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BJCC to be on par with
world standards
by Opalyn Mok
newsdesk@thesundaily.com
GEORGE TOWN: The manage-
ment and operations of the 25-
year-old Bukit Jambul Country
Club (BJCC) has been opened
for international tender in a state
initiative to give the golf course an
international image.
Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng,
in announcing this at a press con-
ference at the club yesterday, said
a consultant appointed to study
ways to improve the golf course
had recommended that the opera-
tions and management of the club
be outsourced to improve its image
and financial performance.
“We are asking all interested
parties, including international golf
management companies, to submit
proposals,” he said.
“We want to see how much they
can invest in this when they submit
their tenders.”
Lim said golf tourism had great
business potential and should be
tapped for revenue. Outsourcing
would thus improve the club’s
existing facilities, he said.
“We are tight for funds, that’s
why we are creating a public-
private partnership for this by
opening an international tender for
any company, inside or outside of
Malaysia, to submit its proposal.”
The club has been in operation
for more than two decades and
Chua thanks BN leaders for their confidence in him
Press Digest
by Kong See Hoh
newsdesk@thesundaily.com
MCA deputy president Datuk Seri Dr
Chua Soi Lek has thanked the prime
minister and other Barisan Nasional
(BN) leaders for being confident that
he will not cross over to Pakatan
Rakyat (PR).
But he will not hesitate to quit MCA
if he finds that he no longer has “the
political space and platform to serve
the people”, Sin Chew Daily quoted
Outsourcing the
operations and
management of the
club may position Penang
as a golfing destination
to attract tourists and
improve the business
management of the club in
line with the state’s vision
of adopting an international
approach.”
– Lim Guan Eng
many of its facilities have not been
upgraded to international golf
course standard.
Last year, Island Golf Proper-
ties Bhd (IGP), which manages
and operates the BJCC, appointed
a consultant to study ways to
improve the club and its golf
course.
“Outsourcing the operations
and management of the club
may position Penang as a golfing
destination to attract tourists and
improve the business management
of the club in line with the state’s
vision of adopting an international
approach,” Lim said.
BJCC is a proprietary club
owned by IGP, which is a wholly
owned subsidiary of the Penang
Development Corporation.
The tender period for submis-
sion of proposal expires on Aug 1.
him as saying yesterday.
Speaking to the press after at-
tending a temple function in Johor
Baru on Saturday night, Chua said he
would not disappoint the people and
party members who had given him
a mandate, especially party central
delegates who had supported him.
Also present were several of
his close allies, including Pulai Seba-
tang assemblyman Tee Siew Kiong
and Pulai MCA division chief Low Teh
Hian.
Chua said that although he had
limited political space within the
MCA, he still placed the interests of
The Bukit Jambul Country
Club which has been in
operation for more than
20 years.
Selangor Sultan stable after heart surgery
PETALING JAYA: The Sultan of Selangor,
Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah, is in sta-
ble condition after open heart surgery at
the Stanford University Medical Centre
in Palo Alto, California.
In a statement, the sultan’s private
aide, Kelvin Ong, said the 10-hour
operation involved the repair and not
replacement of a leaking valve for mitral
regurgitation, which was decided by
surgeons during the procedure.
The surgical team was led by the
the party and BN above all else, having
been with the party for 25 years.
He urged others not to speculate
on his actions.
Asked if he had come under pres-
sure from the party’s top leadership
over talk of him jumping ship, Chua
said there were bound to be conflicts
in any political party, but he had cho-
sen to remain in MCA because of the
mandate given to him.
Talk of Chua at a political cross-
roads has been the subject of bloggers
for some time, but his admission in an
interview with online news portal The
Nut Graph on Thursday that the PR
Selangor braces for
hazy conditions
by Maria J. Dass
newsdesk@thesundaily.com
PETALING JAYA: Selangor has
started monitoring open burning
in the state in anticipation of a dry
spell expected to continue until
September.
Last week, the Meteorological
Department issued a warning of
dry weather from June to Sep-
tember. There are concerns over
a return of hazy conditions due to
open burning and forest fires as a
result of the dry spell.
“A few hotspots were det-
ected in Klang three weeks ago,”
Selangor state executive council-
lor for environment, tourism and
consumer affairs Elizabeth Wong
said.
“The cause of the fires was
a mix of natural causes due
to the dry weather and open
burning in Johan Setia,” she
said, adding that efforts to put
the fires out had been ongoing
for a week.
“We are working doubly hard
to monitor the areas that are
prone to forest fires and open
burning.
Union wants rep for
Klang port authority
PETALING JAYA: The Union of
Employees of Port Ancillary Serv-
ices Suppliers (Unepass) wants
the transport minister to appoint
a representative for the 20,000
employees of the Klang Port Author-
ity Board (KPA).
A. Balasubramaniam, who
is Unepass secretary and vice-
president of the Malaysian Trades
Union Congress, said in a statement
yesterday it is disappointing that
the minister had failed to appoint a
representative.
He said Unepass had written
to the minister two weeks ago to
ask why the position had been left
vacant since June last year, when
the previous representative’s term
centre’s Prof Dr Craig Miller and Prof
Dr Alan Yeung.
Ong said the Sultan, 63, was re-
covering at the centre’s intensive care
unit and doctors had advised a strict
“no-visitors” policy.
Sime Darby Medical Centre Subang
Jaya specialist doctor and personal
physician to the Sultan, Datuk Dr Anuar
Masduki, was given special permission
to be present during the surgery, Ong
said.
was courting him has created a buzz.
Chua has posted the Chinese version
of the interview on his blog.
On Saturday, Prime Minister Datuk
Seri Najib Abdul Razak dismissed
talk of Chua joining the Opposition,
asking: “Who said that? I just saw him
two days ago. There is nothing like
that”.
Najib said he believed Chua would
remain a BN stalwart.
Home Minister Datuk Seri His-
hammuddin Hussein said he would
be disappointed if Chua crossed
over.
He said the former health minister
| MONDAY MAY 4 2009
“In areas like Sepang, which is
a hotspot zone, there is a lot pri-
vate property and it is difficult to
send people into these properties
to monitor open burning, but we
have issued a warning to owners
to take care of their lots.”
Wong said these fires were
mostly started by squatters on
the land.
“We are also bracing for the
trans-boundary haze from Indo-
nesia as a result of dry weather
in the region but there is very
little we can do about this,” she
said.
On Wednesday, the environ-
ment ministers of Malaysia,
Indonesia, Singapore, Brunei
and Thailand met in Bandar Seri
Begawan to discuss measures
to manage the expected trans-
boundary haze.
An increase in the number
of hotspots is anticipated and
vigilance is therefore crucial, said
Natural Resources and Environ-
ment Minister Datuk Douglas
Unggah.
He said information on det-
ected hotspots will be shared
among the countries.
had not been extended.
“There are representatives
from the government, employers
and political parties. Why is there
no one who can speak on behalf
of the 20,000 workers?” he
asked.
“We urge the minister to appoint
a workers’ representative to the
board so that everyone involved in
the port’s operations has a voice
and we can all work in a truly tri-
partite way.”
Balasubramaniam said the voice
of the worker is important to safe-
guard the interests and welfare of
the employee.
MCA’s Datuk Lee Hwa Beng is
current chairman of the KPA.
He said the Sultan had, before sur-
gery, asked him to thank all Malaysians,
especially the people of Selangor, for
their kind thoughts and prayers.
He has been advised to rest and
recuperate for three weeks in hospital.
Surgery for mitral valve regurgita-
tion is recommended when the ejection
fraction – a measurement of the heart’s
efficiency – drops below 60% and/or
the left ventricle is larger than 40mm
at rest.
was a leader who knew the struggles
of the BN well.
Hishammuddin said he would
contact Chua and his son Tee Yong,
the Lapis MP, to learn their position
better.
Meanwhile, MCA president Datuk
Seri Ong Tee Keat expressed surprise
at reports of PR courting Chua and Tee
Yong, but declined to comment when
approached by reporters in Pagoh,
Muar, where Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin
was making his first official visit as
deputy prime minister.
Muhyiddin also parried questions
on Chua.