Charles Santiago

YB Charles Santiago visited the Seri Berembang Flats in Pelabuhan Klang. He had received several complains on the poor drain maintenance which has caused denggi fever outbreak among the residents. Residents of the flats had lodged a complain with the Klang Municipal Council last year but are still waiting for a solution. YB Charles Santiago promised to overcome their problem and will report to them on the status of their complain within 2 weeks (stay tuned to the blog for updates) upon receiving an official complain from the residents.

Hindu Youth Organisation of Port Klang (HYO) invited YB Charles Santiago to their Student Empowerment Programme, Annual Award Giving Ceremony at Wisma Teng Chin Hall, Klang. The HYO is a NGO which carries out various activities for the benefit of the community focusing on youths and teenagers. YB Charles Santiago was also invited to present awards for the participants.

Sun : RM10m gone in 3 days
R. Nadeswaran and Terence Fernandez

PETALING JAYA (April 24, 2008): Three days after their husbands lost power to rule Selangor, the wives got into the act – plotting to dissolve a welfare body and remove almost RM10 million from its bank accounts.

But their attempts have been thwarted by Mentri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim who wrote to the Registrar of Societies (ROS) to question the validity of the decision to dissolve the Association of Wives of State Assemblymen and Members of Parliament in Selangor (Balkis).

It is learnt that Abdul Khalid has ordered a thorough investigation and audit into the affairs of the association which was set up in 1985 to undertake welfare work.

According to documents sighted by theSun, Datin Seri Zaharah Kechik, the wife of former mentri besar Datuk Seri Dr Mohamad Khir Toyo had on March 11 convened an extraordinary general meeting of the committee to dissolve Balkis and close its bank accounts. The following day, the accounts were closed, with the money transferred to another account and then to Bakti – the federal Organisation of Wives of Ministers which Balkis is affiliated to.

雪州國州議員夫人俱樂部 ：福利还是政治组织？

星洲：雪國州議員夫人俱樂部990萬被轉移

BREAKING NEWS!

Source : The Star, 24 April 2008

Thursday April 24, 2008 MYT 4:55:43 PM

Makkal Osai back on the stands on Saturday

By TEH ENG HOCK

PETALING JAYA: Tamil daily Makkal Osai will be back on the newsstands this Saturday.

General manager S.M. Periasamy said the Home Ministry had renewed its publishing licence after the publication had appealed its earlier decision.

The newspaper ceased publication for a week after it failed to obtain a renewal on April 16.

Periasamy said he had received the approval letter from the Home Ministry on Thursday, and paid the RM3,000 fee for the licence.

“The Ministry called me on Wednesday at about 5.30pm to tell me that it had approved our licence,” he said.

The newspaper started operations as Tamil Osai in 1981, and changed its name to Makkal Osai in 2005. It has a daily circulation of 52,000 copies and 95,000 on weekends.

Makkal Osai submitted an application for renewal on July 16, 2007, three months before its permit expired on Oct 15 last year.

The day its permit expired, the daily continued publication with the understanding that the Government was in the process of considering its application for renewal.

Besides Makkal Osai, the other two Tamil dailies are Tamil Nesan and Malaysia Nanban.

(Title : 8 Parliamentarians will form caucus on freedom of information in Parliament)

Source : merdekareview.com 独立新闻在线

【本刊林宏祥撰述】八名来自人民联盟的新任国会议员要求在未来两周会晤内政部长赛哈密（Syed Hamid Albar），商讨淡米尔文报章《麦卡奥赛》（Makkal Osai）停刊事件。此外，他们也将在国会成立“资讯自由连线”（Caucus on Freedom of Information），并邀请各政党议员加入，共同推动媒体法令改革。

自《麦卡奥赛》在今年4月16日正式接获停刊指令后，民间非政府组织，甚至在朝政党如马华公会青年团，都发表文告非议内政部的专横决定；人民联盟八名议员今日则从当下政治脉络解读“停刊”事件，认为内政部的决定有“报复”之嫌。

由于过去两天是兴都教佳节，在雪兰莪州巴生区（Klang）一带走动的查尔斯圣地亚哥（Charles Santiago，左图）就透露，其中一个最多人向他反映的课题，就是《麦卡奥赛》遭停刊事件。

这名巴生区国会议员说：“人民非常失望，认为这是政府对他们支持在野党的惩罚。我认为应该停止政治报复行动，开始政治和解（politics of reconciliation）。这是重要的。”

他补充道：“我认为首相已经开始了政治和解行动，开始谈论司法改革，现在则是（谈论）贪污（课题）……我认为应该延续到媒体的基本改革。”

(more…)

Source : Malaysiakini, Versi BM, 21 April 2008

 JK kebebasan bersuara di Parlimen

Jimadie Shah Othman | Apr 21, 08 4:11pm

Sekumpulan wakil rakyat mencadangkan penubuhan jawatankuasa khas kebebasan media di peringkat Dewan Rakyat selepas pengharaman akhbar berpengaruh Makkal Osai minggu lepas.

Lapan ahli parlimen DAP, PAS dan PKR itu berkata mereka akan mencadangkan penubuhan Kaukus Kebebasan Maklumat dan Bersuara dalam sidang dewan yang akan berlangsung mulai 28 April ini.

Akhbar harian berbahasa Tamil itu tidak diperbaharui permit penerbitannya pada 16 April selepas dilaporkan membuat banyak liputan mengenai parti-parti pembangkang dan gerakan Badan Bertindak Hak-hak Hindu (Hindraf) menjelang dan pada pilihanraya umum lalu.

Kaukus yang disarankan ini bertujuan membincangkan isu reformasi perundangan berkaitan media, kebebasan maklumat agensi-agensi kerajaan dan peluang yang sama untuk memanfaatkan media milik kerajaan.

“Akta Penerbitan dan Mesin Cetak memberi kuasa yang amat besar kepada menteri dalam negeri untuk mengharamkan sesuatu akhbar.

“Kes Makkal Osai dan beberapa lesen akhbar di Malaysia Timur diharamkan pada penggal (pentadbiran) perdana menteri Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi adalah akibat daripada undang-undang tersebut,” kata kumpulan lapan wakil Pakatan Rakyat dalam kenyataan mereka hari ini.

“Kami menyambut baik kenyataan menteri (Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar) untuk menilai semula mekanisme lesen akhbar tahunan. Syarat tersebut menghalang akhbar bercakap benar, memberi kritikan dan cadangan baik kepada kerajaan.

“Kami berpendapat undang-undang seperti Akta Penerbitan dan Mesin Cetak tidak memberi ruang kebebasan kepada media,” kata mereka lagi di sidang media di pusat khidmat DAP di Damansara

Berita sepenuh boleh didapat di JK kebebasan bersuara di Parlimen

Source : Malaysiakini, 21 April 2008

DAP MP for Klang Charles Santiago said the group is seeking to meet Syed Hamid within two weeks on the issue and “to communicate our concerns on the state of freedom of information and expression”.

“We feel that Makkal Osai’s application should be approved and if the ministry has any concerns, it should make its concerns open for further discussion,” he said

He said the most common question people have asked him in recent days is why the daily has been banned.

“(It is) perceived as a punishment of the Indian Malaysian community who, this time around, voted for the opposition. People are upset. This politics of vengeance has to stop, and the politics of reconciliation has to begin.”

Santiago also announced a PR initiative to start a parliamentary caucus that would press for freedom of information and freedom of expression.

With eight parliamentarians on board already, Santiago said the caucus intends to rope in more PR legislators as well as Barisan Nasional backbenchers.  

Full news report can be found in Overhaul media laws next, PM told

Monday, 21 April 2008

Klang Member of Parliment YB. Charles Santiago had a talk cum dialogue session with students from HELP college Klang. The talk titled Youth’s Responsibility Towards Nation Building touched on current issues pertaining to student’s role and their responsibilities towards nation building.

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