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Another false rumor – EPF Billion Dollar Scam

There is a story about EPF that is circulating on email which alleges that the government is cheating EPF saver by hundreds of millions. The story is as follows:

Remember during Budget 2008 announcement last yr, our Finance Minister cum PM) announced that in order to assist KWSP members to reduce the burden in housing load repayment, KWSP will allow monthly withdrawal from members’ A/C II for the purpose?

Sounds like a nice goodies!

When you apply for the monthly withdrawal, you only need to provide KWSP yr housing loan & installment details from yr bank and the bank a/c # you like KWSP to bank the monthly withdrawal into it. KWSP will approve yr application based on the available amt in yr A/C II and compute the withdrawal period by dividing the approved amt with the
monthly installment amt.

Application process takes about a month and you will receive the monthly payout promptly into yr bank a/c!

Well everything appear to be nice and good. It was indeed a noble plan until you take to close look at yr KWSP Statement!

This is how the so-called KWSP SCAM works…….

Assuming you have RM100,000 in yr A/C II and yr housing loan’s monthly installment is RM2000/mth.
KWSP will approve yr application of withdrawal from yr A/C II of RM100,000 and pay you Rm2000/mth for the next
50mths.

Everything appears to be in order BUT…….. What KWSP didn’t highlight to you is that when the application was approved, the TOTAL AMT (RM100,000) is removed from A/C II! It appears to be transferred to an unknown a/c to effect the monthly payment from therein..

The impact to the member are as follows :-
1. You just lost RM100,000 from yr A/C II. Assuming the KWSP Dividend is 5%, you will lose RM4,000 in dividend during the 1st year. Based on the above example you will lose RM10,000 over the 50 mths period!

2. There is no statement to account for the amt approved vs. amt paid, hence you would need to keep the monthly payment voucher to reconcile against the approved amt over the 50mths period to ensure there is no missing amt!

Assuming there are 100,000 members who innocently fell prey to this SCAM, based on the above example, KWSP would have cheated the members of 100,000 X RM10,000 = RM1,000,000,000 (that’s RM1 BILLION) over the period!

Furthermore, if you discovered this SCAM early and intend to stop the plan, KWSP would not allow any cancellation of the plan until at least 1 year. That would mean, once the application is approved, based on the above example, you would have lost RM4,000.
100,000 members would have lost 100,000 X RM4,000 = RM400,000,000(RM400 MILLION) in One Year!!!

If you’re a victim of this KWSP SCAM, would suggest you call yr MP to raise it up in Parliament!

For others who have not fallen into this SCAM, pls continue to watch out and alert yr family & friends about this.

HOW COULD THE GOVERNMENT ALLOW ITS AGENCY TASKED WITH SAFEGUARIDNG ITS CITIZEN’S HARD EARNED MONEY TO CHEAT ITS MEMBERS IN THIS MANNER???

Well here is EPF’s reply to the above allegations:

EPF PAYS DIVIDENDS FOR SAVINGS RESERVED UNDER HOUSING LOAN MONTHLY INSTALMENT WITHDRAWAL

The Employees Provident Fund (EPF) would like to state that members’ savings that have been kept aside in a separate account for withdrawals under Housing Loan Monthly Instalment Withdrawal will continue to receive dividends accordingly. This statement comes in response to recent emails and blogs that state the EPF does not pay dividends on the said amount.

When a member’s application for Housing Loan Monthly Instalment Withdrawal is approved, the total amount of savings that will be taken out from Account 2 for the purpose of this withdrawal will be put aside in another account. The reason for this is to separate the amount from the main account, as funds allocated for this withdrawal cannot be used for other withdrawals from Account 2. In addition, it serves to facilitate as well as monitor the monthly payments.

The EPF would like to reiterate any savings that are still with the EPF will continue to earn dividends annually up until the member reaches the age of 75. Accordingly, the savings that have been kept aside and are committed for withdrawals under Housing Loan Monthly Instalment Withdrawal will continue to receive dividends for the year. The dividends on this amount will be credited into Account 2 after dividend for the year is declared.

In any case, the Housing Loan Monthly Instalment Withdrawal was introduced in January 2008 and as dividend for 2008 is yet to be declared, there is no issue of the EPF not paying dividends on the said amount.

We hope that this statement will put to rest any confusion regarding this issue. The EPF wishes to assure its members that it is committed to protecting members’ interests and enhancing the value of their savings.

(NIK AFFENDI JAAFAR)

Senior Manager, Public Relations

Employees Provident Fund

Date: 30 October 2008

The Debauchery of American Womanhood

by Henry Makow Ph.D., September 18, 2002

On my wall, I have a picture of a Muslim woman shrouded in a burka. Beside it is a picture of an American beauty contestant, wearing nothing but a bikini.

One woman is totally hidden from the public; the other is totally exposed. These two extremes say a great deal about the clash of so-called “civilizations.”

The role of woman is at the heart of any culture. Apart from stealing Arab oil, the impending war in the Middle East is about stripping Arabs of their religion and culture, exchanging the burka for a bikini.

I am not an expert on the condition of Muslim women and I love feminine beauty too much to advocate the burka here. But I am defending some of the values that the burka represents for me.

For me, the burka represents a woman’s consecration to her husband and family. Only they see her.

It affirms the privacy, exclusivity and importance of the domestic sphere.

The Muslim woman’s focus is her home, the “nest” where her children are born and reared. She is the “home” maker, the taproot that sustains the spiritual life of the family, nurturing and training her children, providing refuge and support to her husband.

In contrast, the bikinied American beauty queen struts practically naked in front of millions on TV. A feminist, she belongs to herself. In practice, paradoxically, she is public property. She belongs to no one and everyone. She shops her body to the highest bidder. She is auctioning herself all of the time.

In America, the cultural measure of a woman’s value is her sex appeal. (As this asset depreciates quickly, she is neurotically obsessed with appearance and plagued by weight problems.)

As an adolescent, her role model is Britney Spears, a singer whose act approximates a strip tease. From Britney, she learns that she will be loved only if she gives sex. Thus, she learns to “hook up” rather than to demand patient courtship and true love. As a result, dozens of males know her before her husband does. She loses her innocence, which is a part of her charm. She becomes hardened and calculating. Unable to love, she is unfit to receive her husband’s seed.

The feminine personality is founded on the emotional relationship between mother and baby. It is based on nurturing and self-sacrifice. Masculine nature is founded on the relationship between hunter and prey. It is based on aggression and reason.

Feminism teaches woman that feminine nature has resulted in “oppression” and that she should convert to male behavior instead. The result: a confused and aggressive woman with a large chip on her shoulder, unfit to become a wife or mother.

This, of course, is the goal of the social engineers at the NWO: undermine sexual identity and destroy the family, create social and personal dysfunction, and reduce population. In the “brave new world,” women are not supposed to be “nest” makers, or progenitors of the race. They are meant to be neutered autonomous creatures that indulge in sex for physical pleasure, not for love or procreation.

At his press conference on Sunday, Donald Rumsfeld said that Iranian women and youth were restive under the rule of the Mullahs. He implied that the US would soon liberate them. To Britney Spears? To low-rise “see-my-thong” pants? To the mutual masturbation that passes for sexuality in America?

Parenthood is the pinnacle of human development. It is the stage when we finally graduate from self-indulgence and become God’s surrogates: creating and nurturing new life. The New World Order does not want us to reach this level of maturity. Pornography is the substitute for marriage. We are to remain stunted: single, sex-starved and self-obsessed.

We are not meant to have a permanent “private” life. We are to remain lonely and isolated, dependent on consumer products for our identity, in a state of perpetual courtship.

This is especially destructive for woman. Her sexual attraction is a function of her fertility. As fertility declines, so does her sex appeal. If a woman devotes her prime years to becoming “independent,” she is not likely to find a permanent mate.

Her long-term personal fulfillment and happiness lies in making marriage and family her first priority.

Feminism is another cruel New World Order hoax that has debauched American women and despoiled Western civilization. It has ruined millions of lives and represents a lethal threat to Islam.

I am not advocating the burka but rather some of the values that it represents, specifically a woman’s consecration to her future husband and family, and the modesty and dignity this entails.

The burka and the bikini represent two extremes. The answer lies somewhere in the middle.

Henry Makow, is the inventor of the board game Scruples, and the author of A Long Way to go for a Date. He received his Ph.D. in English Literature from the University of Toronto.

The racist first world: Racism in the UK – watch this…

WordPress and twitter

Good news for wordpress users, WordPress is now linked to Twitter.  Any posts that I now make in my mindacergas or mindspring blogs will automatically sent out on twitter.

RON 95 pinging

I am using a Ford Focus 2.0 and now fueling the car with RON95 fuel.

I am 100% sure when accelerating under load (eg going uphill)  I can hear the engine pinging.

Should you also be experiencing the same – please  leave a comment.  We need data to see if this is indeed a real problem.  The government and fuel companies have said that there should be no problem when switching from RON 97 to 95.

Making sense of MCA and ISA and BN’s stand on corruption

It has been a weekend of interesting politics.

The MCA, on  Saturday, convened an EGM to vote on 4 key resolutions.  The real surprise was to see Ong Tee Kiat being handed a motion of no confidence.

Resolution 1: That the members of the general assembly have no confidence in the leadership of president Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat.

Adopt: 1155
Reject: 1141
Margin: 14

To me Ong Tee Kiat was the most serious of the 3 component party leaders to try and institute reforms both internal ad external.  I thought his courage to push on the PKFZ issue was fantastic, yet MCA – a key member of Barisan has rejected OTK’s leadership and by inference rejected the drive for reform.

On Sunday was the by election in Bagan Pinang, Port Dickson where TanSri Isa Samad, the former Menteri Besar who was removed because of “money politics” won the election on a huge majority.

I guess Tun Mahathir sums it up when he said:

PUTRAJAYA, Sept 18 (Bernama) — Former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said Tan Sri Mohd Isa Samad should not be nominated as candidate for the Bagan Pinang state by-election.

He said UMNO’s image would be affected because it would be regarded as not being serious in fighting money politics if it chose as candidate those who were already found guilty of political corruption.

“Tan Sri Isa has already been found guilty. If UMNO fields him, it means that UMNO is not serious about such cases.

“Even if he can win there, (we) have to consider what the whole of Malaysia thinks of UMNO,” he said in an interview with Bernama Thursday.

Well Isa Samad did win and again by inference it shows the mindset of UMNO and by extension BN.

As it goes now, it looks like corruption is here to stay. Maybe what 1 Malaysia really means is hat everyone should have equally access to corruption and that will keep the harmony.

I  dont know but seeing OTK loose and ISA win just sends out such a horrible signal of what lies ahead for this country.

Bagan Pinang Election Results

Well after all that – the by election is over and BN – Tan Sri Isa Samad has won. BN polled  8013 while PAS polled 2578 for a total of  10,591 votes and giving BN a majority of 5435 votes.  A total of 11,157 voters out of 13,664 turned out (81.7% turn out)

Of the total 11157 votes, , postal votes accounted for  4604 or 41% o the total votes. 3507 of the  postal votes are purported to have gone BN’s way while  468 for PAS. Essentially of the 5435 majority that BN won, 64% can be attributed to postal votes.

I think the question now is that is this win in Bagan Pinang an aberration considering the 8 previous losses or it is the start of a new trajectory for BN, a consolidation of support that is rallying behind Najib.  We have to wait and see.  But for sure, this loss for PKR will be a strong impetus for Keadilan, DAP and PAS to quickly close ranks and star presenting it self with a much clearer singular identity.

Bagan Pinang – why ISA SAMAD?

Many have asked me about Bagan Pinang and so here is my simple view.

When we go to vote we make a choice, that is who we will give our vote too. But the choice is not as simple as the candidate. Behind  that choice there are hidden implications – such as our desires, aspirations and hopes for the future.

When Malaysia went to the polls last year – and the opposition made the huge wins – we were not just vote for candidates, we were making a statement.

Bagan Pinang is no different. While we try to project the by election as a local issue, it really is not about Isa Samad or Zulkefly Mohamad Omar. It is about the mood of the electorate – whether it wants to send a stronger message of change, or has the message been made loud and clear already.

To me. not for the outcome for the last GE, the PKFZ scandal would have gone on and on and on as there was no real check and balance nor accountability in the system.   And PKFZ is the big one. What about the hundreds of smaller ones?

Just read the following extracts on for a  report on the investigation of BALKIS.  (the full rerport is here)

AFTER a gruelling seven days, the public inquiry into possible misuse of funds by Wives of Selangor Elected Representatives Charity Organisation (BALKIS) ended a few weeks ago, leaving those who attended reeling from the revelations.

PNSB chief executive officer Datin Khairiyah Abu Hassan dropped a bombshell when she further revealed how much the State-owned conglomerate had forked out for former Selangor Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Mohd Khir Toyo and his family�s expenses during the overseas technical visits.

1. Jakarta and Jogjakarta , Indonesia – 20-24 April 2003 Total cost: RM201,452

Dr Khir, his wife, daughter and maid also went on the trip.

Cost of airfare for Dr Khir, his wife, daughter and maid: RM37,695 
Miscellaneous costs incurred by the delegates RM34,404

2. Morocco and Paris : 17-24 Dec 2004 (inclusive of four-day transit in Dubai ) 
Total cost: RM900,000

The trip, attended by Dr Khir, his wife, children and maid as well as PNSB delegates,

Cost of the recce team trip: RM366,000

Cost of official trip: RM416,000 
Airfare: RM366,000 
Ground arrangements RM420,000 
City travel: RM70,000 
Other expenses RM43,000

3. Honolulu (Hawaii) & Orlando ( Florida ) – 23 Dec 2007 to 1 Jan 2008 
Total cost: RM646,841 
Additional cash taken: RM101,000

The group, comprising Dr Khir, his family and PNSB delegates, bought tickets to DisneyWorld and again did not meet any Disneyland representatives.

A tour guide instead took them around. Cost of Dr Khir�s luxury suite: RM110,000 
Cost of six single superior rooms for the delegates: RM171,000 
Cost of one twin-sharing room RM24,800

Khairiyah claimed that on the trips, Dr Khir and his wife flew only first class.

Not for the change in state government, this would never have seen the light of day.

Thus, when we vote, we are either voting to endorsing such behavior or voting to want accountability , check and balances, a faithful and fair government that is accountable to the people of the state..

PD is intersting as the BN candidate ISA SAMAD was found guilty by his own party for money politics. AND YET he is fielded on the basis that he has paid his price  and he is immensely popular.

The reality is that UMNO is in rigor mortis – it cannot change as the warlords truly hold sway over the masters. To demonstrate change – Najib needs to be doing to his party what Ong Tee Kiat is doing. for MCA.

I keep saying- this period that we are going through is not about loyalty, its not about track record, its not about  gratitude.History is not autobiography.  Its all about planting the seeds for a better future for our children.  A critical component of that is to ensure that the country is governed with good governance – which means having a strong opposition.

The PKR coalition will not go away.  PKR will grow in strength, not  becasue they are better, not because they are cleverer, not because they are cleaner – but simply because they provide the check and balances.

To the people of Bagan Pinang – your vote will be taken as a proxy vote of the mood of the nation. I trust you will exercise your choice very carefully. But do think about this:

Full Article take for Malaysia Today click here:

The whole country is very focused on Najib Tun Razak’s extramarital affairs. Sure, every Malaysian knows about this. And every Malaysian also knows about him getting caught in a Port Dickson hotel room with Ziana Zain. In fact, Isa Samad even had photographs of Najib clad only in a towel with the delicious young thing in his bed. And Isa handed the photograph over to the then Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad. (And that is why Mahathir just does not understand why Najib would choose Isa to contest the Bagan Pinang by-election when it was Isa who tried to bring Najib down with the photograph).

ed: so RPK, are you suggesting ISA SAMAD blackmailed Najib?

What will it take to build 1 Malaysia?

It is interesting to see what people are saying about 1 Malaysia and Twitter give you the most real, up to date sentiments. The vast majority of tweets on 1 Malaysia paint a picture that people think it is just another slogan and to quite a fair number, they find it repulsive.  It is hard to say if what goes on twitter is representative of the general population of is it skewed to a segment of the population.

Anyway after long reflection on the matter through the fasting month this is my take on 1 Malaysia. What is needed is pretty obvious. The premise is that to have real unity – people must unite – and people will only unite under 2 circumstances: the first is people unite in a cause that they believe in and the second is people unite becasue of a common enemy / threat.

The unity of Malaysia in the pre-post independence period was galvanized through a common ideology , a common belief in the concept of independence and ability for self determination.  The principles were set forth in the rukun negara as follows:

WHEREAS OUR COUNTRY MALAYSIA nurtures the ambitions of:

• achieving a more perfect unity amongst the whole of her society;
• preserving a democratic way of life;
• creating a just society where the prosperity of the country can be enjoyed together in a fair and equitable manner;
• guaranteeing a liberal approach towards her rich and varied cultural traditions; and
• building a progressive society that will make use of science and modern technology.

NOW THEREFORE WE, the people of Malaysia, pledge to concentrate the whole of our energy and efforts to achieve these ambitions based on the following principles:

• BELIEF IN GOD
• LOYALTY TO KING AND COUNTRY
• THE SUPREMACY OF THE CONSTITUTION
• THE RULE OF LAW
• COURTESY AND MORALITY

The rukun negara is a fantastic piece of work as it set our a clear statement of goals and the pillars on which the goals would be achieved.

Somewhere in the Mahathir’s time the rukun negara  concept got buried.

Now the pendulum has swung to the other end. People ARE united – but they are united against a common enemy – “the Political Masters, namely UMNO, MCA, MIC”

In general people of all races feel that the politicians have abused their privileges as seen through the lens of corruption, “discrimination”, a weakened judiciary, poor delivery of public services, deteriorating education  standards, and so on.

The last elections clearly demonstrated that the people are united, but united against a common enemy and hence the unprecedented swing on votes to an untried and untested opposition.

The challenge now is how does one get the pendulum to swing again?

The answer is fairly straight forward. People want:

a: to feel safe

b: that the law and enforces of the law are here to protect us

c: equal access to quality education

d: equal access to quality health care

e: equal access to economic prosperity

f. freedom of expression (social, political, religious)

That’s about it.  No rocket science.

The reality is that the current political system that is race based will not allow for this to happen.  For one, to achieve “equality” will be seen as a concession that is taking away from the Malays to give to the non Malays.

Secondly, it means that people who are used to getting rewarded without competing must now compete to get rewarded.

Third the issues of  freedom of expression be it social, political or religious will be super contentious because of the lack of definition of  what the do’s and dont’s are within the context of and Islamic State.

For as long as the political system is race based and there is an unwritten belief that Malaysia is Malay in the first instance and Malaysian in the second, change will be hard to come by. But certainly  reforms in addressing corruption, education, health, public services, law and enforcement, transparency will go a long way in re-building a foundation of unity.

Ong Tee Kiat in his meeting with the SME’s (talk with Tee Kiat) outlined  a  goal of having 25% of the civil service staffed by Chinese in order to serve the chinese community.  I can understand where he is coming from, but for as long as the paradigm that a race will only serve the interest of its race exists, we will never achieve unity.

Eid Mubarak & Selamat Hari Raya

Wishing all Muslim readers Eid Mubarak – Selamat Hari Raya, Maaf Zahir & Batin.

Assuming to day is the last day of ramadan – please use the time wisely and maximize your ibadah.

Also don’t forget to maximise you 6 days of fasting in Syawal 0pportunity.

This is truly the mercy and generosity of ALLAH SWT.  We only fast a month and six day and HE credits us for a full year of fasting. Allahuakbar.