Trump, longtime admirer of Putin, says aborted mutiny 'somewhat weakened' Russian leader

Former US president Donald Trump, a longtime admirer of Russian President Vladimir Putin, said on Thursday Putin has been "somewhat weakened" by an aborted mutiny and that now is the time for the US to try to broker a negotiated peace settlement between Russia and Ukraine.
"I want people to stop dying over this ridiculous war," Trump told Reuters in a telephone interview.
Speaking expansively about foreign policy, the front-runner in opinion polls for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination also said China should be given a 48-hour deadline to get out of what sources familiar with the matter say is a Chinese spy capability on the island of Cuba 145km off the US coast.
On Ukraine, Trump did not rule out that the Kyiv government might have to concede some territory to Russia in order to stop the war, which began with Russian forces invading Ukraine 16 months ago. He said everything would be "subject to negotiation", if he were president, but that Ukrainians who have waged a vigorous fight to defend their land have "earned a lot of credit."
"I think they would be entitled to keep much of what they've earned and I think that Russia likewise would agree to that. You need the right mediator, or negotiator, and we don't have that right now," he said.
US President Joe Biden and Nato allies want Russia out of territory it has seized in eastern Ukraine. Ukraine has launched a counteroffensive that has made small gains in driving out Russian forces.
Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky last year proposed a 10-point peace plan, which calls on Russia to withdraw all of its troops.
"I think the biggest thing that the US should be doing right now is making peace - getting Russia and Ukraine together and making peace. You can do it," Trump said. "This is the time to do it, to get the two parties together to force peace."
As president, Trump developed friendly relations with Putin, who Biden said on Wednesday has "become a bit of pariah around the world" for invading Ukraine.
Trump said Putin had been damaged by an uprising by the Russian mercenary force, the Wagner Group, and its leader Yevgeny Prigozhin, last weekend.
"You could say that he's (Putin) still there, he's still strong, but he certainly has been I would say somewhat weakened at least in the minds of a lot of people," he said.
If Putin were no longer in power, however, "you don't know what the alternative is. It could be better, but it could be far worse," Trump said.
As for war crime charges levied against Putin by the International Criminal Court last March, Trump said Putin's fate should be discussed when the war is over "because right now if you bring that topic up you'll never make peace, you'll never make a settlement."
Trump was adamantly opposed to China's spy base on Cuba and said if Beijing refused to accept his 48-hour demand for shutting it down, a Trump administration would impose new tariffs on Chinese goods.
As president, Trump adopted a tougher stance on China while claiming a good relationship with Chinese President Xi Jinping that soured over the coronavirus pandemic.
"I'd give them 48 hours to get out. And if they didn't get out, I'd charge them a 100% tariff on everything they sell to the US, and they'd be gone within two days. They'd be gone within one hour," Trump said.
Trump was mum on whether the US would support Taiwan militarily if China invaded the self-ruled island that Beijing claims as its own.
"I don't talk about that. And the reason I don't is because it would hurt my negotiating position," he said. "All I can tell you is for four years, there was no threat. And it wouldn't happen if I were president."


Lewandowski misses penalty as Poland draw 0-0 with Mexico

Poland and Mexico played out an entertaining 0-0 draw in their opening Word Cup Group C game on Tuesday, with Polish skipper Robert Lewandowski failing to break his tournament duck when his second-half penalty was saved at Stadium 974.
Lewandowski earned the penalty after a VAR check 11 minutes into the second half when Hector Moreno tugged at his shirt. However, the striker, who has never scored at the World Cup, saw his shot saved by Guillermo Ochoa.
"Today I feel sorry for Robert, because I know how much he wanted to score at the World Cup," Poland coach Czeslaw Michniewicz said.
"So far he has not succeeded, but I hope that in the next opportunities that lie ahead of him he will convert them into goals."
The result leaves Saudi Arabia as surprise group leaders following their stunning 2-1 upset of Argentina, one of the pre-tournament favourites, earlier on Tuesday.
Temporary arena
In a temporary arena built using 974 recycled shipping containers that overlooks the Arabian Gulf, a sea of Mexico fans in green outnumbered their Poland counterparts and made their presence felt in the 40,000-capacity venue.
The Mexicans gave a stirring rendition of their national anthem that reduced winger Alexis Vega, who is playing at his first World Cup, to tears.
Right after kickoff the fans raised the volume with a Mexican wave that swept through the stands while the unique metal structure of the stadium reverberated as they bounced up and down with chants of "Mexico, Mexico!"
A flowing game of few fouls but fewer chances came to life around the half-hour mark when Vega saw his header fly wide before Jesus Gallardo was denied with a last-man tackle when he had an open goal at his mercy two minutes later.
Mexico had the bulk of possession but without Raul Jimenez spearheading the attack, Henry Martin struggled to get on the end of chances in the box.
At the other end, Poland failed to get Lewandowski involved as the Barcelona striker - who has scored 18 goals for the Spanish club this season - received little service. Both keepers finished the first half without having to make a save.
As Poland struggled to impose themselves, the Mexican fans chanted "Ole" for every pass their team completed.
With Poland losing the midfield battle, coach Czeslaw Michniewicz made a halftime substitution by hauling off Nicola Zalewski and bringing on central midfielder Krystian Bielik, which allowed Piotr Zielinski to play in an advanced role.
The tactical change seemed to work initially as Poland created chances and eventually won the penalty as Moreno desperately tried to prevent Lewandowski from taking a free shoton goal.
After a lengthy VAR check, Lewandowski stepped up to take the penalty and as both sets of fans in the stadium held their breath, he shot low but Ochoa dived to his left to deny the Pole before his team mates cleared the danger.
'Watch his videos'
Ochoa, who forged his reputation as a reliable shot-stopper who ups his game at World Cup tournaments, was fired up after the save while the Mexican fans jeered as Lewandowski held his head with both hands.
"We worked on that (watching Lewandowski videos) with the goalkeeper coach for a month," a smiling Ochoa said.
"It's always difficult to watch his penalty videos, you watch more than 15-20 penalties, so you never know which side to choose. In the end I'm happy to save the penalty, he's a great striker."
Not to be outdone by Ochoa's brilliance, Polish keeper Wojciech Szczesny underlined his credentials moments later when he reacted quickly to change direction and keep out Martin's glancing header.
Mexico coach Gerardo Martino eventually brought on Jimenez with 20 minutes to go in the second half to replace Martin but the Wolverhampton Wanderers striker returning from a long injury lay-off failed to have a shot on goal.
"We were on the front foot in the first half, we deserved an advantage at halftime," Martino said, adding that they became "predictable and cautious" as the game wore on.
"The penalty was a mistake from us but in general terms I think we should have won the game given what we did in the first half."


Sorry.


Don't let youth become 'lost generation'

Malaysia’s young population continues to face a significant challenge in the labour market: underemployment.
Evidence suggests that many young Malaysians are stuck in low-paying jobs that do not provide them with opportunities to utilise fully their skills and abilities. Combined with growth of the gig economy, this could have far-reaching implications for Malaysia’s long-term growth trajectory.
The prevalence of youth underemployment is due to various factors, including the types of jobs available in abundance, which in Malaysia are low-skill labour-intensive in agriculture and construction. Meanwhile, among the better educated middle class, an oversupply of university educated young workers has resulted in more competitive employment outcomes.
For young graduates, the highly competitive labour market has forced many to settle for jobs that they are overqualified for, resulting in a phenomenon known as skills-based underemployment.
According to the statistics department, in 2022, a third of the employed with tertiary education work in semi- and low-skilled occupations, not requiring further education or 1.6 million graduates. More worryingly, 95% of workers aged under 30 experience skills-based unemployment, with a study from Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris estimating a 17% wage penalty from overqualification.
Consequently, this results in lower earning potential and denies them the opportunity to build experience in their chosen vocation. Over the long term, repercussions persist as the youth bracket ages and will impact on the ability of firms to fill mid- and high-skilled vacancies.
Moreover, this trend will exacerbate the prevalence of Malaysia’s "brain drain" while a host of secondary effects, such as the inflation of illusory courses and suppression of real wages, limit the ability of various industries to invest in competitive innovation as technical skills remain underutilised.
Malaysia runs the risk of forgoing its development advantage, ultimately being displaced by its fast-growing, market-oriented Asean neighbours should it fail to act now. This is not an easy fix and requires proactivity, cooperation, time and administrative persistence.
Improving the quality and relevance of tertiary education is crucial to address underemployment. Students need to graduate with in-demand skills, including practical components for work readiness and proficiency in global communication. Employers have long complained about poor English abilities and a lack of critical thinking, problem solving and networking among new hires.
Further, the socio-cultural aspect of tertiary education has become ingrained into the fabric of the Malaysian mindset, where many students enrol into universities for enrolment’s sake or to fulfil familial expectations.
Students, parents and schools must understand that a university education is no longer the main determinant to obtain a high-skilled job. This phenomenon of blind enrolment not only wastes resources but also degrades the quality of education as graduates become mass produced.
The higher education ministry estimates that the percentage of post-secondary enrolment of Malaysians aged between 18 and 23 has reached 48%, significantly higher than the World Bank and United Nations targets of 35% for nations at Malaysia’s level of development. Moreover, the high dropout rates in public universities, coupled with the gradual lowering of passing standards and the long-term issue of student loan debt highlight the inefficiencies in the current tertiary education system of "mass enrolment" and the value of educational outcomes. Thus, local universities must strive to ensure a quality-over-quantity mindset to cure the rot.
The involvement of the private sector is also crucial. SMEs, which constitute more than 97% of Malaysian businesses, must play a key role through engagement with universities, being explicit about the skills and capabilities they seek and offer work placements and apprenticeships.
A Malaysian Employers' Federation salary survey reported that only 52% of firms consider hiring fresh graduates for available roles – largely reflecting the "perceived quality" of fresh graduates. This suggests that Malaysian firms also need a mindset shift.
Ideally, SMEs should be the first in line to hire inexperienced graduates, which numerous studies have shown improves workplace creativity and agility, while having comparatively lower salary demands.
Moving up global value chains, innovation must come first. Though the idea of "knowledge-led growth" has been embraced, persistence is needed to ensure that Malaysia’s graduate talent base and potential of the Malaysian youth goes unwasted. The dream of a high-income Malaysia can only be realised through the full utilisation of Malaysia’s human capital base.
The views expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the position of MalaysiaNow.


US dollar hits 20-year high as Fed flags rates higher for longer

The US dollar surged to a 20-year high against a basket of currencies on Monday after Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell signalled interest rates would be kept higher for longer to bring down soaring inflation.
The dollar index scaled to a fresh two-decade peak of 109.4 in early Asia trade, with greenback strength pushing other major currencies to new lows and putting pressure on its emerging markets counterparts.
The dollar hit 138.59 against the Japanese yen in the early Asia trade, the highest since July 21. It was last up 0.59% to 138.485. The offshore yuan similarly fell to a fresh two-year low of 6.9321 per dollar.
Sterling fell to a 2-1/2-year low of US$1.1656 and was last down 0.5% to US$1.16715, while the euro fell 0.36% to US$0.9929.
The moves extended dollar gains made on Friday when Powell warned there'd be "some pain" for households and businesses as it will take time for the Fed to control inflation.
"Powell made it clear that there is no dovish pivot as some market participants had expected," Carol Kong, senior associate for currency strategy and international economics at Commonwealth Bank of Australia.
"I think for this week, the (US dollar index) is going to track even higher towards 110 points, just as market participants continue to price in more aggressive tightening cycles by the major central banks."
Markets are now pricing in about a 64.5% chance of a 75 basis point rate hike at the next Fed meeting in September.
Despite the potential for a hike that big at the European Central Bank's September policy meeting, the euro has struggled with investors more focused on an energy crisis in the bloc.
Russian state energy giant Gazprom is expected to halt natural gas supplies to Europe via its main pipeline from Aug 31 to Sept 2 for maintenance.
"Fears over a complete shutdown of Russian gas are going to keep euro/dollar heavy and below parity," said CBA's Kong.
The risk-sensitive Australian and New Zealand dollars were likewise weighed down by fear that aggressive rate hikes around the world will put the brakes on economic growth.
The Aussie was down 0.55% to US$0.6853, while the kiwi hit a new one-month low of US$0.6105 and last traded 0.33% lower at US$0.6113.


DAP disappointed with Ismail’s ‘recycled’ Cabinet

DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng has criticised Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s Cabinet line-up, two days after pledging to work with the government in finding common ground to lower the country’s political temperature.Lim, the Bagan MP, said the new Cabinet announced by Ismail this morning was nearly identical to that of the previous government.“The return of the recycled Cabinet of the previously failed Perikatan Nasional government will put into doubt the commitment of the new prime minister not only towards winning the battle against Covid-19 and the economic crisis,” he said.“It will also raise scrutiny on whether Ismail is genuine about undertaking concrete institutional reforms to protect our democratic and constitutional rights as expressed during the meeting with Pakatan Harapan’s three top leaders two days ago.”On Wednesday, Lim joined PKR president Anwar Ibrahim and Amanah leader Mohamad Sabu in signing a rare joint statement with the prime minister pledging to finding common ground.The three opposition leaders also endorsed Ismail’s “Malaysian Family” concept which he introduced in his maiden speech as prime minister last week.Following their meeting, Anwar indicated that the opposition would not “complicate matters” for Ismail in the event of a vote of confidence in the prime minister.Lim today said the Cabinet line-up had disappointed “many who expected some fresh faces to find new solutions to the Covid-19 pandemic and economic recession”.“The current government must stop the previous failures of double standards in enforcement, policy flip-flops, U-turns in SOPs and vaccination delivery delays, and implement robust testing programmes and mass screenings,” he said.“A recycled Cabinet is no different from putting old wine in a new bottle that raises scepticism over whether there are new solutions for the Covid-19 pandemic and economic crisis as well as sufficient room for progressive institutional reforms.”


Indonesia delays 'risky' rematch of game hit by deadly stampede

The rematch of an Indonesian football game that ended in one of the sport's worst stadium stampedes has been postponed due to the risk of further crowd trouble, police said on Thursday.
The October 2022 derby match in Malang, East Java, between Arema FC and Persebaya Surabaya saw 135 spectators killed, many crushed as they fled for exits after police fired tear gas into the crowd. Home side Arema lost the match 3-2.
Although their next league meeting was due to be played behind closed doors on Sunday, Dirmanto, a spokeperson for East Java police, said it was deemed high risk as the clubs "have a history of rivalry".
Yahya Alkatiri, manager of home side Persebaya said the game was due to be held in nearby Gresik, but police permission to host it was denied. They could not play in Surabaya because of ongoing stadium upgrades for the Under-20 World Cup in May.
"This was a match fraught with risks," Yahya told Reuters, adding scuffles could happen outside the stadium.
Indonesian football has long been blighted by problems, including match-fixing scandals and crowd trouble between rival supporters, which has resulted in some matches being played behind closed doors.
At another game in Central Java last month, police used tear gas to stop fans from forcibly entering a stadium during a closed-doors derby match.
Investigators concluded the main cause of the crush that killed 135 people last year was excessive and indiscriminate use of tear gas, which world governing body Fifa bans as a crowd control measure.


Daily cases stay above 6,000

Another 6,377 Covid-19 cases were recorded today, taking total confirmed infections in the country to 2,454,749.Another 6,637 patients recovered, bringing total recoveries to 2,354,622.Meanwhile 564 are in the ICU, including 500 confirmed Covid-19 patients.A total of 294 are in need of respiratory assistance including 207 confirmed Covid-19 cases.Of the 6,377 cases reported today, 101 (1.6%) are in Category Three and above. The remaining 6,276 (98.4%) are in Category One and Two.


Singapore’s world-first face scan plan sparks privacy fears

Singapore will become the world’s first country to use facial verification in its national ID scheme, but privacy advocates are alarmed by what they say is an intrusive system vulnerable to abuse.From next year, millions of people living in the city-state will be able to access government agencies, banking services and other amenities with a quick face scan.This biometric check will do away with the need to remember a password or security dongle when performing many everyday tasks, its creators say.It is part of the financial hub’s drive to harness technology, from ramping up the use of electronic payments to research on driverless transport.“We want to be innovative in applying technology for the benefit of our citizens and businesses,” Kwok Quek Sin, who works on digital identification at Singapore’s technology agency GovTech, told AFP.Facial verification has already been adopted in various forms around the world, with Apple and Google implementing the technology for tasks like unlocking phones and making payments.Governments have also deployed it at airports for security checks on travellers.But Singapore’s rollout is one of the most ambitious yet, and the first to attach facial verification to a national identification database.The technology captures a series of photos of a person’s face in various lights.These images are matched with other data already available to the government such as national identity cards, passports and employment passes.Safeguards ensure the process is secure, said Lee Sea Lin of digital consultancy Toppan Ecquaria, which is working with GovTech to implement the technology.“We want to have assurance that the person behind the device is a real person… and that it is not an image or a video,” Lee said.The technology is being integrated into the country’s digital identity scheme and is being trialled now at some government offices, including the tax authority and the city’s pension fund.Private firms can sign up to the initiative, and Singapore’s biggest bank DBS is part of the trial.Surveillance concernsFace scanning technology remains controversial despite its growing use and critics have raised ethical concerns about it in some countries – for instance, law enforcement agencies scanning crowds at large events to look for troublemakers.Singapore authorities are frequently accused of targeting government critics and taking a hard line on dissent, and activists are concerned about how the face scanning tech will be used.“There are no clear and explicit restraints on government power when it comes to things like surveillance and data gathering,” said Kirsten Han, a freelance journalist from the city.“Will we one day discover that this data is in the hands of the police or in the hands of some other agency that we didn’t specifically give consent for?”Those behind the Singapore scheme stress facial verification is different to recognition as it requires user consent, but privacy advocates remain sceptical.“The technology is still far from benign,” Privacy International research officer Tom Fisher told AFP.He said systems like the one planned for Singapore left “opportunities for exploitation”, such as use of data to track and profile people.Kwok of GovTech insisted that no data would be shared with third parties and users would be left with other options, such as personal passwords, to access services.“It is not surveillance,” he said. “The use is very specific.”


Beijing pressure ‘undermining’ Australian universities’ freedom

Chinese pro-democracy students in Australia increasingly fear if they speak out on sensitive issues their families back home will be visited by the police and punished, a new report says.Human Rights Watch (HRW) found such students feel spied on in Australia, leading many to self-censor in their classrooms and accommodation, says the BBC.Professors teaching China courses in the country say they are also feeling pressure to censor themselves.HRW said the perceived pressure was undermining the academic freedom of Australian universities.Australia’s higher education system is heavily reliant on fee-paying Chinese students, who accounted in pre-Covid times for about 40% of all international students in the country. There are currently about 160,000 Chinese students enrolled in Australian universities.There has been increasing concern about China’s influence on local campuses in recent years, following the deterioration in relations between the two countries.The rights group said it interviewed nearly 50 students and academics in Australia and found an “atmosphere of fear” that has worsened in recent years.Researchers said they had confirmed three cases where a student’s activities in Australia had prompted police in China to visit their families.In one case, Chinese authorities also threatened a student with jail after they opened a Twitter account in Australia and posted pro-democracy messages.“Fear that what they do in Australia could result in Chinese authorities punishing their parents back home weighed heavily on the minds of every pro-democracy student interviewed,” said the report.Its author, Sophie McNeill, said university administrators were “failing in their duty of care to uphold the rights of students from China”.HRW also interviewed 22 academics at Australian universities who teach China studies or Chinese students. More than half of those interviewed practised regular self-censorship when talking about China, McNeill found.Some reported that they have also experienced pressure and censorship from university authorities who asked them not to discuss China publicly or hold China-related events.The report quotes one unidentified academic who refused university officials’ request for a “sanitised” version of his Chinese Studies unit when teaching students based in China online during the pandemic.For a number of years now, Australia has been debating the reach of Beijing’s interference on campuses.In the past Chinese authorities and media outlets have dismissed such concerns as smears, and the country’s ambassador has described as “groundless” allegations that Chinese students in Australia were being monitored for dissident behaviour.However, in 2019, the Australian government set up a task force and new guidelines for universities to combat what it described as “unprecedented levels” of foreign interference.Scrutiny has focused on research collaborations between Australian and Chinese universities on Australian campuses.The activities of on-campus Confucius Institutes – Chinese language and cultural centres funded by the Chinese government – have also raised questions.A recent parliamentary inquiry has examined foreign interference in the university sector. It is due to report in July.Universities Australia, a representative group of the nation’s top institutions, told the inquiry in March that universities were aware of “reports of intimidation and coercion of students”.Chief executive Catriona Jackson said, “This is unacceptable conduct. The safety and security of students and their right to free expression and debate is fundamental to every university.”


Daily caseload dips to 766 as one more death reported

Another 766 Covid-19 cases were recorded yesterday, taking total confirmed infections in the country to 5,022,910.
There were 1,026 recoveries, taking total recoveries to 4,971,955.
There are now 14,124 active cases, of which 14,124 or 94% are undergoing home quarantine.
Meanwhile, 0 (0%) are at quarantine centres while 806 (5.7%) have been hospitalised.
A total of 42 are in ICU with 21 in need of respiratory assistance.
One more death was reported, taking total deaths to 36,831.


Najib sues after prison department rejects bid to attend Dewan Rakyat

Najib Razak has filed legal action to challenge the Prison Department’s decision rejecting his request to attend the current Dewan Rakyat sitting.
Najib, 69, filed the application for leave for judicial review through Messrs Shafee & Co at the Kuala Lumpur High Court yesterday.
The former prime minister named the government, the home minister and the commissioner general of prison as the respondents.
He is seeking an order to quash the decision of the third respondent (prison commissioner general) to not allow him access to his officers/aides for the purposes of parliamentary, legislative and constituent work.
He is also seeking an order to set aside the third respondent’s decision to not allow him to attend Parliament on the scheduled dates of sitting.
He is likewise seeking a declaration that he is entitled to have reasonable access to his officers/aides for the purposes of parliamentary, legislative and constituent work, as well as a mandamus order for the respondents to take all steps necessary to allow him reasonable access to his officers/aides for those purposes.
In his supporting affidavit, Najib said the decision of the first and third respondents rejecting his application on grounds of security was conveyed to him via the Kajang Prison Office on Sept 28, and that he had appealed against the decision to the second respondent on Sept 30.
As the first day of Parliament sitting was scheduled for Oct 3, Najib said he asked for a decision to be made expeditiously so as not to render the application nugatory or academic.
However, he said there was no response from the second respondent and, considering the exigencies of time, he filed the legal action.
Najib said that the first and third respondents’ refusal to allow him access to his officers and aides for the purposes of parliamentary and constituent matters and the subsequent inaction by the second respondent was an exercise of unreasonableness or irrationality.
Najib added that pursuant to Article 59 of the Federal Constitution, he had a constitutional obligation to discharge his duties effectively and with substance as an MP in the representation of the constituents of Pekan.
"A denial of that right by the respondents in refusing me the ability to administer my constituency is in effect a denial of the well-being of the constituency of Pekan," he said in his affidavit.
The matter has been fixed for case management before High Court judge Ahmad Kamal Md Shahid on Oct 12.
Najib’s counsel Muhammad Farhan Muhammad Shafee confirmed that the application was filed yesterday at 1pm.


Malaysian para-athletes reach 33-gold medal target with room to spare

Malaysia's para-athletes achieved their 33-gold medal target for the Asean Para Games with two days of competition remaining, unlike their comrades who failed in their mission to hit the 40-gold target set for the SEA Games in Cambodia.
However, Malaysia remained at fourth spot in the overall medal tally despite hitting the target of 33 gold medals set by the Malaysian Paralympic Council for the 2023 Asean Para Games.
The fourth day of competition at the APG saw Chee Chaoming-Brady Chin clinch the 33rd gold medal at the men’s doubles table tennis competition (Class 9-mild balance disorder) after defeating Linard Combras-Benedicto Hernandez from the Philippines at the Morodok Stadium.
The swimming camp was the main contributor with four gold medals through Fraidden Dawan (S-10 100m butterfly), Muhammad Imaan Aiman Muhammad Redzuan (S-14 100m butterfly), Rusdianto Rusmadi (S-8 100m butterfly), and Bryan Lau (S-14 100m freestyle).
The athletics squad won three gold medals through Muhammad Ammar Aiman Nor Azmi (men’s 400m T20), Mohammad Zikri Zakaria (men’s shot-put F55), and Doriah Poulus (men’s shot-put F44).
Noor Askuzaimey Mat Salim, who competed in the women’s BC4 individual boccia, contributed another gold medal for the day.
In total, the Malaysian contingent collected nine gold, 10 silver and five bronze medals for a total of 33 gold, 27 silver and 18 bronze medals.


Indian film star Rajinikanth ends political bid over health fears

Indian movie superstar Rajinikanth on Tuesday cancelled his plans to enter politics, saying a health scare had been “a warning from god”.The announcement came a day after the 70-year-old Tamil action hero left hospital where he was treated for high blood pressure.Rajinikanth, one of Asia’s best paid actors, set off celebrations by his fans when he announced early in December that he would be launching a political party in a bid to bring “corruption free” government to his home state of Tamil Nadu.But the bus conductor-turned-actor said he could not go ahead in a long letter released on his Twitter account.Rajinikanth, who has had several health scares, said his recent worries had been a “warning from god”.“I am sorry to let you know that I am not going to launch a political party.“I will serve the people in whatever ways I can, without entering electoral politics,” he wrote in the Tamil-language letter.Rajinikanth said he did not want to start such a major campaign and then leave it half finished.Rajinikanth said in 2017 that he wanted to enter politics but then left his fans waiting until this month when he said his party would bring “honest, transparent” politics to Tamil Nadu.The actor proved his political muscle in 1996 when he called on fans to oppose the Tamil Nadu government, which was then voted out of power.Rajinikanth has carried on with his film career despite his health concerns and had been shooting his latest movie in Hyderabad when he was taken ill last week.


North Korean hackers stole US$100 million in recent cryptocurrency heist, analysts say

North Korean hackers stole more than US$100 million (about RM462 million) worth of digital currency in a recent heist affecting users of the Atomic Wallet service, cryptocurrency analytics firm Elliptic said Tuesday.
In a blog post, Elliptic said that more than 5,500 digital wallets were hit by the hackers, who the firm said were part of the North Korean cybercrime gang often called Lazarus.
North Korea's mission to the United Nations in New York did not immediately respond to a request for comment, although Pyongyang has in the past denied carrying out digital thefts. Atomic Wallet did not immediately return messages seeking comment.
The company, which says it is based in Estonia, has previously said that it "received reports of wallets being compromised" and that it hired another cryptocurrency analytics firm, Chainalysis, to investigate the incident and track down stolen funds. Chainalysis declined comment.
Lazarus has been blamed for a series of brazen thefts targeting cryptocurrency users and organisations. Elliptic said the one that targeted users of Atomic Wallet was the biggest since the hackers allegedly stole around US$100 million worth of digital coins from a tool developed by the US cryptocurrency firm Harmony last year.
Earlier this year, the United Nations reported that North Korea had stolen more cryptocurrency assets in 2022 than in any other year. International monitors have said that the stolen money has been pumped into North Korea's sanctioned nuclear and missile programs.
The FBI did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the latest theft. Estonian police officials did not immediately respond to an email sent after hours.


Tunku Ismail appointed as acting sultan in Johor

Johor ruler Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar has consented to the appointment of his eldest son, crown prince Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim, as regent starting today.He announced the matter in his opening speech of the second meeting (official opening) of the First Session of the 15th Johor state legislative assembly at the Sultan Ismail Building, Kota Iskandar, in Iskandar Puteri today.“I have appointed Tunku Mahkota Johor as the regent,” he said. “I want to take a break, thank you, starting today.”He did not say how long Tunku Ismail would be regent.The last time Tunku Ismail was appointed as regent of Johor was on Aug 10, 2019.Last week, Tunku Ismail, the owner of the Johor Darul Ta’zim Football Club, announced that he was stepping back from running the club and handing over its day-to-day affairs to its top management.In a post on the Johor Southern Tigers Facebook on June 9, Tunku Ismail said the decision was due to his other responsibilities and commitments.


J&J to end global sales of talc-based baby powder

Johnson & Johnson will stop selling talc-based baby powder globally in 2023, the drugmaker said on Thursday, more than two years after it ended US sales of a product that drew thousands of consumer safety lawsuits.
"As part of a worldwide portfolio assessment, we have made the commercial decision to transition to an all cornstarch-based baby powder portfolio," it said, adding that cornstarch-based baby powder is already sold in countries around the world.
In 2020, J&J announced that it would stop selling its talc Baby Powder in the US and Canada because demand had fallen in the wake of what it called "misinformation" about the product's safety amid a barrage of legal challenges.
The company faces about 38,000 lawsuits from consumers and their survivors claiming its talc products caused cancer due to contamination with asbestos, a known carcinogen.
J&J denies the allegations, saying decades of scientific testing and regulatory approvals have shown its talc to be safe and asbestos-free. On Thursday, it reiterated the statement as it announced the discontinuation of the product.
J&J spun off subsidiary LTL Management in October, assigned its talc claims to it and immediately placed it into bankruptcy, pausing the pending lawsuits.
Before the bankruptcy filing, the company faced costs from US$3.5 billion in verdicts and settlements, including one in which 22 women were awarded a judgment of more than US$2 billion, according to bankruptcy court records.
A shareholder proposal calling for an end to global sales of the talc baby powder failed in April.
A 2018 Reuters investigation found that J&J knew for decades that asbestos, a carcinogen, was present in its talc products. Internal company records, trial testimony and other evidence showed that from at least 1971 to the early 2000s, J&J's raw talc and finished powders sometimes tested positive for small amounts of asbestos.
In response to evidence of asbestos contamination presented in media reports, in the court room and on Capitol Hill, J&J has repeatedly said its talc products are safe, and do not cause cancer.
Sold since 1894, Johnson's Baby Powder became a symbol of the company's family-friendly image. An internal J&J marketing presentation from 1999 refers to the baby products division, with Baby Powder at the core, as J&J's "#1 Asset", Reuters reported, although the baby powder accounted for only about 0.5% of its US consumer health business when the company pulled it off the shelves.


Siti Bainun held Bella’s chin, forced her to eat chilli-laden fried rice, court hears

A witness told the Kuala Lumpur Sessions Court that she saw Rumah Bonda founder Siti Bainun Ahd Razali holding Bella’s chin and forcing the girl with Down syndrome to eat fried rice mixed with a lot of chillies.Suhana Zam, 40, a legal research officer at a law firm, told the court that she was sitting at a dining table in a condominium unit in Wangsa Maju, owned by Siti Bainun, when the incident took place in May 2021.“Bella was standing facing Siti Bainun in front of the refrigerator and there was a wooden bench there. I saw Bainun put a plate of fried rice and a lot of cut chilli, much more than the fried rice.“She (Siti Bainun) mixed the fried rice, she held Bella’s chin and forced Bella to eat it. Bella refused but was forced to eat.“I was surprised to see Bella was treated like that. I didn’t say anything because at that time I didn’t want to confront Bainun face to face, because I was worried about her reaction if confronted,” said Suhana during examination-in-chief by deputy public prosecutor Nor Azizah Mohamad at Siti Bainun’s trial.In previous proceedings, Rumah Bonda resident Yasmin Nahar Mahmood, 18, told the court that Bella had been fed a pot of rice mixed with vinegar, turmeric, salt, soy sauce, chilli and chilli flakes, as well as rotten fried chicken, by Siti Bainun during the fasting month.Meanwhile, Suhana said she saw a palm-sized bruise on the right side of Bella’s face when she went to Siti Bainun’s house on June 13, 2021.“I went to Bainun’s house because Bainun invited me to eat king crabs in ‘shell out’ style. When I arrived at the house at 5pm, I saw Bella’s hair was cut short and she was wearing a long-sleeved shirt. Bella looked scared and there was a bruise the size of a palm on the right side of her face. That was Bella’s worst condition I’ve ever seen,” said the witness.The eighth prosecution witness said that during her stay at the house, she saw that Bella’s meal times were irregular, and whenever the teenager was punished by being forced to stand for hours by Siti Bainun, she did not see anyone giving the girl any food or drink.To Nor Azizah’s question about Bella’s condition when the teenager was not given food or drink for hours, Suhana said that the teenager stood alone and could not speak.Suhana added that Siti Bainun told her that Bella was not allowed to drink or she would urinate.“I wanted to give food and drink to Bella but I wasn’t sure if my actions would anger Siti Bainun. I was also scared of not following the house rules. It was Siti Bainun’s house,” she said.Suhana also said that Siti Bainun’s house was not easily accessible as entrance to the condominium lobby required a bar code.Siti Bainun, 30, faces two counts of neglecting and abusing the girl, causing her to suffer physical and emotional injuries.She is charged with committing the offences at a condominium in Wangsa Maju between February and June 2021. The charge was framed under Section 31 (1) (a) of the Child Act 2001, and carries a maximum sentence of 20 years’ imprisonment, a fine of RM50,000, or both, upon conviction.The trial, before judge Izralizam Sanusi continues.


Recoveries stay ahead as 5 more deaths reported

Another 1,448 Covid-19 cases were recorded today, taking total confirmed infections in the country to 317,717.Selangor reported 561 cases followed by Johor (273), Sarawak (199) and Kuala Lumpur (103).Penang reported 99 cases, Perak 83, Sabah 54, Kedah 20, Kelantan 19, Melaka 11, Negeri Sembilan 10, Terengganu eight, Perlis seven and Pahang one.Active cases stand at 18,010 with 151 in the ICU and 72 in need of respiratory assistance.1. Sungai Puteh (Hulu Langat in Selangor; 65 screened, 21 positive)2. Dagang Permai (Hulu Langat in Selangor; 135 screened, 16 positive)3. Parit Penyengat Darat (Muar in Johor; 317 screened, 124 positive)4. Pona (Johor Bahru in Johor; 25 screened, eight positive)5. Melor (Pusa in Sarawak; 335 screened, 14 positive)Thirteen others ended, leaving 449 active clusters across the country.Another 2,137 patients were discharged, bringing total recoveries to 298,516.However, five more deaths were reported, pushing the virus toll to 1,191.


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Court allows bid by Samy Vellu’s son to check dad’s mental health

The Kuala Lumpur High Court today allowed an application by S Vell Paari for his father, former MIC president S Samy Vellu, to undergo a mental health screening.Vell Paari made the application in his suit against Samy Vellu seeking a court declaration that his father was incapable of managing his own affairs.Judge Wong Chee Lin allowed Vell Paari’s application in line with Section 52 of the Mental Health Act 2001 after hearing arguments from both parties.Lawyer David Mathews, representing Vell Paari, told reporters this after the matter came up in chambers today.Also present was lawyer Prem Ramachanran, representing Samy Vellu.“The court has allowed the application but I cannot disclose further details regarding the investigation,” Mathews said.He said the court had also rejected an application by a woman claiming to be Samy Vellu’s wife to be an intervenor in the lawsuit.“The court rejected the application by Meeriam Rosaline Edward Paul at a cost of RM5,000 after hearing arguments from both parties,” he said.Vell Paari filed the suit against Samy Vellu on Dec 2 last year, seeking a court order that an investigation be conducted to ascertain the mental fitness of his father, and whether the former works minister was capable of managing himself and his affairs.In the suit, he sought an order that a date, time and place be set for an investigation under Section 52 of the Mental Health Act 2001 to determine the length of time his father had been suffering from mental disorders.He also sought a court order to find out if his father was capable of giving orders to his lawyer to act on his behalf, and to determine the types of property his father owned.The former MIC secretary-general also requested that Dr Prem Kumar Chandrasekaran, a consultant neuropsychiatrist and neurobehavioural medicine head at the Penang Adventist Hospital, or other mental health experts, be given access to examine his father and prepare a report on the his mental capacity.In the event that Samy Vellu is found to be suffering from a mental disorder and incapable of managing himself and his affairs, Vell Paari wants several individuals including himself and lawyer C Vijaya Kumar to be appointed by the court as committee members to manage his father’s estate.If the court allows them to be appointed as committee members, Vell Paari wants the court to determine the powers of the committee and set a provision for its costs and expenses, as well as remuneration to be paid to the members.He will also seek an order for him to be appointed as Samy Vellu’s litigation representative in any legal proceedings involving his father, properties or interests.Vell Paari added that he had assisted his father in managing his affairs and estate since 2017, and had used his own funds for this as his father could not access the funds in his bank accounts due to health reasons.


Taiwan in a stew over American pork

Thousands took to the streets of Taipei on Sunday to voice their anger at their government’s decision to ease restrictions on imports of US pork.In the annual “Autumn Struggle” protest march, Taiwan’s main opposition party, the Kuomintang (KMT), rallied its supporters to join an increasingly vociferous campaign against the pork decision, which it says threatens the nation’s food safety.President Tsai Ing-wen announced in August that the government would, from January 2021, allow imports of US pork raised on ractopamine, a feed additive that stimulates the growth of lean meat, Reuters reports.A Live Science report says there are serious questions about ractopamine’s safety. It belongs to a class of drugs, beta-agonists, that were developed to treat asthma and only adapted for animal use when they were shown to boost growth rates.The use of ractopamine is banned in 160 countries including the EU, mainland China and Russia, while 27 other countries, including Japan, South Korea, and New Zealand have declared meat from livestock fed ractopamine safe for human consumption.Taipei’s decision, welcomed in Washington, removes a stumbling block in the way of a long sought-after US free trade deal for Taiwan. However, KMT has strongly opposed the decision, tapping into public concern about food safety after several high-profile scandals in recent years.KMT chairman Johnny Chiang called on Tsai to take part in a televised debate on the issue. “Taiwanese pigs don’t eat ractopamine and yet you are asking Taiwanese people to? Does this make sense?” he told supporters. KMT is trying to organise a referendum on the US pork imports.Tsai’s government and her ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) say the decision brings the island into line with international norms, is not a safety threat and will boost Taiwan-US ties.In a statement on Sunday, DPP, which had previously voiced strong objections to ractopamine, urged KMT to “stop its political machinations and return to rational discussions”.They have accused KMT of spreading fake news about the subject in an effort to sow public fear.


Resign or be sacked, Zahid turns up the heat on Wanita Umno chief ahead of deadline

Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi has issued an ultimatum to women’s chief Noraini Ahmad to resign as a minister in the Perikatan Nasional (PN) Cabinet today or be sacked from the party, MalaysiaNow has learnt.A source said Noraini, who is the higher education minister, had previously refused to follow in the footsteps of Shamsul Anuar Nasarah who resigned as water, land and natural resources minister on Tuesday.“Resign or you will be sacked,” the source told MalaysiaNow on condition of anonymnity, referring to Zahid’s words to Noraini.“Noraini cried when she was given the ultimatum. She loves the party but at the same time, as a member of the government administration, she knows that now is not the right time to continue politicking.”MalaysiaNow understands that Noraini will issue a statement later today.“She might accede to Zahid,” the source said.Umno has given its MPs until Aug 7 to state in writing whether they will continue to support the PN administration or withdraw their support and resign from their positions in government.On Tuesday, Zahid said he had enough statutory declarations from Umno MPs to topple Muhyiddin Yassin as prime minister.He said these and others would be submitted to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.Shamsul, the MP for Lenggong in Perak, had announced his resignation from the Cabinet shortly before Zahid’s press conference.However Muhyiddin said following an audience with the Agong the next day that he still commands the majority support in Parliament.He also said that his position as prime minister would be determined through a vote of confidence at the Dewan Rakyat sitting in September.He said his proposal had received the consent of Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah.Zahid and opposition parties from Pakatan Harapan, Pejuang, Warisan and Muda however have urged the government to hold a parliamentary sitting as soon as possible to test Muhyiddin’s support.MalaysiaNow previously revealed an audio clip of a conversation between Zahid and PKR president Anwar Ibrahim in the aftermath of the Umno general assembly in March.In the conversation, Anwar had praised Zahid for his handling of the assembly and the attacks on the PN government.Anwar had also praised Shamsul for saying after the assembly that he was ready to step down from his Cabinet position.Both Zahid and Anwar had initially denied the conversation.However, Zahid later admitted to the authenticity of the clip in a meeting of the Umno Supreme Council.


MySejahtera check-ins still a must at pubs, night clubs

Patrons of entertainment outlets such as pubs and night clubs must still check in with MySejahtera and activate the MySJ Trace function before entering the premises after the latest easing of restrictions takes effect on May 14.The same rules apply to employees, the government’s SOPs for the transition towards the endemic phase show.Customers must also undergo an RTK-Antigen test, supervised by a medical practitioner registered with the Malaysian Medical Council, within 24 hours of entering the premises, and wear face masks at all times unless they are eating, drinking or dancing.Alternatively, RTK-Antigen tests can be provided for patrons before they enter the premises.The National Security Council said these measures were put in place given the high risk of Covid-19 infection at pubs and night clubs which are enclosed areas with limited ventilation.It also noted that physical distancing would be difficult to observe, and face masks would not be used all the time.Night clubs and pubs have been closed since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic and were only given the green light to reopen this month.


North Korea’s fever cases under 200,000 for second day amid silence on aid offer

North Korea’s daily fever cases stayed below 200,000 for a second day in a row, state media said on Monday, as Pyongyang remained silent on South Korean and US offers to help fight its first confirmed Covid-19 outbreak.The Covid wave, declared on May 12, has fuelled concerns over a lack of vaccines, inadequate medical infrastructure and a potential food crisis in the country of 25 million.US President Joe Biden said on Saturday that Washington had offered Covid-19 vaccines to China and North Korea, but “got no response.”North Korea reported 167,650 new patients suffering from fever on Monday and one more death. More than 2.33 million of the 2.81 million cumulative cases reported since late April had recovered as of Sunday evening, the North’s state news agency KCNA said. The official death toll stands at 68.While staying silent on the offer for help, North Korea has boasted of a “favourable turn” in the country’s virus situation.“The crisis and responsibility awareness is further enhanced in every region, sector, workplace and post across the country to maintain the favourable turn in the epidemic prevention work and all inroads of the epidemic are checked through the strict execution of regional and unit lockdown and blockade measures,” KCNA said.Such Covid-19 restrictions may be playing a role in North Korea’s lack of response, a senior US administration official said Sunday.Apparently deprived of testing supplies, North Korea has not confirmed the total number of people testing positive for the coronavirus. Instead, health authorities report the number with fever symptoms, making it difficult to assess the scale of the Covid wave, experts have said.Authorities have distributed food and medicine across the country, with military medics deployed to help distribute drugs and conduct exams.KCNA said pharmaceutical factories “are speeding up the production,” but did not elaborate which medicines were being produced.


Johor customs seize contraband cigarettes worth RM9.45 million

The Johor Customs Department raided a warehouse in Kulai on July 23 and seized smuggled cigarettes worth a whopping RM9.45 million including unpaid tax, the biggest seizure by the state customs this year.
Johor customs director Sazali Mohamad said the raid, carried out by the Johor Bahru Enforcement Unit at 2.30pm, found eight million sticks of contraband cigarettes comprising regular white sticks and clove cigarettes, hidden in boxes covered with canvas.
Sazali said the cigarettes were believed to have been smuggled in from Indonesia via the sea route.
"These cigarettes were meant for the local market and are believed to have been smuggled in via the sea route because some boxes were wet due to seawater contamination," he told reporters in Johor Bahru today.
Sazali said the seized cigarettes alone were worth RM3.8 million.
The case will be investigated under Section 135 (1)(d) of the Customs Act 1967.
Meanwhile, in a separate case on July 22, the Sungai Pulai enforcement division of the Johor customs confiscated 3,840 cans of beer for which the duty was not paid, in a Toyota Estima Aeras at KM2.7 Jalan Sultan Ismail along the Iskandar coastal highway near Nusajaya.
"The contraband beer was hidden in the rear of the vehicle driven by a 26-year-old local man. The confiscated beverage is estimated to be worth RM10,700, while unpaid duties amounted to RM37,300," Sazali said.
He said when the vehicle was stopped at about 6.45am, the driver failed to show any documents such as invoices, customs forms, or import permits while the vehicle had a false registration number.
"The syndicate’s modus operandi was to use MPVs to transport the contraband liquor, before distributing it to interested parties," he said.
Sazali said the suspect pleaded not guilty after he was charged at the Magistrate's Court on July 27 under Section 74(1)(d) of the Excise Act 1976.


The principle of refunding AirAsia flight tickets

Passengers in Malaysia whose AirAsia flights were cancelled during the Covid-19 pandemic should be entitled to a refund of the airfare and not categorised as creditors.They paid for a service – their respective flights to be taken to a destination. The service was not delivered as the flights were cancelled due to safety and operational requirements.With bookings of flights done online and the airfare paid using either a credit or debit card, the refund should be credited back to the card used to make payment.It is unethical for the airline to hold back the refund. Offering a credit with validity over a period is not justified.As the pandemic heightened, airlines around the world were left with no choice but to cancel flights at short notice leaving thousands stranded.It has been two years since passengers started requesting for refunds.The silence of the domestic trade and consumer affairs ministry on the issue is shocking.As the government agency responsible for looking and helping to resolve consumer problems with merchants, its silence raises questions as to who the passengers have to turn to.The Malaysian Aviation Commission’s failure as the regulator for economic and commercial matters related to civil aviation to compel the carrier to refund the airfare rubs salt into the wound.Mavcom’s claim that it is negotiating with the carrier for passengers to receive their refund with no outcome after two years only reveals that it is just hot air.The passengers should not be misled but told exactly what the situation is.Foreign carriers have honoured their commitments to refund passengers whose flights were cancelled.I was booked on a flight to Singapore on Feb 15, 2020, and Beijing on March 3, 2020, on the same airline.The refund for both flights was credited to my corporate expense credit card within the stipulated period of 90 days.Flying will never be the same.Some people may not want to fly again for fear of being stranded or even falling sick.So what happens to the refund due to these people or those who may die during the credit validity period?It is not the amount that is involved but the principle that matters.It is a sin to keep money that should be rightfully refunded to those concerned.Malaysia has been in the limelight on the international front for the wrong reasons.This is another issue for the foreign media to add to the list.Consumers continue to be on the receiving end despite there being laws in the country,Consumer rights must be respected and protected but there are certain quarters who do not give two hoots.The views expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the position of MalaysiaNow.


Over 11 million adults given booster jab

A total of 11,119,363 individuals or 47.5% of adults had received a Covid-19 booster dose as of yesterday.According to the CovidNow portal, a total of 22,918,854 individuals or 97.9% of adults have completed their vaccination while 23,196,650 individuals or 99.1% have received at least one dose of vaccine.In terms of teenagers, 2,783,457 or 88.4% have completed their vaccination while 2,865,416 or 91.0% have received at least one dose of vaccine.A total of 213,226 vaccine doses were administered yesterday – 2,169 as first doses, 2,680 as second shots and 208,377 as booster jabs.This takes the cumulative number of vaccine shots given under the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme to 62,679,781.Health director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said in a Facebook post that the nationwide infectivity rate or Rt was 1.09 as of yesterday.Negeri Sembilan recorded the highest Rt value of 1.13 followed by Johor (1.10), Kedah (1.09) and Kuala Lumpur (1.07).The Rt value for Selangor was 1.05, Penang and Melaka 1.03, Sabah 1.01 and Kelantan 1.0.


DAP between a rock and a hard place in 'marriage' with Umno

Analysts say DAP may soon have to consider its next move, even as the dust settles on an apparent partnership with its long-time enemy Umno as part of the government led by Barisan Nasional (BN) and Pakatan Harapan (PH) in the wake of the 15th general election.
Speaking to MalaysiaNow, they said clashes could be expected between the two parties despite their present truce.
Political observer Mak Khuin Weng said while Umno's fight with Bersatu was about who could "deliver" to the Malay community, its conflict with DAP was about denying what the other wanted.
"Already, Umno has made statements rejecting the Unified Examination Certificate (UEC)," he said, referring to the document issued to students who graduate from Chinese independent high schools, which PH had promised to recognise as part of its manifesto for the 2018 election.
The matter resurfaced just days after PH chairman Anwar Ibrahim was sworn in as prime minister, when Chinese education group Dong Zong began lobbying once more for its recognition as a qualification for entering local institutions of higher education.
Veteran Umno secretary Mustapha Yaakob had responded to Dong Zong's calls by saying it had been rude in asking for UEC recognition.
Umno, a conservative nationalist Malay party, has traditionally painted DAP as the arch-enemy of the Malay agenda. The heavily Chinese DAP, for its part, is considered a left-wing party which touts itself as a champion of equality for all Malaysians.
Political analyst Liew Wui Chern said that DAP, realising its dilemma, was choosing to remain silent.
"They are not commenting very much – from the hung Parliament situation until the formation of the government, you can see, DAP has been silent," Liew, of Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman, said.
Adding that this differed from its previous stance, he said DAP's strategy now was to leave policy and decision making to Anwar and his party, PKR.
"DAP isn't asking for anything. They're being very quiet and letting Anwar and PKR make the decisions," he said.
"Umno is now part of the government, so DAP avoids making noise as much as they can."
Mak, meanwhile, said rifts between Umno and DAP could already be seen in Perak, where Menteri Besar Saarani Mohamad had said that DAP would not control the state government.
"DAP has kept quiet so far, but the more they keep quiet, the more they become MCA," he said.
MCA, a long-time component of BN, was rejected by Chinese voters at the 2013 general election in what is often described as the "Chinese tsunami".
It won only two seats at the recent polls, dashing any hope of a comeback after gaining several seats in the Melaka and Johor state elections.
At any rate, Mak said, having chosen to lie in the same bed, DAP would have to sort out its relationship with Umno.
"I don't see a happy marriage here," he added. "All the arguments coming out from Umno just a few days after the wedding shows that there is no honeymoon either.
"All I can say to them is, good luck."


RM5,000 reward for information leading to arrest of Selangor water polluters

The environment and water ministry is offering a reward of RM5,000 to anyone with information and evidence that will lead to the arrest of those responsible for the pollution in Sungai Selangor which caused the most recent disruption of water supply in the state.Minister Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man said information can be sent through email to [email protected] or the Department of Environment hotline at 1-800-88-2727.“The reward is in line with the government’s continuous commitment to Budget 2021, which will provide special allocations to any (party) who can channel information on any misconduct and violations of the law, including on the issue of river pollution.“I view this matter very seriously because there have been seven incidents where water treatment plants in Selangor have had to shut down due to pollution this year,” he said in a statement.He also said he had instructed the ministry’s chief secretary Zaini Ujang to visit several sites suspected to be the source of the pollution around Taman Velox, Rawang.“Based on initial investigations, the pollution was found to have come from industrial effluent from various small and medium industries at Taman Velox and its vicinity, namely Kawasan Industri Kecil Sungai Bakau and Taman Perindustrian Teknologi Rawang.“Part of the industrial effluent seeped into drains while some of it was dumped illegally into the sewerage system, where it then disrupted the operations at the IWK sewerage treatment plant in Taman Velox,” he said.He said enforcement teams would continue to investigate the issue until the cause of pollution and those responsible are identified.


More than 50 contract doctors walk out of Sungai Buloh Hospital

More than 50 contract doctors from Sungai Buloh Hospital went on strike today, staging a walkout from the hospital compound in line with the call by the Hartal Doktor Kontrak group.Wearing black and carrying placards, they circled the area outside the hospital before re-entering the compound.A second group of doctors then emerged from the hospital, also carrying placards.A spokesman from the second group who asked not to be named said the move to strike was only in order to receive fairer treatment.“We didn’t compromise our patients’ health,” he said. “We managed to do everything necessary before we left.“We would definitely not be here if we were treated fairly,” he added in response to the call by health director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah last night, urging the contract doctors to remember their oath of duty.In a Facebook post, Noor Hisham also said that many lives were on the line and that the demonstration could affect patients as well as the doctors’ careers.But the spokesman said the contract doctors had no problem carrying out their duties during the pandemic, especially after their hospital was converted into a full Covid-19 facility, adding that they had been forced to this point by unfair treatment.“We are not having a bad time. Covid is manageable, but we should be appreciated for what we do,” he said.It is understood that some of the contract doctors serving at Sungai Buloh Hospital are on loan from other hospitals.Sungai Buloh Hospital was gazetted as the first full Covid-19 facility in October last year. It was followed by Ampang Hospital and Selayang Hospital.The organisers of the hartal or strike had claimed that some 4,000 contract doctors would join them in the walkout today, despite the government’s offer of a two-year extension of contract announced by Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin last week.The contract system was introduced by former prime minister Najib Razak for medical, dental and pharmacy graduates in the tabling of the 2017 Budget at the Dewan Rakyat, due to constraints on permanent positions.


NZ court rules voting age of 18 is discriminatory

New Zealand's highest court ruled on Monday that the country's current voting age of 18 was discriminatory, forcing parliament to discuss whether it should be lowered.
The case, which has been going through the courts since 2020, was bought by advocacy group Make It 16, which wants the age lowered to include 16 and 17 year olds.
The Supreme Court found that the current voting age of 18 was inconsistent with the country's Bill of Rights, which gives people a right to be free from age discrimination when they have reached 16.
The decision triggers a process in which the issue must come before parliament for discussion and be reviewed by a parliamentary select committee. But it does not force parliament to change the voting age.
"This is history," said Make It 16 co-director Caeden Tipler, adding: "The government and parliament cannot ignore such a clear legal and moral message. They must let us vote."
The group says on its website there is insufficient justification to stop 16 year olds from voting when they can drive, work full time and pay tax.
Political parties in New Zealand have mixed views on the subject. The Green Party wants immediate action to lower the voting age to 16, but largest opposition party, the National party, does not support the shift.
"Obviously, we've got to draw a line somewhere," said National party leader Christopher Luxon. "We're comfortable with the line being 18. Lots of different countries have different places where the line's drawn and from our point of view, 18's just fine."
The Labour government has not publicly commented on the decision.


Hong Kong’s status undermined by Covid curbs, leader says

Hong Kong’s status as an international hub has been “undermined” by strict coronavirus border controls, outgoing leader Carrie Lam admitted Friday, just a day after saying she would not further lift restrictions before departing.The once vibrant Asian business hub is mired in its third year of pandemic isolation as it hews to China’s zero-Covid strategy, which seeks to control outbreaks with lockdowns, social distancing and border controls.Hong Kong last month reopened to vaccinated non-residents but international arrivals must still undergo seven days of quarantine.“The border control measures have really made people very impatient, and of course, have undermined Hong Kong’s status as a hub,” Lam said in an interview with CNBC.“If you cannot travel freely to other places and into the mainland, how could you be a hub?”Lam is due to step down on June 30 after a five-year term that saw huge democracy protests and Covid-19 outbreaks that left more than 9,000 people dead.On Thursday Lam announced that pandemic restrictions will not be further loosened during her remaining time in office.But in the Friday interview, Lam agreed that a more flexible quarantine policy would bring people back to Hong Kong.“Once we could bring down the hotel quarantine period or, as some have suggested, replace it with home quarantine measures, I’m sure we will be seeing a lot of people coming to Hong Kong,” she told CNBC.Addressing lawmakers on Thursday, Lam said Hong Kong was stuck between China’s zero-Covid approach and foreign countries’ decision to live with the virus.Beijing remains committed to completely quashing all outbreaks and President Xi Jinping reaffirmed the policy on Thursday, saying it must be “unswervingly upheld”, according to state news agency Xinhua.Lam on Thursday said there was no chance of reopening the border with mainland China in the near future.Hong Kong’s next leader John Lee has said one of his top priorities is to reconnect the city with the mainland, though he gave no specific timetable.Lee previously acknowledged that travel curbs have caused “inconvenience” for international travellers but made no commitment to reduce the quarantine period.


Nigerian parents pay school bills with recyclable waste

Nigerian fourth-grader Fawas Adeosun often used to get sent home from school through the gritty streets of Lagos because his mother, Fatimoh, had not paid his fees, until he enrolled in a different school offering a novel solution.
My Dream Stead school, in the sprawling, impoverished Ajegunle neighbourhood where the Adeosuns live, is one of 40 low-cost schools in Nigeria's commercial capital that accept recyclable waste as payment.
For the past four years, a local environmental organisation called African Cleanup Initiative has been collecting bottles, cans, drink cartons and plastic containers brought into the schools by parents and selling them to recyclers.
The proceeds of the sales pay for teacher salaries, children's uniforms, books and pens, among other expenses.
The scheme aims to reduce the number of children out of school as well as the amount of rubbish on the streets of Lagos, said Alexander Akhigbe, founder of the environmental group.
Tuition fees at My Dream Stead stand at US$130 (about RM600) per year and the school is expanding into a second apartment block to accommodate its 120 pupils. Only seven children were enrolled when it opened in 2019.
Some mornings, Fatimoh and Fawas walk to the school together with bulging sacks of rubbish over their shoulders. The waste is weighed on school premises and its sales value added to Fawas' account.
"Sometimes if he wants to buy sportswear, the school will tell me the amount I need to bring," said Fatimoh, a 48-year-old hairdresser who cares for six children on her own.
Providing for Fawas, the youngest, has been particularly difficult since she was forced to vacate the room she used as a salon in 2018.
"When I discovered that they could collect the plastics from me to keep my child in school, it made my burden lighter," she said as she scoured bins on the streets for recyclables on her way back from the school.


North Korea reports ‘positive trend’ in Covid fight as fever cases dip

For the first time in nearly 10 days North Korea’s daily “fever” cases dropped below 200,000, state media said on Sunday, reporting “a positive trend” after measures were taken to control the country’s first acknowledged Covid-19 outbreak.The Covid wave, declared on May 12, has fuelled concerns over a lack of vaccines, inadequate medical infrastructure and a potential food crisis in the country of 25 million. It has refused most outside help, kept its borders shut and allows no independent confirmation of official data.Apparently lacking in testing supplies, North Korea has not confirmed the total number of people testing positive for the coronavirus. Instead, health authorities report the number with fever symptoms, making it difficult to assess the scale of the Covid wave, experts have said.More than 186,090 additional people had fever symptoms and one more person had died, state news agency KCNA reported on Sunday. More than two million of the 2.6 million cumulative cases had recovered, KCNA said. The official death toll stands at 67.“The current situation of the epidemic spread in the DPRK shows a positive trend away from a rapid growth in the beginning to a decline after being stably controlled and managed, registering daily increased number of recoveries across the country,” KCNA said, using the initials of North Korea’s official name.Last year, North Korea said it had developed its own polymerase chain reaction (PCR) equipment to conduct coronavirus tests. KNCA reported the country is “hastening the development of new test reagent and antibody test reagent for early detection of the epidemic.”Authorities have distributed food and medicine across the country, with military medics deployed to help distribute drugs and conduct exams.More than one million health care workers, including medical students and teachers, had been mobilised to conduct health check-ups “to thoroughly block and eradicate the source of spread,” the report added.


PAS, Umno leaders join health experts' outrage over govt move to delist vape nicotine

Two medical doctors from PAS and Umno have joined the criticism against the government's move to delist liquid nicotine as a controlled substance, echoing a warning from anti-tobacco campaigners and medical experts that the decision will lead to a health crisis with youths gaining easier access to vaping products.
PAS' Dr Izani Husin, the Kelantan exco member in charge of health, described the decision by Health Minister Dr Zaliha Mustafa despite strong objections from the medical fraternity as a "dark hour for the nation".
"The move has allowed the uncontrolled and widespread sale of electronic cigarettes (e-cigs) or vape products, whether to youth or students," he said.
He also urged the minister to revoke the decision.
"We long for a smoke- and drug-free generation who will lead the country in the future," he said.
The Malaysian Pharmacists Society was among the groups opposed to delisting liquid and gel nicotine, the main ingredient for vape products – a move seen as facilitating the new vape tax announced by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim in his 2023 budget speech.
The Malaysian Council for Tobacco Control meanwhile warned that even children could now legally vape.
"You can buy vape like you can buy curry puffs now," its chairman Dr M Murallitharan was quoted as saying by the New Straits Times.
Public health group Galen Centre for Health and Social Policy meanwhile slammed the move as "exceptionally regressive", claiming that the government was after more revenue at the cost of public health.
Izani said the vape tax showed that the government could not be bothered about the long-term effects on public health, adding that it was against the health ministry's efforts to rid Malaysia of any nicotine addiction.
"The effect of nicotine is not only addictive. Research shows that exposing the brain to nicotine in teenagers is very harmful as this is a critical stage of brain development, and there is a risk of youths trying illegal substances that could lead to drug abuse," he added.
The decision was also criticised by Umno Youth chief Dr Akmal Saleh, who said it was effectively a licence for Malaysians of all ages to consume nicotine.
Akmal agreed with critics who said the government should have first ensured the passing of the Control of Tobacco Products and Smoking Bill, also known as the generational endgame (GEG), aimed at eradicating smoking and vaping in future generations.
"The rationale behind this is the GEG needs to be implemented first, only then should the government remove liquid vape nicotine from the Poisons Act so that high taxes can be imposed on users who do not belong to the end generation, in order to reduce the rate of vape use in society," he said as quoted by Umno Online.
Akmal also warned the government that the health implications far outweighed the profit from tax collected on vape.
The GEG bill was championed by Zaliha's predecessor Khairy Jamaluddin, and would have seen a ban on the consumption of tobacco products or substitutes on those born after 2007.
It was however criticised by some Pakatan Harapan (PH) leaders including Anwar during his time as the opposition leader.
The bill was not passed following delays caused by PH leaders who called for a special parliamentary committee to examine it.


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Flying not so risky infection-wise but be prepared to shield up

You might feel especially in danger of catching Covid-19 when squeezed into a plane with hundreds of strangers.Yet some experts are claiming that in-flight transmission between passengers is relatively rare.Cases of infected passengers passing the virus on to an airplane’s crew or fellow travellers are not unknown, but far fewer than most people expect.A flight from the UK to Vietnam in March, in which one passenger seemingly spread the virus to around 14 other passengers and a crew member, is believed to be the only known on-board transmission to multiple people so far.There are several theories to explain the apparently low risk level. One is that the air in modern aircraft cabins is replaced every two to three minutes, and incoming air goes through filters that trap 99.99% of particles.Professor Arnold Barnett, of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, told CNN Travel that most things are more dangerous now than they were before Covid-19, and aviation is no exception to that.Barnett said, “For you to get infected while flying, you have to be near an infected person.“Window seats are a little safer than middle or aisle seats on a plane that’s full as there are fewer people around you. But it’s not a big difference.”He is an advocate of keeping middle seats empty, but most airlines say this is financially impractical.Airlines have slightly different safety measures in place, but most agree that the best advice for passengers is to wear a mask, wash their hands regularly and check in online.Barnett recommends taking things one step further by wearing a shield.“A shield covers your eyes, nose and mouth, so it lessens the risk of others infecting you. If I were flying now, I would certainly wear a shield.”Qatar Airways has made it compulsory for all passengers to wear a face shield in addition to a face mask.The shields, which are supplied by the airline, are obligatory for economy class passengers, except when they are eating or drinking. Business class travellers can wear them at their own discretion, as they have more space around them. However, all passengers must wear them during boarding and deplaning.Philippine Airlines followed suit earlier this month, so it seems likely other carriers may choose to enforce shields in the future.


Not the beginning of the end if Malaysia lags behind in FDIs

There’s been much hype and agitation and, by extension, circulation of kopitiam talk about reports of Malaysia falling behind its regional counterparts and peers in terms of foreign direction investment (FDI) which includes losing out on key strategic investments so that we’re now (yet again) supposed to be on that path towards becoming a failed state (which we’ve heard before).Such a grim outlook is justified on the basis that, e.g. according to a United Nations Conference on Trade & Development (Unctad) report, “Investment flows to developing countries in Asia could fall up to 45% in 2020” (June 16, 2020), it’s highlighted that Indonesia, Singapore and Vietnam received more than 80% of the US$156 billion in FDI that Asean countries pulled in last year. Only 5% or just US$7.8 billion went to Malaysia – which of course doesn’t seem to augur well for us.Some of the specific examples making the rounds on social media and messaging apps include:• Samsung Electronics intending to shift its display production operations from China to Vietnam – but which has actually been officially denied by the company itself. For the record, Samsung already has six factories and two research and development (R&D) centres in Vietnam.• Apple through its manufacturing partner, Foxconn, is moving only some (i.e. not wholesale) of the iPad and MacBook assembly lines to Vietnam from China as part of the “parallel supply chain” strategy. This means that there’s scope for other regional countries such as Malaysia to attract the rest of this production network in the global value chain (GVC);• Tesla building a factory in Indonesia and even contemplating a SpaceX launchpad too – when in reality talks between the electric vehicle and clean energy company with the Indonesian government are still ongoing;• Amazon investing US$2.8 billion to build a localised data centre (Amazon Web Services/AWS Region consisting of interconnected clusters known as Availability Zones) for its cloud computing services in West Java, Indonesia. Data localisation would also minimise the potential for aggressive tax avoidance (transfer pricing) for companies such as Amazon. But should Indonesia decide to go ahead and join the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), the advantages gained from data localisation will be diluted. This is since the CPTPP has an in-built bias against data localisation and this with the corresponding tax implications alongside intellectual property rights (IPR).• Alibaba, Bytedance and Tencent, etc setting up their regional headquarters in Singapore. This has no bearing at all on the investment in our own digitalisation drive, including assimilation of 5G technology. It should be recalled that Alibaba had co-invested in the establishment of what is the world’s first Digital Free Trade Zone (DFTZ).Nonetheless, this isn’t a case for complacency and resting on our laurels.In the context of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, we are seeing the acceleration of international and regional cooperation (especially the latter) where Covid-19 affects the whole spectrum of trade and investment linkages such as the supply chain in vaccine procurement and manufacturing, the growth of e-commerce as well as supply chain reconfiguration brought about by reshoring and onshoring, etc.The solution, therefore, isn’t to be overly dependent on China which could “reproduce” the kind of ramifications and unravelling analogous to the “dependency theory” (which basically stipulates that we as a periphery nation end up losing our resources to China as the core nation), but to further intensify the diversification of our supply chain lines.Other policy measures to ramp up our efforts in the face of friendly (and complementary) rivalry from our regional competitors would be as follows – based on the counter-logic that we shouldn’t be overly reliant on FDI as such.Firstly, we must increase our domestic direct investment (DDI) and strengthen our SME base.A new policy vision is called for in which the existing policy paradigm is turned on its head with SMEs at the forefront and as a catalyst of economic and employment growth. It would also benefit GLCs and foreign investors as the spillover effect is reversed.One of the ways to do this is to boost and strengthen SME linkages and production networks in Asean, thus enabling SMEs to contribute towards intra-Asean trade and investment flows as well as regional integration. This could be done through the pre-existing Asean Inclusive Business Framework within the broader structure of the Asean Economic Community (AEC).Furthermore, the SMEs of Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Indonesia should enhance cooperation and involvement in e.g. the Indonesia-Malaysia-Thailand Growth Triangle (IMT-GT) and the Singapore-Johor-Riau Growth Triangle (Sijori).Secondly, strengthening regional cooperation through Asean and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) – greater regional interdependency.There should be an Asean Industrial and Economic Masterplan (paralleling the Asean Connectivity Masterplan 2025, for example) that apportions and designates production network and supply chain bases along the competitive edges and advantages and strategic locations of the member-states. So that, for example, the manufacturing lines and zones of Vietnam for electrical & electronic (E&E) products is fully integrated with Malaysia’s.Other policy steps would include the resuscitation of cross-border listings such as the Asean Trading Link (set up in 2012) by building upon the Asean Capital Markets Forum (ACMF) for cross-border offerings of collective investment schemes (CIS). The revival of the Central Limit Order Book (CLOB) that was banned without any prior warning set against the backdrop of the Asian Financial Crisis (AFC) should perhaps be reconsidered as part of a ringgit stabilisation strategy.Thirdly, increase fiscal deficit to invest in DDI, including in research and development (R&D) and generate loose full employment – job creation strategy at the heart of our macro-economic strategy.It’s recommended that a macro-economic strategy with jobs creation – including as part of the spillover effects of R&D in green and renewable technologies – at its heart be part of the government’s priority for the next five to 10 years, even as the low-touch economy, digitalisation and automation increasingly become the new normal with Covid-19 as the impetus.Fiscal consolidation in the medium term, important though that is, will have to be modified and adjusted according to business cycles and therefore shouldn’t be considered as cast in stone.Fourthly, further diversify and boost our trade and investment links beyond our traditional FDI partners – looking to Latin America (Central & South), Middle East, Central Asia, North Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa.Beyond the immediate region, East Asia, North America and the European Union (EU), the international trade and industry ministry (Miti) through its two wings of the Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (Matrade) and the Malaysian Investment Development Authority (Mida) should deepen our trade and investment linkages, respectively, with the rapidly growing economies and emerging markets of Latin America, Central Asia, Middle East and North Africa (Mena) and Sub-Saharan Africa. Argentina, for example, is steadily becoming an important trading partner. From January to August of last year, both exports to and imports from Argentina grew by 23.4 and 20.1%, respectively, which outpaced Malaysia’s global trade record during the initial waves of Covid-19, according to Miti Deputy Secretary-General Hairil Yahri Yaacob.In conclusion, detractors do play a vital and indispensable role in keeping the government of the day on its toes. That said, we need not go to one extreme and lament in despair and hopelessness at our situation relative to our neighbours in terms of FDI, stereotypically seen as the “saviour” of our economy and economic development.If there’s to be a new national consensus of the next phase in national development, let it be one that’s renewed by self-belief/confidence – avoiding the twin extremes of isolationism/autarky and over-dependence – that we have what it takes to make that leap and transformation as a nation.Jason Loh Seong Wei is head of social, law and human rights at independent think tank Emir Research.The views expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the position of MalaysiaNow.


China’s ‘epidemic generation’ sits high-stakes college entrance exam

High school seniors across China lined up on Tuesday to sit the gruelling “gaokao” college entrance exam under the shadow of Covid-19.The class of 2022 are the first to have had all three years of China’s high school curriculum disrupted by the pandemic, bouncing between online and offline classes and adapting to frequent Covid tests and sudden closures.The constant uncertainty has compounded the already intense stress of the three-day gaokao, which can determine a teenager’s life path in China’s highly competitive academic and job environment.“These kids haven’t had it easy,” Jin Lijuan, mother of a gaokao candidate, told AFP outside a high school in Beijing.Anxious parents offered words of encouragement to their children and took photos outside the school as students shuffled through its gates, some cramming last-minute.Police officers guided traffic around the campus. Signs near the school asked drivers not to honk.Tuesday was the first time in weeks that many students had seen their classmates, as the Chinese capital had closed schools and offices to try and eliminate a coronavirus outbreak.“At the beginning, my kid was very happy since there’s no need to go to school,” Zhao Dong, whose daughter is sitting the gaokao this year, told AFP.“But as time went by, looking at her computer for a whole day of class became quite difficult.”Students taking the exam in Beijing this year must wear masks, show proof of a negative virus test from the past 48 hours and pass a temperature check.Local governments across the country have similar requirements.Authorities in China are committed to a zero-Covid strategy – using rapid lockdowns, mass testing and strict travel restrictions to eliminate even the smallest outbreaks.In Shanghai, where 25 million residents are gradually emerging from two months in lockdown, authorities have delayed the exam by a month.A record 11.93 million people registered for this year’s gaokao, state news agency Xinhua said on Tuesday, with teens in some locked-down neighbourhoods taking the tests in individual hotel rooms.“This generation of kids entered high school in 2019… so the entire second semester of their first year was done at home,” Zhao said.“They are like an ‘epidemic generation’.”


Rafizi, address issues with a forward-looking mindset

The acrimonious debate between Economy Minister Rafizi Ramli and former prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin in the Dewan Rakyat exemplifies the continued difficulty of balancing the demands of politics with the need to solve pressing economic concerns.
Some people think Rafizi's attitude during the Q&A session was too arrogant and diverted attention from the essential points.  As a newbie minister, Rafizi must learn to remain calm and communicate effectively with his peers of all political stripes. The predecessors' efforts must be acknowledged, especially in these trying times.  Dialogues between opposition and government representatives should be civil and effective if they are to address national concerns. It's possible to see Rafizi's strident rejection of Muhyiddin's suggestion for targeted incentives and his subsequent focus on the debt inherited from the latter's leadership as an attempt to score political points rather than promote cooperation.  Others have also pointed out that Rafizi's emphasis on the debt incurred by the previous administration and his manner have taken the focus away from helping powerless folks and SMEs prepare for a possible global economic downturn. Politicians need to set aside their differences and work together in a spirit of mutual respect to find solutions to the nation's financial woes.  Rafizi should not disregard Muhyiddin's efforts, such as the Prihatin Rakyat Economic Stimulus Package, that helped those most negatively impacted by the pandemic. Low-income households received cash transfers, workers received wage subsidies, and small businesses were given aid. Furthermore, the government offered financial facilities and extended loan moratoria to help firms and individuals survive the economic downturn.  The current PH-BN coalition government should focus on helping the most vulnerable and small businesses recover from the pandemic. Healthcare, education, and environmental protection are all crucial to the long-term success of a nation and necessitate a more aggressive stance on the part of the government.  The government, while working to step up its economic recovery, must also guarantee that the advantages of development are shared fairly among all citizens. Those already disadvantaged, such as those living in rural areas or those with physical impairments, may have even more trouble breaking through to the mainstream economy.  With it, the government must have a multi-pronged long-term strategy to hasten economic growth recuperation post-pandemic, prioritising aiding marginalized communities and micro SMEs, fostering entrepreneurship and innovation, and advocating for sustainable and inclusive growth. When all parties are heard and considered, the government may find common ground and work together to find solutions that benefit all Malaysians.
Mahathir Mohd Rais is Perikatan Nasional's federal territories information chief.
The views expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the position of MalaysiaNow.


Russia to introduce jail terms for spreading ‘fake’ information about army

Russia’s parliament on Friday passed a law imposing a jail term of up to 15 years for spreading intentionally ‘fake’ information about the armed forces as Moscow fights back in what it casts as an information war over the conflict in Ukraine.Russian officials have repeatedly said that false information has been spread by Russia’s enemies such as the US and its allies in an attempt to sow discord and divide its people.Russian lawmakers passed the law, making the spread of ‘fake’ information or public calls for sanctions against Russia criminal offences.“If the fakes lead to serious consequences then imprisonment of up to 15 years threatens,” the lower house of parliament, known as the Duma in Russian, said in a statement.The law appears to give the Russian state much stronger powers to crack down on what officials consider to be statements that discredit the armed forces.


Single mum appeals against court decision rejecting bid to quash children's conversion

Single mother Loh Siew Hong has filed an appeal against the High Court’s decision last week rejecting her bid to challenge the unilateral conversion to Islam of her three children without her consent by her ex-husband.
Loh filed the notice of appeal at the Court of Appeal yesterday through Mssrs Srimurugan & Co.
In his decision on May 11, High Court judge Wan Ahmad Farid Wan Salleh ruled there was no evidence that the three children had stopped professing the religion of Islam while under the care of their mother.
The judge said Loh, as the applicant, did not deny that her children continued professing the religion of Islam in performing the daily subuh prayers when they were in her custody, and that there was no evidence that they had reverted to the Hindu religion.
He said the certificates of conversion were issued after the first respondent, the Perlis State Registrar of Converts, was satisfied that the legal requirements under Section 107(1) of the Perlis 2006 Enactment were adhered to when the children willingly professed the syahadah proclamation.  Loh, 36, filed the application on March 25 last year naming the Perlis State Registrar of Converts, Perlis Islamic Religious and Malay Customs Council, Perlis mufti Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin and the Perlis state government as the first to the fourth respondents.
She is seeking a declaration that her three children are Hindus and that her ex-husband, M Nagahswaran, did not have the legal capacity to allow the Perlis State Registrar of Converts to register their children as converts without her consent.
She is also seeking a declaration that her three children, as children, did not have the legal capacity to convert to Islam without her consent.
She is likewise seeking a certiorari order to revoke the declaration of conversion to Islam, dated July 7, 2020, issued by the Registrar of Converts of Perlis in the name of her three children, as well as other cards on their conversion to Islam that have been issued by other parties, and to prevent any party from issuing such cards.
The three children, a pair of 15-year-old twin girls and an 11-year-old boy who were placed under the care of the Social Welfare Department, were released to Loh on Feb 21, 2022, after the High Court allowed her habeas corpus application.


Ex-Tabung Haji chief freed of 4 money laundering charges, to face 9 others

Former Tabung Haji chairman Abdul Azeez Abdul Rahim today failed in his bid at the Court of Appeal to strike out nine charges, three of corruption and six of money laundering, against him.
A three-man bench comprising judges Kamaludin Md Said, Abu Bakar Jais and Che Mohd Ruzima Ghazali ruled that the nine charges against Azeez were not defective.
In a unanimous decision delivered by Abu Bakar, the court ordered Azeez's trial for the nine charges to resume in the Sessions Court.
Abu Bakar, who read the court's unanimous decision, however allowed Azeez's appeal to partly nullify four of the money laundering charges.
Azeez was charged at the Sessions Court with three counts of accepting bribes amounting to RM5.2 million in connection with road projects in Perak and Kedah, and 10 counts of money laundering involving a total of RM13.9 million allegedly received from Menuju Asas Sdn Bhd.
The offences were allegedly committed at CIMB Bank, Jalan Tun Perak in Kuala Lumpur on Dec 8, 2010 and at Affin Bank, Puchong City Centre, Selangor, on June 13, 2017, and April 10, 2018.
Azeez was charged with committing the money laundering offences in the Klang Valley area between March 8, 2010 and Aug 30, 2018.
Azeez was appealing against a High Court decision on March 12 last year, dismissing his application to strike out the three corruption charges and 10 money laundering charges.