Sekali lagi BN/UMNO menunjukkan belangnya apabila kabinet bersetuju menjual 99% saham Institut Jantung Negara kepada Sime Darby. Kini Sime Darby mempunyai Subang Jaya Medical Center dan rata-rata pesakit jantung bahkan VVIP serta orang yang berada memilih IJN sebagai hospital pilihan untuk menjalani pembedahan sama ada angioplasty atau open heart surgery. Faktor utamanya ialah kos yang berpatutan dan keduanya ialah pengalaman team pakar yang mempunyai track record kejayaan yang hebat.
Kerajaan BN/UMNO masih tidak "berhati perut" serta sensitif dengan keperitan rakyat marhaen dalam suasana kegawatan ekonomi serta buat "tak faham" pentingnya tidak mewujudkan suasana MONOPOLI dalam apa jua bentuk penyediaan perkhidmatan atau bekalan produk. Lihat sahajalah apa keadaan sebenar dengan bekalan barangan asas seperti beras, tepung, gula, baja dan lain-lain. Pihak kerajaan sendiri diugut dan di"ransom" oleh syarikat pengimport dan pengedar seperti Kuok Brothers dengan mengurangkan bekalan barangan seperti gula dan baja di pasaran tempatan agar tuntutan kenaikan untuk menaikkan harga barangan tersebut dibenarkan oleh Kerajaan. Apa dah jadi dengan perkhidmatan TOL di lebuhraya utama yang mana kenaikan tol tidak dapat dibendung?
Buat masa sekarang, waiting list untuk pembedahan jantung di IJN begitu panjang. Alternatif lain kepada rakyat biasa bagi menjalani pembedahan jantung ialah Pusat Perubatan Universiti Malaya (PPUM). Untuk menjalani pembedahan di Pusat Perubatan seperti SJMC atau Pantai, kos dianggarkan sekitar RM40,000/= hingga ke RM100,000/= sahaja.
PAS bantah IJN dijual pada Sime Darby
Irwan Muhammad Zain / Harakahdaily
KUALA LUMPUR, 19 Dis (Hrkh) - PAS membantah keras hasrat kerajaan mahu menjual Institut Jantung Negara (IJN) kepada Sime Darby Berhad.
ImagePenjualan IJN atas dasar penswastaan itu menandakan kedudukan kewangan negara barada pada tahap kritikal akibat dari penyelewengan dan rasuah yang semakin meningkat, kata Ketua Penerangan PAS Pusat, Mahfuz Omar.
"Kita mempersoalkan apa keperluan terdesak kerajaan mahu menjual IJN ini kepada Sime Darby sedangkan IJN tidak menghadapi masalah kewangan sebaliknya kerajaan yang menghadapi masalah kewangan.
"Kalau Kementerian Kewangan sudah tidak mampu menguruskan IJN serahkan saja kepada Kementerian Kesihatan," kata beliau ketika dihubungi sebentar tadi.
Beliau turut mempersoalkan apakah hasrat kerajaan mahu menjual IJN kepada Sime Darby kerana ada pihak tertentu yang bakal memperolehi keuntungan.
Mahfuz menegaskan PAS mebantah penjualan IJN kerana kerana selama ini institusi itu sedikit sebanyak membantu rakyat yang tidak berkemampuan.
Selain itu beliau berkata, banyak projek yang diswastakan di negara ini mengakibatkan bayaran yang meningkat dan beliau tidak melihat mana-mana projek yang diswastakan bayarannya menurun.
"Sudah tentu apabila bayaran meningkat ia akan membebankan golongan berpendapatan rendah," kata beliau.
Beliau juga menegaskan apa yang penting ialah sama ada penswastaan boleh menjamin kecekapan dan keberkesanan khidmat yang diberikan.
"Bila diswastakan tentu akan ramai doktor pakar memilih untuk berkhidmat di hospital swasta kerana tawaran gaji dan beberapa insentif yang menarik dan akhirnya hospital kerajaan tidak lagi mempunyai doktor pakar," tegas Mahfuz.
Bernama pada 17 Disember lalu melaporkan Sime Darby Berhad melalui Sime Darby Healthcare telah menulis surat kepada kerajaan menyatakan hasratnya membeli kepentingan dalam IJN Holdings Sdn Bhd.
Kabinet pada prinsipnya sudah bersetuju untuk menjual kepentingan Kementerian Kewangan kepada Sime Darby Healthcare.
IJN ditubuhkan untuk membantu rakyat mendapatkan rawatan jantung pada kadar yang lebih murah berbanding hospital swasta.
Ketika ini, Kementerian Kewangan melalui syarikat Menteri Kewangan diperbadankan memiliki 99 peratus saham IJN.
PAS BANTAH IJN DIJUAL
PEGANGAN KERAJAAN YANG BERSIFAT LOMBONG EMAS ELOK DIJUAL
IJN TAKING CARE OF YOUR HEART AND YOUR POCKETDalam ilmu pengurusan moden, disarankan "cash cow" harus disimpan tetapi jual syarikat atau pegangan yang merugikan atau kurang strategik. Itulah konsep BCG matrix dalam bidang pengurusan. Sekarang Kerajaan BN/UMNO harus melihat apa lagi hak milik rakyat yang ditadbirurus oleh BN/UMNO yang mesti dijual atau diswastakan sepenuhnya. Cadangan: Jabatan Tanah dan Galian, Jabatan Pengangkutan Jalan (JPJ) , hospital, Unit Perancang Ekonomi, Jabatan Kastam dan Eksais, Jabatan Imigresyen, Petronas dan semua anak syarikat dan sebagainya. Kini yang nampak telah berjaya diswastakan sepenuhnya dan lumayan pula pendapatannya ialah lebuhraya, Tenaga, POS, Air dan Puspakom. Pengurusan syarikat sebegini tak perlu MBA dari Harvard Universiti.
Dulu Sime Darby rugi bila buka bank. Subang Jaya Medical Center yang dimiliki oleh Sime Darby sudah ada unit Kardiologi dan Kardiotorasik. Pesaingnya ialah IJN. Untuk atasi persaingan, mudah saja: take over competitor. Maka beli IJN. Period. Read More “PEGANGAN KERAJAAN YANG BERSIFAT LOMBONG EMAS ELOK DIJUAL” »»
TOK ARAB & PAK MOGUL PENYUMBANG UTAMA YAYASAN CLINTON
Hillary Rodham Clinton KINI TELAH menjadi Setiausaha Kerajaan Amerika (Secretary of State). Perkara yang menjadi rahsia sekian lama mengenai senarai penderma kepada Yayasan Clinton terpaksa didedahkan bagi mengelakkan berlakunya percanggahan kepentingan (numerous business and philanthropic affiliations from creating awkward situations). Begitulah bermoral dan bermaruah atau tidak sesetengah pemimpin Amerika. Isunya sekarang ialah kehebatan dan kebijaksanan Tok Arab dan Pak Mogul (Kazakhstan, Ukraine ) dalam menyalurkan derma. Begitu juga Brunei, India dan lain-lain negara yang memiliki ramai lagi rakyat yang menderita dari kemiskinan dan penyakit.
Moguls and Arab States Are Big Donors to Clinton Charity
Chip East/Reuters
www.clintonfoundation.org
By PETER BAKER and CHARLIE SAVAGE
Published: December 18, 2008
WASHINGTON — The governments of Saudi Arabia and Norway, the Dubai Foundation and the business moguls Bill Gates, Stephen Bing, Haim Saban and Robert L. Johnson are among the biggest financial backers of former President Bill Clinton’s foundation over the last decade, according to a complete donor list published for the first time Thursday morning.
Lifting a longstanding cloak of secrecy, Mr. Clinton disclosed the names of more than 200,000 donors to his foundation as part of an agreement negotiated with President-elect Barack Obama to douse concerns about potential conflicts of interest if Hillary Rodham Clinton is confirmed as secretary of state.
The donor list, posted on the web site of the William J. Clinton Foundation, www.clintonfoundation.org, indicates that his organization accepted multimillion-dollar gifts from a variety of foreign governments, companies and individuals who might have an interest in United States foreign policy. The foundation raised $500 million over the last decade to pay for Mr. Clinton’s presidential library and his philanthropic activities.
Federal law does not require a former president to reveal his foundation’s financial benefactors and Mr. Clinton until now had declined to do so, arguing that many who gave expected confidentiality. But when Mr. Obama asked Mrs. Clinton to join his cabinet, the former president agreed to release his list as part of a nine-point agreement intended to keep his multifaceted activities from compromising his wife’s work if she wins Senate confirmation to become the nation’s top diplomat.
Mr. Clinton’s advocates said the publication of the list showed that he had nothing to hide and argued that most of the largest contributors had already become known. The foundation said that its median gift since its inception came to $45 and that nearly 90 percent of its gifts were $250 or smaller.
“I want to personally express my deepest appreciation to our many contributors, who remain steadfast partners in our work to impact the lives of so many around the world in measurable and meaningful ways,” Mr. Clinton said in a statement.
The list released on Thursday does not detail the precise amounts of the donations, nor the dates they were given, instead breaking down contributors by general dollar ranges. Mr. Clinton’s aides said they have labored for the last few weeks trying to track down and notify the 208,000 people, companies and governments that have chipped in since 1997 that their identities would be made public.
The potential for foreign donors to the Clinton foundation to create the appearance of conflicts of interest for Mrs. Clinton as she handles foreign policy matters was illustrated by Amar Singh, listed as giving between $1 million and $5 million. Mr. Singh is apparently a prominent Indian politician of that same name.
In September, Mr. Singh visited Washington to lobby Congress to support a deal allowing India to obtain civilian nuclear fuel and technology from the United States. The deal was controversial because India has developed nuclear weapons but is not a party to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.
Mr. Singh met and posed for photographs with Mrs. Clinton, afterwards telling Indian reporters that Mrs. Clinton had assured him that Democrats would not block the deal. Congress approved the nuclear cooperation deal with India a few days later.
Several other donors have connections to India — a potential foreign policy flashpoint because of tensions with Pakistan.
Among them was Lakshmi Mittal, an Indian businessman — the fourth richest person in the world, according to Forbes — who made billions in the steel industry. Although he has long lived in London, Mr. Mittal, who donated from $1 million to $5 million, is also a board member of India’s second largest bank. In 2002, Mr. Mittal was involved in a British scandal when, shortly after making a large donation to the Labour Party, he gained the help of Prime Minister Tony Blair in his bid to convince Romania to sell him its state steel company.
In addition, Suzlon Energy Ltd. of Amsterdam, which donated from $1 million to $5 million, is part of the Suzlon wind turbine empire run by Tulsi R. Tanti, a wealthy Indian businessman. And at least four other Indian businessmen or firms made donations of several hundred thousand dollars each.
The two largest contributors, listed as giving more than $25 million apiece, were the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation, a grant-making charity that focuses on sub-Saharan Africa and India, and UNITAID, an international alliance formed two years ago to fight H.I.V./AIDS. Another 11 donors gave between $10 million and $25 million, including Mr. Bing, Mr. Gates’s foundation and the Saudi government.
Also in this category is Frank Giustra, the Canadian mining financier whose dealings with Mr. Clinton have drawn questions in the past. Mr. Clinton traveled with Mr. Giustra in 2005 to Kazakhstan, where Mr. Giustra was seeking uranium contracts. Mr. Clinton lavished praise on Kazakhstan’s authoritarian leader, Nursultan Nazarbayev, and Mr. Giustra’s company soon afterward signed preliminary agreements to buy into state-controlled uranium projects.
Months later, The New York Times reported earlier this year, Mr. Giustra donated $31.3 million to the Clinton foundation. On the list posted Thursday, Mr. Giustra is reported as having given between $10 million and $25 million personally and the Clinton Giustra Sustainable Growth Initiative-Canada is reported as having given between $1 million and $5 million.
Another donor listed as giving between $1 million and $5 million is Victor Pinchuk, a Ukrainian tycoon who is the son-in-law of that nation’s former authoritarian president, Leonid Kuchma, whose handpicked successor was prevented from taking power during the so-called Orange Revolution of 2004.
Among governments — or entities funded by them — that contributed, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia was the largest donor, giving between $10 million and $25 million. Norway gave between $5 million and $10 million. Kuwait, Qatar, the Dubai Foundation, Brunei Darussalam, and Oman donated between $1 million and $5 million each.
Irish Aid, China Overseas Real Estate Development Corporation donated several hundred thousand dollars each. Italy and Jamaica each donated between $50,000 and $100,000.
Some of the more notable donors were previously known. For example, Denise Rich, the songwriter and ex-wife of onetime fugitive financier Marc Rich, to whom Mr. Clinton gave a controversial pardon in his final hours as president, is listed as giving between $250,001 and $500,000. In addition, Denise Rich Songs Inc., gave between $10,000 and $25,000. Those donations are within the range of previous reports about her donations leading up to Mr. Clinton’s decision to pardon Mr. Rich.
Mr. Clinton has spent the eight years since leaving the White House traveling the world collecting six-figure fees for speeches and even larger checks for his charitable activities. He pulled in $10.1 million for 54 speeches last year alone and in recent weeks has spoken at an economic symposium sponsored by the National Bank of Kuwait and an event organized at the behest of a Malaysian businessman who has been under fire from his own investors.
At the same time, Mr. Clinton’s foundation and its various offshoots have promoted programs to fight malaria, AIDS, malnutrition and other maladies around the world, sometimes in tandem with foreign governments. With 1,100 paid staff members and volunteers in more than 40 countries around the world, the foundation said it has provided medicine to 1.4 million people living with H.I.V./AIDS, helped dozens of cities reduce greenhouse gases and worked to spread economic opportunity.
With Mrs. Clinton slated to take over the State Department, Mr. Obama’s team wanted to find a way to prevent the former president’s numerous business and philanthropic affiliations from creating awkward situations that might seem to conflict with administration policy. But Mr. Obama’s aides said they also wanted to find a balance that would not hinder the charitable programs from continuing their work.
As part of his agreement with Mr. Obama, hammered out by lawyers representing both men, Mr. Clinton accepted a variety of limitations on his personal business activities and involvement in his global philanthropic organizations that go beyond federal law. He agreed to submit future personal speeches and consulting contracts for review by State Department ethics officials and, if necessary, by the White House counsel’s office.
If his wife is confirmed, Mr. Clinton also agreed to incorporate the Clinton Global Initiative, which promotes efforts to fight disease, poverty and climate change, separately from his foundation so that he will have less direct involvement. The initiative will no longer hold annual meetings outside of the United States or accept new contributions from foreign governments. Mr. Clinton will still host gatherings in the United States and invite participants who pay registration fees, but will not solicit sponsorships.
Four other initiatives under the umbrella of the Clinton foundation, focused on H.I.V./AIDS, climate change, development and sustainable growth, will continue to do work under agreements with foreign governments that provide financing, including Britain, France, Norway and Sweden. But if any of those countries increases its commitment or a new country decides to contribute, the foundation will notify State Department ethics officials.
PERINTIS , PENYEBAR DAN PENAJA MAKSIAT DIJANJIKAN SAHAM BERTERUSAN
Sesungguhnya "histeria" yang ditonjolkan dan reaksi histerikal penonton ekoran dari menyaksikan lakonan kedua-dua artis di bawah beraksi dengan penuh syahwat di layar perak dan seterusnya akan tersebar luas melului VCD cetak rompak atau sebaliknya melambangkan satu lagi kejayaan wanita Melayu. Mungkin kelak ada pihak-pihak yang akan memberi pengiktirafan yang sewajarnya. Dulu filem Remp-it yang berjaya mencapai "box office" juga berjaya mempromosikan budaya rempit di kalangan belia dan remaja Melayu.
Meskipun baru-baru ini , Majlis Fatwa Kebangsaan telah mengeluarkan fatwa bahawasenya Pengkid atau lesbian itu haram, namun dari segi pelaksanaan, pendidikan serta penguatkuasaan amatlah terbatas. Bak kata orang putih "SO WHAT".
Apapun, ingatlah bahawa Ar Rasul saw dalam sebuah hadith yang agak panjang yang terdapat dalam Kitab Sahih Muslim, hadith bil 974 berbunyi " Dari Munndzir bin Jarir r.a dari bapanya, katanya; " Pada suatu pagi ketika kami berada dekat Rasulullah saw, tiba-tiba datang serombongan orang tanpa sepatu dan berpakaian selembar kain yang diselimutkan ke badan mereka sambil menyandang pedang. Kebanyakan mereka atau mungkin keseluruhan mereka berasal dari suku Mudhar. Ketika melihat mereka wajah Rasulullah berubah kerana terharu melihat kemiskinan mereka..............sudah terkumpul makanan dan pakaian sehingga kelihatan olehku wajah Rasulullah jadi cemerlang bagaikan bersepuh emas. Maka bersabda Rasulullah saw
"Barangsiapa yang mengerjakan pekerjaan baik dalam Islam, maka dia
memperoleh pahalanya dari daripada orang yang mencontohi perbuatannya itu,
tanpa mengurangi pahala mereka masing-masing. Dan siapa yang melaksanakan
pekerjaan jahat, maka dia akan mendapat dosanya, ditambah dengan dosa
orang-orang yang mencontohi perbuatan buruknya itu, tanpa mengurangi dosa
mereka masing-masing. "
Bagi mereka yang skeptikal serta sinikal tentang "dosa" yang tidak dapat dilihat dan dikaji, anggaplah ia umpama satu titik hitam yang melekat di sebuah cermin yang asalnya putih, bersih dan bersinar. Lama kelamaan, dengan banyaknya titik hitam melekat di permukaan cermin tadi, ibarat dosa yang bertambah-tambah banyaknya yang dilakukan oleh seorang insan, akhirnya cermin tadi menjadi hitam, gelap dan legap dan tidak lagi bersinar. Begitulah akan terjadi, menurut Ulama', bahawa dosa yang dilakukan akan menghitamkan " hati / qalbu". Cara membersihkan serta mengilap hati yang telah"hitam" lantaran dosa dan noda yang telah dilakukan ialah dengan bertaubat, menyesal akan perbuatan lampau serta berazam tidak akan mengulanginya lagi, lantas memperbanyakkan amalan soleh seperti bersedekah dan lain-lain. Dosa (kesalahan) yang dilakukan terhadap orang lain diwajibkan memohon kemaafan.
Seperti kata pepatah Melayu " Sesat di hujung jalan, balik ke pangkal jalan; malu berkayuh perahu hanyut, malu bertanya sesat jalan". Di tambah: " Bertanyalah kepada mereka yang mengetahui". Read More “PERINTIS , PENYEBAR DAN PENAJA MAKSIAT DIJANJIKAN SAHAM BERTERUSAN” »»
KERANAMU DINAR DAN DIRHAM dibaca DOLLAR DAN STERLING
Ramai pemimpin umat Islam berhujah menggunakan hadith yang dikatakan lemah iaitu "Kefakiran itu hampir kepada kekufuran". Di sana juga terdapat Hadith Nabi s.a.w yang bermaksud " Anak Adam itu jika diberi satu lembah emas, nescaya ia mahukan satu lagi". Dan ia akan terus mencari sehingga................mati. Juga terdapat sebuah hadith Nabi saw yang panjang, lebih kurang bermaksud .." Bukanlah kefakiran yang Aku takut berlaku ke atas kamu, tetapi yang paling Aku takuti ialah kekayaan dunia yang melimpah ruah keatas kamu, yang dengannya kamu berlumba (mengejar harta hingga lupa kepada Allah) seperti mana umat-umat lain sebelum kamu berlumba (mengejarnya) sehingga mereka binasa sepertimana kamu juga akan binasa"..Au kama Qal.
Kegawatan ekonomi dunia hasil dari tempias kegawatan ekonomi USA serta kenaikan harga bahan api yang mendadak dek kerana kerakusan spekulator komoditi minyak mentah tempoh hari kini kian terasa. Di negara kita harga petrol telah beberapa kali diturunkan oleh Kerajaan Pusat namun harga barang makanan dan perkhidmatan kian meningkat. Alasan yang diberikan oleh peniaga ialah peningkatan kos operasi.
Sistem perbankan Dunia termasuk di Malaysia yang menindas pengguna, peminjam dan penyimpan dengan pelbagai caj perkhidmatan, kadar keuntungan kepada pelabur yang sangat rendah tetapi pada waktu yang sama mengenakan kadar faedah yang tinggi kepada peminjam. Tetapi kini, kebenaran telah terserlah dengan berlakunya krisis mata wang, krisis sub prime mortgage dan paling terakhir ialah PONZI skim atau skandal Maddof yang dijalankan oleh keluarga Maddof, bersembunyi dan bertopengkan "dana hedge" serta "perniagaan saham".
Beginilah akhirnya jika sesuatu itu diperolehi dengan cara yang haram dan menzalimi orang lain atau merampas hak orang lain. Tidak berkat atau tiada barokah. Titik.
Bank yang terjejas dengan skandal Maddof seperti di bawah.
HSBC HOLDINGS
HSBC Holdings has potential exposure of about $1.5 billion, the Financial Times reported, citing unnamed people close to the situation. The exposure is from loans it provided to institutional clients, mainly hedge funds of funds, that wanted to invest with Madoff, the FT reported
GRUPO SANTANDER SA
Spain's largest bank said its investment fund Optimal has a 2.33 billion euro ($3.05 billion) exposure to Madoff Securities.
MAN GROUP
It is exposed through RMF, its institutional fund of funds business, which has approximately $360 million invested in two funds that are directly or indirectly sub-advised by Madoff Securities.
BBVA
Spain's second-largest bank said its international operation has about 30 million euros exposure to Madoff, and it sees a maximum potential loss from Madoff-linked investments of 300 million euros ($404 million)
ASCOT PARTNERS
According to a Wall Street Journal report, the fund where former GMAC chairman Jacob Ezra Merkin is a money manager has an exposure of $1.8 billion
ACCESS INTERNATIONAL ADVISORS
According to a report by Bloomberg, Access has an exposure of $1.4 billion.
AXA SA
It has negligible exposure to Madoff, well below 100 million euros.
BARCLAYS
Any exposure for British bank Barclays to Madoff would be "minimal," a person familiar with the matter said, but Barclays declined to comment.
UNION BANCAIRE PRIVEE
Swiss bank that invests in funds of hedge funds has lost about 1 billion francs ($850 million), according to Le Temps, citing unnamed banking sources
ROYAL BANK OF SCOTLAND GROUP
Royal Bank of Scotland Group said it had exposure through trading and collateralized lending to funds of hedge funds invested with Madoff, with a potential loss of around 400 million pounds ($597.9 million)
NATIXIS
Natixis said it could have a 450 million euro ($602 million) indirect exposure to Madoff
BNP PARIBAS
France's largest listed bank said it has a potential 350 million euro ($464.3 million) exposure.
REICHMUTH & CO
Swiss private bank said its fund of funds Reichmuth Matterhorn had an exposure to investments linked to Madoff that amounted to about $325 million.
NOMURA HOLDINGS
Nomura Holdings said it had a 27.5 billion yen ($303 million) exposure related to Madoff, but the impact on its capital would be limited.
UNICREDIT SpA
Italy's second-biggest bank said its own exposure is around 75 million euros ($101 million), while in its Pioneer Investments unit, some funds "are exposed to Madoff indirectly through feeder funds."
SOCIETE GENERALE
Said its exposure is negligible, below 10 million euros.
MAXAM CAPITAL MANAGEMENT
The fund has lost about $280 million on funds invested with Madoff, according to a Wall Street Journal report.
EIM GROUP
Le Temps reported that EIM Group, a fund of hedge funds, said it has a $230 million exposure.
FAIRFIELD SENTRY LTD
The $7.3 billion hedge fund run by Walter Noel's Fairfield Greenwich Group had accounts with Madoff Investment Securities
KINGATE GLOBAL FUND
The $2.8 billion hedge fund run by Kingate Management Ltd had invested in Madoff Investment Securities.
UBS
The investment bank unit of the Swiss financial group has a limited and insignificant counterparty exposure, its spokesman told Reuters
BENEDICT HENTSCH
Swiss private bank said its exposure to products linked to Madoff amounted to 56 million francs ($47 million), or less than 5 percent of assets under management.
BRAMDEAN ALTERNATIVES
UK asset manager, headed by well-known fund manager Nicola Horlick, said almost 10 percent of its holdings were exposed to Madoff. Bramdean said it had two holdings that maintain trading accounts with Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities that represented 9.5 percent of its net asset value at end-October.
BANESTO
Banesto said it has insignificant exposure, but declined to disclose the size of exposure.
Refer HERE.
Posting saya yang lalu bertarikh 14/12/08 di SINI .
TERKINI: HIV MENJANGKITI LAPISAN NORMAL ALAT KELAMIN
Sebelum ini, teori jangkitan HIV ketika hubungan seksual berlaku jika terdapat kudis, luka atau ulser pada alat genital wanita. Dengan menggunakan teknik terkini, ahli sains dapat memerhatikan bagaimana virus HIV sebenarnya menyelinap masuk ke dalam sel faraj yang normal.
HIV infects women through healthy tissue: U.S. study
By Julie Steenhuysen/ Reuters
CHICAGO (Reuters) - Instead of infiltrating breaks in the skin, HIV appears to attack normal, healthy genital tissue, U.S. researchers said on Tuesday in a study that offers new insight into how the AIDS virus spreads.
They said researchers had assumed the human immunodeficiency virus, or HIV, sought out beaks in the skin, such as a herpes sore, in order to gain access to immune system cells deeper in the tissue.
Some had even thought the normal lining of the vaginal tract offered a barrier to invasion by the virus during sexual intercourse.
"Normal skin is vulnerable," said Thomas Hope of Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine said in a telephone interview.
"It was previously thought there had to be a break in it somehow," said Hope, who is presenting his findings at the American Society for Cell Biology meeting in San Francisco.
He said until now, scientists had little understanding of the details of how HIV is transmitted sexually in women.
Hope and colleagues at Northwestern in Chicago and Tulane University in New Orleans developed a new method for seeing the virus at work. They studied newly removed vaginal tissue taken from hysterectomy surgeries, and introduced the virus which carried fluorescent, light-activated tracers.
Then they watched under a microscope as the virus penetrated the outer lining of the female genital tract, called the squamous epithelium. They also observed this same process in non-human primates.
In both cases, they found HIV was able to quickly move past the genital skin barrier to reach immune cells, which the virus targets.
Hope said the study suggests the virus takes aim at places in the skin that had recently shed skin cells, in much the same way that skin on the body flakes off.
The finding casts doubt on the prior theory of the virus requiring a break in the skin or gained access through a single layer of skin cells that line the cervical canal.
And it might explain why some prevention efforts have failed. Hope said one clinical trial in Africa in which women used a diaphragm to block the cervix had no effect at reducing transmission of the virus. Nor have studies of drugs designed to prevent lesions in genital herpes proven effective.
Hope said the findings emphasize the need for treatments such as a vaccine to prevent infection.
"People need to remember that they are vulnerable," Hope said. "The sad part is if people just used a condom, we wouldn't have this problem," he said.
In the United States, HIV is mostly passed among men who have sex with men. Females account for 26 percent of all new HIV cases in the United States, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Globally, HIV is more commonly spread by heterosexual sex. The virus has infected 33 million people globally and has killed 25 million.
Maklumat lanjut di SINI, SINI
ISU KESELAMATAN PEMIMPIN, PENDAPATAN PETANI DAN KUALITI AIR
SHAH ALAM, 15 Dis (Bernama) Kerajaan Selangor tidak melihat keperluan khidmat anggota polis mengiringi pemimpin-pemimpin tertinggi di negara ini bagi menjamin keselamatan mereka ketika menghadiri majlis-majlis keramaian dan sebagainya.
Menteri Besar, Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim berkata, cadangan itu sebaliknya akan hanya menyekat kemesraan dan hubungan yang sedia terjalin antara pemimpin dengan rakyat.
"Saya rasa cadangan ini adalah satu perkara yang kita kena lihat dari sudut kerjasama antara rakyat dengan kerajaan. Kewujudan pasukan keselamatan untuk mengiringi mana-mana pemimpin tertentu (di majlis-majlis berkenaan) akan hanya menyekat kemesraan yang sedia ada antara kerajaan dan rakyat.
"Kita tidak mahu menjadi satu negara di mana pemimpinnya tidak boleh menghampiri rakyat disebabkan kawalan keselamatan ketat," kata Khalid kepada pemberita selepas merasmikan majlis Jualan Selangor Ria 2008 sempena sambutan Hari Peladang, Penternak dan Nelayan 2008 serta Seminar Pembangunan Industri Halal Nasional Selangor di perkarangan Stadium Malawati dekat sini, hari ini.
Beliau diminta mengulas saranan anggota Dewan Undangan Negeri Seri Muda, Suhaimi Shafiei dalam laporan akhbar hari ini agar pemimpin-pemimpin tertinggi di negara ini sentiasa diiringi pasukan keselamatan bagi menjamin keselamatan mereka ketika menghadiri majlis umum.
Suhaimi dilaporkan membuat cadangan berkenaan selepas mengambil kira ancaman 'serangan bogel' Gerakan Reformasi Rakyat Malaysia (Reformis) dan mengejar Menteri Besar Selangor di majlis-majlis perasmiannya bagi membawa tuntutan mereka berhubung kadar kenaikan sewa Projek Perumahan Rakyat (PPR).
Dalam perkembangan lain, Khalid berkata rakyat di sekitar Selangor tidak perlu berasa cemas terhadap kualiti bekalan air yang disalurkan ke negeri ini dan menambah kualiti air berkenaan memang memenuhi standard minimum ditetapkan.
Menurut beliau, kerajaan pimpinannya giat melakukan kerja-kerja pembersihan sungai dari masa ke masa bagi memastikan punca bekalan air bersih.
"Semua air-air yang disalurkan melalui sungai kena melalui 'treatment plant' supaya ia betul-betul memenuhi kualiti ditetapkan. Di Malaysia, semua bekalan air yang melalui sungai mesti melalui 'treatment plant'," kata Khalid.
Terdahulu, dalam ucapannya Khalid berkata golongan peladang, penternak dan nelayan di negara ini mungkin boleh mengelakkan diri daripada merasai tempias kegawatan ekonomi global sekiranya mereka meningkatkan kadar pengeluaran produk mereka.
Di samping itu, beliau juga berkata golongan muda yang menyertai sektor pertanian akan berjaya sekiranya mereka bekerja sepenuh masa.
"Kajian yang kita buat menunjukkan golongan muda memang berminat menyertai sektor pertanian jika mereka tahu tentang hasil daripada kerjaya mereka.
"Umpamanya, mereka ingin tahu apakah pendapatan mereka jika bekerja sepenuh masa serta kaedah-kaedah pemasaran produk yang efektif," katanya sambil menambah golongan muda boleh meraih purata keuntungan RM3,000 sebulan jika betul-betul menceburi dalam bidang pertanian.
Read More “ISU KESELAMATAN PEMIMPIN, PENDAPATAN PETANI DAN KUALITI AIR” »»
PPSMI BELUM MUKTAMAD
Nampaknya setakat ini terdapat tujuh pilihan bagi pihak berwajib dalam isu Pengajaran dan Pembelajaran Sains dan Matematik dalam Bahasa Inggeris (PPSMI). Ia merupakan hasil dari siri perbincangan meja bulat yang melibatkan ahli akademik, kumpulan NGO serta ahli politik. Laporan ini akan diserahkan kepada Menteri Pendidikan dan seterusnya ke Kabinet.
*Seven options on teaching of science and maths
*Kementerian Pengajian Tinggi tidak berhasrat untuk campur tangan dalam urusan memansuhkan PPSMI
Seven options on teaching of science and maths
Bernama
PUTRAJAYA, Dec 16 (Bernama) : The findings from the series of roundtable discussions on the policy of teaching and learning Maths and Science in English will be handed over to Education Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein soonest possible to be tabled to the cabinet.
The report contained seven options on the future of the policy, derived from the discussions, whereby the participants included academics and representatives of political parties and NGOs, said Deputy Education Minister Datuk Wee Ka Siong. They are:
(1) To continue teaching and learning of Maths and Science in English as it is now.
(2) To use Bahasa Malaysia or pupils' mother tongue as the medium of instruction from the primary school level and English for Maths and Science at the secondary level.
(3) To start using English for Maths and Science from Standard Four right into the secondary level.
(4) To use Bahasa Malaysia or mother tongue at the primary level, and Bahasa Malaysia fully at the secondary level.
(5) Schools to determine the medium of instruction for Maths and Science.
(6) To use Bahasa Malaysia or mother tongue from Standard One to Three, implement bi-lingual use from Standard Four to Six and full use of English at the secondary level.
(7) To abolish the Science subject from Standard One to Three and incorporate teaching of Science in other subjects.
Wee said Hishammuddin was currently on a working trip abroad and expected to be back in a few days' time to study the options.
"I wish to stress here that the roundtable discussions or the results of the 2008 Ujian Pencapaian Sekolah Rendah (UPSR) will not determine the decision on the use of English for Maths and Science, but the Cabinet will make the final decision," he said after chairing a roundtable discussion on the matter at the Putrajaya International Convention Centre today.
On preparations for the teaching of Maths and Science for the next school session, Wee said the policy would not change until the announcement on the Cabinet's decision.
He said the decision would not be made based on political considerations but professionally.
"Datuk Seri Hishammuddin had excluded himself from the series of roundtable discussions so that he could impartially look at all views.
"So, when the time comes, I do not want people to say that the government makes the decision without considering the views of various quarters," he said.
Kementerian Pengajian Tinggi tidak berhasrat untuk campur tangan dalam urusan memansuhkan PPSMI
KOTA BAHARU, 15 Dis (Bernama) -- Kementean Pengajian Tinggi tidak berhasrat untuk campur tangan urusan Kementerian Pelajaran dalam memansuhkan pelaksanaan Program Pengajaran dan Pembelajaran Sains dan Matematik di dalam Bahasa Inggeris (PPSMI).
Menterinya Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin berkata sebaliknya beliau menyerahkan sepenuhnya kepada kementerian itu untuk memperhalusi sistem itu demi masa depan pendidikan negara.
Beliau berkata pihaknya tidak mahu mengganggu sebarang urusan dan perbincangan yang sedang dilaksanakan Kementerian Pelajaran bagi menyelesaikan isu yang menimbulkan pelbagai reaksi termasuk bantahan daripada pelbagai pihak sejak sistem itu diperkenalkan.
"Kalau boleh jangan libatkan Kementerian Pengajian Tinggi dalam perkara ini kerana berkenaan soal itu saya ingat biarlah Kementerian Pelajaran yang menentukannya.
"Sekarang pun, saya difahamkan Kementerian Pelajaran sedang menimbang dan menerima input di peringkat terakhir untuk menentukan hala tuju PPSMI, biarlah ianya diputuskan Kementerian Pelajaran terlebih dahulu," katanya kepada pemberita selepas merasmikan Majlis Persidangan Projek Pembangunan Wilayah Ekonomi Pantai Timur (ECER) peringkat pendidikan negeri Kelantan di sini hari ini.
Bagaimanapun, Mohamed Khaled berkata, beliau tidak menafikan kepentingan Bahasa Inggeris dijadikan modul utama bagi kedua-dua subjek berkenaan.
"Kita memang sedar bahawa penting untuk belajar menguasai Bahasa Inggeris dan kita juga ada beri kebenaran kepada Institusi Pengajian Tinggi Awam (IPTA) untuk menggunakan bahasa itu sebagai bahasa pengantara antaranya Universiti Teknologi Mara (UITM) dan Universiti Islam Antarabangsa (UIA)," katanya.
Kementerian Pelajaran sebelum ini memperkenalkan sistem PPSMI bertujuan untuk meningkatkan Bahasa Inggeris di kalangan pelajar.
Bagaimanapun, pengenalan sistem itu mendapat reaksi pelbagai pihak, ada yang bersetuju dan tidak kurang yang menentang agar pelaksanaan sistem PPSMI itu dikaji semula.
Selain itu, beberapa pihak turut menyarankan sistem itu dimansuhkan berikutan ia dilihat tidak adil bagi pelajar sekolah di kawasan luar bandar.
UNTUK KITA RENUNGKAN
Ebiet G. Ade
LIRIK lagu
Kita mesti telanjang dan benar-benar bersih
Suci lahir dan di dalam batin
Tegaklah ke dalam sebelum bicara
Singkirkan debu yang masih melekat 2x
Anugerah dan bencana adalah kehendakNya
Kita mesti tabah menjalani
Hanya cambuk kecil agar kita sadar
Adalah Dia di atas segalanya 2x
Anak menjerit-jerit, asap panas membakar
Lahar dan badai menyapu bersih
Ini bukan hukuman, hanya satu isyarat
Bahwa kita mesti banyak berbenah
Memang, bila kita kaji lebih jauh
Dalam kekalutan, masih banyak tangan
Yang tega berbuat nista... oh
Tuhan pasti telah memperhitungkan
Amal dan dosa yang telah kita perbuat
Kemanakah lagi kita kan sembunyi
Hanya kepadaNya kita kembali
Tak ada yang bakal bisa menjawab
Mari, hanya tunduk sujud padaNya
Kita mesti berjuang memerangi diri
Bercermin dan banyaklah bercermin
Tuhan ada di sini di dalam jiwa ini
Berusahalah agar Dia tersenyum... oh
Berubahlah agar Dia tersenyum
GILIRAN AMERIKA DIKEROYOK OLEH FIRMA DANA ASING
Kini tiba giliran USA mengecapi rasa bagaimana dijajah dari segi ekonomi dan kewangan. Singapura, China, UAE dan Kuwait berlumba-lumba membeli saham syarikat gergasi Amerika seperti Citigroup (citibank dll), Merril Lynch dan Morgan Stanley. Sila rujuk jadual di bawah.
Ungkapan yang sama seperti di bawah berlaku kepada mana-mana negara yang membiarkan dana asing masuk membanjiri sesebuah negara. Ini termasuk negara kita.
"The potential dangers are truly staggering.
The thought that foreign entities could control the purse strings of our country is a clear and present danger.
CONTROL.
In financing so much of our economic engine, these sovereign funds could easily gain influence over U.S. economic decisions. Where and to whom financial institutions could lend money. Where businesses should build factories. Where they should set up R&D facilities. How they should structure their investments.."
Di petik dari Sovereign Society
Myth & LIE : Foreign Capital and Sovereign Wealth Funds Don't Pose a Threat to Our Economic System
"I think that's quite constructive and I think that we should be open to allowing that kind of investment."
- Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke
“...there is no doubt that sovereign wealth funds are growing in size and number and are making increasingly significant investments in financial services organizations worldwide.”
- Federal Reserve Board General Counsel,
Scott Alvarez
"As we seek to open new markets abroad, America will keep our markets open at home to investment from private firms and from sovereign wealth funds."
- Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson
You know the government has spent our country into oblivion. And the only way to keep funding their spending is to borrow. And for years they have looked overseas for investors to purchase our debt.
But things are beginning to change. Today these Sovereign Wealth Funds are buying far more than securities. They're buying businesses who are crippled by the credit crisis. They're buying banks. Real estate. You name it, they have a hand in it.
The price of foreign money
These Sovereign Wealth Funds are making massive investments here in the U.S. The China Investment Corporation (CIC) had recently been in talks with Morgan Stanley to buy up to 49% of the investment bank. Nearly A MAJORITY INTEREST in one of our oldest financial institutions.
Other New York banks are also busy selling minority shares to foreign funds. There have been major capital infusions from both Middle East and Russian funds, among others. Why is this so troubling? One word.
CONTROL.
In financing so much of our economic engine, these sovereign funds could easily gain influence over U.S. economic decisions. Where and to whom financial institutions could lend money. Where businesses should build factories. Where they should set up R&D facilities. How they should structure their investments...
The potential dangers are truly staggering.
The thought that foreign entities could control the purse strings of our country is a clear and present danger. Countries, like China, are not neutral investors in their own markets, why should we expect them to be neutral in ours?
REMAJA AMERIKA RAMAI YANG BEKERJA SAMBILAN
Sebuah negara yang kaya seperti Amerika (sebelum kegawatan ekonomi 2008- 20xx) masih terdapat juga remaja yang insaf dan gigih membina masa depan. Salah satu caranya ialah dengan bekerja sambilan. Mereka ini tidak mengharapkan duit saku dari ibu bapa semata-mata. Sikap begini harus dicontohi oleh para remaja kita di Malaysia. Ikuti cerita -cerita penuh inspirasi remaja di USA.
As the Rich Get Poorer, Teenagers Feel the Crunch
By LISA W. FODERARO
Published: December 12, 2008
New York Times
Jodi Hamilton began her senior year of high school in Woodcliff Lake, N.J., this fall on the usual prosperous footing. Her parents were providing a weekly allowance of $100 and paying for private Pilates classes, as well as a physics tutor who reported once a week to their 4,000-square-foot home.
Since her allowance was cut to $60 a week from $100, Jodi Hamilton, 17, center, has taken up tutoring. Her pupil here is Sigourney Barman, 12.
But in October, Jodi’s mother lost her job managing a huge dental practice in the Bronx, then landed one closer to home that requires more hours for less money. Pilates was dropped, along with takeout sushi dinners, and Jodi’s allowance, which covers lunch during the week, slipped to $60. Instead of having a tutor, Jodi has become a tutor, earning $150 a week through that and baby-sitting.
“I just thought it would be responsible to get a job and have my own money so my parents didn’t have to pay for everything,” said Jodi, who is 17. “I always like to be saving up for something that I have my eye on — a ring, a necklace, a handbag.”
It is impossible to quantify how many affluent parents have trimmed allowances in recent months — or how many of their offspring, in turn, have sought either formal employment or odd jobs. But interviews with dozens of teenagers, parents, educators and employers suggest that many youngsters from well-to-do families seem to have found a new work ethic as the economic crisis that has jeopardized their parents’ jobs and investments has also led to less spending money for Saturday night movies or binges at Abercrombie & Fitch.
After focusing on studies and résumé-polishing extracurricular activities in recent years, these teenagers are job-seeking at the worst possible time, however, with employment of 16- to 19-year-olds at its lowest level in 61 years as out-of-work adults compete for low-paying positions.
“We have the Mall at Short Hills a stone’s throw away, and there are a load of kids who applied,” said Nancy Siegel, head counselor at Millburn High School in New Jersey. “But they are not finding the market welcoming.”
At the marble-sheathed Westchester mall in White Plains, job applications have increased at stores including Origins, Tommy Hilfiger and the Gap, where job queries from teenagers are up 30 percent over last fall.
Julia Stark, a senior at Packer Collegiate Institute, a top private school in Brooklyn, said that this fall she and her friends are “all trying to work as much as we can” to pay for weekend restaurant dinners, a welcome break from a heavy course load and college applications.
In Greenwich, Conn., a Web-based program that connects high school students with nearby job opportunities has attracted 100 seekers each month since September, up from 40 to 60 a month last fall.
“I didn’t want to bug my parents for extra cash over the long weekend,” said Christian Rosier, a junior, who found a job on the Greenwich Student Employment Service the week before Thanksgiving that paid $50 for a few hours of moving furniture. “I like the one-shot jobs because I can do it on a Friday afternoon and still have time to hang out with my friends on the weekend.”
Teenagers from working- and middle-class families are, of course, feeling similar — if not more acute — pressure. Sumit Pal, 17, a senior at Information Technology High School in Queens, said his parents cut his $5 weekly allowance two months ago after the deli where his father works started to lose business. Sumit was interviewed two weeks ago for a job at a company that sponsors rock bands.
“I don’t mind losing my allowance,” he said. “It goes toward other things, like groceries.”
Teenage participation in the national labor force has fallen steadily since 1979, when 49 percent of all 16- and 17-year-olds had some kind of work; last year, the figure was 30 percent.
A recent study by the Center for Labor Market Studies at Northeastern University showed that teenage employment from 2005 to 2007 rose with household incomes that go up to $150,000 a year: 14 percent of teenagers from families earning less than $20,000 a year work, as do 26 percent of those whose families make $60,000, 32 percent of those earning $80,000 and 33 percent of those between $120,000 and $150,000.
Over $150,000, it drops to 28 percent. “Research shows that the bigger allowance you get from Mom and Dad,” explained Andrew M. Sum, director of Northeastern’s center, “the less likely you are to work."
Since the 1990s, many affluent children seeking admission to selective colleges have been discouraged from paid work, and steered instead toward volunteer service projects. Rebuilding homes in New Orleans or teaching English in developing countries, seemingly better résumé fodder, supplanted after-school or summer jobs scooping ice cream or answering phones.
“There’s been such a push to demonstrate to colleges that they’re involved with activities and charities that it’s almost too pedestrian to say that work is part of what I do,” said William S. Miron, the principal at Millburn High School.
Brent A. Neiser of the National Endowment for Financial Education, a group based in Colorado that offers financial literacy programs, said parents tend to “shortchange the benefits of scut work” but that even ho-hum employment can be valuable — and impress admissions officers.
“Dress codes, rules, punctuality and being teachable is enrichment in itself,” Mr. Neiser said. “You’re contributing to the economy, you’re contributing to your personal economy and you’re picking up skill sets and habits that will prepare you for your full-time employment.”
Michael Pollack, a vice president of CBS, said that he was happy to see his 14-year-old son, Zachary, get a job at a veterinary hospital in Scarsdale, N.Y., in September, because Zachary was learning some basic lessons about money.
“I really want him to feel it and save it and spend it so he knows that money goes away,” Mr. Pollack said. “If he wants to treat all his friends to a movie, that’s great. But he needs to see that it bottoms out. Where else are they going to get that experience?”
Zachary, who earns $80 a weekend for 11 hours feeding and caring for animals, said that he was glad to “help my parents with our financial situation.”
“Things I need, they’ll buy,” he said, “and things I want, I’ll buy.”
Jill Tipograph, who lives in Bergen County and owns Everything Summer, a company that advises parents on camp, travel and work opportunities, said she sent her son to college in Boston this fall with a lump sum in his bank account that was supposed to last the semester. “But he went through the money like water,” she said.
So Ms. Tipograph and her husband decided to deposit a set amount once a week, and told their son to use the prepaid meal plan more often. “We also said that if you feel you can’t live on the allowance we’re giving you, then please look for a part-time job,” she added.
He seems to be getting the message, choosing a 10-hour bus ride over a train or plane for a recent visit to a friend in Washington.
Kat Rosier, a single mother of boys ages 12 and 17 in Greenwich, has resisted the idea of a job for her older son, Christian, who plays hockey and rows on the crew team, even as her interior design business has suffered.
“Here’s my dilemma,” she explained. “His time is so limited, and I would hate for his grades to fall this year so he could make $100 a week and then for him to not get into as good a college as he wants.”
Still, having recently lost a job sprucing up the second home of a client who works in finance, Ms. Rosier said her family might need to adjust some habits. “The other night Christian had eight friends over and I spent $110 on pizza,” she said. “I don’t mind doing that, but he’s got to know that the pizza budget is not $500 a month.”
Christian said he was otherwise cutting back: “If I’m hungry, I won’t drive to McDonald’s. I’ll just eat something at home instead of spending $10 on lunch.”
Jodi Hamilton’s mother, Jill, said she had been impressed by her daughter’s determination to earn, noting that “she sent out a massive e-mail for baby-sitting and tutoring, and she got so many offers there aren’t enough hours in the week.”
Suddenly, the tables are turned: Two weeks ago, Ms. Hamilton borrowed $640 from Jodi.
TIMBALAN NAIB CANSELOR UNISEL DILANTIK
Satu mesyuarat Ahli Lembaga Pengarah syarikat yang menguruskan Unisel, Pendidikan Industri YS Sdn Bhd (PIYS) pada 9 Disember lalu telah memutuskan untuk melantik tiga orang Timbalan Naib Canselor UNISEL yang baru. Perlantikan Naib Canselor hanya akan diumumkan pada awal tahun 2009. Profesor Dr Khalifah Othman yang akan menamatkan tugas sebagai pemangku Naib Canselor Unisel pada 15 Disember ini pula akan dilantik sebagai Dekan Sekolah Pasca Ijazah Pengurusan.
Unisel lantik 3 Timbalan Naib Canselor baru
Muhammad Arif Ismail/ Harakahdaily
Kerajaan Negeri Selangor pimpinan Pakatan Rakyat telah bertindak merombak pengurusan Universiti Industri Selangor (Unisel) dengan melantik Timbalan-Timbalan Naib Canselor yang baru.
Perkara ini telah diberitahu oleh Menteri Besar, Tan Sri Dato' Abdul Khalid Ibrahim dalam satu sidang media selepas mengadakan satu mesyuarat Exco kerajaan negeri di sini, semalam.
Turut hadir dalam sidang media yang diadakan di aras 20, bangunan Sultan Abdul Samad ialah Pengerusi Jawatankuasa Tetap Pendidikan, Pendidikan Tinggi dan Pembangunan Modal Insan, Dr. Halimah Ali dan Pengerusi Jawatankuasa Tetap Pelancongan, Hal Ehwal Pengguna dan Alam Sekitar, Elizabeth Wong.
"Perkara ini diputuskan selepas satu mesyuarat dengan Ahli Lembaga Pengarah syarikat yang menguruskan Unisel, Pendidikan Industri YS Sdn Bhd (PIYS) pada 9 Disember lalu.
Kerajaan negeri memutuskan untuk melantik empat Timbalan Naib Canselor baru iaitu Timbalan Naib Canselor Hal Ehwal Akademik, Profesor Dr Anuar Ahmad. Timbalan Naib Canselor Perancangan Strategik dan Pembangunan, Profesor Dr Ir Muhammad Daud dan Timbalan Naib Canselor Hal Ehwal Pelajar, Profesor Madya Zainal Abidin Kidam," katanya.
Manakala Profesor Dr Khalifah Othman yang akan menamatkan tugas sebagai pemangku Naib Canselor Unisel pada 15 Disember ini pula akan dilantik menjadi sebagai Dekan Sekolah Pasca Ijazah Pengurusan.
Beliau menegaskan, perlantikan mereka dibuat setelah mengambil kira kelayakan dan pengalaman akademik, pengurusan dan pentadbiran, gaya kepimpinan, keperibadian dan profesionalism serta pengiktirafan tempatan dan antarabangsa.
"Mereka akan memulakan tugas secara rasmi pada 16 Disember ini dan diberi kontrak selama tiga tahun," tegas beliau lagi.
Dalam sidang media itu juga Menteri Besar Selangor itu ditanya oleh pemberita, adakah Kerajaan Negeri sudah ada calon untuk menjawat jawatan sebagai Naib Canselor Unisel.
"Sukacita dimaklumkan bahawa Lembaga Pengarah juga telah mengenal pasti calon yang berkelayakan untuk memegang jawatan Naib Canselor Unisel.
"Pengumuman rasmi perlantikan akan dibuat dalam tahun depan," kata Abdul Khalid.
SKIM PAK MAN TELO JUGA WUJUD DI AMERIKA
FBI dan SEC telah mendapati En Madoff melalui firmanya Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securitites menjalankan skim Ponzi bersaiz mega , sejenis penipuan di mana pelabur di peringkat awal dibayar dengan wang yang diperolehi dari pelaburan orang masuk kemudian sehingga tiada lagi dana yang mampu dikumpul dan akhirnya gulung tikar. Skim ini boleh juga dipanggil sebuah piramid yang runtuh apabila tidak dapat menampung pembayaran "dividen" mereka yang menjadi ahli di hujung-hujung.
En Madoff bukan menjalankan "dana hedge" di mana portfolio terletak pada bank dan firma broker seperti Goldman Sachs dan JPMorgan. Menurut satu afidavit yang dibuat oleh En Madoff melalui agen FBI, fraud kali ini berjumlah USD$50 billion, sekaligus menjadikannya kes penipuan kewangan yang terbesar. Madoff telah diikat jamin sebanyak USD$10 juta.
Di negara kita wujud dari masa ke semasa skim labu peram, Pak Man Telo, Saham Internet, dan pelbagai lagi jenis "perniagaan" menggunakan konsep OPM (other people's money)- guna duit orang lain untuk memulakan perniagaan atau nak menjadi kaya.
Penerangan tentang Skim Ponzi di SINI
Pelabur kelihatan berkerumun di lobi pejabat MadoffThe Federal Bureau of Investigation and S.E.C. said that Mr. Madoff’s firm, Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities, ran a giant Ponzi scheme, a type of fraud in which earlier investors are paid off with money raised from later victims — until no money can be raised and the scheme collapses. Mr. Madoff was not running an actual hedge fund, but instead managing accounts for investors inside his own securities firm. The difference, though seemingly minor, is crucial. Hedge funds typically hold their portfolios at banks and brokerage firms like JPMorgan Chase and Goldman Sachs.
According to an affidavit sworn out by federal agents, Mr. Madoff himself said the fraud had totaled approximately $50 billion, a figure that would dwarf any previous financial fraud. He is to be released tonight on $10 million bond.
Now Accused of Fraud, Wall St. Wizard Had His Skeptics
By ALEX BERENSON and DIANA B. HENRIQUES
December 12, 2008
THE NEW YORK TIMES
For years, investors, rivals and regulators all wondered how Bernard L. Madoff worked his magic.
But on Friday, less than 24 hours after this prominent Wall Street figure was arrested on charges connected with what authorities portrayed as the biggest Ponzi scheme in financial history, hard questions began to be raised about whether Mr. Madoff acted alone and why his suspected con game was not uncovered sooner.
As investors from Palm Beach to New York to London counted their losses on Friday in what Mr. Madoff himself described as a $50 billion fraud, federal authorities took control of what remained of his firm and began to pore over its books.
But some investors said they had questioned Mr. Madoff’s supposed investment prowess years ago, pointing to his unnaturally steady returns, his vague investment strategy and the obscure accounting firm that audited his books.
Despite these and other red flags, hedge fund companies kept promoting Mr. Madoff’s funds to other funds and individuals. More recently, banks like Nomura, the Japanese firm, began soliciting investors for Mr. Madoff internationally. The Securities and Exchange Commission, which investigated Mr. Madoff in 1992 but cleared him of wrongdoing, appears to have been completely surprised by the charges of fraud.
Now thousands, possibly tens of thousands, of investors confront losses that range from serious to devastating. Some families said on Friday that they believed they had lost all their savings. A charity in Massachusetts said it had lost essentially its entire endowment and would have to close.
According to an affidavit sworn out by federal agents, Mr. Madoff himself said the fraud had totaled approximately $50 billion, a figure that would dwarf any previous financial fraud.
At first, the figure seemed impossibly large. But as the reports of losses mounted on Friday, the $50 billion figure looked increasingly plausible. One hedge fund advisory firm alone, Fairfield Greenwich Group, said on Friday that its clients had invested $7.5 billion with Mr. Madoff.
The collapse of Mr. Madoff’s firm is yet another blow in a devastating year for Wall Street and investors. While Mr. Madoff’s firm was not a hedge fund, the scope of the fraud is likely to increase pressure on hedge funds to accept greater regulation and transparency and protect their investors.
On Thursday, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and S.E.C. said that Mr. Madoff’s firm, Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities, ran a giant Ponzi scheme, a type of fraud in which earlier investors are paid off with money raised from later victims — until no money can be raised and the scheme collapses.
Most Ponzi schemes collapse relatively quickly, but there is fragmentary evidence that Mr. Madoff’s scheme may have lasted for years or even decades. A Boston whistle-blower has claimed that he tried to alert the S.E.C. to the scheme as early as 1999, and the weekly newspaper Barron’s raised questions about Mr. Madoff’s returns and strategy in 2001, although it did not accuse him of wrongdoing.
Investors may have been duped because Mr. Madoff sent detailed brokerage statements to investors whose money he managed, sometimes reporting hundreds of individual stock trades per month. Investors who asked for their money back could have it returned within days. And while typical Ponzi schemes promise very high returns, Mr. Madoff’s promised returns were relatively realistic — about 10 percent a year — though they were unrealistically steady.
Mr. Madoff was not running an actual hedge fund, but instead managing accounts for investors inside his own securities firm. The difference, though seemingly minor, is crucial. Hedge funds typically hold their portfolios at banks and brokerage firms like JPMorgan Chase and Goldman Sachs. Outside auditors can check with those banks and brokerage firms to make sure the funds exist.
But because he had his own securities firm, Mr. Madoff kept custody over his clients’ accounts and processed all their stock trades himself. His only check appears to have been Friehling & Horowitz, a tiny auditing firm based in New City, N.Y. Wealthy individuals and other money managers entrusted billions of dollars to funds that in turn invested in his firm, based on his reputation and reported returns.
Victims of the scam included gray-haired grandmothers in Florida, investment companies in London, and charities and universities across the United States. The Wilpon family, the main owners of the New York Mets, and Yeshiva University both confirmed that they had invested with Mr. Madoff, and a Jewish charity in Massachusetts said it would lay off its five employees and close after losing nearly all of its $7 million endowment. Other investors included prominent Jewish families in New York and Florida.
On Friday afternoon, investors and lawyers for investors with Mr. Madoff packed Judge Louis L. Stanton’s courtroom at federal court in Manhattan, hoping to question lawyers for Mr. Madoff and the S.E.C. But a deputy for Judge Stanton canceled the hearing, leaving investors with few answers. Several investors said they were planning to file lawsuits against the firm in the hope of recovering some money.
Based on the vagueness of the complaints against Mr. Madoff, his confession, as detailed in court filings, seems to have taken the F.B.I. and S.E.C. by surprise. Investigators have not explained when they believe the fraud began, how much money was ultimately lost and whether Mr. Madoff lost investors’ money in the markets, spent it, or both. It is not even clear whether Mr. Madoff actually made any of the trades he reported to investors.
The F.B.I. and S.E.C. have also not said whether they believe Mr. Madoff acted alone. According to the authorities, Mr. Madoff told F.B.I. agents that the scheme was his alone. He worked closely with his brother, sons and other family members, many of whom have retained lawyers.
Also likely to face very difficult questions are the hedge funds, investment advisers and banks that raised money for Mr. Madoff. At least some big investment advisers steered clients away from putting money with Mr. Madoff, believing the returns could not be real.
Robert Rosenkranz, principal of Acorn Partners, which helps wealthy clients choose money managers, said the steadiness of the returns that Mr. Madoff reported did not make sense, and the size of his auditor raised further concerns.
“Our due diligence, which got into both account statements of his customers, and the audited statements of Madoff Securities, which he filed with the S.E.C., made it seem highly likely that the account statements themselves were just pieces of paper that were generated in connection with some sort of fraudulent activity,” Mr. Rosenkranz said.
Simon Fludgate, head of operational due diligence for Aksia, another advisory firm that told clients not to invest with Mr. Madoff, said the secrecy of his strategy also raised red flags. And Mr. Madoff’s stock holdings, which he disclosed each quarter with the Securities and Exchange Commission, appeared to be too small to support the size of the fund he claimed. Mr. Madoff’s promoters sometimes tried to explain the discrepancy by explaining that he sold all his shares at the end of each quarter and put his holdings in cash.
“There were no smoking guns, but too many things that didn’t add up,” Mr. Fludgate said.
However, the S.E.C. had already investigated Mr. Madoff and two accountants who raised money for him in 1992, believing they might have found a Ponzi scheme. “We went into this thing just thinking it might be a huge catastrophe,” an S.E.C. official told The Wall Street Journal in December 1992.
Instead, Mr. Madoff turned out to have delivered the returns that the investment advisers had promised their clients. It is not clear whether the results of the 1992 inquiry discouraged the S.E.C. from examining Mr. Madoff again, even when new red flags surfaced. Lawyers at the S.E.C. did not return calls.
Meanwhile, Fairfield Greenwich Group, whose clients have $7.5 billion invested with the Madoff firm, said it was “shocked and appalled by this news.”
“We had no indication that we and many other firms and private investors were the victims of such a highly sophisticated, massive fraudulent scheme.”
At the court hearing, an individual investor, who declined to give his name to avoid embarrassment, expressed a similar sentiment.
“Nobody knows where their money is and whether it is protected,” the investor said.
“The returns were just amazing and we trusted this guy for decades — if you wanted to take money out, you always got your check in a few days. That’s why we were all so stunned.”
Zachery Kouwe and Stephanie Strom contributed reporting. Read More “SKIM PAK MAN TELO JUGA WUJUD DI AMERIKA” »»
