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He will never give up! Posted: 06 Apr 2014 08:41 PM PDT                 He will never stop! In an interview with CNN's Erin Burnett, Anwar Ibrahim lashed out at the government for being 'incompetent' in monitoring the flight path of MH370, and that Putrajaya has rejected the Opposition's offer to help solve the mystery. I remember how Pakatan Rakyat 'did offer' some helps - that the government should give them the lead role in the armed forces! Please listen carefully to what he says in this interview... and he keeps denying his part in tarnishing the government's and country's image abroad!

Esscom must be enhanced! Posted: 06 Apr 2014 10:38 AM PDT If it were up to me, I would say resorts on small, isolated islands should be closed. No one can guarantee the safety of these places when they are situated far off the coast. The police and military can't be there all the time - Deputy Home Minister Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar. I agree and disagree at the same time. Closing such resorts will be a blow to tourism industry in Semporna. The locals will not support such an idea, and so is the Sabah state government. The islands in Semporna are beautiful and offer one of the best place for tourists who seek tranquility and enchantment. Many locals depend heavily on them as it opens the door to employment and tourism-related businesses. However, the operator of such resorts must also bear in mind that there is always risk as the 'pirates of the high seas' are just nearby. So, it is necessary that they employ sufficient security personnel to safeguard the interest of their business and the safety of customers. Junaidi was under fire from both BN and Pakatan leaders. Some even put the blame on the lack of security measures by Esscom (Eastern Sabah Security Command), set up last year after the bloody intrusion of Lahad Datu by the Muslims in south Philippines. The suggestion by Deputy Home Minister Datuk Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar for far-flung resorts in Sabah to cease operations has been roundly criticised by both the Barisan Nasional and opposition. State Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Seri Masidi Manjun said he was not even sure whether Junaidi knows where Singamata Resort is located. "It is not on an isolated island, it is on a reef not more than 1.5km from the town of Semporna," said Masidi, Saturday. Wan Junaidi when commenting on the abduction of two women from the resort by a kidnap-for-ransom gang on Wednesday, said critics should not blame the Eastern Sabah Security Command (Esscom) for the incident. "If it were up to me, I would say resorts on small, isolated islands should be closed. "No one can guarantee the safety of these places when they are situated far off the coast. The police and military can't be there all the time," Wan Junaidi was quoted as saying. Masidi said that while it is true that there is no 100 per cent guarantee of safety, and none anywhere in the world, it is not an excuse for those in authority to wash their hands off the problem by suggesting a lame excuse. "The fact that it happened literally a stone's throw from the town of Semporna, should make the authority do some serious soul-searching on whether the current security arrangement will address similar incidents in the future," he said. On Wednesday, a 29-year-old Chinese tourist Gao Hua Yuan and 40-year-old Filipina resort employee Marcy Dayawan were abducted by a group of seven armed men from the Singamata Adventure and Reef Resort some 10 minutes boat ride from Semporna town. It was unfortunate that the kidnapping took place amid mounting effort to locate the missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 which carried mostly Chinese nationals. It did add a scab to our relations with Beijing but both governments were fast to douse it off. Now, who should be blamed? No one in particular! The government, via the Home Ministry must step up effort to patrol Sabah shore more closely and more frequently. In order to do so, the number of personnel must be multiplied while the equipments should double. Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi could have done a better job had he took the task himself. Esscom too needs a re-study and a revamp to its approach, strategy and objective before it is able to shoulder such a burdensome task in protecting Malaysian shores from intrusion and infiltration. Yes, Sabah is a chronic case. In developing the state, the government must also look into the security aspect. The Lahad Datu incident should have served us a good lesson of how 'handicapped' we were in attending to such a crisis. Those in charge of Esscom can always draw up a proposal as to how serious the situation is before asking some budgets to enhance its capability. Putrajaya will surely approve it. No use to point hands and finding a suitable scapegoat over the incident. The Home Ministry, Esscom and other agencies should be able to reach a solution as to how such 'unfortunate events' will not recur in the future. And when it comes to security, I believe Zahid should take up the lead role.

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