Najib: GE13 Date Only After Transformation Success

(Bernama) - Prime Minister Najib Razak said the 13th general election (GE13) has not been announced yet because the government wants the national transformation policy to be truly proven successful and that the people fully benefit from it.

He said creative ideas, detailed planning and effective implementation were crucial in the government efforts to champion the cause of the people and bring development to the country.

“That is why we wait until we are exhausted to hold the general election, we wait because I want to prove that the national transformation policy can truly succeed,” he said when launching the Seremban Sentral 1Malaysia People’s Housing (PR1MA) project, Seremban today.    

Also present were the prime minister’s wife, Rosmah Mansor, Negeri Sembilan Menteri Besar Mohamad Hassan, Information Communication and Culture Minister Rais Yatim and PR1MA chairman Jamaludin Jarjis.

Pakatan Unveils Election Manifesto

(The Star) - The final Pakatan Rakyat convention before the 13th general election kicked off here Monday with the unveiling of the pact's election manifesto.

The manifesto, delivered by PKR's Rafizi Ramli, PAS' Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad and DAP's M. Kulasegaran, covered a broad range of topics.

Some of Pakatan's promises include increasing minimum household income to RM4,000 in its first term in power, removing one million foreigners from the workforce over five years and stopping the Lynas rare earth plant in Gebeng.

Pakatan leaders also promised to lower fuel prices and electricity tariffs, cancel the Automated Enforcement System (AES) and recognise the Unified Examination Certificate (UEC).

Battle for Selangor: Najib leads BN's charge

(The Star) - The Barisan Nasional's charge to recapture Selangor has received a major boost with Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak personally heading its election machinery in the state.

The decision for Najib, who is Selangor Umno chief, to be the state's Barisan election director was made during a meeting he chaired on Saturday.

Selangor Barisan secretary Datuk Mohamad Idris Abu Bakar said the meeting also discussed strategies and Barisan's preparedness in wresting Selangor from Pakatan Rakyat. He said the meeting decided that a mock election should be conducted to test the readiness of election workers.

“It will involve all parties as our election machinery officers would become the backbone behind our strategy to disseminate our policies and information to the grassroots,” he said in a statement yesterday.

Mohamed Idris said the state Barisan leadership welcomed the decision to have the Prime Minister and Barisan chairman as its election director and state Barisan coordinator Datuk Seri Mohd Zin Mohamed as his deputy.

Selangor Says Has Cheaper Water Treatment Option

Amin Iskandar, The Malaysian Insider

Selangor has a cheaper water treatment option without the need to raise tariffs to foot the construction of Langat 2, a new treatment plant proposed by Putrajaya to cope with a forecasted supply shortage, says Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim.

The Selangor mentri besar claims to have found a viable alternative method from a Canadian company that utilises membrane technology to extract fresh water from existing plants and turn them into water suitable for household use.

“The total cost will be in the vicinity of RM500 million to RM750 million compared to the RM3 billion to RM5 billion to build Langat 2,” Khalid told The Malaysian Insider in an exclusive interview.

He explained that the Canadian company’s technology involved taking water from several treatment plants and treating them separately to produce one billion litres of water daily, instead of doing all the work from one main plant, which was the purpose of Langat 2.

“But you have several plants so you can add 50 litres a day and three million more from elsewhere and you add that all, you get one billion litres a day.

RPK Applies for Passport to Return Home

(FMT) - Raja Petra Kamarudin, the editor of Malaysia Today, is in contact with the Malaysian High Commission in London to inquire into the possibility of getting his Malaysian passport renewed.

Raja Petra, who left Malaysia in February 2009 just six months before his passport expired, has been living in Manchester ever since.

Raja Petra, popularly known as RPK, had been banned from leaving the country and to avoid getting detained at the immigration exit he left the country illegally without going through the proper channel. He then entered Thailand and from there went over to the UK.

Raja Petra intends to return to Malaysia to join PKR vice-president and Lembah Pantai MP Nurul Izzah Anwar’s campaign team.

The New Pudu

1. Although I was staying at SMS Alam Shah for two years, I have only been once to Pudu Raya Bus Terminal. I was informed that this bus terminal was one of the dirtiest places in Kuala Lumpur.

2. Formerly known as Puduraya Terminal, or 'Hentian Puduraya' by the locals, was opened in 1976 for long-distance buses, especially during public holiday and festive periods.