| Lim Lip Eng Posted: 04 Nov 2011 07:27 AM PDT
| Too many massage centres worry Desa Sri Hartamas folk Posted: 03 Nov 2011 11:52 PM PDT  Large signs: Some outlets offer special prices during lunch break  Many signs: The numerous signboards along the walkway.  In the backlanes too: There are about 30 massage and foot reflexology centres operating in Desa Sri Hartamas.  Promotions: All sorts of discounts.  Photos by CHAN TAK KONG
Source: http://thestar.com.my/metro/story.asp?file=/2011/11/4/central/9770201&sec=central (By STUART MICHAEL and JASTIN AHMAD TARMIZI, 4.11.2011)
The mushrooming of massage, foot reflexology and spa centres around Desa Sri Hartamas, Kuala Lumpur, has not gone down well with the residents in the township. There are over 30 massage and foot reflexology centres in the area, however, a check with Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) revealed that only 10 outlets, or one-third of the total had been issued licence to operate while the rest are deemed illegal.
DBKL deputy director-general of socio-economic development Datuk Mohd Amin Nordin Abdul Aziz confirmed that only 10 outlets were licensed to offer foot reflexology, massage and spas in the Desa Sri Hartamas. Amin said DBKL had stopped approving licences under the Health Establishment Licensing Bylaw WPKL 2003 for massage and relexology centres since 2009 to curb the sudden increase in the number of such centres in Kuala Lumpur. "We have not issued any licences since July 2009. We will not approve any applications as there are already too many in Kuala Lumpur. Even if people apply we will reject their applications," he said. When asked about what action will be taken against these illegal centres, Amin said they would continue issuing compounds to those who operated without licences. "In the city, there are already too many of these massage centres. We cannot force them to stop their operations but we can only compound them for not having a licence as many of them operate without licences and if they still continue to operate we can bring them to court. "However, these operators are very stubborn as some of them still continue to operate. They are not afraid of us. "Many of them have been fined several times but they still continue to operate without licences. We will have to continue with our raids more regularly," he said, adding that DBKL carried out raids twice a week to check on these premises around Kuala Lumpur. "We try to monitor these centres including those with licences. We have done raids with the police to try to stop these massage centres that offer sexual services. "We have to do this to ensure that they do not misuse their licences for vice activities. If the licensed centres are found offering sexual services, we can compound them or take their deposit and even revoke their licence," he said.
However, Amin said based on investigations carried out from early this year up to September, no licensed premises had been found to be offering sexual services. "Consumers also have to be aware of a massage centre's condition and surroundings. "Do not visit a suspicious-looking centre," he said, adding that consumers should be able to differentiate illegal and licensed centres as licensed centres were required to display their premises licence to prove that they were operating legally.
Brickfields OCPD Asst Comm Wan Abdul Bari Wan Abdul Khalid said the police would carry out spot checks on centres offering sexual services. "If the public has any complaints about centres they suspect were operating without licence, they can report to us and we will conduct checks and take action," he said.
A Desa Sri Hartamas resident who only wanted to be known as Cheong, said he noticed a sudden increase in the number of massage, foot reflexology and spa centres operating in the township. "I love living here, it's a peaceful community with a pleasant environment but now more and more massage centres have set up business here," said Cheong, who has lived in the area for the past five years. "It is absurd to have so many massage centres concentrated in just a small area. There are more than 30 such centres here now," he said. Cheong said he and many other residents were concerned about this phenomenon in their area because they had reason to believe that some of the massage centres also offered sexual services. "I was informed that some of these centres offer sexual services instead of just the normal hand, foot or body massage. This is very disturbing.
"I know this from friends who patronise these centres. I fear the negative impact such activities might bring to this township. These outlets are so close to our homes," he said. Cheong said DBKL and the police should conduct a survey and check the legality of these centres or conduct raids to prevent vice activities. "Some parents also fear that the proximity of these centres to their homes would provide their children with easy access to vice activities as the centres are located amid family restaurants, convenience stores and other businesses," said Cheong, who has contacted Segambut MP Lim Lip Eng to inform him about the issue. Lim confirmed that he was aware of the problem and would be bringing up the matter with the KL mayor.
A random check by StarMetro found about 30 massage centres, spas and foot reflexology centres operating in Desa Sri Hartamas. Many of the foot reflexology centres have banners placed outside their outlets stating the price of the various services offered. A foot massage costs between RM20 and RM40 while a body massage is from RM50 to RM70.
Most of the centres are located in Jalan 23/70a, 24/70a, 28/70a, 30/70a and 31/70a. The interior of some of the massage parlours we visited were dimly lit and the cubicles were partitioned with curtains or other impermanent structure to offer customers privacy. A cubicle normally contains nothing but a small mattress and dim lights. Then there are centres with scantily dressed female staff compared with those which provide their employees with uniforms.
To evade the authorities, all these centres are equipped with closed-circuit television (CCTVs) at the entrance to the lift area, corridors and to the main door. Some of these centres have even employed individuals who lurk outside these centres to warn the operators in case of raids by the authorities. | |
| Lim Kit Siang Posted: 03 Nov 2011 11:23 PM PDT
| PAGE: Malays lose most from scrapping of PPSMI Posted: 03 Nov 2011 07:13 AM PDT By Patrick Lee | November 3, 2011 Free Malaysia Today PETALING JAYA: Rural students are the biggest losers from the government's decision to stop the teaching of science and mathematics in English, according to the Parents Action Group for Education (PAGE). PAGE chairperson Noor Azimah Abdul Rahim said rural students, especially Malays, would end up [...] | | Nail in the coffin for PPSMI, says Muhyiddin Posted: 03 Nov 2011 12:29 AM PDT Nigel Aw | Nov 3, 2011 Malaysiakini Education Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said today the decision to discontinue the teaching of mathematics and science in English (PPSMI) policy is final. So, calls for the programme to be retained are two years too late, said Muhyiddin, who is also deputy prime minister. “In 2009, (when the abolition [...] | |
| Charles Santiago Posted: 03 Nov 2011 11:07 PM PDT |
| Blog@Wengsan...博客@永山 Posted: 03 Nov 2011 09:49 PM PDT |
| View issues with Tan Seng Giaw Posted: 03 Nov 2011 03:31 PM PDT
| The Treasury must improve its performance Posted: 03 Nov 2011 01:39 AM PDT DAP National Deputy Chairman and MP for Kepong Dr Tan Seng Giaw calls on the Finance Ministry to improve its performance and effectiveness including economic analysis.
Finance Minister must review all aspects of his ministry to ensure rapid economic growth, compared with the part played by Bank Negara.
On 2.11.2011, Dr Tan took part in the debate at committee stage in Parliament on the allocation of RM34.7 billion for the Finance Ministry in 2012.
The Finance Ministers and their deputies reply to questions on economy and finance in Parliament. But, the ministry shows its weaknesses in some aspects including economic analysis.
Meanwhile, the ministry is trying to make its electronic acquisition world-standard with the allocations of RM5 million and 5.5 million for electronic administration and information technology management respectively. It is correct to create world-class and sophisticated technology. We would like to know the world-class company that has been appointed.
The Treasury must improve its performance on all aspects such as economic analysis. For example, Eurozone crisis with rescue package for Greece affects world economy. China's assistance has been reported. Japan intervenes on Yen with threat to sell more of it. The US firm of MF Global with asset of US$41 billion has filed for bankruptcy. Although it is not as big as Lehman Brothers that failed, it still has deleterious effects. The implications of floods in Thailand are expected. Her manufacturing sector is badly affected. In 2010, Thailand had foreign direct investment of US$5.8 billion and Indonesia US$13.3 billion which was bigger than that in Malaysia.
Tan Seng Giaw | |
| MY VOICE FOR NATION Posted: 03 Nov 2011 01:21 PM PDT |
| Philosophy Politics Economics Posted: 03 Nov 2011 10:13 AM PDT
| Pemandu Should Support "Financial Accountability Commission" Posted: 02 Nov 2011 05:34 PM PDT Pemandu must support the set up of a Financial Accountability Commission (FAC) to ensure that the Government Transformation Plan (GTP) is not completely derailed
Among the chief targets of the Government Transformation Plan (GTP) launched in December 2009 by the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak and PEMANDU is to fight corruption, particularly in "Government procurement".
The GTP wrote that "We will reduce leakages of funds allocated for national development and operational expenditure and ensure transparency in the award of contracts. Currently the public perceives that there is a lack of transparency in our procurement processes."
According to the GTP, "to prevent a repeat of incidences like those reported by the Auditor-General", the Government will "gradually reduce" the use of "support letters" and require the disclosure of details of government procurement contracts. In addition, the GTP also called for "stiffer punishment" because fo cases which are not prosecuted (and many aren't), "departmental disciplinary actions taken are usually light e.g., the issuance of warnings.
However, as per the results published by the Auditor-General for 2010, the result of the GTP is scarce and scores of cases of leakages, abuse of power, mismanagement and incompetence were still in place.
The Marine Parks Department for example, took the leading role by purchasing binoculars worth not more than RM1,940 was purchased at RM56,350, more than 28 times the market price. It was of course not the only offending item – the Department purchased RM192,694 worth of products including common items such as laptops, printers, LCD TV, DVD Player when their total value should not exceed RM20,193.
What proved the futility of the GTP was the presence of many repeat offenders who obviously had little regard of the measures put in place by PEMANDU. The Ministry of Education is a persistent offender with a litany of lapses recorded by the Auditor-General on a yearly basis, such as a RM160.7 million project in Sabah to equip 300 schools by 2008. However, as at the end of 2010, only 2 computer laboratories were completed.
Majlis Amanah Rakyat (Mara), an agency tasked to uplift the welfare of bumiputeras is again chastised for making high-priced purchases such as an oven worth RM419 for RM1,200, folding beds worth RM100 for RM500 among other things despite having taken the limelight in the previous year for paying RM42,320 for each notebook computer.
The reasons for the failure of the GTP measures were multifold – they were either ineffective such as a voluntary disclosure of procurement contracts or there was little political will by the Government, particularly from the Cabinet to enforce stronger disciplinary measures against the relevant offenders. The result is naturally the continued abuse of finances in Government procurement and project management as proven in the latest Auditor-General's report.
Therefore, we'd like to call upon PEMANDU to support our call to set up an independent Financial Accountability Commission (FAC) answerable to the Parliament and empower to mete out punitive actions against Government officers found guilty of misconduct, corruption, negligence or sheer incompetence. The FAC should not be staffed with any civil servant to avoid conflicts of interest, but instead by headed by leading professionals in the field of audit and integrity such as the Malaysian Institute of Certified Public Accountants (MICPA) and Transparency International (TI) Malaysia.
Only then, there is hope that "real" actions will be taken against offending officers, lending teeth to the GTP's fight against corruption in government procurement processes and ensuring substantial deterrence to continued abuse in the management of government finances. | |
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