Category: General

LUMUT, The post-mortem on the 10 people who died in the crash of two Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) helicopters at its base here yesterday was completed at 2.20 pm today.

The Strategic Communications Branch of the Naval Headquarters said in a statement that the bodies of eight Muslim victims would be taken to the 23rd Batallion of the Royal Malay Regiment Camp, Ipoh for funeral prayers.

The body of Lt. T. Sivasutan will be brought to the family home in Sitiawan, while the body of Able Seaman I Joanna Felicia Rohna will be flown back to Serian, Sarawak using a Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) C-130 aircraft.

“The RMN will continue to provide support and assistance in terms of the funeral arrangements and to the next of kin as best as possible,” according to the statement.

The statement added that the victims would each be accorded a funeral with full military honours.

In the 9.32 am incident, the two navy helicopters crashed while conducting a third rehearsal for a fly-past as part of the RMN’s 90th annivers
ary event, scheduled to be held this Saturday.

KUALA LUMPUR, The remains of Royal Malaysian Navy (TLDM) pilot Lt Commander Wan Rezaudeen Kamal Zainal Abidin, 37, were safely laid to rest at about 10 pm today at the Raudhatul Sakinah Muslim Cemetery in Batu Muda here.

He was among the 10 personnel who were killed when two helicopters crashed at the TLDM base in Lumut, Perak at about 9.32 am yesterday.

Earlier, Wan Rezaudeen Kamal’s remains were taken to the Salahuddin Al-Ayubi Mosque in Taman Melati here at about 8.20 pm for prayer.

The burial ceremony was carried out according to TLDM tradition and a solemn atmosphere filled the cemetery when Defence Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin handed the naval ensign to Wan Rezaudeen Kamal’s wife, Alia Amalina Md Noor.

Others present at the cemetery were Navy deputy chief Vice-Admiral Datuk Zulhelmy Ithnain and about 200 individuals, comprising family members and friends of the victim.

Earlier, the funeral prayers and final respects for Wan Rezaudeen Kamal and the remains of seven other Muslim victims
were held at the 23rd Royal Malay Regiment (RAMD) Camp in Ipoh.

The remains of two others killed in the tragedy were taken to their respective residences in Sitiawan, Perak and Kuching, Sarawak.

In an incident at 9.32 am yesterday, 10 RMN personnel were killed when two helicopters crashed while conducting a rehearsal for a flypast in conjunction with the 90th TLDM Anniversary celebration.

KUALA LUMPUR, The Federal Agricultural Marketing Authority (FAMA) plays a proactive role in ensuring the supplies of local red onion commodities can be easily obtained by consumers through the agency’s marketing outlets nationwide.

Its director-general Abdul Rashid Bahri said for that purpose, an intervention programme focusing on the marketing of local red onion cultivated in areas determined by the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security (MAFS) will involve its 40 operation centres implemented through various programmes including Agro MADANI Sales, MAFS marketing outlets and Agrobazaar Online portal.

‘At this initial stage, FAMA has targeted local red onion sales through the MADANI Combo promotion in conjunction with the MADANI Agro Sale programme which will be held in 5,000 locations nationwide,’ he said in a statement today.

In addition, he said as many as 416 FAMA marketing outlets will ensure the supply of the commodity is accessible and expects the commodity to increase at the end of this year, i
n line with the increase in local onion being cultivated nationwide.

Abdul Rashid said that MAFS’ efforts to cultivate red onions will further increase the supply of the commodities in the market, thereby reducing dependence on imports in the future.

ALOR GAJAH, There is no issue of payment arrears by Syarikat Perumahan Negara Berhad (SPNB) to the contractors appointed to complete housing projects under the company as has been circulating on social media recently.

SPNB chairman Datuk Husam Musa said the issue of payment of arrears had been resolved in 2021 and the video that is being viralled now is an old one from 2019.

“SPNB has introduced a new application to make the process of payments to contractors easier and done in less than a week, and the progress of construction can be checked online.

‘Therefore payments can be made fast and currently there are no arrears. SPNB has gained the trust of contractors across the country to carry out the planned housing projects,” he said when met by reporters at the Rumah Mesra Rakyat (RMR) handover ceremony for the Masjid Tanah parliamentary constituency at Kampung Durian Daun here today.

He said the efforts implemented by SPNB could help contractors manage capital and costs for each housing project well and
complete the project on time.

He said currently there are 3,000 contractors registered nationwide under SPNB, with 108 companies in Melaka.

Therefore, Husam urged parties to stop playing up this issue as these allegations were not true and can tarnish SPNB’s image.

Meanwhile, he said this year, SPNM will build a total of 3,500 units of RMR 1.0 and 3,500 units of RMR 2.0 nationwide, and so far there has been no delay or issues related to these projects.

“In Melaka alone, this year up till yesterday, we have built 130 units of RMR 1.0 and we will build another 39 units beginning next week,’ he said..

“Overall, the total number of RMR construction applications throughout the country has increased to 190,000, and in Melaka there are currently 7,336 people waiting for their turn,” he said.

Earlier, he handed over house keys to six applicants and work indents under the RMR programme to five contractors in the Masjid Tanah parliamentary constituency.

The price of each RMR unit being constructed is RM75,000 an
d each unit will have a construction subsidy of a total of RM20,000, with a payment rate of RM300 per month over a 16-year repayment period.

SEREMBAN, Royal Malaysian Navy (TLDM) Lt Commander Mohammad Amirulfaris Mohamad Marzukhi, who perished in the helicopter crash at the TLDM Lumut Base yesterday morning, had intended to buy a house in Perak for his family.

His good friend, Lt Commander Helman Hashim, 35, said Mohammad Amirulfaris had recently entrusted him with submitting the house purchase application documents to the housing loan division of the Ministry of Defence.

“He did ask for my help to submit some documents relating to the house he wanted to buy for his wife and children and I submitted the forms last Tuesday.

“I knew him since 2007, we were good friends, He is very friendly with all the personnel, whether they were his juniors or seniors,’ he told reporters at the family home of Mohammad Amirulfaris in Taman Senawang Perdana here today.

Helman said Mohammad Amirulfaris was also a very intelligent officer and held the post of air tactical officer for Squadron 503.

He described Mohammad Amirulfaris’ demise as a big loss for the T
LDM and expressed his condolences to his friend’s family.

Mohammad Amirulfaris left behind his wife, Siti Aisyah Mohd Roslan and two children – Umar Fayyadh and Ammar Affan.

Yesterday’s tragedy involving the Maritime Operations Helicopter (HOM-AW139) and Fennec (M502-6) helicopter during a flypast rehearsal for TLDM’s 90th anniversary parade, claimed the lives of 10 TLDM personnel, including three women.

MANILA: The National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) has placed the Mindanao grid under yellow alert, and the Luzon and Visayas grids under red and yellow alert.

In its advisory Wednesday, the NGCP said the Mindanao grid is under yellow alert from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., as nine power plants went offline and five more plants are running on a derated capacity.

A total of 673.98 megawatts (MW) were unavailable to the grid, causing the declaration of a yellow alert in the southern part of the country.

‘A yellow alert is issued when the operating margin is insufficient to meet the transmission grid’s contingency requirement,’ the NGCP said.

Peak demand in the Mindanao grid on Wednesday is projected at 2,761 MW, with available power capacity at 2,614 MW, leaving an operating margin of only 147 MW.

Yellow and red alerts were also declared in the Luzon and Visayas grids.

The Luzon grid is placed under yellow alert from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. and 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. and under red alert from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m.

On the oth
er hand, the Visayas grid has a longer red alert period from noon to 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., and yellow alert from 10 a.m. to noon, 5 p.m. to 6 p.m., and 8 p.m. to 9 p.m.

‘The reduced capacity exported by Mindanao to Visayas also aggravated the power situation in Visayas,’ NGCP explained.

Under red alert, power interruptions may be experienced.

At 4:05 p.m., NGCP lifted the red alert status in the Luzon grid. Meanwhile, the yellow alert in the Mindanao grid was lifted 3:09 p.m.

The Luzon grid will continue to be placed under yellow alert from 4 p.m. to 11 p.m.

Meanwhile, the NGCP said it monitored a system disturbance at 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday that triggered the activation of its protection system and affected four power plants, which aggravated the already thin power supply.

These power plants are the 316-MW GNPower 1, the 150-MW Sem-Calaca Power Corp. (SCPC) 1, the 150-MW SCPC 3, and the 60-MW Limay Block B.

Except for GNPower 1, the three power plants went back online as early as 3:43 p.m. on Tue
sday.

The NGCP said it is still investigating the root cause of the system disturbance.

Source: Philippines News Agency

MANILA: The Philippines and Qatar’s Ministry of Transport have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on the mutual recognition of seafarers’ certificates.

In a statement on Wednesday, the Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA) said the MOU is a revision of a 2006 agreement between the two countries and aligns with the amendments of the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW).

The MOU, signed at the sidelines of the state visit of the Amir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani Monday, would help facilitate the employment of Filipino seafarers onboard Qatari-flagged vessels as well as comply with the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), particularly Goal 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth.

‘This MOU not only promotes decent work opportunities but also supports economic growth within the maritime industry, in line with the broader global agenda for sustainable development,’ it said.

The MOU was signed by Department of Tr
ansportation Secretary Jaime Bautista and Qatar’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Soltan bin Saad Al-Muraikhi.

President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. and Al Thani witnessed the signing ceremony.

During the visit, Marcos expressed confidence in a stronger collaboration between the two countries while Al Thani highlighted the importance of the Philippines as a partner in trade.

Source: Philippines News Agency

MANILA: The government’s Epifanio Delos Santos Avenue (EDSA) Greenways Project will improve the experience for commuters in the National Capital Region (NCR) as well as transform cities into becoming greener.

During a meeting of the EDSA Greenways Project Inter-Agency Coordinating Council (PIACC) on Tuesday, Department of Transportation (DOTr) Assistant Secretary for Road Transport and Infrastructure James Andres Melad said the project aimed to boost economic growth through better transportation system.

‘This harmonization is crucial for shaping a more sustainable future and creating greener cities that are safe, commuter and pedestrian-friendly, as well as accessible for all,’ Melad said.

The Greenways project is composed of elevated pedestrian walkways in Balintawak and Cubao in Quezon City, Guadalupe in Makati City, and Taft Avenue in Pasay City.

It will connect pedestrians and commuters to mass transit stations to help promote the use of public transport.

The PIACC meeting was attended by representat
ives from partner national government agencies and local government units where they discussed resettlement and livelihood assistance for those affected by the project.

Source: Philippines News Agency