Have been receiving many queries on this issue of late from Singapore drivers traveling in to Johor Bahru.
At both Johor Bahru checkpoints (Linkedua and Sultan Iskandar Sultan Ismail CIQ), just after you have stamped your passport for entry into Johor Bahru, Malaysia, there will be barrier immediately ahead of you where you have to scan your Touch ‘n Go. Once the toll fee is deducted from the Touch ‘n Go, the barrier will lift up and you can then proceed to drive your car into Johor Bahru. If you do not scan your Touch ‘n Go card, the barrier will not lift up and you cannot proceed further until this toll fee is deducted.
Things are done very differently at both Woodlands and Tuas Checkpoint.
Malaysia's Touch 'n Go and Singapore's Cashcard
At both Singapore checkpoints, the barrier is lifted manually by the custom officer processing your passport. While the Singapore custom officer is busy scanning your passport, you are expected to slot your cashcard into the cashcard reader for the toll fee to be deducted. There are occasions when (as feedback by many of our readers), if you had forgotten to slot in your cashcard for the toll fee to be deducted, the barrier will still be lifted as it is done manually by the custom officer. Typically, the custom officers do not check if you had paid the toll fee, nor is there any system that seems to be in place to perform the check.
Thus, there have been cases of “abuse” by Singapore drivers not slotting in their cashcard to pay the toll fee upon exit from Singapore customs. There has not been any strict enforcement on this as well.
One of the few things that Singapore still lag behind Malaysia.
It remains to be seem if the Immigration and Checkpoint Authority of Singapore (ICA) will do anything to enforce and police this behaviour but a word of advise to Singapore drivers – somewhere in the statutes/acts that is passed by either the LTA, ICA and Singapore Customs, you will still be liability for a fine or penalty if you are caught.
Any perhaps receive a double whammy if you did not top up your petrol tank to 3/4 at the same time.
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Besides the Johor Zoo, there is yet another Zoo located right in Johor Bahru. And this is perhaps the more educational zoo, especially for your kids.
Located within Danga Bay, the Danga Bay Petting Zoo (mini-zoo) feature over 180 species of animals and birds. What makes the zoo really stands out is on how personal you can get to the animals. You get to:
1. PET on rabbits, monkeys, parrots.
2. FEED the deer and pheasants.
3. TOUCH the lion, tiger and black bears.
Over 20,000 visitors has visited Danga Bay Petting Zoo since its opening in 2007.
Only qualms is the living conditions for some of the animals in the zoo – for example, there has been feedback that the elephant has been chained with no way to sit/rest/lie down. Hopefully, something can be done by the relevant authorities to improve the living conditions at the zoo.
Seeing a lion eye to eye, at Danga Bay Petting Zoo
Danga Bay Petting Zoo, Johor Bahru
See some of the videos below to believe it!
Opening Hours: Open daily from 3pm to midnight Entrance Fees: RM$10/adult and RM$5/child. Live show starts at 8.30pm and feature mainly 2 tigers parading within a cage with intimidating roars. Getting There: You can get to the Danga Bay Petting Zoo via a cab from Johor Bahru CIQ for just RM$12. It takes about 10 minutes drive from the CIQ.
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You may finally be able to bet on World Cup matches in Malaysia, legally.
This will happen after all the fiasco on soccer betting in Malaysia is finalised and all politicians are consistent in any news announcement.
The long and short of it
Ascot Sports Sdn Bhd is a company 70% owned by Sri Vincent Tan. Tan had first obtained the football betting licence way back in 1987 but due to less than ideal conditions, he “asked the government to take it back”. Tan, however, retains the right of first refusal if the government decided to re-issue the licence in future. This means that the soccer/ football betting license will be awarded to him first, if he choose to accept it in future.
On 12th May 2010, Berjaya Corp issued a filing that Ascot Sports Sdn Bhd had been re-issued the prized football/ soccer betting license which was returned on 1987. Why did Berjaya Corp make the announcement on Ascot Sports Sdn Bhd? Because Berjaya Corp has an intention to buy over all 70% of Ascot Sports Sdn Bhd held by Vincent Tan, worth some RM$525 million.
Berjaya Corp’s CEO and Chairman is also Vincent Tan.
Berjaya Corp Logo
And then the fiasco started.
12th May 2010 – Berjaya Corp share prices started to rise, after filing is made that “the Minister of Finance (Malaysia) had given its approval for the re-issuance to Ascot of the licence to carry out sports betting operations upon certain terms and conditions”
6th Jun 2010 – Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng (Penang) said the state government would deny Ascot Sports Sdn Bhd, which has been given a sports gaming licence, to carry out such betting activities in the state. In addition, all three Pakatan Rakyat (PKR) states of Selangor, Penang and Kedah have banned sports betting – indicating that they will revoke the premises licence of betting outlets that collect sports bets.
7th Jun 2010 – Prime Minister Najib told Parliament that the government is still discussing the licensing terms and conditions for the sports betting license while getting feedback from various parties. It is consideringissuing the licence to help reduce illegal betting activities in the country. Prime Minister Najib is also the Finance Minister, whose ministry awards any football betting license.
This means that the license had not been issued – against the filing made by Berjaya Corp.
8th Jun 2010 – Berjaya Corp shares dropped 6.2 per cent, hitting a 3 month low.
11th Jun 2010 – Berjaya Corp clarified that Ascot Sports Sdn Bhd had received the approval from the Finance Minister to conduct sports betting operations. ???!!!!!
Similar to the fiasco on petrol ban to Singapore vehicles, the media hoo haha and confusion over remarks made by various parties shows a poorly coordinated sequence of media release. It seems like a license had indeed been awarded but due to the backlash of reaction from the public (Muslims are prohibited from gambling, and 60% of the population in Malaysia are Muslims), the government had retracted and highlighted that they had not awarded the license and would take the prudent approach to first “source for feedback from various quarters for the proposal to license bookmaking in Malaysia, with the aim of reducing and subsequently eradicating illegal gambling”.
This led to a direct query in Malaysia Parliament:
Opposition Parti Keadilan Rakyat MP Tian Chua asked if it was the government or Mr Tan who has been misleading the public. “This reply is very shocking because for the past one week, Vincent speaks as if he has the licence. So who is misleading the public?” he told reporters during a press conference in Parliament.
In a move to alleviate some tensions, Mr Vincent Tan said on Saturday that some RM525 million which he is earning from the sale of Ascot Sports to his own conglomerate Berjaya Corp Berhad would be donated to his own foundation that provides scholarships and interest-free loans to poor students.
Now, who is betting against that?
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