and putting it on exhibit to stimulate scientific interest among the country's youths, an official said Monday.

Science Minister Jamaludin Jarjis said Russia's space agency offered to sell the Soyuz TMA-11 craft to Malaysia and that negotiations were under way. There was no mention of any possible price.

Malaysia's Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor lifted off on Oct. 10 in the Soyuz craft as part of a mission to the international space station, where the astronaut spent 11 days conducting scientific experiments with cancer cells, proteins and microbes that cause tropical diseases.

"We are very keen to acquire the spacecraft and bring it back to Malaysia. It will be the icon to create awareness, and to stimulate interest in science and technology among some five million kids in school," he said, adding that the craft could be displayed at Malaysia's space center. "This investment is for Malaysia's future, to create a knowledge-based society."

Malaysia, one of Southeast Asia's most prosperous nations, aims to become a developed country by 2020.

Jamaludin said he would seek public opinion on the purchase before asking for the government's approval.

Sheikh Muszaphar, who has become a national hero, is scheduled to soon start a nationwide tour to share his experience in space.

Wanna be scientist? Get your spaceflight participant ticket

Dr Sheikh Muszaphar Entitled To Be Called A Scientist

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 16 (Bernama) - Dr Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor Sheikh Mustapha is not only an astronaut but is also entitled to be called a scientist, a Malaysian scientist said Tuesday.

"He (Dr Sheikh Muszaphar) is called an astronaut because he has travelled into outer space but we must not forget that he is also a scientist because he is trained to conduct scientific research in space," said Tan Sri Dr Ahmad Zaharudin Idrus, former science advisor to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

"Although Dr Sheikh Muszaphar is an orthopaedic surgeon, his knowledge as a scientist is beyond question," he told reporters here today.

Dr Ahmad Zaharudin, who was also science advisor to former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, was confident that Dr Sheikh Muszaphar would not encounter any problems in carrying out his tasks -- conducting research into the crystallisation of protein and microbes or bacteria during his stay at the International Space Station (ISS).

Dr Ahmad Zaharudin, who is now the chairman of Malaysian Biotechnology Corporation Sdn Bhd, said Dr Sheikh Muszaphar would continue to conduct research once he is back on Earth.

He said that the data to be collected by Dr Sheikh Muszaphar from the experiments aboard the ISS was very important to research work carried out at six local universities including Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) and Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM).

They (experiments) were to explore new scientific frontiers and could be used as reference by other scientists, he said, adding that Malaysians should be proud that local scientists were at par with their foreign counterparts.

However, he hoped that Malaysian scientists would communicate more with those outside Malaysia by publishing their work in foreign journals.

Dr Sheikh Muszaphar, 35, blasted off into outer space on board a Soyuz TMA-11 spacecraft on Oct 10 together with American astronaut Peggy Whitson and Russian aerospace engineer Yuri Malenchenko from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

In doing so, he created history by becoming the first Malaysian to go into space.

The Soyuz TMA-11 docked with the ISS on Friday. Dr Sheikh Muszaphar is due to return to Earth on October 21.