RPK about-turn: his SD implicating PM & wife in Altantuya's murder case; Anwar's credibility...

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The fugitive blogger does an about-turn on the opposition leader, criticising him for deceiving the people.

KUALA LUMPUR: Blogger Raja Petra Kamaruddin said Anwar Ibrahim lost his credibility when he failed to fulfil his promise that the opposition pact would form the government on Sept 16, 2008.

Admitting that he was himself deceived, Raja Petra said the opposition leader had given him false hope when the blogger was detained in Kamunting, Perak, under the Internal Security Act (ISA).

“Anwar came to the court because there were two cases going on simultaneously and told me ‘don’t worry, you will be out soon because we are going to form the government on Sept 16′,” he said in an exclusive interview with TV3 group editor Ashraf Abdullah in Perth recently.

The second part of the interview was shown in Buletin Utama TV3 tonight.

Raja Petra said the failure of the opposition grouping to form the government as promised by Anwar had demoralised its supporters.



Raja Petra said the opposition could not even form a shadow cabinet.

“If we cannot even form a shadow cabinet, how can we rule? Who are the cabinet members? The voters want to know,” he said.

He said that opposition leaders who had not shown their ability when outside the government cannot be expected to be capable administrators.

Raja Petra said that it was much easier to be in the opposition because no implementaion was required.

“But when we become the government we have to carry out what we had criticised when we were the opposition,” he said.

Raja Petra said: “It is not so easy… criticising is easy. Putting our words into action, that is more difficult. But if we fail even as an opposition, the people will certainly not trust us as a government.”
Thus, he said, Anwar has lost his credibility and failed as a leader.

Endless crises

Raja Petra said the empty promises that Anwar had been making, the endless crises in the opposition pact and his own personal problems were enough for the people to assess for themselves Anwar’s leadership.

In the opposition pact itself, Anwar was not respected, which gave rise to the question of how would he be able to lead the country, Raja Petra said.

“It seems that he cannot take care of component parties… and the leaders. The excuse he gives is freedom of expression, but this is not true because he acts against anyone who criticises him,” he said.
Raja Petra said the parties in the opposition could not unite because of differing ideologies.

He cited instances of clashes among the opposition partners over policies.

Raja Petra said that Anwar was supposed to be the economic adviser to the Selangor government, but when there was heated disagreement over policy, he kept silent.

After three years in power in several states, the opposition pact can be assessed by the people, and many are disillusioned, Raja Petra said.

“Many people have told me how disillusioned they are… they no longer have confidence in the opposition,” he said.
- Bernama

RPK: I don’t believe PM’s wife was at Altantuya's murder scene

 KUALA LUMPUR: Controversial fugitive blogger Raja Petra Kamaruddin had doubts about his statutory declaration (SD) implicating Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak and wife Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor in the murder of Mongolian Altantuya Shaariibuu.

In a sensational interview over TV3 last night, Raja Petra said he had made the allegations on the belief that the order came from PKR adviser and Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

The Malaysia Today founder and editor said his SD in 2008 which stated he was reliably informed that Rosmah was among those present at the crime scene on Oct 19, 2006 when Altantuya was killed was based on information and demand by several individuals aimed at preventing Najib from becoming prime minister.

Fugitive blogger: A video grab of Raja Petra on TV3’s Nightline news programme this morning.

 

Raja Petra claimed these individuals were connected to several politicians, including Anwar, and that they had put pressure on him to do what he did to prevent Najib from taking over from Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, who relinquished the post in 2009.

“I no longer accept the story. I think it's quite impossible. It can't be that the Prime Minister's wife would want to go to such a place; it's a jungle. I'm imagining, climbing up the hill, going into the jungle at night, at midnight, I think it's quite impossible,” he said in an exclusive interview with TV3 Group Editor Datuk Ashraf Abdullah in Perth, Australia, recently.

The interview was aired through TV3's prime time news Buletin Utama last night.

Raja Petra said in the SD he made on June 18, 2008, he had stated that he received information from several individuals claiming that Rosmah was at the scene where Altantuya was murdered.
“I've never raised any accusation. I didn't say I knew that the prime minister's wife was at the scene at that time.

“And I've mentioned the names of these people during the police investigation,” he said, identifying the individuals as Nik Azmi Nik Daud, John Pang and blogger Din Merican.

He claimed a military intelligence officer known as Col Azmi Zainal Abidin had also given him similar information.

He said that in his meeting with Nik Azmi, he had asked the latter why he was being pressured to make the SD.

Raja Petra added: “He said Pak Lah would relinquish his post, (and) if we don't block Najib, (he) will become the prime minister to succeed Pak Lah.”

Related Stories:

Din: I was not in cahoots with Raja Petra

RPK: Anwar has lost his credibility 

Reports by SIRA HABIBU, RUBEN SARIO, JOSHUA FOONG, IAN MCINTYRE, P. ARUNA and CALVIN YEO

PETALING JAYA: Blogger Raja Petra Kamaruddin claimed Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim lost his credibility as the Opposition leader when he failed to fulfil the promise that the Opposition pact would form the government on Sept 16, 2008.

Raja Petra, who said Anwar was once his close friend, added that he too was deceived by the PKR adviser's false promises when he (Raja Petra) was detained under the Internal Security Act.

“Anwar came to the court because there were two cases going on simultaneously and told me don't worry, you will be out soon because we are going to form the government on Sept 16',” he said in the second part of an interview with TV3 aired last night.

Raja Petra alleged that unfulfilled promises, internal bickering in Pakatan Rakyat and Anwar's personal issues were enough for the people to re-evaluate Anwar's capability to lead the Opposition pack.

He claimed that many had told him that they were disillusioned with Anwar and had lost all confidence in him.

“The moment someone criticises the leadership, action is taken against them,” Raja Petra added.
He added that sometimes there were misunderstandings between PAS, DAP and PKR in the running of Selangor, resulting in contradictions among one another pertaining to policies.

“Anwar kept quiet while the people below him were fighting. This is not good leadership. A leader knows how to control his soldiers,” Raja Petra said.

In the first part of the interview on Wednesday, Raja Petra said he believed that the order for him to write the statutory declaration (SD) implicating the Prime Minister and his wife in the murder of Mongolian Altantuya Shaariibuu in 2008 came from Anwar.

In his latest blog posting yesterday, Raja Petra said he had never implicated Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor in Altantuya's murder, even in the SD.

“Sometimes, we need a storm to get people's attention. Maybe now the police will do what I have been asking them to do in the last three years investigate my SD and ascertain the truth behind what Lt Kol Azmi Zainal Abidin alleged,” he said.

Lt Kol Azmi was a military intelligence officer who Raja Petra claimed was among those who gave him information on the murder.



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British Massacre - Batang Kali Survivors and kin seek inquiry and damages

Putting justice in order: Claimants (from right) Wooi Kum Thai, Loh Ah Choi, Lim Kok and Chong Hyok Keyu holding posters of protest at a press conference here yesterday.

By P. ARUNA aruna@thestar.com.my

Survivors and kin of Batang Kali episode seek inquiry and damages

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KUALA LUMPUR: Survivors and relatives of the Batang Kali massacre are going ahead with their quest for a review of a decision not to have a public inquiry despite pressure from British authorities.

The group is also seeking a review of the decision by the British government in November last year not to make any form of compensation to the families of those killed.

Their lawyer Quek Ngee Meng said the group was facing £100,000 (RM492,280) in legal fees after the British Legal Aid Authority refused them legal aid.



“We were only informed that our application for legal aid had been rejected on March 18,” said Quek, adding that the group’s solicitors in London submitted a final appeal to the Special Costs Control Review Panel for legal aid yesterday.

He said they were also facing pressure from the British government solicitor who had offered to dismiss the fees if they stopped pursuing the case.

The group filed their claim for review at the High Court of Justice Administrative Court in Britain on Feb 25.

Twenty-four unarmed villagers were killed by British troops in 1948 during the communist insurgency in then Malaya in an incident described by the colonial authorities “as suspected guerillas fleeing the scene”.

The founder of the Action Committee Condemning the Batang Kali Massacre, Tan Kai Hee, said the group had evidence of cover-up and political interference by the British authorities into the case’s investigation and prosecution.

He said soldiers involved in the killing had confessed that they were pressured into giving false statements on the incident.

A report by the Guardian newspaper in Britain on Saturday also revealed that the British government had pressured Malaysian authorities into stopping a police investigation.

China's Huawei, Motorola settle legal dispute over technology, secrets

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China's Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. and Motorola Solutions Inc. have agreed to settle a legal dispute over technology secrets, paving the way for Motorola to complete the sale of its unit to Nokia Siemens Networks (NSN).

Huawei and Motorola Solutions will drop suits against each other, with Motorola agreeing to pay an unspecified technology transfer fee to Huawei as part of the settlement, the two companies said in a joint statement on Wednesday.

According to the agreement, Huawei, China's largest telecommunications equipment manufacturer, will allow Motorola Solutions to transfer its commercial agreements with Huawei to NSN for a fee. NSN can receive and use confidential Huawei information on service networks Motorola has deployed.

Huawei filed a lawsuit against Motorola and NSN in January, claiming that Motorola had not provided any assurances it would prevent disclosures about Huawei technology to NSN. Motorola Solutions had sought an agreement to help finalize the sale to NSN, which was announced in July 2010.



Motorola, itself, sued Huawei in July of last year, alleging theft of trade secrets via former Motorola employees to Huawei in 2008.

"We regret that these disputes have occurred between our two companies. Motorola Solutions values the long-standing relationship we have had with Huawei," Greg Brown, President & CEO of Motorola Solutions, said in the statement.

In 2000, Motorola partnered with Huawei, enabling Motorola to resell certain Huawei products under the Motorola name. Over the next 10 years, Motorola purchased 880 million U.S. dollars in technology from Huawei that covered core networks and wireless access networks.

"Huawei acted properly and above board at all times and developed its products independently and without the use of any Motorola trade secrets," said Guo Ping, Vice Chairman of the Board and Executive Vice President of Huawei, in the statement.

"This is a great victory for Chinese enterprises over intellectual property rights," said Chen Jinqiao, secretary-general of a telecommunications experts panel with the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.

The end of all pending litigation between Huawei and Motorola could help end unfair speculation over Huawei's business ethics and improve its ties with the United States, Chen said.

Huawei once claimed that a series of unproven allegations and misperceptions had hurt its ability to do business in the United States. It publicly asked the United States to launch a formal investigation into its business in an attempt to clear its name.

The unusual call followed the outcome of a recent U.S. government foreign investment review that forced Huawei to sell assets it bought from 3Leaf, a small U.S. company. Three years ago, Huawei had to drop a larger proposed investment in 3Com under similar pressure.


Source: Xinhua

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Berners-Lee calls for higher purpose of Web

by Martin LaMonic

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Tim Berners-Lee at MIT.

(Credit: Martin LaMonica/CNET)

CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--Tim Berners-Lee, who invented the underpinnings of the World Wide Web, isn't just concerned about getting browsers on more mobile devices. Architects of the Web need to consider how it will affect all humanity as it evolves.

Berners-Lee was one of the speakers here this afternoon at Computation and the Transformation of Practically Everything, a conference organized by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

 

In his talk, Berners-Lee reprised his role in writing the protocols now used on the Web and how a few chance encounters led to the World Wide Web Consortium being first located at MIT. Looking ahead, he said that the W3C, which manages the development of technical Web standards, needs to adapt to the "ridiculous" number of mobile devices, including mobile phones and tablets.

But even as engineers hammer out the next version of HTML, they have a duty to fulfill a weighty social purpose of the Web, he said. As the way that people connect in society, the Web supports justice, government transparency, and human rights to freedom, he said.



"The challenge before us is getting everyone involved. At the same time that we're a technology consortium, it's incredibly important to push things" in how the Web affects society and culture," he said. "It's not only just about making a cooler device or a cooler Web site. One thing that's changed about the Web is that it's so big and so ubiquitous."

The Web should serve to connect more people and bridge cultural gaps and misunderstandings among people, Berners-Lee said.

One tablet per child

Berners-Lee was part of the lineup of people who spoke on the topic of "computing for everyone" today, which included Nicholas Negroponte, the founder of the MIT Media Lab and chairman of One Laptop Per Child. 

 

Negroponte said that the inexpensive laptops made by One Laptop Per Child have been distributed to 2.4 million people in 40 countries, making an "extraordinary impact" on people in poor countries. As an example, he showed a photo of young child in Peru using a laptop to teach his grandfather how to ready and write, which raises the child self-esteem and raises his profile in the community.

He said the nonprofit will release engineering diagrams for a $75 tablet although it's not yet clear whether it will make the device itself. Multitasking will be a feature because they will be used by students who quickly switch between different tasks, such as playing chess and reading books.

Because OLPC is a nonprofit with a social mission, he said he regretted the negative press it has received. When asked what he would do differently, he said "I might not have pissed on Microsoft and Intel so hard. I used to think it was a badge of honor...If you put me back five years, I would have done it more gracefully."

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Japan nuclear crisis different from Chernobyl, IAEA says; China urges Tokyo to provide prompt updates on crisis

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IAEA says Japan crisis different from Chernobyl

VIENNA - The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said on Tuesday that although Japan has raised the severity level of the accident at the Fukushima No 1 plant, the crisis is quite different from the 1986 Chernobyl accident.

"The mechanics of the accidents are totally different," deputy head of IAEA Denis Flory told the press.

Related readings: Japan raises nuclear crisis to same level as Chernobyl Radiation leakage in Japan may exceed Chernobyl  Japan mulls spinning off part of nuclear operator Japan sets to extend nuclear evacuation zone

While Chernobyl accident involves explosion at the reactor core, and the resulting fire and vapors drove a large quantity of radioactive material into the air and surrounding areas, explosions at Fukushima No 1 plant happened outside the pressure vessel which contains the reactor core, Flory said.

He noted that the Japanese nuclear safety authority has estimated that the amount of radioactive material released from the Fukushima No 1 plant to the atmosphere is approximately 10 percent of the Chernobyl accident.

Flory also confirmed that Japanese authorities formally notified the IAEA that the accident is now rated as a level 7, the most serious on an international scale, from the previous 5.

Listed as "Major Accident" on the International Nuclear and Radiological Event Scale, Level 7 is used to describe an event comprising "A major release of radioactive material with widespread health and environmental effects requiring implementation of planned and extended countermeasures," according to an IAEA statement.

On a positive note, Flory said although situation remains very serious, "there are early signs of recovery in some functions such as electrical power and instrumentation.

Wen urges Tokyo to provide prompt updates on crisis

BEIJING / TOKYO - Premier Wen Jiabao urged Japan on Tuesday to provide prompt information on the nuclear crisis and quickly implement preventive measures to alleviate the consequences on neighboring countries during a phone conversation with Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan

A man is tested for radiation exposure in Koriyama, Fukushima prefecture, northern Japan, on Tuesday. Koriyama is located about 70 kilometers from the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant. Japan expanded the evacuation zone around the nuclear plant on Monday because of high radiation levels. [Photo/Agencies]

The conversation took place after Japan raised the crisis level, from 5 to 7, at its crippled nuclear plant on Tuesday, a severity on par with the 1986 Chernobyl disaster.

Level 7 is the highest rank set by the International Nuclear Event Scale, which means huge quantities of radiation have contaminated a wide area.

Related readings:  Japan ups nuke crisis rating to highest level  Japan mulls spinning off part of nuclear operator  Radiation leakage in Japan may exceed Chernobyl  Japan to raise nuclear severity level to maximum  Japan to evacuate locals outside 20-km radius of nuke plant

Wen called for Japan to strictly adhere to related international laws, take preventive measures, and promptly and accurately inform China on the latest updates. 

He also said China is willing to strengthen cooperation in disaster relief and post-disaster reconstruction with Japan, adding that he wanted to "promote healthy and stable Sino-Japanese relations".

Kan said that, on behalf of the Japanese government and people, he expressed his sincere gratitude to China for immediately sending an international rescue team and offers of aid to the tsunami-devastated area.

He also expressed his gratitude to President Hu Jintao for paying a condolence visit to the Japanese embassy in Beijing, Xinhua reported.

While expressing regret for the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, Kan said Japan would promptly provide accurate information to the international community, including China, on the nuclear crisis.

The Japanese nuclear regulator told reporters on Tuesday that the raising of the severity rating from level 5 to 7 was based on new assessments of radiation leaks from the plant and that radioactive substances could affect human health and the environment.

But the agency emphasized that while the new ranking signified the radiation volume was equal to level 7, it was only one-tenth of the contamination released from Chernobyl into the atmosphere.

"Level 7 does not necessarily represent the extent of the damage, but indicates the amount of radiation released," Chen Zhuzhou, a researcher at the science and technology committee of the China National Nuclear Corporation, told China Daily.

Japan's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency (NISA) also stressed the difference between Chernobyl and Fukushima.

NISA spokesman Hidehiko Nishiyama said the acute radiation exposure at Chernobyl killed 29 people in contrast to Fukushima, where no fatal casualties were reported. He added that the reactors in the Fukushima plant retained their shape and were damaged by hydrogen explosions, unlike Chernobyl where the nuclear reactor itself exploded.

But Edano also reassured reporters that, so far, there was no "direct" damage to human health.

Youhei Hasegawa, a senior official at Japan's Meteorological Agency, said on Tuesday afternoon that a magnitude 6.3 quake which jolted northeastern Japan was one of the aftershocks. Parts of northeastern Japan were getting seismically active and more aftershocks were likely.


China Daily - Agencies 
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Penang expects to create 27,000 new job opportunities

Career advancement: Visitors checking out the booths at the 9th Penang Career & Postgraduate Expo 2011 at the Penang International Sports Arena

 By KOW KWAN YEE  kowky@thestar.com.my

Penang foresees opportunities opening with record RM12.2 billion FDI inflows
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PENANG expects to create 27,000 new job opportunities this year after the state managed to attract a record of RM12.238bil worth of foreign direct investments (FDI) last year.

State Local Government and Traffic Management Committee chairman Chow Kon Yeow said the state government expected the new job opportunities would flow in together with the inflow of foreign capital.

The jobs would be mostly be located in the electronics and electrical sector (E & E), Chow said after opening the Ninth Penang Career and Postgraduate Jobs Expo on Saturday.

He said Penang was also facing an acute shortage of electronic engineers and this needed to be addressed fast.

Career advancement: Visitors checking out the booths at the 9th Penang Career & Postgraduate Expo 2011 at the Penang International Sports Arena

On the expo, Chow said it was considered timely as it could help create greater and quality employment prospects which would further develop Penang’s economy.

Also, an international electronic manufacturing company from Shanghai, China, had set up a booth at the expo to source for Malaysian workers.

It was one of three foreign firms which were offering employment opportunities.


Hi-P International Co Ltd’s human resources supervisor Tina Yao said many foreign companies valued Malaysian workers for their skills and good conduct.

Yao said that last year was the first time that her company took part in the expo and it had recruited many Malaysians.

“This is why the company decided to join the expo for the second time, to recruit more engineers, particularly in the E & E sector,” she said.

Yao said most of the jobs offered by Hi-P were for managerial-level posts and in the research and development field.

“Most of the posts offered were based in Shanghai, while some are in Suzhou,” she said, adding that the company had representative offices in Singapore, Thailand, China, the United States, Poland and Mexico.

“We are willing to pay a salary of 30% more than the local market pricing,” she added.

The other two foreign companies were from Singapore and they were seeking for security officers and customer service personnel.

Organised by PenExpo Events Sdn Bhd, the event featured some 3,000 vacancies offered by over 50 employers with more than 70 booths set up including from the manufacturing sector and universities.

It’s just another matter of choice

Comment by BARADAN KUPPUSAMY

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The importance of the English Language has become a hot topic and issues discussed before are coming to the forefront again.

AT an Indian community leaders meeting in 2009, it was passionately argued why Science and Mathematics should be taught in Tamil and not English, as was the case in our schools from 2003 until repealed six years later.

Midway, a participant stood up and brought the heated debate to a standstill. “Why are you all debating in English? Speak in Tamil!” she said.

Very few among the debaters could articulate as confidently in Tamil, which goes to show that their mastery of English had propelled them in their jobs, career and life to the extent that many were successful.

Despite strong opposition from mainly parents, the Government reversed the “teaching Science and Maths in English” policy, better known as PPSMI, in favour of teaching in the pupil’s mother tongue in primary and Bahasa Malaysia in secondary schools.

Lately there is a move back towards English, not totally, but in a more intelligent way by providing alternatives for parents who want their children to be taught the subjects in English.

Schools tailored to teach in English are being considered to cater for parents who want it.

Providing alternatives is a key component of a fair, just and democratic education system because it gives choices for parents.

Most parents want their children to get a modern education that arms them to face and survive in a tough competitive world.

Parents are upset those choices and flexibilities are currently missing.

They say today’s globalised world is ruled by English, the language that the English colonial masters had spread across the world first through conquest and later through trade, economic development and promotion of education.

For long, education in English was elitist and enjoyed by the political elite, but later it spread to the masses through missionary schools and government support for a mass schooling system.


The process took several centuries and finally an English-speaking world took shape.

As the diverse world continued to globalise, it needed a common language and English became that language, but former colonies now independent were left grappling over the medium of instruction in their school system – whether to continue with the inherited English language or switch to the native language.

At one time or other, across Asia, Africa and the Middle East, the issue had raged.

Societies had to variously adapt to meet demands for native language as an instruction medium and the need to master English for self-advancement and for social and economic advancement.

Some African societies stuck with English and eventually became English proficient and have produced great scholars, novelists and poets whose influence goes beyond their native societies because of their mastery of the language.

A classic example is the Nigerian master Chinua Achebe.

This is not to say that non-English speaking societies have not produced equally great thinkers.

A good example is Egypt’s Naguib Mahfouz, who wrote in Arabic to win the 1988 Nobel prize for literature.

Some societies have found ingenious ways to promote their native language and English, like in Hong Kong where primary education is in Mandarin but English plays a major part in secondary education.

Ours have been a brave exercise in reversing the English medium to fully Bahasa Malaysia.

While English is taught, its mastery has been seriously hampered, especially among students from working-class families.

Numerous studies shows that our graduates are leaving colleges and universities without a grasp of English and facing problems finding jobs.

In 2003 the Government sought to reverse the damage and improve the sciences by teaching science and mathematics in English, a programme known as PPSMI.

Millions of ringgit were spent and students and teachers pressed into the scheme, with manuals being produced and high technology brought into play.

PPSMI was heavily criticised by many who wanted the subjects taught in the mother tongue, i.e. Bahasa Malaysia, Mandarin and Tamil, instead of English.

The mother tongue proponents, who were usually at odds with each other, were united against the “return of English”.

In 2009 the decision was made to revert the teaching of the two subjects to Bahasa Malaysia in national schools and mother tongue languages in national-type schools from 2012.

However, parents have been consistently arguing otherwise and even took to demonstrating to make the point that instruction in English is beneficial and that they should be heard and their needs satisfied.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, in a Facebook encounter with fans last week, was asked about PPSMI.

He responded by saying that a system, where some schools can teach the subjects in English while others teach in the mother tongue, was being studied.

While uniformity and national integration are the key elements of our education system, the world view has changed to seeing diversity and pluralism as key characteristics of an effective education system.

Parents know this more than anybody else and that’s why they have been pressing for an English alternative for those who want it – and there are many.