STORY TO BE TOLD

Back to school for mum
By P. ARUNA
aruna@thestar.com.my

KUALA LUMPUR: After years of struggle and sacrifice to raise her children, single mother Maureen Sta Maria can now pursue her passion for knowledge.

“I raised my children to believe that education is the only ticket to freedom and success,” said Maureen, 49, adding that she took up accounting, secretarial and interior design courses to equip herself with additional skills


One for the album: Maureen (left) with her children Mark and Christine posing on Mark’s graduation day at the California State University-Fullerton in May.

Ostracised by her family after she got divorced at the age of 27, Maureen took up a sales job to support herself and her two children.

Determined to see her children become successful, Maureen made the decision to migrate to the United States in 2007.

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Fire sparked by lightning destroys roof of apartment block
By DESIREE TRESA GASPER and MOHD FARHAAN SHAH
newsdesk@thestar.com.my



Up in smoke: Residents waiting outside while firemen put out the fire in Taman Desa Mutiara in Johor Baru yesterday.

JOHOR BARU: Thirty-six families were left homeless in Taman Desa Mutiara here after the roof of their apartment block was destroyed in a fire which was sparked by lightning.

Resident Rosdi Rahman, 43, blamed the fire on thieves who stole the earth wire from their building several weeks ago.

“Their irresponsible act has now caused many of us to lose our belongings,” he said, adding that the fire was first noticed by his 17-year-old son who was outside the block.

Rosdi said he heard the sound of thunder before his son started yelling for people to get out as there was a fire.

“When I came out of my flat, I noticed the flames and quickly knocked on all the doors of my neighbours to warn them,” he said, adding that more than 400 people reside in the block.

Another resident, Baidanah Awang, 45, said that her unit was on the top floor of the building.

“When I looked out, I saw families rushing down the staircase and I quickly grabbed my children and fled,” she said.

Johor Baru Fire and Rescue Department operations commander Raja Saiful Iswandi Raja Hassan said that the department received a distress call at 2.58pm and deployed seven fire engines from stations in Johor Baru, Johor Jaya and Pasir Gudang with 29 firemen.

Firemen spraying water onto the flames on the roof of the apartment block.

“We managed to put out the fire in two hours but we are still investigating its cause as well as the damage incurred,” he said, adding that strong winds and the asbestos roofing caused the fire to spread very quickly.

No one was injured during the incident but the roofs of 36 units were totally razed.

State Secretary Obet Tawil, who was at the scene, said that arrangements had been made to provide temporary shelter, food, clothes and other necessities to the 180 people affected.

“The victims will be placed at the Dewan Bukit Mutiara,” he said.

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Man surrenders over stabbing
By ALLISON LAI
malacca@thestar.com.my

MALACCA: The man who killed a woman and stabbed her daughter has surrendered to the police.

State police chief Senior Asst Comm Datuk Chuah Ghee Lye said the man turned himself in at the state police contingent headquarters in Bukit Beruang at 11am on Saturday.

“He was accompanied by his elder sister,'' he said after visiting the family of the victims in Kampung Baru Ayer Salak yesterday.

SAC Chuah said the man had been remanded for investigations.

“We will also speak to the victim when her condition is stable,” he added.

In the incident on Friday night, the advertising executive, in his early 30s, killed Seet Ah Ngo, 75, and stabbed her daughter Lim Mui Tian, 33, at their home before fleeing.

It was reported that the man was enraged after Lim had rejected his advances.

Lim sustained seven stab wounds on her back and shoulders while Seet, who suffered several blows to her ribs and throat, succumbed to her injuries at the emergency ward of a hospital at about 1.30am.

“His action of turning himself in shows that he is willing to face the consequences for what he has done,” said Lim's elder brother Christopher at their mother's wake at their home yesterday.

He said Lim, who had been warded at Malacca Hospital's intensive care unit, was transferred to the normal ward and was now stable and conscious.

Lim's husband, Lee Siang Wei, 33, had also arrived from Vietnam to be with her, added Christopher.

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Teenager found hanged after he was issued traffic summonses
By R.S.N. MURALI
murali@thestar.com.my

MALACCA: A 15-year-old boy, who returned home after being issued traffic summonses while running an errand for his mother, was found hanged in his room at their home in Jasin, near here.

The police have ruled it as “sudden death” but the family of teenager M. Rajathurai wants the case to be probed further as they feel that there is something amiss about the events that led to his death.

His mother S. Chinammah, 49, said she had asked the boy, a Third Former at SM Sri Bemban, to go to the grocery store to buy some household items at about 1.35pm on Saturday.

She thought he would walk to the shop. Instead, Rajathurai went to borrow a friend’s motorbike to get to the store.

“Several policemen spotted him on his way back and detained him,” she said in between tears at their home in Taman Bemban Utama, Jasin, yesterday.

Chinammah said Rajathurai, the youngest of four siblings, returned home with the policemen accompanying him.

“He asked for his Mykad and then was taken by the policemen to the Bemban police station,” she said, adding that the boy was issued summonses for riding the bike without a licence and for not wearing a safety helmet.

“My son came back with the summonses and I scolded him for his action,” she sobbed, adding that Raja-thurai then went straight to his room. At about 5pm, she found his lifeless body hanged from a beam in the room.

Malacca police chief Senior Asst Comm Datuk Chuah Ghee Lye said the police would investigate the boy’s death fairly.

Conveying his condolence to Rajathurai’s family, he added: “It’s an unfortunate incident but there could be two sides to the coin.

“Let us probe to determine whether my officers employed strong-arm tactics that caused tremendous pressure on the boy,” he told The Star yesterday.

SAC Chuah said the police were working hard to minimise traffic violations in the state and, in Rajathurai’s case, the officers had acted according to normal procedures to issue the summonses.

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AirAsia celebrates tenth anniversary with exciting ‘Big Sale’ promotion

PETALING JAYA: Tickets priced as low as 10 sen are up for grabs with the return of AirAsia's “Big Sale” this month.

The budget airline is also removing the fuel surcharge for all domestic and selected international destinations including Mumbai, Tokyo, Jakarta, Medan and Phuket in conjunction with its 10th anniversary later this year.

“Apart from great savings on flights, guests can also save up to 30% when they buy their food, check-in baggage, make seat selection and other add-ons online,” its regional head of commercial Kathleen Tan said yesterday.

The “Big Sale” which begins at noon on Monday until 11.59pm on May 29 is for the travel period between Feb 6 and June 20 next year.

Passengers can also save up to 80% on hotels through the “Big Hotel Sale” to complement their flights booked via the “Big Sale” at www.AirAsiaGo.com.

Among the destinations in the “Big Hotel Sale” include Kuala Lumpur, Penang, Langkawi, Siem Reap, Bangkok, Bali, Phuket, Chiang Mai, and Krabi.

Tan added that passengers could also download AirAsia mobile apps for their smartphones through the link airasia.com/mobile to book their tickets.

AirAsia's new booking features will enable passengers to enjoy a faster and more convenient booking process.

The “Family & Friends List” feature allows passengers to save up to 10 family and friend's names and details in the system while the “1-Click Card” features enable guests to save their credit card details to expedite the booking and payment process.

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Six dead children retrieved from landslide-hit orphanage; more feared dead

KAJANG: A landslide hit an orphanage and the bodies of six children from the Rumah Anak Yatim Al-Takwa, FELCRA Semungkis, 14th mile, Hulu Langat, near here have been pulled out.

Firemen and villagers managed to pull out several others who are critically injured and have been rushed to the Kajang Hospital, said Hulu Langat MP Che Rosli Che Mat.

According to initial reports, the orphanage, with about 30 residents was almost buried by a landslide at about 2.30pm on Saturday.

More to come:

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Teenager gang-raped after meeting Facebook pal

A 14-year-old girl who met a friend she knew through Facebook ended up being gang-raped by nine people.

Tamil Nesan reported that the teenager, who lives in a flat in Pantai Dalam, Kuala Lumpur, slipped out to see the friend without her parents' knowledge last Saturday.

After they met up, they decided to go to someone's house in Cheras with another guy who drove them there.

Three men were waiting for them at the house.

One of them hugged and kissed the girl as she entered the house but she pushed him away. However, he forced himself on her and raped her.

He then called four other friends and all of them took turns to rape the girl throughout the day.

Subsequently, they took her for dinner at a restaurant. The girl took the chance to escape.

So far, police have rounded up eight suspects.

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Thousands of Bieber fans go hysterical for this One Time chance of a lifetime
By IAN YEE and P. ARUNA
newsdesk@thestar.com.my

KUALA LUMPUR: With so many screaming fans in Malaysia, it's hard to see why Justin Bieber still sings about needing “somebody to love”.

The 17-year-old pop sensation performed in front of a sell-out 17,000-crowd at Stadium Merdeka last night, and to say he was given a warm reception would be an understatement.

His Beliebers (what Bieber fans fondly refer to themselves as) were screaming and chanting in the pouring rain for almost two hours.

They were in near hysteria when he finally appeared on stage in his trademark white and purple get-up.

The fans kept it up for nearly the entire show as Bieber performed songs like Somebody To Love, One Time and Never Say Never, saving his signature hit Baby for last.

As part of his usual routine, a girl from the audience was brought on stage to be serenaded by Bieber as he performed One Less Lonely Girl.

Bieber had performed to a sold-out show in Singapore on Tuesday night and will now travel for shows in Indonesia and Australia as part of his My World Tour concert series.

Earlier, at the KL International Airport, Beliebers Felicia Priyanka, 13, and Joanna Joseph, 14, could not contain their excitement as they waited for the teenage sensation to arrive.

The girls, with painted faces held up banners that read “Marry us! You're One In A Million!” and joined the crowd which erupted in screams when Bieber arrived yesterday.

However, the girls' excitement was dampened when they saw him emerge from the VIP Lounge with girlfriend Selena Gomez.

“Why is she here? It is his tour, not hers,” complained Felicia, adding that she was “extremely jealous” of the singer-actress.

Despite being irritated about the star bringing Gomez on tour, the girls were still overjoyed to catch a glimpse of the YouTube sensation before the concert.

The lovebirds were heavily guarded by security personnel, who formed a human barricade around them before they were whisked to a waiting car.

Bieber wrapped his arm around Gomez, who kept her face hidden from the media and screaming fans.

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Two dogs that attacked woman taken away by owner

BUKIT MERTAJAM: The two dogs alleged to have attacked a housewife at Taman Tambun Indah apparently have been taken away by their owner.

A check yesterday showed the German Shepherd and a mongrel were missing from the house after the alleged incident near Nibong Tebal on Friday.

It is believed that the owner had placed the dogs elsewhere for safety reasons because the neighbours, who had earlier complained about the dogs' aggressive behaviour, were unhappy over the incident.

Seberang Prai Municipal Council (MPSP) councillor Francis Ong Koon Liak said the council's veterinary unit team would visit the owner today and impound the dogs if they were unlicensed or found to be without any dog collar.

He said it was the owner's responsibility to chain the dogs due to the fact there were many people living in the vicinity.

“This means that dog owners cannot allow their dogs to roam outside their house compound unattended although the dogs may have licences,” Ong added.

Housewife Lee Boon Chen was admitted to a private hospital in Bandar Perda after the dogs allegedly bit her on the chest.

Her husband Dr Lim Ching Syong, 51, said his wife had taken her pet Shih Tzu breed to a playground near their house when she was set upon by the dogs in the 7.30am incident.

Both dogs, which were reportedly left unchained, had run towards the couple's tiny dog.

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Abandoned and adopted child now a Malaysian citizen
By DESIREE TRESA GASPER
desiree@thestar.com.my

JOHOR BARU: Four-year-old Alif Iman Mahadhir Abdullah appeared oblivious to all the fuss when he received his Malaysian citizenship certificate.

The hyperactive boy continued playing around the MCA office here after he received his certificate from Deputy Home Minister Datuk Lee Chee Leong yesterday.

His parents, lecturers Mahadhir Mohamed, 37 and Shafinaz Shahrir, 40, are thankful that their son is now a Malaysian citizen.

“Alif was abandoned as a child, and when we adopted him, he did not even have a birth certificate.

“We are grateful for the Government's prompt action in providing citizenship to him as his future depended on it,” Mahadhir said, adding that it took them only a year to obtain the citizenship for Alif.

Another recipient, housewife Murni Datuk Koyo, 70, was all smiles and could not stop thanking the Government for giving her a citizenship after residing in the country for more than 35 years.

The mother of eight, who lives in Mutiara Rini here, said she loved living in Malaysia.

“I am originally from Minangkabau in Indonesia, but I decided to settle here after marrying my Malaysian husband,” she added.

Murni said she was very patriotic and even encouraged her eight children to work as civil servants.

“One of my children is a lecturer at a local university and I am proud of them,” she added.

She was among 14 people who received their citizenship certificates during a programme jointly organised by Gelang Patah MCA and the Home Ministry here yesterday.

Lee said the ministry was determined to resolve the people's outstanding citizenship problems as much as possible.

He added that many of the elderly applicants found it difficult to pass the written examination in order to get their citizenships.

“We are allowing those above 50 years to sit for an oral examination alone before granting them their citizenships,” Lee said.

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Man beats pregnant wife over food cravings
OTHER NEWS & VIEWS
Compiled by SIMON KHOO, NG SI HOOI and A. RAMAN

A FOUR-MONTH pregnant woman was punched and kicked by her husband after she asked him to look for two types of “rare” food in the middle of the night.

Harian Metro reported that the woman, aged 28, had developed a craving for various types of delicacies and fruits which were difficult to find.

Previously, the husband, in his 30s, had obliged her requests but this time his emotions got the better of him and he lost his temper.

In the latest incident on Tuesday, the woman again pestered her husband to look for buah kelur and lempuk durian when he returned to their house in Bandar Baru Sentul from work at 11pm.

“The husband blew his top and scolded his wife.

“The couple argued for a good 20 minutes before he lost control of his anger and started punching and kicking his wife,” a source said.

The wife contacted a friend to send her to the Kuala Lumpur Hospital for a check-up before lodging a police report.

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Hairstylist gets death for kidnap and murder of teen girl
By M. MAGESWARI
mages@thestar.com.my

KUALA LUMPUR: A hairstylist has been sentenced to death for the kidnap and murder of teenager Lai Ying Xin, whose body was burnt and dumped at a remote area in Kulai more than two years ago.

His two underage friends were ordered to be detained in a prison at the pleasure of the Johor Sultan for kidnapping and murdering their schoolmate.

Hairstylist Teh Kim Hong, 25, who knew Ying Xin, did not show any emotion when the verdict was delivered in a packed courtroom yesterday.

Ying Xin's mother Chia Siew Phen said she was pleased with the verdict.

Johor Baru High Court judge Justice Mohd Zawawi Salleh said the three accused did not show any mercy towards the victim.

“Although ransom was paid, the victim was brutally murdered.

“After she was killed, the victim's body was burnt and dumped in a remote area,” he said.

Justice Mohd Zawawi said the court took into account the torment suffered by Ying Xin and her family.

Ying Xin, 16, was kidnapped in front of a hypermarket in Jalan Kulai-Air Hitam, Johor, at 9.45pm on Sept 11, 2008. Teh and his two friends had wanted to get a ransom of RM60,000 from her family.

The three were charged with murdering Ying Xin in Jalan Alor Bukit Kulai between 9.45pm on Sept 11, 2008 and midnight the next day.

Justice Mohd Zawawi ordered the remaining RM22,800 ransom money, recovered during their arrest, to be returned to the victim's mother.

Ying Xin scored 7As in her PMR in 2007 and was described by friends as a good person.

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Shoppers on edge as woman tries to jump

KOTA BARU: Shoppers were shocked to see a 20-year-old woman try to kill herself by jumping from a three-storey shopping complex.

She was saved by the quick action of the mall’s management as well as Fire and Rescue Department personnel.

The woman, who works at the shopping complex in Wakaf Che Yeh, is said to be disturbed by family issues.

The drama unfolded at 3pm when the woman from Kampung Gaung, armed with a knife, perched on the ledge of the third floor of the building in Jalan Hamzah here.

Fire and Rescue Department personnel took more than an hour trying to coax her down from the ledge, but she refused to talk to them.

District Fire and Rescue Depart­ment operations chief Shahrin Yusman Mat Yusof said rescue efforts were made difficult after the woman threatened to stab herself whenever the firemen approached.

“One of our personnel, Mohd Zaki Ismail, managed to grab the woman but she resisted and fell.

“She was lucky to fall on a cushion put up by the mall management and department personnel,” Shahrin told reporters at the scene here yesterday.

He added that the woman only suffered bruises on her face when she grazed the building during the fall.

The woman’s uncle said she had personal problems with her mother.


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Baby sister left alone in a bag

JOHOR BARU: A six-year-old boy, who was left alone to take care of three other siblings, decided to put his three-month-old baby sister in a travelling bag before leaving her at the void deck of an apartment block in Larkin.

The baby girl was left alone for more than half an hour before one of the residents saw her trying to crawl out of the bag.

The man immediately contacted police and rescued the baby.

Police brought the mother and her four children to the police station, located just a few metres away from the apartment block.

“Initial investigations revealed that the children were left under the care of their grandmmother while the mother was job hunting,’’ Johor Baru (South) OCPD ACP Zainuddin Yaakob said.

However he added, the grandmother had left the children aged between three months and six years at home as she had an appointment with a doctor at a nearby clinic.

ACP Zainuddin said the woman informed the police that her husband was away working in a resort at Pulau Sibu in Mersing, and she needed a job badly.

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Medical benefits for civil servants retiring under EPF

PUTRAJAYA: Civil servants retiring under the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) scheme and their dependants are now eligible for free medical treatment at public hospitals, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said.

He said the benefit, made available under Section 6A(6) of the Pension Act 227/239, would cover civil servants retiring from both the federal and state governments as well as local governments and statutory bodies.

However, it will not cover those who resigned or left the service voluntarily.

“(The move) is in appreciation of the good service of public servants,” the Prime Minister said at the 12th National Civil Service Convention here yesterday.

Previously, only pensioners were eligible for the free treatment.

Najib said department heads and heads of service would also be given the flexibility to determine the methods used to assess their staff.

“(This is to) ensure that the assessment is relevant, comprehensive and suited to their needs,” he said, adding that this would replace the Competency Level Assessment (PTK) as announced under the Budget in October.

Later at the Prime Minister’s Department Service Excellence Awards event last night, Najib called on the civil service to continuously evaluate their existing systems and procedures and seek improvements to enable them to change with the times.

“This process of improvement must be a journey, not a destination. A journey without end,” he said.

Najib said 1Malaysia’s slogan “People First, Performance Now” was created as a reminder that the people were the main stakeholders of the Government.

He also noted that the Prime Minister’s Department had retained its four-star Financial Management Accountability Index, with five of its departments and agencies given five-star ratings each.

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Schoolgirl’s cupcakes enable Razif to undergo cleft palate op

KUALA LUMPUR: The smile has returned to nine-year-old Razif Azami, who was born with a cleft palate – thanks to the efforts of an enterprising young girl.

Bhavya Vel Vell Paari managed to raise almost RM5,000 from selling brownies and cupcakes to enable Razif to undergo corrective surgery.

She donated the money to Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) Malaysia, who in turn sponsored Razif’s surgery at Pantai Hospital Kuala Lumpur.

Her efforts got the attention of several companies, which also sent donations to RMHC on her behalf.

“I love baking and I’m happy that it could help a good cause,” said Bhavya, a Year Six pupil at Alice Smith School, who had undergone cleft lip corrective surgery herself.

“When I had to choose a cause for my school’s community service project, I picked RMHC’s Gift of Smile programme as it was something close to my heart.”

Gift of Smile is a programme run by the RMHC to raise funds for children under 18 years with a cleft lip or palate, and whose families cannot afford to send them for surgery.

RMHC officer Algene Tan said such surgeries cost around RM5,000 and children would require several surgeries to fix their cleft.

“Unfortunately, the procedure is too expensive for many parents,” she added.

Since the programme began in 2004, Gift of Smile has sponsored 498 operations, which cost nearly RM2mil.

Oddly, while funding for the project continues to increase, not many parents have applied for sponsorship for their children, Tan said.

“It could be due to lack of awareness.

“There are also many families who either don’t want to, or can’t afford to come to Kuala Lumpur,” said Tan, adding that RMHC’s funds also covered travel and lodging expenses for families outside the Klang Valley.

She added RMHC welcomes more families seeking sponsorship for surgeries for their children with similar conditions.

They can obtain more information from RMHC’s website www.rmhc.org.my.

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Four silat masters die in road accident

ALOR SETAR: Four silat masters died and five others were injured when the van they were travelling in was involved in an accident at Jalan Titi Haji Idris here.

The incident occurred at about 3am on Monday when they were on their way to Pendang.

It is learnt that the silat masters were returning home from a competition in Kuala Lumpur.

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10-year-old electrocuted in accident at playground
By A. RUBAN
newsdesk@thestar.com.my



SHAH ALAM: A 10-year-old boy was electrocuted when he accidentally fell and touched an exposed high-voltage wire on a lamp post at a playground near his house.

Mohd Naqiuddin Marzuki (pic) was on his way home from the playground on Satur­day after a football game with his friends when the incident occurred at about 6pm.

The victim’s father, Mohd Marzuki Muda, 44, who was at home at the time of the incident, said he rushed to the scene after being informed about the accident.

He said his son was motionless with his leg still in contact with the lamp post.

Mohd Marzuki, however, managed to pull his son away from the lamp post using a wooden stick, before rushing him off to the KPJ Selangor hospital where Mohd Naqiuddin was pronounced dead.

“I managed to pull him away from the lamp post but after an hour at KPJ (Selangor hospital), the doctors told me that my son was dead,” he told reporters yesterday.

Yesterday, Mohd Naqiuddin’s body was taken to the University Malaya Medical Centre for a post-mortem before burial in Jerteh, Terengganu.

Meanwhile, resident Razali Ab­­dullah, 52, claimed that it was the second such incident in the area, adding that a child was almost electrocuted about two years ago.

Despite the numerous complaint letters sent to the Subang Jaya Municipal Council, he claimed no action had been taken.

“We are all saddened by the incident and we hope that MBSJ will take appropriate measures after this,” he said.

Subang Jaya OCPD Asst Comm Zainal Rashid Abu Bakar confirmed the case.

Police have classified the case as sudden death.

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Electric cars to hit the roads by June
By SYED AZHAR
newsdesk@thestar.com.my

KOTA BARU: Electric cars will be hitting the roads by June after legal standardisation of the vehicles is completed.

Road Transport Department (JPJ) director-general Datuk Solah Mat Hassan said the Transport Min-istry was drawing up laws to enable 10 appointed companies to start producing the cars.

“We are now in the final stage of formulating the laws on the use of such cars on Malaysian roads according to the United Nations Economic Commissions for Africa standards pertaining to electric cars.

“We first have to get down to basics, where car manufacturers must meet specifications formulated like the type of battery, maximum speed and the braking system,” he said yesterday after opening the Malaysian Driving Institute Association annual general meeting and dialogue session.

Solah also said Parliament passed an amendment to the Road Transport Act 1987 last year to accommodate the electric cars in the Act, whereby only the chassis numbers of the electric cars need to be registered at JPJ.

He also said the ministry was working out other details on how to convert electric power to horsepower and the amount of road tax.

Earlier in his speech, Solah said the department needed the cooperation of driving institutes to self-regulate when handling new driving students.

He said the move will help create competition among the institutes to produce competent new drivers.

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72-year-old woman loses life savings to scam

KUALA LUMPUR: A 72-year-old retired civil servant, who thought she was close to becoming a millionaire, instead lost her life savings to a 4-digit scam.

The woman, who only wanted to be identified as Ng, said she received a flyer in her letterbox in Klang last November with the photo of a monk, who provided help to those with financial, family and matchmaking problems.

“I was devastated and even thought about killing myself when I realised there was no more money in my bank account,” she said at a press conference yesterday organised by MCA Public Services and Complaints Department head Datuk Michael Chong.

She lost RM136,292 intended for her retirement to a tok guru (master), who claimed to have the power to bestow good fortune.

Ng said she called up the handphone number provided on the flyer and was told by a man known as Mr Lee that she had won RM1.5mil in the lottery that was bought and claimed on her behalf.

“He sent me a laminated copy as proof. However, to get the money, I had to send money for prayers to protect the winning ticket,” she added.

Ng said she transferred all her savings in 15 transactions to a man’s account between last November and January this year.

She added she did not tell anyone about the matter until she received another call asking for RM52,000, which was government tax for the money that she had won.

She said she only realised what she had done when she wanted to borrow money from her niece, who scolded her and took her to the police station.

Chong said he had received reports of 16 similar cases and had exposed such scams through the media at least 10 times since 2008.

Chong added that he would lodge a complaint with Deputy Home Minister Datuk Lee Chee Leong about such predators placing advertisement on flyers or magazines to con the public.

He said most of the victims were senior citizens who lost their life savings, while some add on to their problems by borrowing money from illegal moneylenders.


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