Anwar’s opposition holds rally as Malaysian turmoil deepens [with Editor's Comments]

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim told some 20,000 supporters at an anti-inflation rally on Sunday that the government should quit over a recent fuel price hike.

The crowd chanted “PM resign” as Anwar criticised Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi for last month’s 41 percent increase in the cost of petrol which has deepened his unpopularity after disastrous March general elections.

Anwar, who is fighting new accusations of sodomy – the same charge that saw him jailed a decade ago – has said he is poised to seize power with the help of defecting lawmakers from the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition.

“The people are desperate but the government is happy,” he told the rally. “If oil prices cannot be reduced, the BN government should step down.”

The marathon protest was held at a stadium in the suburbs of Kuala Lumpur despite a police ban and amid deepening political turmoil with Anwar and deputy premier Najib Razak trading serious allegations against each other.

“I vow we will fight and struggle until the Pakatan Rakyat becomes the next government of Malaysia,” Anwar said, referring to his three-party opposition alliance.

“But believe me, what was alleged 10 years ago is being repeated with malice and slander, and I will not accept this but will fight it to the end.”

Despite the fears of a crackdown, security was light and the only ruckus came when the lead singer of a rock band performing on stage exposed his backside in a political gesture — enraging the conservative crowd.

The stadium was ablaze with demonstrators wearing T-shirts in red, the colour of the protest movement. Many sported bandanas with the slogan “No Price Hike” as they watched performances and listened to speeches.

“The people are suffering and I don’t know how long we can go on like this,” said 40-year-old housewife P. Kalaiselvi, who came with her husband and four daughters.

“We would like the government to hear our problems and to help us but they are only helping themselves.”

The fuel price hike has heaped pressure on Abdullah after the March polls which handed the opposition its best ever result – a third of parliamentary seats and control of five states.

He has refused calls to quit and hand over to his heir apparent Najib, who is now engaged in a brawl with Anwar that could decide who is the next leader of Malaysia.

A week ago an aide to Anwar filed a police report claiming that the 60-year-old opposition leader had sodomised him, causing Anwar to flee to the Turkish embassy, saying he feared for his life.

The claims threatened his stunning political comeback, staged after he was sacked as deputy premier in 1998 and jailed on sodomy and corruption charges he said were orchestrated by the government.

In the next sensational turn of events, a private investigator made allegations linking Najib to a Mongolian woman murdered in 2006. A close friend of Najib is on trial for abetting the murder.

At a press conference organised by Anwar, Balasubramaniam Perumal released a sworn statement saying he had given police detailed information about 28-year-old Altantuya Shaariibuu which was never raised during the trial.

However, a day later, he retracted the claims linking Najib to Altantuya, saying he made them under duress. Najib has angrily denied even meeting with the murdered woman.

Balasubramanian’s nephew on Saturday filed a missing person’s report, saying he and his family had disappeared.

Criminal Investigation Department director Bakri Zinin said Malaysian police had enlisted the help of Interpol and authorities in neighbouring countries to help locate the investigator. – AFP/de

Web savvy ways to slash your grocery bill

Friday June 13, 10:09 am ET
By Jessica Dickler, CNNMoney.com staff writer

Nearly $5 for a box of cereal is outrageous – and it’s probably only going to get worse. But there’s a crop of new online resources that can help take the sticker shock out of food shopping.

The average U.S. household spent $3,240 on groceries last year, according to the American Express Everyday Spending index, and prices have risen substantially since then.

Of course, clipping coupons can help, but it’s time consuming and tedious. The good news is that now there are Web sites that can help make saving much easier.

Strategic shopping

Stephanie Nelson, a mother of two, says cutting your grocery bill in half is easy. She launched couponmom.com seven years ago to show other shoppers what weekly sales and savings are available – saving them time, and of course, money.

The Web site’s database tracks what’s on sale at your local grocery store and matches it with what coupons are available.

For example, New Jersey shoppers can use a $1 coupon in the RedPlum circular when All brand laundry detergent goes on sale at Pathmark, and save 50% off the retail price.

Nelson says that shoppers who match up weekly specials with coupons from newspaper circulars can easily take 50% off their entire bill, if not more. That’s what she calls “strategic shopping.” And it’s catching on, Nelson has seen a huge uptick in interest in her site, which lists grocery bargains at 41 retailers in 50 states. Since January, traffic has tripled, she said.

“You can’t do much about your mortgage payment or car payment,” Nelson said. “Grocery shopping is where you have the most opportunity to save money.”

Virtual coupon clipping

If sifting through the newspaper for savings is not your bag, more stores are offering electronic coupons, which can be printed at home, or loaded right on to your store loyalty card.

Kroger customers can go to Shortcuts.com, enter their loyalty card information, click on coupons they want, and have the savings automatically applied to their bill at checkout.

And Shortcuts.com is currently in discussions with other national chains to roll out similar programs soon.

Other sites, such as coupons.com and eversave.com, offer a slew of printable coupons as well as coupon codes that can be used for online shopping.

Buy online

Shopping online is another way to score great deals on groceries. Although the prices aren’t always better, comparison shopping is definitely easier. And the savings of time – and gas – can be substantial.

New online grocery and delivery services are emerging across the country, such as FreshDirect, Peapod and SimonDelivers, and sell everything from fresh produce to frozen dinners.

Amazon.com’s grocery service, which launched two years ago, sells nonperishable items in bulk (no milk, fresh meat, or produce) at relatively low cost.

A pack of four boxes of Kellogg’s Mini-Wheats is $17.60 on Amazon, 10% less per unit than on the bulk shopping site buythecase.net, and 18% lower than the per-unit price on Walgreens.com.

On top of that, Amazon orders over $25 qualify for free shipping, and additional savings are available when shoppers sign up to have deliveries made regularly.

The e-tailer manages to keep per-unit costs down by selling items in larger pack sizes or manufacturer’s cases, which cuts the cost of handling and packaging, according to Tom Furphy, vice president of consumables.

You may have to clean out your pantry to make room for all that sugar-coated cereal, but the savings will be sweet.