ASB unitholders to get 7.70 sen dividend and 1.00 sen bonus in 2013

With special privilege given to ASB unit holders - most of which are Bumis - PNB gives out considerably high return of investment year in year out.

This year Amanah Saham Bumiputera (ASB) unitholders will receive a dividend of 7.70 sen per unit for the financial year ending Dec 31, 2013 compared with 7.75 sen last year. Bonus unit is also lower at 1.0 sen per unit compared to 1.15 sen last year.




ASB's historical dividend + bonus payout:

2007 - 8.00 + 1.00 = 9.00
2008 - 7.00 + 1.75 = 8.75
2009 - 7.30 + 1.25 = 8.55
2010 - 7.50 + 1.25 = 8.75
2011 - 7.65 + 1.15 = 8.80
2012 - 7.75 + 1.15 = 8.90
2013 - 7.70 + 1.00 = 8.70



PRESS RELEASE: ASB PAYS 7.70 SEN PER UNIT AND BONUS OF 1.00 SEN PER UNIT
19 December 2013

KUALA LUMPUR: Amanah Saham Nasional Berhad (ASNB), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Permodalan Nasional Berhad (PNB) has announced an income distribution of 7.70 sen per unit and a bonus of 1.00 sen per unit for Skim Amanah Saham Bumiputera (ASB) for the financial year ended 31 December 2013.

The income distribution portion will involve a total payout of RM9.38 billion by ASNB, an increase of 17.4% compared to the RM7.99 billion paid out last year.

The bonus portion will involve a total payout of RM706.88 million by PNB, an increase of 3.84% compared to the RM680.73 million paid out last year PNB Chairman, Tun Ahmad Sarji Abdul Hamid said, the payment will benefit 8.26 million unit holders which currently hold a total of 127.2 billion units of ASB.

Total gross income of ASB on 31 December 2013 is estimated at RM9.92 billion. Dividend income from investee companies contributed RM4.41 billion or 44.5% of the gross income. Meanwhile, profit from the sale of shares contributed RM4 billion or 40.3% of the gross income and the balance of RM1.51 billion or 15.2% derived from other incomes.

The income distribution and bonus will be automatically credited into the respective unit holders’ accounts. Unit holders will be able to update their accounts beginning 2 January 2014.

All transactions for ASB at ASNB head office, ASNB branch offices and agents would be suspended beginning 22 December 2013 until 1 January 2014, to facilitate the calculation of income distribution and bonus.

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TheGreenMechanics: Good news is that it is consistently higher than other unit trusts; bad news is that they reduce it from last year.

The PNB chairman said ASB could have actually declared a dividend of 10.54 sen per unit, but they didn't. I wonder if the justification for not declaring a higher dividend is fair.

Are Google and Apple fleecing customers with tablet storage?

I was shopping for a micro SD card the other day and found at Popular Bookstore, Kota Kinabalu that a 32GB (Class 10) card is selling for RM99 (less than £19).

Read on to find out why you should be feeling like you're being hard done by, when choosing a tablet with storage size of between 16GB and 32GB or higher.

What's the big deal about upgrading your tablet's storage size? Image: CWM

Gadget makers accused of fleecing customers

Gadget makers including Apple and Google have been accused of ripping off customers with overpriced tablet storage upgrades.

Choosing between tablet models typically means deciding whether you want mobile data or not, and how much internal storage you want. However, Which? reports that consumers are getting a rough deal when it comes to paying more for higher storage capacities.

For example, the entry-level iPad Air costs £399 for 16GB (RM1,599 in Malaysia) and you'll have to pay an extra £80 to double this to 32GB. The 32GB iPad Air with WiFi is selling at RM1,929 in Malaysia. There's no memory card slot for adding more, like many other tablets, so picking the right one is important.

Which? claims that the memory upgrade only costs Apple £6 making the upgrade a mark-up of 1,267 percent.

"16GB of Flash memory is mind-numbingly cheap now. As a general rule, for manufacturers like ourselves, Flash costs less than 40p per GB, so for companies to charge so much for an extra 16GB seems scandalous." -
Ben Miles from PC maker Chillblast.

Google and Amazon charge £70 and £40 for the same upgrade for their Nexus 10 and Kindle Fire HDX 8.9 respectively. The mark-ups aren't as bad when compared to Apple but still represent a big jump compared to the market price for memory.

"With tablets in demand this Christmas, buyers will be shocked to discover what a raw deal they're getting on built-in memory. If you want the best value storage, then buy a tablet with a SD or microSD slot and add a memory card for a fraction of the cost." - Richard Headland, editor at Which?

The other issue with storage is the fact that users don't get the advertised amount. This blew up significantly with the Samsung Galaxy S4 which touted 16GB of storage but less than half was available to the user due to the space taken up by the operating system and pre-loaded apps and software features.

Source: Computerworld Malaysia



TheGreenMechanics: I feel like I am being hard done by! Really.

UK ratifies new waste regulations on PV recycling

Someone asked if solar PV is really green, considering the amount of energy to manufacture the panels and the amount of effort required for the disposal of damaged/old ones. It's a good question but that's for the analysts to work it out.

While we let our self get carried away by the NKEA of achieving certain commendable target of Renewable Energy in the national energy generation mix, let's not forget about the electrical and electronic waste we are bound to be creating.

Broken and damaged PV panels - how are we going to dispose them of?

U.K. to introduce new regulations on PV recycling from January 1, 2014

The British government will introduce its interpretation of the European Union’s Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Directive for the disposal of PV modules ahead of schedule on January 1, 2014, in a move that has been applauded by pan-European recycling organization PV Cycle.

The U.K. has become the first EU member state to officially ratify its own national legislation on the laws, weeks in advance of the official February 14 deadline next year.

The WEEE Directive was updated in August 2012 to incorporate PV modules, with the industry given an 18-month transition period within which all 27 EU governments must incorporate new guidelines on PV waste into their national law.

According to the new directive, all PV modules that have reached their end-of-life (either because their warranty has expired or they have been damaged) must be disposed of in the correct manner. PV Cycle, with local presence in a number of European countries, is an organization that helps coordinate the take back and waste disposal of PV modules, managing a number of collection points across Europe and offering guidance on how PV producers can comply with the law and recycle their products accordingly.


The essence of the regulations

For the U.K. PV market, the new regulations require all importers of PV panels into the U.K. to register with a Product Compliance Scheme, which takes effect from January 1, 2014.

The scheme asks that all producers take full financial responsibility of the waste disposal of the PV panels they supply to the market, in addition to reporting all important data, such as numbers supplied and locations distributed to.



TheGreenMechanics: That's in Europe. They have until February next year to update their regulations to include PV in the waste management.

I'm not sure if we have ours yet. What is clear is that we have the relevant act for proper disposal of e-waste (electonic waste) but nothing's specific on photovoltaic panels.

Celcom, DiGi signed major backhaul deal with Telekom Malaysia, expect better support for 4G

What this means to the consumers of Celcom and DiGi is that, there should be improve network quality, low latency and high bandwidth for their mobile devices.

This will only be for Peninsula Malaysia, while Sabah and Sarawak will have to wait for, perhaps other means of enjoying better network quality.


Joining hands for better network quality. Photo: CWM


TM, Celcom and DiGi collaborate

Last week, Telekom Malaysia, Celcom and DiGi signed a wholesale bandwidth collaborative deal for TM Next-Gen Backhaul Services, which should help provide the infrastructure for broadband rollout through Malaysia.

Under the agreement, TM will provide wholesale bandwidth connectivity via TM Next-Gen Backhaul services for aggregation and access sites jointly owned by Celcom and DiGi, covering between 3,000-km and 5,000-km in Peninsular Malaysia.

The deal is part of an ongoing network collaboration between Celcom and DiGi announced in early 2011, that aims to roll out more than 10,000-km of fiber network nationwide.

For Celcom and Digi, the deal is expected to support the transmission requirements for their rollout of 4G LTE services and enable both companies to optimize cost and efficiently utilize TM’s infrastructure.

Further story at Computerworld Malaysia site.



TheGreenMechanics: This should be good news. But remember, announcement is not data and is only good for PR. Until then, we will have to be content with the slow 3G speed we currently enjoy.

This reminds me of Maxis, the other major telco in Malaysia. I'm quite sure the executives at Maxis have something up their sleeves to win customers back from possibly jumping ship to Celcom and DiGi as a result of this development.

Can eating burnt toast cause cancer?

Before we talk about burnt toast, let me share with you about what I was once told while enjoying my Sate Kajang (Kajang satay) - the satay that's famously originated from Kajang, Selangor. The delicacy is served with sliced or cubed cucumber for a purpose. The cucumber apparently 'neutralise' the compound formed in burnt meat that is believed to cause certain kind of cancer.

No scientific evidence was offered to support the idea, but they advise us to finish the cucumber cubes anyway.


Now, let's see what is ScienceFocus' take on burnt toast.


Are you a fan of toast? Maybe it's a good idea not to burn it.


It’s long been known that just over-heating, let alone burning, some foods can lead to the formation of compounds linked to cancer. These include heterocyclic amines and so-called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), which can lead to fried or smoked foods posing a health risk.

In the case of burnt toast, most concern surrounds the risk from the formation of acrylamide, a compound that has been linked to cancer and nerve damage in animals. That said, the evidence of a direct link between cancer and acrylamide in food consumed by humans is far from compelling.

While some studies have pointed to a doubling in risk of ovarian and uterine cancer among women consuming this compound in food, other studies have found nothing.

Even so, in 2007, the European Union’s health advisors decided to take a precautionary approach, and recommended that people avoid eating burnt toast or golden-brown chips as they may contain unacceptably high levels of acrylamide.


TheGreenMechanics: So, while studies aren't conclusive, there's still belief that overly toasted bread can cause cancer. Have I been missing something? Because I have not been paying much attention to such 'risk' all this while.

Internet in schools: Malaysian parents concerned about privacy, want online ads banned

Do you currently have school-going children?

Do you believe that the use of internet in schools will provide your children essential skills for the future? If your answer is yes, you are not alone. Many Malaysian parents think so, too, according to survey.

But like myself, a majority of those surveyed want online advertising or data mining of children’s personal information prohibited.


In-school internet access - the good and the bad. Infographic source: Parent Action Group for Education Malaysia (PAGE) and SafeGov.org


The survey found that 92% of Malaysian parents want all advertising-related practices to be banned from such services in schools with 82% calling for the government to pass a law to ban all advertising-related activities from online services in schools.


Are connected classrooms beneficial?

Definitely. More than three quarters of parents surveyed felt that Internet use would help their children to learn creativity, problem solving, and critical thinking. Furthermore, about 75% believe that it would aid their children to acquire essential skills for competing in this century.

Of course there are dark side to the use of certain internet services in schools - or for that matter, anywhere. Advertising services that engage in data mining are always of concern.


TheGreenMechanics: I believe in monitoring and mutual understanding of what the dos and don'ts are when going online into the cyberworld, although we give them some space of privacy for themselves.


Info source: Computerworld Malaysia

Electricity tariff up by average 15% and 17% from Jan 1, 2014

You and I should brace ourselves for a 15% (Peninsula Malaysia) and 17% (Sabah and Labuan) hike in electricity tariffs next year.

Those are the averages of electricity tariff increase announced by the minister concerned few days after hinting that the government will raise Electricity Tariff by 10% to 20% in 2014 earlier.


The government says the tariff adjustment is a step to restructure subsidies into a form that is more targeted and sustainable.


To be exact, the average electricity tariff in:-

• Peninsular Malaysia will be up 4.99 sen/kWh (14.89%) from the current average rate of 33.54 sen/kWh to 38.53 sen/kWh. 
• Sabah and Labuan will be up 5.0 sen/kWh (16.9%) from current average rate of 29.52 sen/kWh to 34.52 sen/kWh.

Rates in Sarawak will not be affected because the electricity supply in the state is operated by state-run company, Sarawak Energy Berhad. There is a clear advantage in being able to control the utilities on your own, isn't it!

The new rates will take effect from Jan 1, 2014.


How it is compared to the existing one. Graphic by TheMalaysianInsider


Who will not be affected

Note that 70.67% of consumers in Peninsular Malaysia and 62% of consumers in Sabah and Labuan will not be affected by the tariff hike. There will be no tariff increase imposed on the consumers who use electricity at a rate of, or lower than, 300kWh a month.

Translated into absolute figures, 4.56 million consumers in the peninsula and 260,000 consumers in Sabah and Labuan will not be affected by this hike.


Who will be affected the most

Consumers whose electricity consumption is more than 300 kWh will be directly affected by the tariff restructuring. The group most likely to be affected are those whose electricity usage is between 301 to 400 kWh and 401 to 600 kWh.


We will look at the electricity tariff restructuring implications on commercial and industrial users next.


Source: The Star

Are our ministers salaries too high?

Last week, the media - mainstream and online portals - were filled with mixed views of Selangor leaders salary hikes. Some said they were justified, but many disagree and they heavily criticised the move by the opposition-led richest state in Malaysia.


How much will Selangor ministers and assemblymen get after the adjustment. Source: The Star


While not interested in politics, let me draw your attention to another move by oil-rich, biggest state in Malaysia, Sarawak. You can read about it here.


In May 2013, the Sarawak ministers and assemblymen approved a whopping three-fold (Selangor increased theirs by two-fold) raise for themselves and administrators of the state assembly. The Star Graphics


To compare, our nearest neighbour, Singapore pays its Prime Minister a whopping SGD$2.2 million annually, that's SGD$183,000 per month or about RM471,000 monthly. Then again, Singapore pays it ministers  and leaders top money and the city state is in a league of its own when comes to country leaders salary.

In no way we should emulate Singapore's remuneration system.

I'm just saying I'm bemused by how people react to Selangor ministers pay hikes.


HAPPY MONDAY!

What is the oxygen level in a plane?

The other question people ask the most when going into the cabin is how clean or stale the air is inside there. There is an earlier article about that here.

Today we are asking  about adequacy of oxygen in the cabin.

Inside the cabin of an Airbus. Photo by de engineur.

Oxygen level in a plane

Oxygen levels in flight are broadly the same s on the ground, about 210,000 parts per million by volume - hat is about 21%.

However, at cruise altitude the cabin pressure is lower than on the ground at around 82kPa, equivalent to about 1,800m (6,000 ft).

For comparison, air pressure at sea level is 101kPa. At this low pressure, oxygen levels in the blood are lower than at sea level. A healthy person suffers no effects, but those with respiratory illness sometimes need additional oxygen.


Source: TheDailyExpress' Sunlife, December 1, 2013 - pp. 14

LED smartbulb helps regulate circadian rhythm

LED lighting is not just about energy saving, or as greener alternative to incandescent light bulb. There is more to it - LED bulbs can be tailored into smart bulbs that 'nourishes' your circadian rhythm.

If you have trouble falling asleep or wake up groggy, you can now purchase a light-emitting diode (LED) smartbulb that reportedly can be programmed to tweak your circadian rhythms throughout the day.

The Smart Bulb Halcyon system. Photo - Halcyon

First, what's circadian rhythm

A circadian rhythm is a roughly 24 hour cycle in the physiological processes of living beings, including plants, animals, fungi and cyanobacteria. In a strict sense, circadian rhythms are endogenously generated, although they can be modulated by external cues such as sunlight and temperature.

Circadian rhythms are important in determining the sleeping and feeding patterns of all animals, including human beings.


How can LED smartbulb help

Circadian disruptions, and the anxiety, insomnia and fatigue that they can cause, can decidedly be linked to the modern era, with people working late into the evenings in offices dominated by artificial light or looking at computer screens before bedtime, which research has found can leave people in an almost permanent state of jet lag.

British LED lighting company PhotonStar Technology Ltd. has announced its new consumer Smart Bulb system Halcyon, to be available to the general market in early 2014 but with a small pre-production run to go to Kickstarter backers. Early adopters can purchase three lightbulbs for £94 (about US$150), with delivery expected in April.

That's approximately RM496 at the current exchange rate.

An obvious contender against the Philips Hue sold in Apple stores and the upcoming LIFX Wi-Fi enabled, multi-color LED light bulb, the new Halcyon system is focused more on a multi-user solution for the whole home and family than its rivals, the company says.

The company claims that Halcyon is also the first smart lighting system to provide automatic circadian lighting, similar to the system commissioned by NASA to improve health and well-being by simulating changes in natural light, and preventing jet lag type effects.


How do you use it

To use, set your system to help you wake up in the morning with bright alertness-boosting light. "Design and select a scene to cook, whilst your partner takes a relaxing bath," the website says. "As your guests arrive, change the mood to something more relaxing."

"Any light that you turn on will be at the correct color and spectrum for the time of day, mimicking daylight, nourishing your circadian rhythm," the company says.



Source: TheBorneoPost's Nature & Health section, November 30, 2013, pp.21

You knew it! Bigger phones mean bigger bills

On average I use 4.5GB to 5GB of mobile data every month and I'm using a 4-inch iPhone smartphone.

For the guys who own phones with screen size of 4.5-inch and above, you are one of those using more data than I do - 7.2GB in average according to study. What this means is that you pay more bills as your phone screen goes up.


Research has shown that users of phones with bigger displays tend to consume more data. - AFPRelaxnews photo via The Star


Study by NPD Group in the US market and shows that owners of smartphones with screens that measure 4.5" upwards consume 44% more WiFi and cellular data each month - some 7.2GB in total - compared with the 5GB that owners of smaller smartphones average.

Bigger sized phones are getting more popular - in November 2012, only 11% of phones on the market boasted a 4.5" or greater display, but now 28% of current devices on sale fall into that category.

And who else's been driving this trend if not the Android fraternity!

The Samsung Galaxy S3, which was the flagship phone of 2012 was notable for its 4.5" screen and its popularity opened the doors to other manufacturers, such as Sony and LG. As a result, a 5" high resolution display has quickly become the standard for any handset that wants to claim flagship status.

It is not surprising then that the 2013 Samsung Galaxy S4 has a 5" HD display and the flagship phablet, the Galaxy Note 3 is 5.5" in screen size.


What are these bigger phones being used for?

NPD Group says they are predominantly for:

• social media
• navigation, such asGoogle Maps
• music and video
• use of the Pandora Radio app

TheGreenMechanics: I'm a bit disappointed that my current iPhone 5S is only 4" in screen size but as a consolation, I now have 2 reasons to be elated - I can hold and use the phone with a single hand, and I'd unlikely be consuming more data (and higher bills) than my mates with Galaxy S4 or Note 3 in their hands!

The study was conducted in the US, but it can just be as indicative and as relevant here in Malaysia.

Source: The Star Tech-News

Chief Minister tables RM4.622 billion 2014 Budget, biggest in history

Musa Aman tabling the 2014 Sabah Budget at the State Assembly Friday afternoon. BI photo.


Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman yesterday tabled a deficit 2014 State Budget of RM4.622 billion, which is RM534 million more than the estimated provision in 2013, discribing it as the ‘best gift ever for the people of Sabah’.

The 2014 supply allocation of RM4,621.5 million consist of:

• Emoluments - RM702.51 million
• Recurrent expenditures - RM1,736.59 million
• Special expenditures -  RM2,182.4 million

The 2014 Budget will focus on the 6 objectives and strategies, namely:

• to strengthen the State financial position; 
• to improve basic infrastructure and public amenities; 
• to expedite the achievement of Halatuju; 
• to develop youth and human capital of high value and quality; 
• to eradicate poverty and improve the quality of life of the people; 
• to achieve balanced regional development.

Emolument has increased by RM39.34 million or 5.93 per cent compared to the total of RM663.17 million in 2013 due to salary adjustments for State civil servants under the Malaysian Remuneration System which was implemented in 2013.

And, to ensure that the Government’s machineries run smoothly at maximum capacity, effective and efficient in the effort to improve the Government’s delivery system for our beloved people, the estimated recurrent expenditures for the coming year is increased by RM648.66 million or 59.62 per cent compared with the estimated recurrent expenditures of RM1,087.93 million for year 2013.

The increase in the allocation is also due to repayment of Government bonds maturing in 2014 amounting to RM568.9 million and repayment of Federal Government debts amounting to RM171 million.

Special Expenditure shows a decrease of RM154.98 million or 6.63 per cent compared to RM2,337.38 million for 2013.

“This year, the Government made numerous equity investments in Government agencies and hence the reduction in 2014. Nonetheless, the State Government will ensure that our development agenda and investment will continue to be intensified specifically on high impact projects that can further spur the State economic growth,” Musa explained.

He also said that with the biggest expenditure recorded in the financial history of the State budget, it will boost the economy of Sabah and enable it to grow to a higher scale and thus achieve a high income economy within a short span of time,” said Musa.

The Finance Minister is also confident that people from all walks of life, regardless of religion, race, gender, rich or poor, old or young, physically fit or those who are physically challenged, wherever they may be on land or sea, will benefit from the just unveiled State Budget 2014.

“With a projected revenue of RM4.583 billion for the year 2014, which is the highest estimate in the history of State budget preparation, the 2014 Supply Expenditure, which is also the biggest budget in the State financial history, is estimated at RM4.622 billion, in order to meet the people’s expectations, to continue our development agenda and most importantly to fulfil our promises."

“Sabah played a major role in the formation of Malaysia since 50 years ago. During those five decades, the people of Sabah have gone through various experiences, through thick and thin in politics, economy, social, and education, to mention some. Over 50 years the estimated revenue has increased remarkably by 74.52 times and the estimated expenses by 75.77 times."


TheGreenMechanics: We have one of the biggest state budgets in the country (if not the biggest) and no provision for Sustainable, Efficient Energy or Renewable Energy promotion.

Just days earlier the CM pledged the government support for renewables. It apparently is not translated into tangible effort.

Original article

Sembulan River Park - A beautification initiative by Kota Kinabalu city

The once neglected river that flows through Sembulan in Kota Kinabalu has now been beautified as part of the City Hall's effort to clean up the area and provide recreational facilities to the city dwellers.

This is the first of a 2-phase project earmarked for Sembulan.


The opening of the River Park was officiated by Datuk Musa Hj Aman, Chief Minister of Sabah on the 24th June 2012.

View towards Sembulan

River side, facing Kg Sembulan

There is a stage suitable for performances. The park is equipped with CCTVs.

View towards Karamunsing, from the stage

Beverly Hotel is facing the river

Other than recreational activities, there are plenty of birds to watch. Just watch out for their droppings

"Bon voyage"

The sensible thing to do next is to restructure the village to rid it of the transient population and give deserving citizens proper basic facilities. It can then become tourist attraction, or at least piece of mind to the folks jogging at this park.

GST: Taxable and non-taxable goods

Some people say that the implementation of the GST is premature in Malaysia as we have not achieve high income status yet. I say, the time is now. If we think we are not ready yet, we'll never be ready for it. Not in five years' time and not 10 years later.

It is good for the country and everybody will be contributing to the government's coffers. As it is now, only the working class and those with reportable businesses are paying tax.

The more important question (at lease to me) is how efficient and transparent would the billions of Ringgit collected be spent. Everyone should enjoy the benefit of the government's better financial standing as a result of GST implementation. Not just some selected few.

If you've been asking, the followings are goods and supplies exempted from the GST:-


Zero rated supplies include major essential goods such as foodstuff and utility services.



Essential services are also exempted, meaning you should not experience increase in prices of services rendered after the implementation.


The other big question is how stringent will the enforcement be. Traders will tend to increase selling prices citing GST as reason when in actual fact they remain similar or lower. Spend money on public education, monitoring, and enforcement - prosecuting those violating the law.


Infographic source: Astro Awani

4 to 10 Mbps broadband penetration for rural residents by 2016

In about 3 years' time, folks in the rural areas will get to enjoy up to 10 Mbps of broadband connections. For those in the urban areas, you can expect to be connected at a speed up to 300 Mbps.

Great. I hope it will become reality and not just lips service!

I read that critics are already throwing the wet blanket, saying that rural folks cannot afford this as they are already burdened with higher petrol price, lift in the sugar subsidy, etc, and that they are likely to abandon their farms for spending too much time online.

What a nonsense! Why not let the people decide for themselves what they want to do with the technology at hand. They just need to be educated, they will decide when and what to look for  online.

Communication tower in the suburban area of Penampang. Photo by de engineur

Up to 10 Mbps broadband penetration for rural folks

Rural folks in the country would enjoy a faster broadband penetration of between four and 10 megabits per second (mbps) while urban dwellers, between 100 and 300 Mbps by 2016, said Communications and Multimedia minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Shabery Cheek.

He was referring to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak's announcement in the Budget 2014 yesterday that the government would be implementing the second phase of the high speed broadband (HSBB) initiative with the private sector involving an investment of almost RM1.8 billion, that would benefit 2.4 million households nationwide.

According to him, foundation works on the project had been already been initiated. The allocation is already there and the sites for the towers and cable installations are already identified.

"In 3 years' time we will see a different scenario in which internet connection would be much faster. In terms of broadband coverage in the country we are not too far behind developed nations with almost 70%" - Communications and Multimedia minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Shabery Cheek.

According to him, broadband penetration in the rural areas was presently between 1 and 2 mbps while in the urban areas, between 2 and 20 mbps.

TheGreenMechanics: Malaysians are a smartphone crazy lot. According to Nielsen, our smartphone penetration rate now stands at 80%, compared with US' 60% and UK's 72%. That is just about right for an improved broadband penetration. 

Of course there are pros and cons to all this. It is all up to us to choose what we want.

Why we need GST

This is a good read, even if you do not agree to the implementation of the GST. I found this in Astro Awani and as a supporter to the implementation of such wider tax base in Malaysia I decided to post this in my blog. Authored by Datuk Seri Idris Jala.

'Wasting' 10 minutes of your time reading this won't harm

There are many more myths than facts about the goods and services tax or GST which the government plans to introduce not long from now. I will attempt to dispel some of the myths associated with this tax and put the GST in perspective.

The first thing to remember is that the GST is only one of measures that the government will be taking to overhaul the financial system of the country to find new sources of revenue and improve the efficiency of tax collection. Other measures are being undertaken to reduce corruption, to reduce waste and create highly transparent procurement processes among others.

GST is part of a holistic programme of improvement for the government which will be combined with these other measures to help us on our way to achieve high income and developed status in a sustainable and inclusive manner. That target is getting per capita income up to US$15,000 by 2020.

Our current tax base is way too narrow – we depend too much on income tax, both individual and corporate. Out of some 29 million in people in Malaysia, only less than two million people pay income tax.

We cannot afford to go back to these same people and corporations and ask them for more and more tax – we can only hope that as their income increases, they will pay more tax. In fact, if we don’t widen the tax base, there is absolutely no room to cut income taxes further.

For various reasons, including the fact that much income goes unreported, we need to broaden the tax base. A value-added tax such as GST, where a tax is paid on every step in the value-added process is a consumption tax and therefore taxes those who can afford to spend.

If you are making money but don’t pay tax for various reasons, you still want to spend on the things that you want to have and to use. And when you consume, the government can capture a part of that as income for itself through the GST.

If you are concerned about being adversely impacted by the GST, it is important to remember that when GST is implemented we can zero-rate or set the tax rate at zero for any number of essential goods and this is what the government intends to do to ensure that citizens do not get burdened by taxes on essential items.

Also there is currently the sales tax as well as the service tax now of 6-10% which will be repealed once the GST is introduced. In the first few years at least, we expect that the GST will be revenue neutral for the government because gains will be offset due to the termination of the sales and service taxes.

But further out, the GST will help the government gain extra revenue. This will be because we expect more and more people to become affluent as measures to increase income bite and become reality. As consumption and affluence increases, government income from GST will increase in tandem.

What’s in it for citizens? First, because essential goods and services that will be consumed such as food, public transport and education are likely to be zero-rated, consumers will not be paying extra taxes here. Second, as government revenue increases, it has more money to provide for social safety net programmes such as BR1M, the 1Malaysia cash assistance programme for lower middle and low-income groups.

But contrary to popular belief, GST implementation is like to be only sometime in 2015 if it is announced at the forthcoming Budget because you need a lead time of 12 to 18 months to prepare for the value-added tax.

Imagine say manufacturing a consumer product such as a bottled drink and that you are the manufacturer. You will have to buy all your inputs such as sugar, flavour, bottles and so on from suppliers. These suppliers will include a GST in their sales to you.

When you sell your bottled drink, you will have to add on a tax to your product which represents the GST. But you are entitled to claim a rebate on the tax to the value that you did not add, in other words the tax your suppliers added on. To do that you have to keep proper and complete records.

The government will be helping businesses, and especially small businesses to set up the record-keeping system for this so that there is a smooth transition to the value-added tax system without any major hiccups.

This record-keeping produces other attendant benefits as well. For instance, studies have shown that Malaysia has large capital outflows which can’t be reconciled in the national accounts. As much as 80% of this is said to be from transfer pricing where firms transfer costs to various centres around the world to minimise the tax.

Once a GST is implemented it makes it very much more difficult to do so because complete records are kept at every stage of the value-adding process. There are records of who sells to you and at what price and the same for yourself, all along the chain. It is just a matter of going down the chain to see if you are playing around with your figures.

Not just capital outflows but all manner of other things can be tracked down too. It becomes easier for Customs to determine who is avoiding duties and for the Inland Revenue Department to check to see who is evading taxes.

By introducing GST, the entire record-keeping process becomes much more rigorous and will definitely contribute to much better and more efficient collection of all taxes and duties in future.

Most countries in the world already have a value-added tax. Most countries in Asean already have it too. And even oil-producing countries have it.

The appeal is that it is a broad-based tax which taxes based on amount of consumption. Because it is the more well-to-do and the wealthy who will consume more, the GST automatically taxes them most, not the lower income group.

Whichever way one looks at it, the GST is a progressive move to overhaul the tax system of the country. It is an imperative – but not the only one – of a developing and developed economy which will provide sustainable revenue to the government for it to plough back to needed sectors within the economy.

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* Dato' Sri Idris Jala is CEO of Pemandu and Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department. Fair and reasonable comments are most welcome at idrisjala@pemandu.gov.my

* This article was first published in berita Harian and later in Astro Awani

The cost of healthcare in Malaysia

For those employed in the civil services, and those in the established privately owned companies, employee healthcare would normally be taken cared of - to certain extent/amount - by their employers. For those self-employed, they would have to fork out healthcare expenses from their own pocket.

Being 'pampered' by your employer during your working life, chances are you know little about, or choose not to pay much attention to how much it costs you to get medical treatment.

While spending your weekend, and probably still in holiday mood, let's look at some figures that may be of help one day:






Sourced from: Astro Awani

Smartphone market share for Europe Big-Five markets, and Malaysia

The top-five markets in Europe - sometimes called The Big-Five markets - collectively have a majority of consumers using smartphones, and that proportion continues to grow. France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK are now reporting more 60% smartphone penetration.

In Europe, and in particular the top five markets, Android remains the top operating system with a 70.1% market share. The other two, iOS (16.1%) and Window Phones (9.2%) paled in comparison.

Smartphone market share in Big Five European markets. Source: Engadget

What about us?

I read in Computerworld Malaysia online magazine last month and was shocked that, Malaysians are actually "smartphone crazy" - we have higher smartphone penetration rates than the United States and the European Big-Five markets!

Who would have thought about that?

We are now categorised as "Developed Asia", aren't we? Source: Nielsen

According to Nielsen, our penetration rate now stands at 80%, compared with US' 60% and UK's 72%. That, I think, is because many of us have more than one smartphones at any one time, not to mention the primary school-going children having their own smartphones.


Are we worried?

Why would these figures concern me? I don't know, maybe you are not at all concerned. And why should you? That's the way the society seems to be moving to. We have just got to be 'smarter' than the smartphones so as not to be enslaved by them, I suppose.

But if this fact is freaking you out, you are not alone, there are many out there who share the same concern with you.

As a matter of coincidence, this reminds me of one of Will Smith's movies where he fought with the smarter-than-human robots. Things were in complete disorder before human finally prevailed.

Have a nice weekend everyone!

Memorable quotes from WMS Malaysia 2013

World Marketing Summit (WMS) is an initiative of world's most influential marketer Professor Philip Kotler with the objective of "Creating a Better World through Marketing".

The primary purpose of the summit is to showcase the strengths of marketing in approaching global problems that humanity has been striving hard to resolve for centuries. This year the World Marketing Summit is held in Malaysia and is currently on-going at Putrajaya International Convention Centre right now.

The followings are some quotable quotes by the speakers:

Source: Astro Awani

How many people can use a café’s Wi-Fi at once?

I was visiting our HQ the other day and was unable to connect to the Wi-Fi, and I was wondering why, because I could tell the number of people there was no more than thirty.

A colleague told me that the maximum number of connection may have already been exceeded at that time.

Do you normally connect to the free Wi-Fi when at coffee shops? Image source

So, how many people can connect to a cafe’s Wi-Fi at once? Or for that matter, to a single Wi-Fi spot anywhere?

Hardware-wise, most routers will handle 255 simultaneous users, more than enough for the average coffee shop. The main limiting factor is the cafe’s incoming broadband speed. If it has a cable connection offering 25Mbps and wishes to keep its customers happy by offering a consistent speed of at least 1Mbps per user, then the coffee shop’s limit is 25 people.

But with our situation in Malaysia - the 3G connection of 3Mbps to 7Mbps at best effort and fixed line broadband speed from TM of less than 5Mbps - it is far from good to satisfy 15 to 20 customers with decent speed.

You may end up getting a mere 400kbps to 800kbps (0.4 - 0.8Mbps) at a medium sized cafe. Not good enough to surf the internet.