'I thought that as a senior civil servant under the professional grade, the marketing division director should not be involved in outside business other than his own department work?'
'Possible conflict of interest in fish box ruling'
Kgen: Why is the ruling to use these expensive boxes, whose price is jacked up by corruption, applied only to imported fish and not local fish? Why is a monopoly created for the distribution of the boxes? Why is the Malaysian Fisheries Development Authority (LKIM) director involved?
This shows that health reasons have nothing to do with it. Rent-seeking is the real reason. The public is being taken for a ride again. Let's be clear about this - it's not the fish importers who are victimised but the consumers. The importers should boycott and hold their ground until this shameless government backs down.
Gen2: Another money-making scheme by a government agency. They call it food-quality plastic boxes. The fishes are raw uncooked fish. Whether they are in the old plastic boxes or styrofoam or in the new boxes, the fish still need to be cooked before eating. You can lie to the public but not everybody will swallow it.
The Auditor-General's Department should add one more role to its portfolio: to examine every government agency's new proposals and determine if it costs more money to the government or the public. Do a due diligence study on every proposal before it can be implemented to see if there is good justification for the new proposal.
It should also be the accountant-general's duty to shield the public from money-making scams initiated by a government agency on the instigation of certain individuals with vested interests in the scam.
Phan Gaik Cher: As usual, LKIM officers are only thinking of how to line their pockets by making money from this forced switch. Be it the Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Ministry or LKIM, when did any government department ever have the interests of the people at heart?
It's time MACC get to the bottom of it and investigate all the leakages and abuses that are going on. When have farmers or fishermen been able to enjoy the subsidies/grants? I bet you hardly any of it trickles down to them.
Daniel Tan: The corrupted Umno and their cronies are up to no good again. This time, they're preying on the helpless fishermen. Where on earth is the MACC and their newly-minted head? Can't touch this case because its Umno's rice bowl?
PT Tan: Now we know. Ultimately, the public gets milked twice over: Once, to subsidise a government body director in his private business while on the taxpayers' payroll; next, by getting milked through the higher cost of fish that is eventually passed on to the public.
The LKIM can also cut the crap about the embedded microchip. The microchip costs peanuts and can be embedded into any box, not just the blue box. LKIM should be protecting our interests and the fishermen's interests and stay out of the process of regulating the import of fishes. Leave that to the market forces.
The public should also demand that (LKIM marketing division director) Mohari Mohammad Tamin resign or be sacked for causing us to pay more for fish today. We don't really care if he was right or wrong - he botched his job and caused us a shortage of fish. Who cares if it was bad PR, the intransigence of fish importers, etc. Just get out and let someone else take over.
Perak Boleh: Was this Mohari guy appointed by the agriculture ministry to sit as a director for KF Marketing Sdn Bhd? If the answer is ‘no', MACC please do your job.
Lim Cheong Chuan: I thought that as a senior civil servant under the professional grade, the marketing division director should not be involved in outside business other than his own department work?
This ruling is generally imposed on all civil servants in the professional scheme, whether within department or among the administrative and diplomatic service. Is the marketing director and all LKIM professional grade officers exempt from this ruling?
PKA can't take legal action against Kong Choy
The Atheist: What a load of rubbish! These big fishes have plundered the nation so many times and we're just letting them off because of technicalities. Woe is me and the rest of the rakyat.
We want the billions of ringgit back in the national coffer to help the many people who are in need. We cannot have a few billionaires strutting around oblivious to the sufferings of the needy.
Sentinel: PKA chief Lee Hwa Beng was well-known for telling his constituents in Subang Jaya when he was its state assemblymember, "My hands are tied". It looks like old habits die hard, because this is exactly what he has just said. Full of excuses, these MCA people.
Mixed views on 'Malay rights shield'
Daniel Collin Lazaroo: Only in Malaysia in this day and age can we find the formation of a group to defend the rights of the majority who are already well looked-after in the country.
I'm not convinced, even in the slightest, that Malay rights or privileges have been trampled upon. The opposite, instead, is true - the racialist policies of Malaysia have benefited the already-well-to-do, while doing little in the long and short-term for the larger Malaysia.
More racialist ideologies, as evidenced by this group's formation, will further deteriorate the situation - not because Malay rights are things that should not be defended, but because continuing to favour only one skin colour and culture (and the dominant one at that) affirms the Malay supremacy delusion. Just as white supremacy was a bad idea, Malay supremacy is equally bad.
We should instead be trying to find common ground and fighting for what all Malaysians need - justice, equality, maturity, understanding and compassion.
Mead: The Malays comprise 60 percent of the population and are the dominant political force, so I can't understand what they are trying to defend. Their rights are enshrined in the constitution.
Perhaps their grievances should be addressed to the BN government, which has chosen to share out the national cake with their cronies and not with the rest of the rakyat, Malays included.
Sad to say, there are still characters like Ibrahim Ali in Malaysian politics, which I accept is still far from mature even after five decades.
