LASER RESURFACING

 

If you have been spending sleepless nights over your dull, lifeless-looking skin, a spot of laser skin resurfacing is just what the doctor may order for you! Apart from being the largest organ of our body, the skin faces the most exposure to external factors such as the weather and pollution. Under the circumstances, it is but natural that the facial skin faces the brunt of the damage. The result is roughening of the skin, wrinkles furrows, and fine lines. In short, the skin is no longer a pleasure to feel or a joy to behold. 

Skin damages also occur due to other factors. For instance, acne can leave your facial skin looking blemished and unattractive. Similarly, mishaps or injuries can leave you with scars. How you wish there were a magic wand to clear away your facial skin troubles!   Fortunately, the strides in science and technology have allowed us to realise our dreams of reversing the effects of ageing and photo-damages on our skin.

The Pros of Laser Resurfacing.

The procedure tightens and smooths wrinkled skin, resulting in a younger-looking appearance.

Laser skin resurfacing can improve the appearance of acne scars, uneven pigmentation and other imperfections caused by the sun's damage and ageing.

The treatment can treat several body areas, including the neck, hands, chest and delicate facial skin around the eyes and mouth.

Laser skin resurfacing is minimally invasive. No incisions are needed as is the case with surgical procedures (e.g., facelift, eyelid surgery).

The procedure requires little to no downtime. Patients can return to their normal routines sooner than with surgical procedures, which may require one to two weeks of recovery.

Despite any negative association, you might have with the word ‘laser,’ laser therapy is safe and effective. Lasers are FDA approved for hair reduction with years of research supporting their safety and effectiveness.  As with any aesthetic treatment, an untrained person behind a laser can wreak havoc on your skin.

The Cons of Laser Resurfacing.

Results are temporary. However, long-lasting improvements in skin quality and texture can be achieved with repeated treatments.

It may take people with darker skin tones six to nine months to regain their normal skin pigmentation.

Patients who are prone to scarring, are taking certain medications or have a skin disorder may not be eligible for this procedure.

As with any cosmetic procedure, laser skin resurfacing comes with possible (yet minor) risks and complications, including hyperpigmentation, redness and swelling.

Laser treatment requires experienced professionals and expensive equipment, meaning it is no small investment but the confidence radiant skin brings is priceless. Unfortunately, finding the cheapest laser treatment centre will lead to less than satisfactory results or worse, unsafe conditions and permanent damage to your skin. It is worth the price to find a trusted and experienced laser specialist.

Since lasers operate by targeting a colour contrast, they might not work as well on lighter hair colours or darker skin tones. During the consultation, the laser specialist will be able to give you an accurate idea of how well lasers will work for you and your unique skin. 

As usual, we remind you to take your Memo Plus Gold daily. It will help to keep you alert and mentally sharp. For more information or to order for Memo Plus Gold, please visit : https://oze.my.

Water supply to affected areas to be fully restored by 8pm tonight

 

Air Selangor Sdn Bhd (Air Selangor) said as at 9am today, the status of water supply recovery in the affected areas had reached 95 per cent. - File pic, for illustration purposes.

KUALA LUMPUR: The water supply in 397 affected areas in Kuala Lumpur, Sri Petaling and Hulu Langat will be fully restored by 8pm tonight.

The affected areas have been experiencing water supply disruption from 10am yesterday following temporary work stoppage at the Langat 2 Water Treatment Plant (LRA Langat 2) at 4.30am the same day.

Air Selangor Sdn Bhd (Air Selangor) said as at 9am today, the status of water supply recovery in the affected areas had reached 95 per cent.

"The duration of water supply recovery varies from one area to another and depends on the location and distance of the consumer premises."

Air Selangor said as at 10am, areas in the Hulu Langat district affected by the water supply disruption included Balakong, Bandar Sunway Semenyih, Bandar Teknologi Kajang, Taman Desa Mewah and Taman Industri Desa Semenyih.

In Kuala Lumpur, they included Bukit Permai Industri, Kampung Cheras Baru (Jalan 4-14 and Jalan 38-52), Kampung Cheras Baru (Jalan 49), Pandan Bistari, Taman Bukit Pandan and Taman Bukit Permai.

The water supply in Taman Bukit Teratai, Taman Mawar, Taman Mega Jaya, Taman Melur, Taman Muda, Taman Pandan Mewah, Taman Putra, Taman Saga dan Taman Seraya had also yet to recover, it added.

"Air Selangor hopes consumers who have received the water supply will use it prudently to ensure the recovery process in the affected area runs smoothly."

It was reported that the supply disruption was due to chemical pollution in Sungai Semantan, Pahang, as a result of an accident on the Karak-Bentong Highway on Wednesday.

Out of the 397 affected areas,172 areas are in Kuala Lumpur, Hulu Langat (222) and Petaling (three).

The LRA Langat 2 resumed operations at 3.30 pm yesterday to enable raw water treatment process to begin. - NST

Foreign visa system trial: Unraveling the cash payments from UKSB involving millions of Singapore dollars to Ahmad Zahid

 

Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi arrives at the Shah Alam High Court August 10, 2022. ― Picture by Yusof Mat Isa

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 12 ― With the prosecution resting its case in Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi's case ― where he is charged with receiving bribes from Ultra Kirana Sdn Bhd (UKSB) over the award of a foreign visa system (VLN) ― this week, the recurring subject involving monthly cash payments of hundreds of thousands in Singapore dollar has become the trial's centrepiece.

At the start of Ahmad Zahid's trial, prosecutors contended that the former home minister took advantage of his position to reap monetary benefits for himself by receiving bribes in the form of various foreign currencies from UKSB between 2014 to 2018.

According to the charges, the Bagan Datuk MP stands accused of accepting the bribes as payment and inducement to maintain or extend UKSB’s appointment contract with the government for services rendered to the Home Ministry.

So how much was Ahmad Zahid given monthly and where it took during the four year period? Here’s what we know so far of the cash payments made by UKSB according to witness testimonies and a ledger used by UKSB for bookkeeping purposes on cash payments made to various politicians, government staff and Ahmad Zahid himself.

Malay Mail gives you a quick breakdown of the cash payments Ahmad Zahid received based on the witness testimony provided by the 18th prosecution witness ― Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) senior enforcer V. Mahendran.

First cash payment in October 2014

According to the testimony of the prosecution’s 15th witness Harry Lee Vui Khiun, Ahmad Zahid had previously indicated the need for contribution for the purpose of political funding and asked for assistance in matters relating to Umno after getting to know the Umno leader shortly after the 13th general election in May 2013.

Lee, who is also former UKSB director, had indicated to court that Ahmad Zahid explicitly stated the contribution should be made in cash and in Singapore dollars without specifying the sum which was to be given.

In October 2014, UKSB's first cash payment ― totalling S$200,000 ― was given to Ahmad Zahid at his private residence in Country Heights, Kajang Selangor.

This continued on until February 2015, where the initial S$200,000/month was increased to S$300,000/month on Ahmad Zahid's request.

An increase of S$100,000 per month roughly two years later With UKSB agreeing to Ahmad Zahid's request for the increment, the first S$300,000 cash payment was made in April 2015.

As there were no payments made in March 2015, a sum of S$600,000 was paid to Ahmad Zahid in April instead to make up for the previous month.

Monthly payments of S$300,000 continued on until June 2017 ― a span of 29 months or two years and five months.

While UKSB had missed several monthly payments, the outstanding sum will always be accounted for the following month.

Final increment of cash payment up to S$5520,000

In July 2017, the agreed amount of S$300,000 was once again asked by Ahmad Zahid to be further increased due to the upcoming general election in 2018.

Cash payments of S$520,000 were paid to Ahmad Zahid on a monthly basis from July 2017 onwards up until March 2018 where the final payment was delivered.

It was previously disclosed in court that the sum of S$520,000 was derived from roughly RM10,000 per division for the 100-odd Umno divisions after conversion.

But wait, where was the money given to Ahmad Zahid? As we have established, Ahmad Zahid met with UKSB representatives at his private residence in Country Heights, Kajang Selangor.

It was also later established that deliveries were made to Ahmad Zahid as well at the deputy prime minister's residence at Sri Satria, Putrajaya.

During each scheduled monthly meeting at Ahmad Zahid's convenience, which usually took place late at night, cash was delivered to Ahmad Zahid inside an envelope without the presence of any visitors.

Deliveries will always be exclusively performed by a single person, either by Lee or fellow UKSB director Wan Quoris Shah Wan Abdul Ghani.

One-off payments were given as well

On top of the monthly cash payments Ahmad Zahid received from UKSB, several one-off payments were made by the company as well.

UKSB made a total of seven one-off payments to Ahmad Zahid at his private residence in Country Heights for specified and unspecified reasons between June 2015 and March 2018.

They included payments for Hari Raya celebrations, Umno's 71st anniversary celebration, Ahmad Zahid's wife's birthday celebration and the 14th general election.

In total, Ahmad Zahid received RM3.125 million, 150,000 Singapore dollar, 15,000 US dollar and 15,000 Swiss Franc from these occasions.

Ahmad Zahid is facing 33 charges of receiving bribes amounting to S$13.56 million (RM42 million) from UKSB as an inducement for himself in his capacity as a civil servant and the then home minister to extend the contract of the company as the operator of the OSCs in China and the VLN system as well as to maintain the agreement to supply VLN integrated system paraphernalia to the same company by the Home Ministry.

Ahmad Zahid was charged with another seven counts as home minister who obtained S$1.15 million, RM3 million, CHF15,000 and US$15,000 in cash from the same company for himself in connection with his official work.

He is accused of committing all the offences at Seri Satria, Presint 16, Putrajaya, and Country Heights, Kajang, between October 2014 and March 2018. - malaymail

Belum bincang permohonan PBM sertai BN, kata MIC

 

M Saravanan berkata, MIC belum melihat butiran permohonan Parti Bangsa Malaysia menyertai Barisan Nasional. (Gambar Bernama)

KUALA LUMPUR: MIC belum melihat atau membincangkan permohonan Parti Bangsa Malaysia (PBM) menyertai Barisan Nasional (BN), kata Timbalan Presidennya, M Saravanan.

“Setakat ini, tiada sebarang perbincangan di peringkat MIC berhubung permohonan PBM masuk BN.

“Kita belum lagi lihat permohonan itu, bila tak lihat permohonan, bagaimana nak bincang?” katanya selepas melancarkan pinjaman patuh syariah (PLK-i) Perbadanan Tabung Pembangunan Kemahiran di Pusat Dagangan Dunia.

Beliau berkata demikian ketika ditanya sama ada MIC bersetuju menerima kemasukan PBM dalam BN.

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Selasa lalu, Timbalan Pengerusi BN, Mohamad Hasan dilaporkan berkata, gabungan itu akan membuat keputusan berhubung permohonan PBM selepas mesyuarat Dewan Tertingginya pada minggu depan.

Susulan itu, Ahli Majlis Kerja Tertinggi Umno, Isham Jalil pada Selasa lalu berkata, kerjasama dengan parti seperti PBM dan DAP tidak mungkin dijalin kerana mereka terdiri daripada “penipu dan pengkhianat”.

Beliau berkata, langkah menerima parti itu akan menyebabkan pengundi Melayu “tawar hati” dengan BN atau Umno dan berpaling ke arah parti lain seperti gabungan terbaharu diasaskan Dr Mahathir Mohamad, Gerakan Tanah Air. - FMT

LCS combat system may be obsolete in 10 years, says MP

 

The LCS project has come under scrutiny after the PAC released its report which said, among others, that not a single ship had been completed although Putrajaya had spent RM6 billion. (Bernama pic)

PETALING JAYA: An opposition MP has warned that the combat management system of the littoral combat ships (LCS) currently under construction may be obsolete within the next decade after a change of specifications.

Citing the Public Accounts Committee’s (PAC) report on the project, Bukit Mertajam MP Steven Sim said then defence minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi had decided on the SETIS system instead of the navy’s choice of the Tacticos system.

“The SETIS system chosen by the minister is not only more expensive, it has yet to be fully developed, and is also at risk of becoming obsolete in five to 10 years.

“What’s even more unreasonable is that the system is incapable of integrating with most of the navy’s equipment,” the DAP organising secretary said in a statement.

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Steven Sim.

Sim said switching from the initial Sigma-class ships chosen by the navy to the Gowind design of Naval Group of France in 2011 could have set Malaysia’s naval ship manufacturing industry back by years.

He said Malaysia missed out on the chance for technology transfer, pointing to how the Sigma-class was designed by the Dutch company Damen Shipyard, which was supposed to make Malaysia its manufacturing hub.

He said this would have allowed for important technology transfer for the local combat ship manufacturing industry while creating high-value jobs for Malaysians.

The LCS project has come under scrutiny after the PAC released its report which, among other things, found that not a single ship had been completed although Putrajaya had already spent RM6 billion.

Last week, PAC chairman Wong Kah Woh revealed that the defence ministry and contractor Boustead Naval Shipyard Sdn Bhd had ignored the navy’s views on the project. - FMT

Najib ordered 1MDB audit amendment to protect himself, says MACC officer

 

An MACC officer testified that former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak sought an amendment to the 1MDB audit report in 2016 to shield himself from legal consequences.

Senior enforcer Hanif Lami told the Kuala Lumpur High Court this morning this was his conclusion on the reason the accused used his then position as prime minister to order the amendment before the report could be tabled to the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) in 2016.

The 16th prosecution witness was testifying in the 1MDB audit report case against Najib, who is also a former finance minister, and the Malaysian sovereign wealth fund’s former CEO Arul Kanda Kandasamy.

During proceedings before trial judge Mohamed Zaini Mazlan, Haniff testified this was also the reason Arul Kanda was allegedly involved in amending the audit report.

“The result of my investigation showed that the matter (offence) was committed by the first and second accused (Arul Kanda and Najib) to protect themselves from any civil or criminal actions related to the operation of 1MDB,” the witness claimed.

The investigating officer behind the 1MDB audit report case testified that Arul Kanda abetted Najib in the amendment to the 1MDB audit report on Feb 24, 2016, before it was tabled to the PAC.

“The second accused (Najib) in this case ordered Shukry Mohd Salleh, the then chief private secretary to the prime minister, to obtain the 1MDB audit report and hand over a copy to the first accused (Arul Kanda), who was then 1MDB CEO, for perusal,” Haniff claimed.

Coordination meeting

The MACC investigating officer testified that Najib then ordered a meeting at his office at Putrajaya on Feb 22, 2016, which was also attended by then auditor-general Ambrin Buang and then chief secretary to the government Ali Hamsa.

Haniff claimed that during the meeting, Najib directed Ali to convene a coordination meeting between the National Audit Department and himself to discuss any issues he was not satisfied with in the 1MDB audit report and that the report was not to be published until he gave the green light.

The witness testified that this led to another meeting two days later on Feb 24, 2016, called by Ali and attended by Arul Kanda.

Haniff claimed that, following the meeting, amendments were made to the 1MDB audit report on four issues, among them being the two differing versions of the 1MDB financial statement for the year 2014, and the issue of businessperson Low Taek Jho’s (Jho Low) attendance in 1MDB board meetings.

“Following the meeting, the 1MDB audit report, which was tabled before the PAC on March 4 and 7, 2016, was the amended report due to the order from the second accused,” Haniff told the court.

His written witness statement was taken as read during examination-in-chief by deputy public prosecutor Mohamad Mustaffa P Kunyalam.

During cross-examination by Najib’s defence counsel Rahmat Hazlan, the witness denied the investigation against the accused was rushed and unfair.

The lawyer was grilling the witness over the allegedly speedy pace of investigation against Najib in 2018, whereby an MACC report was lodged on Nov 26, the MACC recorded Najib’s statement on Dec 6, then the former prime minister was detained and released on bail on Dec 10, followed by being charged in court on Dec 12.

Rahmat: It all happened very fast. I say to you that Najib was not given a full and fair investigation.

Haniff: I disagree.

Accused-turn-witness

The trial before Zaini will resume on Aug 18, where the defence teams of both Najib and Arul Kanda will resume cross-examination of Haniff.

Previously, the court allowed the prosecution’s application to turn co-accused Arul Kanda into a star witness against Najib.

Najib’s defence team has yet to conclude their cross-examination of Arul Kanda and will resume at a later trial date.

Former 1MDB CEO Arul Kanda Kandasamy

Najib is charged with using his position as then prime minister to order amendments to 1MDB’s final audit report before it was presented to the PAC to prevent any action against him.

Arul Kanda was charged with abetting the then prime minister in making the amendments.

The charges are framed under Section 23 (1) of the MACC Act 2009, which specifies a jail term of up to 20 years and a fine of no less than five times the amount of gratification, or RM10,000, whichever is higher.

The prosecution contended that following a meeting on Feb 24, 2016, a decision was made to remove or alter certain portions of the 1MDB audit report, including dropping the presence of Low at the fund’s board meetings.

Another issue that was allegedly dropped from the audit report was the two conflicting 2014 financial statements of the sovereign wealth fund.

Besides Ali and Arul Kanda, others who were present at the meeting were Ambrin, former National Audit Department officer Saadatul Nafisah Bashir Ahmad, Shukry, and then Attorney-General’s Chambers representative Dzulkifli Ahmad. - Mkini