theSun | TUESDAY DECEMBER 2 2008 7

news without borders Singapore turns public road

into military airstrip
SINGAPORE: Military planes, in-
cluding fighter jets, can fly from
any location in the tiny republic
if an air exercise on Sunday is
any indication.
airborne early warning aircraft,
executed a series of take-offs and
landings on the road.
Before that, some 400 person-
nel from the Air Power Genera-

KL-Ipoh rail shuttle for RM1

by Humayun Kabir
newsdesk@thesundaily.com
IPOH: Keretapi Tanah Melayu Bhd
(KTMB) launched its trial run of the
Kuala Lumpur-Ipoh shuttle on the
electric double track yesterday, and is
offering tickets at a promotional rate of
RM1 to the first 100 commuters who
travel on the 5am and 9pm trains either
way this month.
KTMB intercity services strategic
business unit marketing manager Mohd
Noordin Kimi told reporters at the Ipoh
railway station that commuters have
to buy the RM1 tickets in person at the
railway station counter.
“A total of 400 tickets (200 for Ipoh
commuters and 200 for Kuala Lumpur
commuters) per day will be issued from
today until Dec 31. It is on a first-come-
first-serve basis and no phone bookings
will be allowed,” he said.
The train will leave at 5am, 9am,
1pm, 5pm and 9pm daily from either
destination for the three-hour journey.
Tickets are priced at RM10 for
economy class and RM18 for second
class, while children aged 4-12 years are
eligible for a 50% concession.
At present, only three coaches with a
total capacity of 200 are commissioned
for each trip but more coaches will be
added later if there is a demand.
When asked whether family
packages will be given to encourage
more families to take the train, he said
it will be considered if there is such a
demand.
Transport Minister Datuk Ong Tee
Keat will officially launch the service at
a date to be announced later.
At the launch of the trial run
yesterday, excited children and parents
queued to buy the tickets.
The straight multiple-lane
Lim Chu Kang Road at the west-
ern tip of Singapore was turned
into an “instant” runaway for a
dozen military aircraft during
the half-hour air exercise.
Various aircraft, including F-5
and F-16 fighter jets and E-2C
Trio nabbed in drug busts
GEORGE TOWN: Police
have confiscated more than
RM30,000 worth of drugs and
arrested three suspects in two
separate raids recently. In the
first incident, two men in their
20s were arrested at a house in
Kepala Batas on Nov 22.
Penang chief police officer
Deputy Comm Datuk Wira Ayub
Yaakob said narcotics police
tion Command were involved in
converting the road into an
improvised airstrip in 48 hours.
The idea to use public roads
as alternative runways if the air-
bases were incapacitated during
enemy attacks was first mooted
in the mid-70s. – Bernama
found 14gm of cannabis in the
house. Police also confiscated a
Toyota Wish, two mobile phones
and RM2,456.
In the second incident, a
30-year-old man was arrested
in his house in George Town on
Nov 25. Ayub said police found
8.8kg of heroin and an unknown
white substance weighing 25kg
at the suspect’s house.

Acting MPSP chief has 2 weeks to report on financial status

by Opalyn Mok
newsdesk@thesundaily.com
GEORGE TOWN: State financial officer
Datuk Supiah Md Yusof (pix) has been
sworn in as acting president of the Se-
berang Perai Municipal Council (MPSP)
and given two weeks to submit a report
on the council’s financial status.
Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng told a
press conference at the council’s RM84.3
million headquarters in Bandar Perda yes-
terday that Supiah will investigate MPSP’s
financial management and find out why
reserve funds were depleted.
He said they need to get to the bottom
of how RM223.7 million was spent within
a period of only nine years.
“We want to find a solution to restore
MPSP’s financial health and we also have
to look at any weaknesses in the financial
management so that we can overcome
them,” he said, adding elements of fraud
or abuse of power may have been involved
but it is not easy to find evidence of that.
He said if they find evidence of wrong-
doing, the state government will report it
to the relevant authorities.
When asked why the state govern-
ment did not appoint an external auditor
to audit the council’s accounts, Lim said it
is “terribly expensive” to do so and MPSP
could not afford it. “We want to reduce
costs so we will do our own data col-
lection and then we will get an external
auditor for management audit,” he said.
Once Supiah completes the investiga-
tion, she will submit a report to the state
government.
“I will come back again in two weeks to
look at the status of the investigation and
any reports on the scandal,” Lim said.
He also said MPSP has to reduce its
expenditure, and increase both revenue
and productivity to restore its finances.
“We have two big upcoming projects
in Batu Kawan, a golf resort and a hospi-
tal, which will be completed within three
years, so MPSP will be able to get some
revenue in terms of assessment.”
However, the council has to get its
finances in order now as three years are
a long way off.
It has only RM6.5 million remaining in
its reserve fund from RM225 million in
2000 and has announced another deficit
budget of RM15.47 million for 2009.
Council president Farizan Darus is on
leave until year end. After that, he will be
attending a month-long course.