Latest news with #Zulkarnain
Daily Express
25-06-2025
- Politics
- Daily Express
Expel them and demand resignation of UMS Vice-Chancellor: G57
Published on: Wednesday, June 25, 2025 Published on: Wed, Jun 25, 2025 Text Size: Zulkarnain distinguished Sabah from Peninsular Malaysia, saying while traffic disruption and burning portraits of national leaders might be common practice over there, it is absolutely not acceptable in Sabah. Kota Kinabalu: Gerakan Kuasa Rakyat Malaysia (G57) called for the expulsion of all Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) students who participated in the Gempur Rasuah 2.0 anti-corruption rally, claiming their actions have tarnished the university's reputation. The G57 also demanded the resignation of UMS Vice-Chancellor Prof Datuk Dr Kasim Md Mansur over the controversial incident that saw the students burning a caricature of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim during the rally on June 21. 'The G57 hopes that all student participants in the Gempur Rasuah 2.0 organised by the Suara Mahasiswa UMS will be expelled from the university as they have clearly tarnished the good name of the university,' said G57 Chairman Datuk Zulkarnain Mahdar in a statement, Tuesday. Despite the Prime Minister's statement against expelling the students, Zulkarnain insisted that the law must take precedence. He said allowing such actions to go unpunished could set a dangerous precedent for future incidents in Sabah. Zulkarnain distinguished Sabah from Peninsular Malaysia, saying while traffic disruption and burning portraits of national leaders might be common practice over there, it is absolutely not acceptable in Sabah. Advertisement The rally, which took place in the city centre, caused traffic congestion and drew criticism from many quarters. The Gempur Rasuah 2.0 rally involved more than 100 participants protesting various issues including corruption and water supply problems in Sabah, culminating in the controversial act of burning a caricature of the Prime Minister. Zulkarnain criticised the UMS management for what he termed a delayed response, saying that the university should have lodged a police report beforehand to prevent the demonstration from taking place in the city centre. He noted that G57 had repeatedly opposed such gatherings, anticipating chaos due to the apparent involvement of Parti Warisan leaders and members. 'This violent culture cannot be accepted in Sabah, therefore as a form of lesson, the UMS Vice-Chancellor should resign and UMS students involved in the demonstration should also be suspended and removed from the university,' Zulkarnain said. * Follow us on our official WhatsApp channel and Telegram for breaking news alerts and key updates! * Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available. Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express's Telegram channel. Daily Express Malaysia
New Straits Times
11-06-2025
- New Straits Times
DBKL: Construction site where Briton fell had no safety violations
KUALA LUMPUR: Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) found no violations at the Bangsar construction site where a 25-year-old British backpacker was found dead last week. Following an inspection on June 5, DBKL executive director (Planning) Datuk Zulkarnain Hassan said periodic checks showed the site was properly sectioned off. "It's a big development. It will be developed in phases. "One of the phases has been completed and the other is still under construction, so this is permissible. "They have, in fact, separated the part of the completed project from the one under construction. "So, it's properly separated," he said. However, the Department of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) has halted all construction activity pending investigation. Zulkarnain added that DBKL's authority on construction sites is limited. "DBKL's concern, based on the building by-laws and other laws, is to ensure that the construction does not cause nuisance to the surrounding neighbours. "We also make sure every site has hoardings displaying the project details — what it is, who the main consultant is, the contractor, developer and the person in charge," he said. He added that DBKL regulates construction hours, and this site had been granted an extension to operate until 10pm — three hours beyond the standard 7am to 7pm limit in Kuala Lumpur. "Thirdly, we have jurisdiction over the vehicles and routes used for construction. "We monitor site cleanliness, ensure lorry tyres are cleaned, and check that drains aren't obstructed," he told the New Straits Times, adding that no violations were recorded at the time of inspection. Zulkarnain also pointed out that the Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB) plays a role by appointing contractors, who are then responsible for ensuring all standard operating procedures (SOPs) are followed. Yesterday, National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) chairman Chong Chieng Jen urged CIDB and DOSH to investigate the developer and all parties involved in the Bangsar construction site where the Briton's body was found. Police believe the 25-year-old had entered the construction site before falling into a partially completed lift shaft. His decomposed body was later discovered submerged in water.
Daily Express
10-06-2025
- Politics
- Daily Express
G57 slams DAP Youth for defending activist Fahmi
Published on: Tuesday, June 10, 2025 Published on: Tue, Jun 10, 2025 Text Size: Zulkarnain (left) said Sabahans had filed numerous police reports against Fahmi (right) over the alleged insult to the Governor, but no legal action had followed so far. Kota Kinabalu: Gerakan Kuasa Rakyat Malaysia (G57) criticised DAP Youth Chief Woo Kah Leong for defending activist Fahmi Reza after he was barred from travelling abroad while remaining silent over alleged defamatory content aimed at the Sabah Governor. Its Chairman, Datuk Zulkarnain Mahdar questioned Woo's selective outrage and accused him of turning a blind eye to Fahmi's alleged insults to Yang di-Pertua Negeri Sabah, Tun Musa Aman. Advertisement 'Yes, Woo has every right to defend Fahmi, but why hasn't he questioned why no legal action has been taken against Fahmi despite multiple police reports lodged by Sabahans?' He pointed out that Fahmi had allegedly humiliated the Governor through a caricature posted online, an act Zulkarnain described as 'a deliberate and malicious attack.' 'Does Woo's silence have anything to do with the fact that Tun Musa is a Sabahan?' he asked. Zulkarnain reminded the public that the Governor's appointment was made by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, Sultan Ibrahim, through a stringent vetting process, and that Tun Musa had never been convicted of any crime. 'Is Woo implying that His Majesty made a mistake in appointing Tun Musa?' he questioned. He further defended Tun Musa's credentials, calling him a respected corporate figure and the only Sabahan ever to own a bank prior to entering politics. G57 also took issue with what it called Fahmi's 'selective activism.' 'Why hasn't Fahmi ever named Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal as Sabah's top 'corrupt' despite Shafie having been remanded in a RM1.5 billion rural project corruption probe?' 'What about Bung Moktar's ongoing RM2.8 million graft case or Peter Anthony's conviction for cheating Universiti Malaysia Sabah?' 'Fahmi seems to be targeting only one individual. Is he being used by someone?' he questioned. Zulkarnain said Sabahans had filed numerous police reports against Fahmi over the alleged insult to the Governor, but no legal action had followed so far. 'What makes Fahmi so untouchable? Sabahans are watching. And they will make their decision when the time comes,' Zulkarnain added. * Follow us on our official WhatsApp channel and Telegram for breaking news alerts and key updates! * Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available. Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express's Telegram channel. Daily Express Malaysia
Yahoo
09-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Is your privacy at risk — or is MCMC just tracking trends? What you need to know about Malaysia's mobile data project
CYBERJAYA, June 10 — On the night of Hari Raya Aidiladha, it was reported that the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) had directed telecommunications companies (telcos) to hand over mobile personal data (MPD) to the government. The directive, which reportedly involves mobile call records from the first quarter of this year, was said to be for official statistical purposes. But how exactly will the data be used — and is your personal information at risk? Project MPD The Department of Statistics Malaysia (DoSM), under the Economy Ministry, proposed the use of MPD as a new data source for producing official national statistics. The proposal was presented to the Cabinet on April 19, 2023, and subsequently approved. Speaking at a media briefing today, MCMC deputy managing director Datuk Zulkarnain Mohd Yasin said that MPD has been formally recognised by the United Nations as a key big data source for strengthening official statistics. He said it offers a powerful tool to improve the quality, timeliness, and granularity of national data. 'The global initiative highlights the pressing need to transcend into traditional statistical methods and adopt innovative data solutions, better comprehend and address societal changes while ensuring that privacy and data protection remain paramount at every stage of implementation now,' he added. Malaysia is not the first to implement the initiative, as countries like Indonesia and Oman have already done so. In short, instead of relying on surveys conducted every five years, the government plans to use real-time data from MPD to inform policy-making and planning — rather than basing decisions on outdated figures from the last DoSM survey. What sort of data that MPD will provide to the government? During the briefing, the media were informed that the MPD project will only collect eight key parameters. These include the location of signal towers (longitude and latitude), details on local and international mobile subscriptions, and call logs. The data will provide the government with more accurate, real-time insights to support planning and policy-making, particularly in areas such as economic activity, population movement, and infrastructure needs. For example, MPD can highlight areas with high mobile activity, helping authorities plan for better telecommunications coverage and capacity, or even identify previously overlooked population areas that were not part of the initial planning. Zulkarnain shared a personal experience: 'I was stuck in traffic on the highway from Malacca to USJ. My daughter was supposed to have an online meeting with her university team, but she couldn't connect. 'Once the highway was congested, the mobile signal also became overloaded. This shows how people's movement affects not just road traffic but also telecom infrastructure.' For the ICT sector, MPD enables the production of granular statistics — such as the number of active mobile broadband subscriptions and penetration rates — at multiple administrative levels, including state, district, mukim, parliamentary constituency, state legislative assembly, and local authority areas. In the tourism sector, the system can generate indicators like the number of visitors and domestic tourism trips. This allows planners to identify popular destinations, particularly among foreign tourists, and improve services and infrastructure in those areas. 'So from the MPD, we can know for example how many people are visiting the Batu Caves on Monday,' Zulkarnain added. Will your personal data also be shared? MCMC commissioner Derek John Fernandez reiterated that mobile users' personal data won't be shared by their respective telcos to the government. 'There's only eight parameters that we want for the data. That does not include a person's identification number, address and others. In fact, we do not want the personal data. In our letter sent to telcos, we told them to 'anonymised or pseudomised' the data when submitting it,' he said. The eight parameters collected are: MSISDN – An anonymised subscriber identifier Date and time of transmission Transmitter longitude Transmitter latitude Data type – Such as call detail records, indicating whether it's a regular call or data usage (e.g., WhatsApp) Service type – 3G, 4G, or 5G MCC (Mobile Country Code) – Identifies the country of origin Unique ID Fernandez clarified that even the location of mobile users will not be shared — only traffic signals from mobile towers will be collected. There are two ways for telcos to submit MPD data to MCMC: Option A: Telcos process the data within their own secure environments. Once processing is complete, they submit only anonymised and aggregated outputs, such as the total number of mobile users, to MCMC. Option B: For telcos without in-house processing capabilities, anonymised data is securely submitted to MCMC for processing. According to Fernandez, most telcos opt for the first method. Fernandez assured that MCMC stores all its data on its own premises and does not use cloud services or third-party storage. When asked why the public was not consulted about the project, Fernandez explained that it is still in its pilot phase. 'We need to complete the pilot test first to get a clearer picture, how effective it is and how it can truly benefit us,' he said. Cyberjaya has been identified as the first location for the pilot test and will run until 2026. 'This is the new way of survey. The digital way,' Zulkarnain said briefly in a press conference after the briefing.
Daily Express
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Daily Express
UMS student, cybertrooper being sued RM1.5 million
Published on: Friday, May 23, 2025 Published on: Fri, May 23, 2025 Text Size: Zulkarnain said the RM1.5 million claim should serve as a deterrent against slander, bullying and public shaming, even in cases of differing political views. Kota Kinabalu: Gerakan Kuasa Rakyat Malaysia Chairman Datuk Zulkarnain Mahdar is suing two individuals for defamation, seeking RM1.5 million in damages and a public apology. The target is a student activist linked to a demonstration at Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) and another described as a cybertrooper affiliated with PAS and Parti Warisan. The letters were sent via registered post on Thursday and would be delivered in person by Zulkarnain's legal team, led by lawyer Boestamam of Tetuan Boestamam Ahmad & Co. Notices will also be published through news portals. The suit against the student stems from a Facebook post where he allegedly referred to Zulkarnain as 'a foolish old man choosing chaos.' The other individual is accused of posting defamatory remarks on Facebook, TikTok and YouTube, calling Zulkarnain 'a devil, foolish and stupid old man'. Zulkarnain said the RM1.5 million claim should serve as a deterrent against slander, bullying and public shaming, even in cases of differing political views. Advertisement 'This legal action is a necessary step to uphold dignity and prevent malicious attacks against individuals, regardless of their political stance,' he said. * Follow us on our official WhatsApp channel and Telegram for breaking news alerts and key updates! * Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available. Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express's Telegram channel. Daily Express Malaysia
