Privacy and Personal Data Protection Policy

PRIVACY AND PERSONAL DATA PROTECTION POLICY

This Privacy and Personal Data Protection Policy is issued to all our immediate and/or prospective customers, suppliers and employees pursuant to the Personal Data Protection Act 2010 ("the Act") which came into effect on 15th November 2013.

1. Collection of Personal Data
   In the course of your dealings with M Berhad and/or any its the subsidiaries (“M”), we will request that you provide data and information about yourself (“Personal Data”) to enable us to enter into commercial transaction with you or to deliver the necessary notices, services and/or products in connection with our business.  These are relevant in connection with our business process, execution, including delivery of notices, services and/or products, client relationship management, planning purposes in connection with future products, new product launches and events including promotional events with business partners within our projects or townships.
2. Personal Data
   Such Personal Data may be subject to applicable data protection, privacy and other similar laws and may include but not limited to information concerning your name, date of birth, identity card number, passport number, address, gender, race, nationality, contact information, e-mail address, work history, education, compensation currently and historically, employer feedback, performance reviews, disciplinary actions, references and any other details of past employers or other people you provided to us, residential or postal addresses, your current or previous vocations, your employer’s name, address, telephone or fax number, your previous addresses and preferred mode of communication, any previous names you may have used or aliases, religion, current and savings account number, credit card details, bank name and other pertinent banking information, tax file identification number, EPF number, SOCSO number; and criminal history, where permitted by applicable law.
3. Purpose of Collection of Personal DataThe Personal Data will be collected, processed and used by us for the following purposes:
   
   1. the delivery of notices, services or products and the marketing of such services or products whether present or future, to you;
   2. in order for you to enter into the necessary agreement and/or contract to purchase the products and/or properties from us;
   3. the maintenance and upkeep of customer records and development;
   4. those purposes specifically provided for in any particular service or product offered by us or our partners;
   5. marketing and client profiling activities regarding our latest projects, products and/or services;
   6. preparation and execution of all necessary documents and agreements and/or contracts for our projects, products and/or services with you;
   7. credit assessments, financial and background investigation as and when deemed necessary;
   8. our internal record keeping;
   9. prevention of crime (including but not limited to fraud and money-laundering);
   10. meeting any legal or regulatory requirements relating to our provision of services and products and to make disclosure under the requirements of any applicable law, regulation, direction, court order, by-law, guideline, circular, code applicable to us or any member companies of our Group;
   11. enable us to send you information by e-mail, regular postal mail, telecommunication means (telephone calls, SMS messages or social chat applications) or internet social media about products and services offered by selected third parties that we think may interest you but doing so we maintain control over your Personal Data and we will not disclose your Personal Data to any third parties without your prior written consent;
   12. vacant possession, keys handover, property/estate management, customer care and/or defect rectification works;
   13. post vacant possession services, such as club house services, security and customer loyalty card programmes;
   14. any subsequent commercial transactions in relation to any projects, products and/or services; and
   15. enable us to furnish and submit your Personal Data to the following relevant parties, please refer to “Appendix A1 – List of Government bodies/agencies/local authorities and institutions”.
   16. enable us to furnish and submit your Personal Data to the following relevant parties, please refer to "Appendix A2 – List of Non-Governmental bodies/agencies and private institutions".
4. Source of Personal Data
   The Personal Data will be collected, processed and used by us are sourced from wholly legitimate and transparent means such as:
   
   
   1. agreements and contracts for sale and purchase of our properties or for our services;
   2. official registration forms (either electronic or printed) for new launches or property roadshows, showcases, exhibitions or any other promotional events;
   3. official Request for Information forms that are provided to you by our employees or agents;
   4. any emails or any correspondences that we have received from you requesting for information or making any inquiries;
   5. any forms that you have submitted on our website or any websites contracted by us;
   6. any referrals from a person which have included their verifiable personal contact details;
   7. letters of offer from financial institutions (local and foreign) for pre-approved loans;
   8. Business cards that were dropped or given to our employees, agents, brokers or associates; or
   9. any documents (including but not limited to statutory forms and returns) that were submitted to us for processing.
   At no time will any Personal Data be purchased by us or in any way commercially acquired through the purchase or trading of illegitimate and illegal Personal Data databases or lists.


5. Rights of Access and CorrectionYou have the right to request access to and if required, correction of your Personal Data in our records. You have the right to:
   
   1. request access to your Personal Data in our records for verification purposes. You may access and review all of your Personal Data held by us in person at our corporate offices located at the address given in (h) below;
   
   
   2. request the correction of your Personal Data in our records in the event the information is inaccurate, misleading, out-of-date or incomplete upon validation and verification of the new information provided in person at our corporate offices located at the address given in (h) below;
   
   
   3. request that your Personal Data shall only be kept for the fulfilment of the purpose of the collection of such information;
   
   
   4. request for proof of policy and procedure in relation to the safeguard and guarantee of your Personal Data in our records;
   
   
   5. request that we specify or explain its policies and procedures in relation to data and types of Personal Data handled by us;
   
   
   6. communicate to us your objection to the use of your Personal Data for marketing purposes whereupon we will not use your Personal Data for these purposes in person at our corporate offices located at the address given in (h) below;; and
   
   
   7. withdraw, in full or in part, your consent given previously, in each case subject to any applicable legal restrictions, contractual conditions and a reasonable time period in person at our corporate offices located at the address given in (h) below;.
   
   
   8. If you may make a request to access, review, amend and correct your Personal Data through:M Berhad
      Marketing Department
      
6. Disclosure of Personal DataThe information we gather is not sold, given to, or otherwise shared with other organisations for commercial or any other purposes.  We do, however, send out emails on behalf of selected organisations to those of our subscribers who have opted in to receive these messages.  We send the messages directly, so at no time do the advertisers get to see users’ personal information – unless of course users respond or reply to these advertisements or mailings themselves.
   The Personal Data provided to us will be kept confidential and we will seek your agreement, consent and authorisation to disclose your Personal Data to the following classes of parties:
   
   1. any persons, government agencies, statutory authorities and/or industry regulators whom we are compelled or required to do so pursuant to any law, please refer to "Appendix A1 – List of Government bodies/agencies/local authorities and institutions";
   2. relevant parties, please refer to "Appendix A2 – List of Non-Governmental bodies/agencies and private institutions".
   3. any related companies and/or subsidiaries of Mah Sing, including those incorporated in the future;
   4. our business partners and affiliates that provide related services or products in connection with our business;
   5. our auditors, consultants, lawyers, accountants or other financial or professional advisers appointed in connection with our business;
   6. our third party service providers, third party management companies, sub-contractors or other parties as may be deemed necessary by us to facilitate your dealings with us; and
   7. our appointed service providers in relation of our loyalty programmes, for the purpose of delivery gift redemption and services.
   Third parties are legally tasked with processing your Personal Data in line with principles specified by Mah Sing Group Berhad. Third parties are also held legally responsible for securing your Personal Data at an appropriate level of security in relation to applicable data protection laws and widely accepted industry standards.
   You may at any time withdraw, in full or in part, your disclosure consent given previously, in each case subject to any applicable legal restrictions, contractual conditions and a reasonable time period in person at our corporate offices located at the address given in 5(h) above.
7. Choices to Limit Processing of Personal DataThe Personal Data provided to us undergoes processing as and when required or upon scheduled maintenance.  The definition of processing defines it as "any operation or set of operations which is performed upon Personal Data, whether or not by automatic means, such as collection, recording, organization, storage, adaptation or alteration, retrieval, consultation, use, disclosure by transmission, dissemination or otherwise making available, alignment or combination, blocking, erasure or destruction;"
   You have the right to limit in part or wholly any of the processes by which your data is subjected to in terms of the operations allowed to be performed upon it, the period of time allowed or alternatively the date line of the consent given.
   The responsibility for compliance rests on the shoulders of Mah Sing who determines the purposes and means of the processing of Personal Data.
   You may at any time withdraw or amend, in full or in part, your processing consent given previously, in each case subject to any applicable legal restrictions, contractual conditions and a reasonable time period in person at our corporate offices located at the address given in 5(h) above.
8. Consequences of Refusal / Failure to Provide Personal DataThe Personal Data provided to us are wholly voluntary in nature and you are not under any obligation or under any duress to do so.  However, in some circumstances such as the preparation and execution of a Sales and Purchase Contract, or a Supplier Letter of Award or an Employment Letter requires certain personal details and information beforehand.
   The failure to provide the Personal Data may result in the following which we shall not be held liable for any of the consequences arising therefrom:
   
   1. the inability of parties to formalize any contract and/or agreement and/or Sale and Purchase Agreement / tenders / Letter of Awards / Employment Contract in relation to the sale of our property, products and/or services, to facilitate construction or to hire human resource;
   2. the inability for us to provide you with the notices, services and/or products requested;
   3. the inability for us to update you with the latest product and/or launches;
   4. the inability to complete commercial transactions in relation to our projects, products and/or services; and
   5. the inability to comply with any applicable law, regulation, direction, court order, by laws, guidelines and/or codes applicable to us.
      
9. Protection of Personal DataYour Personal Data will be kept and processed in a secured manner.  The appropriate administrative and security safeguards, policies and procedures will be implemented, as far as practicable, in accordance to the applicable laws and regulations.  We will, as far as practicable, aim to prevent any unauthorized and/or unlawful processing of, and the accidental loss, destruction or damage to your Personal Data.
   Mah Sing Group Berhad is committed to taking appropriate technical, physical and organisational measures to protect your Private Data against unauthorised access, unlawful processing, accidental loss or damage, and unauthorised destruction of your Private Data.
   To safeguard against unauthorised access to Private Data by third parties outside Mah Sing, all electronic Private Data held by Mah Sing is maintained on systems that are protected by secure networks. Mah SIng entities limit access to internal systems that hold Private Data to a select group of authorised users who are given access to such systems through the use of a unique identifier and password. Access to Private Data is limited to and is provided only to relevant users for the purpose of performing their official duties.
   Compliance with these provisions will be required of all third-party administrators who may access your Private Data, as described in the ‘Disclosure of Personal Data’ in Section 6 above.
10. LanguageIn accordance to Section 7(3) Personal Data Protection Act 2010, this Policy is issued in both Bahasa Malaysia and English languages.  In the event of any inconsistency, the English language version of this Policy shall prevail.
11. Your Privacy Preferences and How to Contact Us:To learn more about our Privacy Policy, please read our Privacy Policy at http://www.mahsing.com.my/PDPA/data-protection-policy.html.
    If you wish for any clarification by us via any mode of communication, you may -
    (a)   email us to:  or
    (b)   write or fax to us at the following address –
    
    
    
12. Changes to this PolicyM may need to modify this Policy as needed, for example, to comply with changes in business operations or laws and regulations. M will post all changes to this policy.

Appendix A1 - List of Government bodies/agencies/local authorities and institutions

1. Bahagian Pinjaman Perumahan Perbendaharaan;
2. Kumpulan Wang Simpanan Pekerja;
3. Lembaga Hasil Dalam Negeri;
4. Land Office;
5. Local authorities;
6. Internal auditors;
7. High court, lower courts or tribunals;
8. Insurance companies;
9. ISO auditors; and

any change or amendment, we shall notify you accordingly.
Appendix A2 - List of Non-Government bodies/agencies and private institutions

1. Indah Water Konsortium;
2. Kumpulan Wang Simpanan Pekerja;
3. Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor Sdn Bhd;
4. Sabah State Water Department (JANS)
5. Tenaga Nasional Berhad;
6. Banks and financial institution; y you accordingly.
7. Insurance companies;
8. External financial auditors; and
9. Law firms

any change or amendment, we shall notify you accordingly.

Govt likely to implement more fiscal consolidation to trim deficit

By CHIEF ECONOMIST, ALLIANCE BANK MALAYSIA BHD

A stronger recovery in the external sector coupled with a resilient domestic
economy means that Malaysia's economic growth will likely edge upwards for next year.

We expect Malaysia to remain on its steady growth trajectory, despite the government's move to consolidate the fiscal policies further via stricter policy reforms, including subsidy rationalisation and tariff adjustment for the utility sector. Therefore, we forecast 2014 growth stronger at 5% - at the lower-end of the government's forecast of 5-5.5%, announced during Budget 2014.

Externally we see momentum building up in the recovery of major economies, including the US, Eurozone, Japan and China. While improving trade will be one of the key factors on the expenditure side, supply side activities will also see improvements, especially services and manufacturing.

After hitting a low of 4.2% in H1 2013, the Malaysian economy has staged a dramatic recovery to post a 5% growth in Q3 2013. The momentum would likely continue in the final quarter, which we estimate to come in at 5%. This would raise the full-year average of GDP growth to 4.6% in 2013 - within the government's official target of 4.5-5%.

Going forward, entrenching recovery in the Eurozone and the rest of the G7 economies would support global growth, regional economies in particular. We see momentum building up in the recovery of major economies, including the US, Eurozone, Japan and China. While there could be some potential downside risk from the US, on account of the debt ceiling debate and quantitative easing (QE) tapering concerns, overall, we see stronger recovery globally. Moderation in domestic demand growth As in the past year, growth will be driven by domestic demand, underpinned by sustained private sector spending in both consumption and investment activities. Nonetheless, growth in domestic demand would likely moderate slightly following the government's move to consolidate its spending in accordance with its target in trimming the fiscal deficit.

Meanwhile, the private sector spending will be constrained by the inflationary pressures triggered by the government move to rationalise subsidies, adjust tariffs for utilities as well as potential hikes in assessment rates for both residential and commercial properties. In this regard, we forecast growth in domestic demand to grow 6.8% in 2014, moderating from +8.3% in 2013 - but still contributing 6.8 percentage points to growth.

In the private sector, moderation in consumer spending growth would be inevitable, given the recent budgetary measures including the subsidy rationalisation and tariff adjustment that could trigger higher inflation in 2014. This could translate into a lower household disposable income next year.

However, the reduction in consumption growth could be offset by several initiatives undertaken by the government ahead of Visit Malaysia Year 2014. In this regard, we forecast private consumption to grow at 7% next year versus 7.9% in 2013. Public consumption, investments to slow down Growth in public consumption is expected to moderate in 2014 to 3% (2013: 7.1%), due to lower federal government development expenditure following the accelerated implementation of projects in the first three years of the 10th Malaysia Plan (10MP).

In the meantime, investment in the ETP (Economic Transformation Programme) projects, the conclusion of 10MP as well as key economic corridors may continue to play important roles in the domestic economy. Nonetheless, the expected involvement of the private sector in boosting these investments may fall short of expectation, if economic performance does not stay vibrant in the first half-year.

Given the consolidation plan to trim fiscal deficit taking the focal point now, we expect government investments to slow down in 2014. Thus, private sector investment is expected to rise at a slower pace of 11%, while public investment growth moderates to 4% in 2014 (+13.1% and 5% respectively in 2013).

Apart from the GST, we continue to expect further reforms next year - especially further subsidy rationalisation for fuel, with an additional 20 sen cut on the cards by June. This was reflected in the reduction seen in total subsidy allocation from RM44 bil to RM36 bil this year, which we think is largely coming from a RM7 bil saving from the September 2013 rationalisation exercise and the anticipated subsidy adjustment.

The recent 15% electricity tariff hike further reinforces our belief that subsidy rationalisation will likely be continued in the medium term, in order to further improve the government's fiscal space. Supply side led by services and manufacturing. On the supply side, growth will be led by stronger growth in the services and manufacturing sectors, expanding 4% and 5.8% in 2014 respectively - supported by domestic demand and the improvement in trade activity. Together, both the sectors will contribute 4.2 percentage points to GDP in 2014.

In particular, the services sector will be supported by consumer-oriented subsectors such as wholesale and retail trade as well as accommodation and restaurant - benefitting from higher tourist arrivals following special promotional campaigns and activities in conjunction with Visit Malaysia Year 2014.

Meanwhile, the manufacturing sector is expected to improve, given the continued recovery in the global economy and improving intra-regional trade. Export-oriented industries such as electrical & electronic products (E&E), chemicals and resource-based industries will provide support to growth.

Likewise, domestic-oriented industries such as construction-related materials, transport equipment and food subsectors are also expected to remain resilient.

Activity in the construction sector will moderate slightly to 10.1% in 2014, from 11% in 2013, in view of slower construction activity in the civil engineering sub-sector following the completion of several major infrastructure projects such as the Second Penang Bridge, as well as the Ipoh to Padang Besar electrified double-tracking railway project. OPR to remain accommodative On Nov 7, the overnight policy rate (OPR) was maintained unchanged for the 15th time since May 2011. At the current 3% level, the OPR remains supportive of economic activity while ensuring adequate price stability.

Moving forward, despite a higher inflation environment, we continue to believe the OPR will remain steady for the most part of 2014 - as inflationary pressures are caused by cost-push factors. However, the OPR has a 50% chance of rising in the later part of 2014, on concerns of short-term capital outflow due to QE tapering in the US.

In addition, Bank Negara Malaysia could potentially take a pre-emptive move to dampen inflation risks, if the central bank adopts the view that higher inflation expectations could potentially fuel demand-driven inflationary pressures. Even in this scenario, we cap the OPR hike to a 25-basis point rise to 3.25% in H2 2014.

Overall, we forecast prices to spiral upwards next year, affecting all sections of the people. The broader inflation rate is expected to breach the psychological level of 3% for most part of next year. CPI is forecasted to peak at 3.8% in August, before closing easier towards the year-end. Full-year, we forecast inflation at 3.2% in 2014, way above the estimated 2.1% in 2013. Downside risk to growth remains While economic growth will likely improve in 2014, there remains to be major downside risks to growth, emanating from both domestic and external sources.

On the domestic side, while inflation is expected to remain manageable, there is an underlying risk that rising levels of cost-push inflation could spiral uncontrollably, potentially leading to second round price effects. While rising prices could lower sentiments and consumption spending, the potential monetary tightening that follows suit would lead to slower economic growth in the near term.

Additionally, the government's debt-to-GDP estimates of 54.8% and 54.7% for 2013 and 2014 respectively remain to be a concern. As such, we expect to see more fiscal consolidations in the next few quarters, through accelerated subsidy rationalisation, among others. If rumours about shifting civil servants' housing loans from federal government's balance sheet materialises, then the debt-to-GDP level could fall below 50%.

Despite the domestic concerns, the higher risk will likely emanate externally, especially with regards to the impact of the Fed's QE tapering, expected to begin early next year.

While there would be an adverse impact on global liquidity and asset prices, another major concern is the potentially sharp reversal of funds out of emerging economies, further impacting economic growth stability as well as threatening domestic financial markets. ESSE u The recent 15% electricity tariff hike further reinforces our belief that subsidy rationalisation will likely be continued in the medium term, in order to further improve the government's fiscal space."

The economy staged a dramatic recovery to post a 5% growth in Q3 and the momentum is likely continue in the final quarter, estimated at 5%.

Who broke the law, Snowden or the NSA?

By J. Kirk Wiebe

J. Kirk Wiebe is retired from the National Security Agency, where he worked for more than 32 years. He received the NSA's second highest award, the Meritorious Civilian Service Award; the Director of CIA's Meritorious Unit Award; and a Letter of Commendation from the secretary of the Air Force, among other awards. He was an NSA whistleblower on matters of privacy involving massive electronic surveillance.

(CNN) -- Edward Snowden deserves amnesty and the ability to return to the United States without fear of being incarcerated for reporting crimes by people in high places in the U.S. government. Monday's ruling by U.S. District Judge Richard J. Leon that the NSA's widespread collection of millions of Americans' telephone records was unconstitutional bolsters this view.

But for some, whether to give Snowden amnesty is not an easy matter to reconcile. After all, they say, he broke laws in divulging classified information.

Indeed, some say he is a traitor. But just as a member of the U.S. military is not required to follow an unlawful order, it is proper that an employee of the United States intelligence community -- NSA, CIA, DIA and others -- should report any information that concerns law-breaking by the intelligence agencies or their employees.

An NSA official's suggestion that amnesty for Snowden could possibly be put on the table was undoubtedly welcome news for Snowden, yet NSA Director Gen. Keith Alexander rejected the suggestion.

But how can anyone believe that Snowden would not be deserving of amnesty? Clearly it is the government and its senior officials who committed the crime -- people who took oaths to defend the Constitution from enemies both foreign and domestic and who failed to take to heart the words they swore to uphold. Indeed, Snowden did not -- nor does any government employee -- swear allegiance to the president of the United States, or even to the secretary of Defense or the director of NSA. No, he swore to uphold and defend the Constitution.

Unfortunately, while federal law protects whistleblowers who work in other government sectors from reprisals for truth-telling and have paths for reporting wrongdoing and mismanagement, those who work in intelligence are expressly denied such rights. When NSA employees Bill Binney, Tom Drake, Diane Roark and I submitted a formal complaint about mismanagement at the agency, the government's response on July 26, 2007, was to send the FBI to raid our homes, searching them for seven hours and seizing our computers, phones and other digital media. We are just now getting our property back after having successfully sued the government in December 2012.

The government even indicted Tom Drake, although it dropped its criminal charges in the case against him. Still, for the five of us, it was the equivalent of a punch in the face and a warning to other would-be "truth-tellers" not to report wrongful government activities or the government will come after you.

Snowden clearly saw what the government does to whistleblowers who try to work within government to fix things that are wrong. He knew that our complaint to the United States Department of Defense inspector general in September 2002 went for naught. Although the report agreed that our complaint was well-founded, nothing happened -- no one was found guilty of wrongful behavior or waste of hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars.

Even before writing the complaint, we -- all longtime and senior NSA employees -- along with Diane Roark, a senior staffer on the House Permanent Select Subcommittee on Intelligence, had approached Congress in 2001 about the matter of illegal collection of data about U.S. citizens. No action. Snowden might have known that we were ultimately punished by approaching officials, and even had our security clearances revoked when the FBI raided our homes -- despite the fact that four of the five of us were not indicted and none of us was found guilty of committing a crime.

For employees in the business of intelligence, there are no honest brokers, no viable paths to follow to report the subverting of the U.S. Constitution. It is the reason Snowden went first to Hong Kong and ultimately Moscow to seek refuge. He did not go to those places to give away national secrets, rather he needed a place to stay that was safe from extradition and where he could wait while the United States sorted through the facts, especially those regarding government leaders who violated the most basic of our nation's laws -- the right to privacy.

It was shocking to see the interview on MSNBC a few years ago with the former director of NSA, Michael V. Hayden, and hear him redefine the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. When asked whether NSA had violated the Fourth Amendment, Hayden said it had not. Hayden said "probable cause" was not the Fourth Amendment's standard for violating a citizen's privacy -- it was based on "reasonable suspicion."

Recognizing that the whole matter of secret presidential orders and extreme interpretations of the Constitution in regard to executive wartime authorities by the U.S. Department of Justice could be the subject of a book by themselves, one thing is clear -- no one asked either the Supreme Court or the people of the United States whether bulk collection of citizens' phone metadata was constitutional. As we saw on Monday, Judge Richard Leon does not think so.
In recent days, Hayden defended the actions of both the Bush and Obama administrations, stating that the NSA collection program was "blessed" by all three branches of the U.S. government.

What Hayden has not said is that neither the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court nor Congress had a good understanding of what was going on. The NSA contends it provided Congress with the opportunity to be briefed on the surveillance, but some members of Congress dispute that. Snowden's revelations since June have certainly made it clear that no one -- except the NSA -- believes they had the whole truth about the extensiveness of its data collection efforts, whether from the Internet or from the phone system.
Perhaps more germane to this discussion whether Snowden should receive amnesty and the matter of who committed the real crime -- Snowden or the government -- is that the legal basis for NSA in defending its actions can be found in a single court case called Smith v Maryland (1979) -- which went to the Supreme Court at a time when there was hardly an internet and nobody even dreamed there would be cell phones, social network sites or Twitter.

In this case, touted by the government as legitimizing the bulk collection of metadata under Section 215 of the Patriot Act, the police inserted a recording device at the telephone company to record the metadata -- phone number originating the call, time of call, number called and duration of conversation -- associated with a man suspected of robbing a lady. The alleged thief challenged the constitutionality of the police recording the metadata associated with the phone call, but the Supreme Court backed the lower court's decision that doing so under the circumstances was constitutional.

Now, one might ask how does the Supreme Court's approval of the collection of metadata associated with a single phone call made by a suspected thief end up authorizing the bulk collection of phone metadata of hundreds of millions of American citizens by the most powerful spy agency in the world? We all know that the field of law has its quirks, but it's clear such an interpretation of law does not constitute justice, let alone make sense.

With those facts as background, I think most Americans would agree that Edward Snowden deserves amnesty. In fact, it is those who allowed these programs to be implemented and developed over the past 12 years who should be prosecuted. After all, do we not stand for "equal justice for all"?

洁蒂胆大心细‧引领国行渡危机

1998年，正值亚洲金融风暴高峰期，马幣兑美元贬至4.80关口，马股从1300点高位急泻至260点水平，国內经济、金融市场几乎陷入停顿……

就在这年的8月28日，国家银行正副总裁丹斯里阿末顿和拿督鄺荣柏双双请辞，为国內本惊慌不已的国內资金市场再投入一颗震撼弹。

当时，刚迎来51岁生日的洁蒂接到前首相敦马哈迪的一通电话，紧急扮演救火员角色，在9月1日代摄国行总裁一职，虽只是暂代国行总裁职位短短6天，就在9月7日交棒给时任新总裁丹斯里阿里阿布哈山，退居副总裁一职，但其短短6天的任期的作为却是大马歷史上最重要的一笔，其中上任首日落实的“资金管制”更是將了当时所有投资客一军。

没有这6天，当时已处於脱疆边缘的大马经济究竟將走向何方，恐怕很难想像。歷经人生中最重要的6天，洁蒂的心情是怎样的？为何会做出震惊全球的资金管制措施？我们似乎从未听闻过，多亏了这次金融领袖国际中心（ICLIF）《亚洲领袖能力峰会》，让我们有机会从她的口中聆听到这一切……

向IMF说“不”
坚信资金管制

1997年3月2日美国金融大鱷索罗斯狙击泰国外匯市场，引起泰国挤兑风潮，挤垮56家银行，泰銖也因此贬值60%、股市狂泻70%，而这场由泰国引起的金融动荡却一直蔓延下去，最终把大马给牵连进去。

在风暴高峰期，泰国、韩国和印尼政府纷纷接受了国际货幣基金组织（IMF）的援助配套，而IMF也积极游说我国加入其中，但为何大马政府最终会拒绝接受援助，却转向落实资金管制措施呢？

回忆当年，洁蒂仍自认非常有胆量（Nerve Of Steel），竟敢基於坚信IMF错误评估、不愿丧失国行的监管市场角色，毅然对该组织援助说“不”。

她说，1997年7月泰銖狂泻正式拉开亚洲金融风暴的序幕，而该国政府为稳住局势，决定向IMF求助，但国行清楚IMF援助配套的附带条件並无法解决引爆此次风暴的根源。

“当年IMF董事经理要求我们升息5%以取得援助，甚至要求马幣自行贬值，因他们认为马幣在基本面支持下將会自行反弹，但我们都知道这是不可能的，我们已看到印尼等接受援助的国家落实系列的结构改革措施仍不得要领，就明白自己需要准备抗战。”

她指出，当时国行除面对IMF的压力外，也饱受媒体对不升息等措施的抨击，是对国行的一大考验，但他们知道大马受到货幣衝击的反应与其他国家不同，因为国家没有大量的短期外债，最大的可能是受到统一的对衝基金在幕后操盘，从而製造恐惧因素。

“因此，当我接任代总裁一职后，就开始组织起自己的团队来防止经济和金融市场进一步恶化，而当时的重点就放在维持市场的稳定及带动经济走向復甦。”

洁蒂坦言，当初资金管制的落实经歷过激烈的爭辩，但碍於俄罗斯卢布不堪投机客狙击，马幣兑美元也走贬至4.2关口，整体局势已走向紧要关头，若放任马幣贬至5水平，恐怕马幣將贬至未知的领域（Uncharted Territories）。

马幣贬主谋——国际投资者

“当时有人告诉我，富豪將资金带离大马是导致马幣贬值的原因，但后来我们发现並非如此，背后主谋是国际投机者，富豪可能带走几十亿美元，但投机者所撤走的却是数以百亿计的资金。”

此外，国行发现外匯市场高度失序，场內只由淡薄的成交量兴风作浪，因此在探悉真正的投机源头后，洁蒂便每天与交易商盯著电脑荧幕观察马幣的动向，並適时进行干预，同时確保大马外匯储备从未少於200亿美元，无需IMF援助。

因此，国行在仔细评估后，在1998年9月1日宣佈资金管制下，落实包括强制规定马幣兑美元匯率在3.80，不再自由浮动、对外资进行管制，凡是进入我国的外资，必须逗留至少一年，並实施30%的撤资税，以制止炒家在股市兴风作浪、停止马幣继续流失，对出国的人士採取控制手段，必须填写表格等措施，以避免马幣持续走贬。

当时，国行指出，落实相关措施的意义在於：

1.限制区域及外来经济风暴波及大马经济；

2.维护大马近来稳定国內经济措施所取得的进展；

3.稳定国內消费价格和马幣兑换率，以营造一个有利恢復投资者和消费者信心的环境，从而协助经济復甦。

洁蒂说，在落实资金管制期间，国行积极与出口与进口商联繫，甚至是设立全天候热线与企业和个人进行沟通，以帮助他们瞭解资金管制的用意，並建立起市场的信心。

遭全球领袖谴责

不过，大马落实资金管制遭到全球领袖的谴责，她回想前英国首相布朗、美国经济学家桑默斯（Larry Summers）都是公开谴责大马的一分子，而当年也完全没有任何友国出面相挺，连世界银行和亚洲发展银行也切断与我国的各种合作关係，信贷评估机构更因此大幅下调大马评级，充份体验到世態炎凉的一面。

“回想当年，说得一口流利英文的IMF前主席卡恩在某个场合发表公开演说，但他却偏偏选择用法语致词，我起先还不以为意，结果他就在场內公开批评大马落实资金管制措施犹如鼠辈纷纷弃船逃生（rats jumping from a sinking ship）。”

她说，虽然资金管制措施遭到眾人的批评，但这却给予更坚强的信念来走正確的路，结果事实证明资金管制確实有效，大马经济在短短一年內即呈现V型復甦。

吸取亚洲风暴经验
安渡全球危机

对於资金管制，现代经济界还是对之爭论不休，那么当年做出大胆决策的洁蒂可对此感到后悔？以下的一个小故事就可洞悉她一点也不后悔。

话说风暴过后，诺贝尔经济学家克鲁曼曾在大马演讲时指出大马当时根本无需落实资本控制，也可同步尾隨区域国家走向经济復甦之路。

大马低成本达致復甦

不过，当时在场的洁蒂就起身反驳说，虽然大马经济与週边国家同步復甦，但最重大的差別在於大马以更低的成本达到经济復甦目的。

“这对我们来说，当然非常重要，纳税人为何需要出钱来拯救那些异常重要，但却管理不当的公司？”

洁蒂表示，若非经歷亚洲金融风暴洗礼，並积极对国內金融领域和经济架构进行改革，大马恐无法从全球金融危机中倖存。

“正因为我们吸取亚洲金融风暴经验，过去10年落实金融领域转型、经济结构从出口导向转为內需推动等再平衡动作，才让我们顺利过渡此次全球金融危机。”

她说，自己从1992年英镑危机、欧洲货幣崩盘等经验中学习，瞭解到与私人领域与经济的紧密和重要性，而美国正是基於缺乏对此认知，才会错失挽回局势的大好良机。

“次贷危机爆发，主要是美国並不像我们有机制来保障人民可持续保有他们的房產，结果无力负担房贷者通通失去他们辛苦维持的家园，最终导致环环相扣的金融体系中接连爆破，引起百年一遇的金融海啸。”

市场瞬息万变
確保政策有效性

虽然洁蒂成功领导大马渡过两次金融危机，但她说：“在中行总裁生涯中，每个人都会面对至少一或两次的金融危机，但你从不能鬆懈，並自认自己完成了一次壮举，因为市场环境瞬息万变。”

中行职责——提前预知先发制人

在国行服务超过30年，她坦承，中央银行业务永远是未竟事务（Unfinished Business），因为金融和经济环境快速转变，总有新挑战崛起，中行的职责在於能提前预知和先发制人，才能確保政策的有效性，並走在问题的前端。

此外，金融市场也日趋脆弱，数据显示在过去30年，至少出现了100次金融危机，机构、金融市场、政府、商界乃至大眾对中行抱有重大期望，而他们的期待往往超越中行能力所及。

她说，更重要的是，中行身负重任，中行决策或政策执行將对国家、经济、普罗大眾等带来巨大反响，而每当全球经济危机结束后，市场都会出现对中行职责进行检討的声浪出现，有时中行的职权將遭到削弱、有时他们会对结构安排调整，甚至是稀释中行最珍贵的执法和独立性。

“不过，对中行来说，最必不可缺的是保持效率，以交出成绩来兑现市场对我们的期望。从根本来说，虽然是法律授於中行权限，但其实我们的权力完全来自於人民的信赖。”

保持效率
以成绩兑现期望

她回想起自己在2000年第二次受委为国行总裁时，大马才刚走出亚洲金融风暴阴影，但自己知道若要成为可在未来有所作为的中行，就需要进行大刀阔斧的改革。

洁蒂表示，虽然中行经常进行体制改革，但往往只是阶段性的改革，可能无法应对未来大不同的金融市场版图需要，因此绝对有必要落实改革措施。

“我们看到其他中行如何落实决策及怎样对金融市场和经济发展做出反应、行动和影响，但在进行体制改革的同时，我们也要確保核心业务未受到干扰。”

不过，这谈何容易，企业要进行重组计划，可以聘请顾问或专业人士諮询，並勾勒出未来业务方向蓝图，但对中行来说，这即没有基准（Benchmark），也没有模式可供参考，只能靠自己摸索和开创属於自己的一套哲学，並在不影响日常业务及隔绝妨碍改革的阻力的同时，完成想要达成的探索目標。

她说，在这种旅程中，最重要的是，设定一个自己想要达成的目標，並清楚瞭解自己最想达到的最终目的，这就是推动你持续前进的最大动力来源。

设定目標
推动前进

“你需要强大的动力、坚持不懈的意志、永不放弃的决心，对未来抱有清晰的愿景和坚定的信念是成功的关键因素。更重要的是，你想要为未来建构起怎样的机构，以在未来有所表现。”

洁蒂说，改革计划將令2千700名员工的银行生活之道进行天翻地覆的改变，因此需要团结一致，並与至少100个员工沟通，以釐清国行的首要职责是甚么，想要达到怎样的目標。

“同时，我们也要採纳高科技与世界接轨，並在人才管理上採纳不同的態度，同时国行总裁的进程也出现改变，任何决策不再由单一决策者作出，交由委员会决定，就好比货幣政策委员会，在聆听各方的意见后才做出正確的决策。”

此外，国行瞭解建构未来中行需强化沟通与风险管理努力，因此经常与进出口商、企业等各个社会环节进行接触，以贴近“现实”环境，正是系列的改革成功才让国行顺利通过2007年全球金融风暴的考验，带动国家顺利过渡难关和重新崛起。

领导者须聆听有热忱

拥有全球10A的最佳中行总裁头衔，让洁蒂来分享如何成为有能力的领导者，最適合不过。那么，洁蒂认为成功的领导应该具备那些条件呢？

第一，就是工作热情。作为30年的中行家，洁蒂对事业仍充满热情，因为国行的部份工作可能需要多年才能有所成果，就好比与东盟乃至区域在伊斯兰银行等领域的合作，因此需要拥有持之以恆的热情支撑。

同时，自己也需要扮演好的聆听者角色，听见各方的意见，鼓励组织的多元化，以促进跨部门良好合作，强化决策能力和落实效果

相信第六感

此外，洁蒂也建议领导相信自己的第六感，当你有强大的动力，拥有坚定的信念来保护你的国家和经济，这都是推动你向前进的动力。

“不管別人说甚么，专注在你想要达到的目標。当你身处危机时，场內总是有许多声音围绕，但是身为中央银行家，只要你有伟大的策略、正確的目標，也有能力执行，就应该放胆去做。”

洁蒂以大马在亚洲金融风暴后首次发债故事为例，勉励一眾现在和未来的领袖。话说，大马经济在风暴后走向復甦，但国际信贷评估机构並未调高大马的评级，全球投资者根本无法瞭解大马的真实情况，因此洁蒂等国家领导决定靠自己的声音来向世界讲述大马的故事。

因此，由现任国际贸易及工业部长拿督斯里慕斯达法为首的团队便浩浩荡荡前往彼岸的美国去游说投资者，洁蒂一行7人就挤在一架狭小的飞机里，在短短7天时间跑了至少26场投资者会议，结果在纽约与另一团队会合时，市场却因为美国前联邦储备局主席格林斯潘紧缩货幣政策出现剧烈震盪，令发债计划陷入两难。

她说，因此当时的顾问给予取消、展延和缩小发债规模的3个选项，但大家都清楚取消发债计划將会一无所有，因此便想要諮询首相意见，可是迟迟没有取得回应，因此慕斯达法负起全责，决定缩小发债规模。

“但是，就在我们做出决定后的隔天，我们收到了“取消交易”的指示，但我们已骑虎难下，只好硬著头皮完成交易，却没想到竟是一次非常成功的交易。”

不能向下属展现畏惧

当时，这批债券取得3.5倍超额认购，定价也比预期来得理想，但最重要的是洁蒂等人可以有机会接触那些向来依赖信贷评估机构意见的投资者，並成功取得如此良好的成绩。

因此，她认为，身为领导者，即便遇到危机与困难，也不能在下属面前，展现一丝畏惧，因为如果上司有所畏怯，如何引领好整个团队去打艰难的战役呢？

女性职场能力受重视

身为大马最有权力的女性之一，某个与会者询问洁蒂“女性在职场上到底有何独特特质”，她的一句“女性较少发生衝突”答案引来全场哄堂大笑。

但回归正题，她对越来越多女性受到雇主重用感到高兴，犹记多年前在巴塞尔参加会议时，当时女性的国行总裁除了她，就只有波兰和丹麦两国，但现在叶伦將即將成为美国歷上首位女性联储局主席，而国行现有高级主管中有38%为女性，就突显女性在职场能力越发获得重视。

她说，好的公司应该透过性別多元化来组建团队，以便从综合团队中来提供不同的意见，因此应给予女性机会来强化她们的能力，將可帮助她们进行职场升迁。

“女性通常参与度更多，也有更多的同理心。她们对环境的警觉性更强，也听取週边的意见。更重要的是，她们也较少发生衝突。”

不过，虽为女性，她可完全没有偏袒之心，国行没有为女性提供弹性工作时间等特別政策，但至少確保没有性別歧视的问题出现。

结言：

在短短一个小时內，洁蒂就带领我们走了一趟时光之旅，当眾人肯定以为背后有国行公关操刀，才能完整呈现亚洲金融风暴期间的点点滴滴，但是公关证实这全是洁蒂自行撰写和即兴发挥，足见这场风暴对她的印象之深。

美中不足的是，洁蒂难得分享在国行多年的心路歷程，可是碍於时间问题，我们並无法一一向她提问，更无法得知她在任期中有否做过任何事后感到后悔的决策，总觉得有点到喉不到肺，但愿这名伟大女性日后能出版自传，让我们对她这传奇一生有更多的瞭解。

Kindle Paperwhite vs Nook Touch with GlowLight Review

Kindle Paperwhite and Nook GlowLight Similarities

• Both ebook readers have 6-inch E Ink screens.
• Both come equipped with frontlights to better illuminate the display in lower lighting, and both offer adjustable brightness.
• Same price of $119, although the Kindle comes with ads that cost an extra $20 to remove.
• The homescreen layouts are similar, both offering list view and cover view with the same sort or organizing features and collections.
• Both have 2GB of internal storage (about 1GB usable on the Nook, and 1.25GB on the Kindle).
• Both have touchscreens (different tech, though).
• Similar font choices and sizes and layout adjusting options.
• Access to library ebooks.
• Highlights, notes, search, dictionary look-up, sharing via Facebook and Twitter, generated table of contents, bookmarks, free cloud storage of ebooks.
• Both have WiFi.
• Both connect to their respective stores for content.
• Similar battery life.
• 1 year warranty.

Kindle Paperwhite Advantages

• Supports Amazon’s ebooks and periodicals.
• The lighting is whiter and more uniform, although not perfectly uniform.
• The LED lights are more hidden and thus less distracting.
• The Kindle Paperwhite uses a higher resolution screen than the Nook that makes everything appear sharper and clearer.
• Support for Kindle Games and Kindle Apps.
• The Kindle Paperwhite has a basic web browser for visiting web sites and downloading PRC, MOBI, and TXT ebooks (the GlowLight Nook has a hidden web browser and there’s a reason it was hidden—it’s terrible).
• X-Ray feature analyzes a book’s contents with references from Wikipedia and Shelfari.
• Reading progress feature analyzes reading time and estimates how long it will take you to finish a chapter and the whole book.
• Landscape mode.
• Can set different dictionaries.
• Better PDF support, but neither device is very good in that regard.
• The ads (Special Offers) aren’t all bad; you get coupon deals otherwise unavailable, and sometimes free credit to spend at Amazon.
• Optional free 3G wireless (works for Amazon, Wikipedia, and Shelfari).
• View popular highlights and public notes other readers have left in the book.
• Annotations backup.
• Partial page refresh can be turned on and off.
• Contrast darken feature for PDFs.
• Search Wikipedia from an ebook.
• Borrow 1 free ebook per month for Prime Members.
• Supports multiple languages: English, German, Spanish, French, Italian, Chinese, and Portuguese.
• Highlight words and paragraphs in ebooks to get translations into dozens of languages using Bing Translator.
• Send to Kindle apps and email address makes emailing ebooks and documents to the Kindle Paperwhite easy.
• Can have ebooks from public libraries wirelessly delivered (Nook has to transfer via USB).
• Kindle Panel View for comics and manga (I’ve yet to see this actually work yet, however).
• Optional auto-wake, auto-sleep cover accessory.
• Thinner design.

Nook Touch with GlowLight Advantages

• Supports B&N’s ebooks and periodicals as well as ebooks with Adobe DRM sold from a wide selection of ebook stores.
• Supports the most widely used format: EPUB.
• The Nook has a microSD card slot and supports cards up to 32GB.
• The frontlight can be turned off (the light stays on ever so slightly on the Kindle Paperwhite even at the lowest setting).
• Physical buttons: there’s an "n" button that brings up a menu and turns the GlowLight on and off, and buttons on each side for turning pages.
• Can fast scan through pages by holding the page buttons down.
• The GlowLight Nook Touch can be rooted to run Android apps (the Kindle app even works, among many others; in fact a good share of the advantages above for the Kindle get nullified with a rooted Nook Touch).
• No screensaver ads.
• Comes with USB wall charger.
• From my experience the infrared touchscreen is slightly more responsive than the Kindle Paperwhite’s capacitive screen; both are really good but with the Kindle I find myself having to tap things more than once to get a response occasionally.
• Design is more comfortable to hold.
• LendMe feature makes lending certain ebooks easy, and can be done directly from the Nook Glow itself.
• Set custom screensavers.
• In store customer support.
• Option to set screen timeout by 2, 5, 15, and 60 minutes.
• Turn on and off publisher defaults.
• Free in store reading (read certain ebooks for free at Barnes and Noble stores for up to one hour a day).
• Lighter by half an ounce.

Kindle Paperwhite vs GlowLight Nook Touch: Specs

	Kindle Paperwhite	GlowLight Nook Touch
Screen	6-inch E Ink Pearl with Paperwhite	6-inch E Ink Pearl with GlowLight
Resolution	1024 x 758	800 x 600
Touchscreen	Capacitive	Infrared
Processor	?	800MHz TI OMAP 3
Operating System	Linux	Android
Storage	2GB, no memory card slot	2GB, microSD card slot
Wireless	WiFi, 3G optional	WiFi
Web Browser	Yes	No
Page Buttons	None	Yes, 2 both sides
File Support	AZW, PRC, MOBI, TXT, PDF	EPUB, PDF
Audio	No	No
Battery	Up to 2 months	Up to 2 months
Weight	7.5 ounces (213 grams)	6.95 ounces (197 grams)
Dimensions	6.7″ x 4.6″ x 0.36″	6.5″ x 5″ x 0.47″
MSRP	$119 – $199	$119