Katerina Hotel, SOMEONE MIGHT WATCHING U

The Straits Times - ROOM 1301 of Katerina Hotel in Batu Pahat (Click for it's website) is where former Malaysian Health Minister Chua Soi Lek was caught having sex with a woman friend, forcing him to quit all his political posts on Wednesday.

It is also his favourite room whenever he checked into the plush, 15-storey hotel, which has 188 rooms.

Since the video sex scandal broke after after two lengthy DVDs hit the streets showing Dr Chua engaging in sexual acts with an unidentified woman, a number of people have called the hotel to book the premier suite, which costs RM800 a night.

There are nine premier suites in the hotel, which the hotel says are reserved for VIPs. Johor police have identified the woman, who is said to be in her 30s and owns two clothing stores. She has fled to China to take temporary cover from the hounding journalists since the DVDs were made public.

Dr Chua, 61, who quit on Wednesday, a day after he shocked the nation by admitting he was the man in a widely circulated sex video, said the woman is a 'personal friend.'

At a press conference on Wednesday, Dr Chua said he was caught because he made the mistake of going 'to the same hotel and the same room' for his trysts with the woman.

'If you go to a hotel, you might think that this is just any other hotel room,' he said.

'But my biggest mistake was to go to the same hotel and the same room, thinking that it would be more convenient.'

The Malaysian Association of Hotels on Thursday reminded all hotels that it is not allowed to place CCTVs in any hotel room.

'Any CCTV camera placed in a room will be intruding on the privacy of the hotel guest and is a violation of an individual?s privacy,' Mr Sarjit Singh, the association executive director was quoted as saying by The Star on Friday.

'CCTVs are allowed only in public areas like the lobby and corridors.'