French schoolgirl admits lying about beheaded teacher

A schoolgirl has admitted to lying and spreading false claims about a teacher who was gruesomely murdered in France last year.Samuel Paty was beheaded in October after showing students cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad.The girl, whose complaints sparked an online campaign against Paty, has now admitted that she was not in the class which sparked the uproar.Paty’s killing stunned France and led to an outpouring of support at memorial ceremonies and marches around the country.The 13-year-old girl, who has not been named, originally told her father that Paty had asked Muslim students to leave the classroom while he showed the cartoon during a class on free speech and blasphemy.“She lied because she felt trapped in a spiral because her classmates had asked her to be a spokesperson,” said her lawyer, Mbeko Tabula.The girl’s father filed a legal complaint against the teacher and began an online hate campaign over the incident.Prosecutors said shortly after the killing that there was a “direct causal link” between the online incitement against Paty and his murder.The murderer, 18-year-old Abdullakh Anzorov, was shot dead by police shortly after the attack.The schoolgirl has been charged with slander, while her father and an Islamist preacher face charges of complicity in the killing.President Emmanuel Macron later presented the teacher’s family with the nation’s highest honour, the Légion d’honneur.Depictions of the Prophet Muhammad are widely regarded as taboo in Islam and are considered highly offensive by Muslims.The issue is particularly sensitive in France because of the decision by satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo to publish cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad.Twelve people were killed by Islamist extremists at the magazine’s offices in 2015 after the images were published.


Britain's ex-PM Johnson urges court to allow WhatsApp messages in Covid inquiry

Britain's former leader Boris Johnson urged a court on Friday to allow the release of potentially embarrassing WhatsApp messages between senior figures to a Covid-19 inquiry despite objections by his successor Rishi Sunak's government.
Johnson, who ordered the inquiry in 2021 after Britain recorded one of the world's highest death tolls from the pandemic, resigned last year due to scandals including repeated breaches of Covid-19 lockdown rules.
He has been at odds with his former ally Sunak since then, dividing the ruling Conservatives to the delight of the opposition Labour Party which believes it can win the next election, due by early 2025.
The Covid inquiry's chair Heather Hallett had asked the Sunak government to provide two years' worth of messages, including from Johnson and 40 different individuals.
But the Cabinet Office earlier this month refused to reveal certain WhatsApp messages about the pandemic and other political issues, saying some material sought was "unambiguously irrelevant" and the request was beyond Hallett's remit.
Johnson asked London's High Court to reject that, showing the political problems he poses to his former friend.
His lawyer David Pannick, who also gave Johnson advice over Parliament's "Partygate" inquiry into illegal gatherings, said on Friday that the former prime minister backed Hallett's stance.
"In establishing the inquiry, Johnson said... he wanted the state's action to be placed 'under the microscope' and that the inquiry must be 'free to scrutinise every document'," Pannick added in court filings.
"That is what the public expects and that is what should be done."
The Cabinet Office's lawyer James Eadie earlier told the court the case was brought with reluctance.
He argued that the documents relevant to the inquiry "simply cannot cover all government business and all the policy areas that were live over the two-year period".
Eadie said the WhatsApp messages contained references to personal and family information and "comments of a personal nature" about identifiable government figures.
Lawyers representing Hallett said limiting public inquiries' powers to see documents would "emasculate" them and enable the Cabinet Office to "mark its own homework."
One of those lawyers, Hugo Keith, said in court filings that a witness statement provided by Johnson earlier this month led to WhatsApp messages redacted by the Cabinet Office as being "unambiguously irrelevant" being reassessed as relevant.


PM announces improvements to one-stop centre procedures

The One Stop Centre (OSC) 3.0 Plus procedures will be further improved, starting with reducing the approval period from 42 days to 21 and the number of agencies referred to for approval from 19 to five, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said.
Anwar said these were among the improvements agreed upon by the stakeholders, including federal and state governments, at the 41st meeting of the National Physical Planning Council yesterday.
OSC 3.0 Plus is an electronic system for submitting and processing applications for development control.
"The efforts to expedite development approval period are believed to be able to indirectly improve the investment environment in addition to increasing the country's competitiveness," he said in a posting on Facebook today.
Anwar said the meeting also discussed proposals to strengthen the agricultural sector, especially the need to determine the area of land use for agricultural purposes and national food resources.
“In this regard, emphasis should be placed on increasing agricultural productivity,” he said.
The prime minister said the council also opined that the regulatory aspects of the management and development of livestock farms need to be further strengthened through the adoption of the Poultry Farm Planning Guidelines.
On flash flood woes that continue afflicting the people, Anwar said the council also agreed that the Stormwater Management and Drainage Master Plan (PISMA) should be applied as one of the solutions.
He said the council would continue ensuring that urban development planning moves towards "Madani Township" to improve people's quality of life and create a livable environment.
"The government remains committed to continuing cooperation and coordination of development between the federal and state governments in a bid to achieve the agenda of developing a Madani nation, insha Allah," he added.


Ex-Aussie PM 'undermined' responsible govt with secret ministries, says solicitor-general

Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said advice from the solicitor-general showed his predecessor Scott Morrison's secret appointment to ministries during the Covid-19 pandemic "fundamentally undermined" responsible government despite being legally valid.
The advice from the country's second highest law officer was a "very clear criticism" of the implications for Australia's parliamentary democracy, Albanese told reporters on Tuesday.
Albanese said his cabinet had agreed "there will be a need for a further inquiry" into the matter, to answer questions on how the unprecedented assumption of power occurred and the need for reform.
"Scott Morrison owes the Australian people an apology for undermining our parliamentary democracy system of government that we have – something that can't be taken for granted," Albanese said.
Morrison, who stepped down as leader of the Liberal Party after losing a general election in May, has faced a barrage of criticism from the Labor government and his own party, after it was revealed he was secretly sworn in to ministries without telling parliament or his cabinet.
In the written advice, the solicitor-general was critical that Morrison's appointments to the ministries were not made public, saying it was inconsistent with the system of responsible government prescribed by the constitution.
"That is because it is impossible for Parliament and the public to hold ministers accountable for the proper administration of particular departments if the identity of the ministers who have been appointed to administer those departments is not publicised," it said.
Morrison's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Three ministers were unaware Morrison shared power over their ministries of home affairs, treasury and finance until last week. Morrison said he only intervened in one ministry, resources, to block an offshore gas project. The decision is now being challenged in court by the resources company.
The solicitor-general's advice was Morrison's appointment to the resources ministry was legally valid.
It also found the governor-general "has no discretion to refuse to accept the prime minister's advice in relation to such an appointment".
The governor-general as largely ceremonial head of state had approved Morrison's appointment to the ministries, on Morrison's advice, but there was no public swearing-in ceremony.
Morrison said last week the coronavirus pandemic was an extraordinary time and he secretly took on the ministries because he felt responsibility for the nation was his alone.
Australia has a cabinet-based system that relies on a group of ministers governing, and not a presidential system.
The popularity of Albanese's government has soared since the May election win, with a Resolve Strategic opinion poll published by Nine newspapers showing Labor on a primary vote of 42%, up from 33% at the election, ahead of the Coalition's 28%.


In leaked conversation, senior PKR leaders heap scorn on Anwar

Senior PKR leaders including from its youth wing – seen as the party’s most critical tool in mobilising public support – have used strong language to criticise Anwar Ibrahim after a series of setbacks by their president, a transcript of a private chat leaked to MalaysiaNow shows.The conversation in a mix of Malay and English offers a glimpse of the disappointment and cynicism that party leaders secretly hold against Anwar, especially in the wake of his failure to prove that he has the numbers to topple Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin.In one instance, two senior PKR Youth leaders poured scorn on the veteran politician, saying the grassroots felt cheated and had been left squabbling among themselves while Anwar remained the “dewa” (god).A: It’s the reason why Anwar is surrounded by people who are yes-men. In the end, the party cannot grow because the grassroots have been let down.B: Yes, many are disappointed.A: It’s difficult to be the PM because too many people are fed up, they worked hard but were told to step back, haha…In another instance, leaders poked fun at those whom they labelled as apple polishers.A: Quick, draft a statement and lick it clean, haha…B: Can. “Anwar is our leader. We believe Anwar is the messiah.”A: There are two miraculous uncertainties in this world: 1. Anwar becoming the PM and 2. The life of the battery that keeps the heart of *** beating.B: Hahaha true.A: Anwar went to the palace in a Pajero. The Pajero then flew out of the palace gate.The conversation took place in a WhatsApp group joined by senior leaders.When contacted, several PKR leaders who are part of the group confirmed that it was authentic.MalaysiaNow is however withholding their names pending their response.One of them had last month openly expressed disappointment with Pakatan Harapan’s (PH) move not to force a bloc vote on the 2021 budget.A last-minute instruction by Anwar to PH MPs on Nov 26 saw them sitting out a call for a bloc vote on the budget, which was easily passed by voice vote.Success in voting down the budget would have caused the collapse of the Perikatan Nasional government.Anwar’s supporters had hoped at the time to give him a second chance at offering himself for the prime minister’s post following his failure to show proof of majority support in an audience with the Agong in October.Anwar first made the claim on Sept 23, at the height of the Sabah election campaign.He famously declared that he possessed a “strong and formidable” majority, and that Muhyiddin’s government had collapsed.The PKR leaders in their exchange also spoke of Anwar’s failure to secure 14 seats for the party to contest in Sabah.PKR had joined forces with Warisan, but the Sabah-based party only allowed it seven seats despite a personal request from Anwar to Warisan president Shafie Apdal. Of these, PKR won two.One of the leaders said he and two other MPs had attempted to block Anwar’s Sept 23 press conference.“But Anwar claimed that he had 120 MPs. So it was no use if only the three of us pulled the brake,” he said.“I don’t want to sound pessimistic, but we are actually being played out by Anwar (not the Istana or Umno),” he added.


Umno chief controls party, not PM, Muhyiddin says in warning on court cluster

Former prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin today warned that while Ismail Sabri Yaakob had succeeded him in the country’s top office, the person who controls Umno is the party president.“When Parliament is dissolved, the person with the power to determine which candidates are fielded and who will lead the party during the election is the president, not the prime minister,” he said in a post on Facebook.“If they win the election, in general the person who is appointed as prime minister is the party president. If this should happen, then the plans of the court cluster will be achieved.“They will return to power and settle their problems, God forbid.”The court cluster refers to a group of Umno MPs including former prime minister Najib Razak and party president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi who are facing criminal charges in court.Muhyiddin said the court cluster’s plan to topple him as prime minister began after he refused to interfere in their legal casesAcknowledging that he had become prime minister with the support of MPs including from the court cluster, he added however that he had never asked or campaigned for the position.“I was only following the provisions of the Federal Constitution,” he said. “When I received the support of the majority of MPs, I was appointed by the Agong as prime minister.“It was only afterwards that I realised their support came with strings attached.”Several days after his appointment as prime minister, he said, the court cluster had met with him to ask him to interfere in their cases so that they would go free.“Although I knew that my position as prime minister depended on their support, I told them no as I did not want to betray my oath,” he said.“It was from then onwards that the court cluster began working to topple me.”Adding that they were still unsatisfied, Muhyiddin said one way for the group to return to power was to topple the state governments formed with Perikatan Nasional to trigger elections at the state level.“When elections are held and if they win, the party leadership led by the court cluster will be seen as stronger and more influential.”MalaysiaNow had previously reported that Zahid’s faction was planning a string of state elections culminating in a general election in July.Muhyiddin said the state election strategy began after Barisan Nasional (BN) won the Melaka polls late last year.“Because of this, the group planned the dissolution of the Johor legislative assembly so that an election would be held in the state.“They chose Johor because Johor is said to be an Umno stronghold,” he added. “If their party wins the Johor election, they will urge the prime minister to dissolve Parliament so that a general election can be held.“The only way to defeat the court cluster is to ensure that BN does not win the Johor election.”


Five Eyes urged to strengthen ties with Greenland to secure vital rare earths

The intelligence sharing alliance known as Five Eyes should strenghten their ties with Greenland to boost supplies of critical minerals and cut dependence on China as the major source, a think tank said on Thursday.Greenland has huge deposits of rare earths, which are a set of 17 vital minerals used in a huge number of modern applications from electric vehicles to the latest weaponry, a report by the London-based Polar Research and Policy Initiative said.China controls about 90% of the supply of the world’s rare earths.The Five Eyes partners are an alliance of the anglophone countries Australia, Britain, Canada, New Zealand and the US.The report says the alliance should expand its framework to include “resource intelligence, technical collaboration, major project financing and supply chain integration for minerals and materials critically important to national and economic security”.It is natural for the Five Eyes to target Greenland for its mining and rare earth potential because nearly 70% of the 41 mining sector licence holders in Greenland are connected to Britain, Canada and Australia, the report added.“Greenland’s vast critical minerals reserves and the sheer number of British, Canadian and Australian companies operating in Greenland make it a new frontier for Five Eyes,” said the report, made available to Reuters ahead of its release on Friday.US President Joe Biden’s administration said last month it will review key supplies, including rare earths, to ensure other countries cannot weaponise them against the US.Two Australia-based mining companies are racing for approval for mines in Greenland to exploit what the US Geological Survey calls the world’s biggest undeveloped deposits of rare earth metals.“The UK, Canada and Australia have remained relevant to Greenland over recent decades as home to some of the world’s leading clusters of energy and mining expertise,” the report said.Rare earths are among the most critical raw materials on the planet, used in everything from lithium-ion batteries to electric vehicles, wind turbines and missile guidance systems.They’re also frequent components of everyday objects like the light-emitting diodes, or LEDs, used in smartphone screens.They represent a vulnerability for the US, which is 80% reliant for rare earths on imports from China, and also for Europe.The world’s other large reserves of rare earths can be found in Brazil, Vietnam and Russia.


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PM heads for Istana as nation stays glued to another political drama

Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin has left Putrajaya and is on his way to Istana Negara for an audience with the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, as Malaysians closely follow what promises to be another exciting episode after the collapse of the Pakatan Harapan government last year.Muhyiddin today chaired a special Cabinet meeting lasting 90 minutes, with speculation rife that it would be the final meeting of the Perikatan Nasional government.“They also had a photography session as is the case when a government is prepared to seek a new mandate or resign,” said a source.There has been intense speculation that Muhyiddin will tender his resignation to allow the Agong to choose a new prime minister.This comes days after opposition parties dismissed his offer of a cross-party consensus that promised critical reforms for which they had been fighting in exchange for their support in an upcoming confidence vote promised by Muhyiddin.Despite the pressure from the opposition for Muhyiddin to resign, no single individual is believed to have the majority needed to convince the Agong that he or she could be appointed as prime minister.This is due to divisions and long-standing animosities between leaders on the opposition front, including the involvement of a set of MPs known as the court cluster.It was learnt that the opposition including PH’s candidate for prime minister, Anwar Ibrahim, had failed to obtain the majority support, and might be content with the support of Umno MPs aligned with their president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and former leader Najib Razak, who between them are facing hundreds of corruption charges.


Germany smashes 400,000-member online child porn network

German police said Monday they had shut down “one of the biggest darknet child pornography platforms in the world” and arrested four of its members in a series of raids in mid-April.The platform, named as “Boystown”, had existed since 2019, counted over 400,000 members and was “set up for the worldwide exchange of child pornography, in particular images of the abuse of boys”, federal police said in a statement.The darknet forum allowed users to communicate with others and share graphic image and video content which included “serious sexual abuse of toddlers”, the statement said.Three men between the ages of 40 and 64 were arrested in seven raids in Germany, while a further suspect was detained in Paraguay on the request of German authorities.The suspect in Paraguay’s Concepcion region, also a German citizen, is to be extradited back to Germany on the basis of an international arrest warrant issued by a court in Frankfurt.The three main suspects, aged 40, 49 and 58 respectively, are accused of having managed the platform as administrators, providing technical support and advice to members on how to avoid being discovered by the authorities.A further suspect, a 64-year-old man from Hamburg, was “one of the platform’s most active users”, having posted “more than 3,500” times on the platform since signing up to it in 2019, police said.‘Fantastic success’Investigators added that the months-long, German-instigated operation had been coordinated by Europol and supported by law enforcement in the Netherlands, Sweden, the US and Canada.Led by federal police and state prosecutors in Frankfurt, a total of seven raids were carried out in the German regions of North-Rhine Westphalia and Bavaria and the city of Hamburg.Both “Boystown” and other chat platforms were taken offline following the raids.The justice minister for the state of Hesse, Eva Kuehne-Hoermann, hailed what she said was “a fantastic success in the fight against sexual violence against children” for prosecutors in Frankfurt.“The investigators have shown once again that law enforcement works in the darknet and that criminals cannot feel safe there,” she added.Darknet sites are invisible to most internet users and can only be accessed by using encryption technology.They have repeatedly been used by criminals to trade drugs, weapons and child pornography.In 2019, a court in Hesse convicted four men of founding and running a darknet child pornography forum.The forum, which had around 110,000 members, ran for around six months before being discovered and shut down in police raids in June 2017.The defendants were found guilty of possessing and publishing child pornography and were handed sentences ranging from three years and 10 months to nine years and nine months.In a separate case, former Real Madrid and Germany defender Christoph Metzelder was last week handed a suspended prison sentence of 10 months after admitting to child pornography charges at a trial in Germany.The closely-watched trial was set to run until May 10, but came to a conclusion in just one day after Metzelder acknowledged having shared graphic illicit images of minors via WhatsApp.


Najib’s son agrees to settle additional tax arrears with LHDN

Mohamad Nizar, the son of former prime minister Najib Razak, has agreed to settle the additional tax arrears owed to the Inland Revenue Board (LHDN), which had demanded that he pay RM13.16 million in tax arrears for the assessment years 2011 to 2017.His lawyer Wee Yeong Kang said Nizar had reached a negotiated agreement with LHDN to resolve the matter.“The consent order should have been recorded before the Special Commissioner of Income Tax on May 27 but was rescheduled to Aug 4 following the movement control order,” he said when contacted after case management on Nizar’s appeal before Court of Appeal deputy registrar Mariam Hasanah Othman today.The proceeding, which was held virtually, was also attended by lawyer Muhammad Nabil Abdul Halim who acted on behalf of LHDN.The government through LHDN had, on July 24, 2019, filed a writ of summons against Nizar, claiming that he owed RM13,159,821.94 in taxes from 2011 to 2017.On Aug 11 last year, Nizar filed an appeal against the Shah Alam High Court’s decision allowing LHDN’s application to seek a summary judgment against him.Najib and his other son, Mohd Nazifuddin, have also been ordered to pay RM1.69 billion and RM37.6 million in tax arrears, respectively.


More support from Malays, rural poor for govt’s pandemic measures

The Malays and Bumiputeras are more in agreement with government initiatives to tackle the Covid-19 pandemic than the Chinese and Indian communities, a poll by think tank Emir Research has shown.The Emir Research Quarterly Poll for the fourth quarter of 2020, which involved 1,976 respondents from every state, was to assess the perceived direction of the country and the people’s living condition.It said Malay and Bumiputera respondents were “significantly more” in favour of lump sum or periodic withdrawals from the EPF Account 1, out of 52% who agreed with the green light for lump-sum withdrawals and 48% who agreed to withdrawals on a monthly basis.The move was opposed in general by 14% and 19% of respondents respectively with 34% and 33% saying they were unsure.The poll also showed that the Malays and Bumiputeras are more in agreement with the governance of the Covid-19 crisis than the Indians and Chinese, out of some 62% overall who agreed – a significantly lower figure than the 72% who responded positively in the poll in the third quarter of 2020.About 25% said they were unsure of this while 12% disagreed.Regarding governance of the Covid-19 crisis after the Sabah state election last year which saw a surge in daily case numbers, 30% of Chinese respondents and 38% of Indian respondents agreed with it in comparison to 52% of Malays and Bumiputeras.This was from a total of 45% who said they agreed with the post-election governance of Covid-19. About 32% said they were undecided while 23% disagreed.According to the survey, the negative impact of Covid-19 on the economy and national security appears to be felt more by urban respondents and those with higher qualifications.The higher educated sample was also more in agreement with government initiatives to tackle the pandemic and its governance of the Covid-19 crisis.The poll also showed that the negative impact of Covid-19 on the economy, job sector and national security was acknowledged more by respondents who earned RM3,001 and above than those who earned RM1,500 and below.Respondents who earned RM3,001 to RM5,000 registered “significantly higher” agreement than those in other income groups to the governance of the Covid-19 crisis, governance of the crisis after the Sabah election, and lump sum withdrawals from EPF Account 1.


6 rulers attend special meeting called by Agong, Kelantan absent

The Malay rulers today convened a special meeting at Istana Negara to scrutinise the views expressed by the political leaders who were granted audiences by Yang di-Pertuan Agong Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah over the past seven days.Present were Sultan Nazrin Shah of Perak, Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar of Johor, Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah of Selangor, Sultan Sallehuddin Sultan Badlishah of Kedah, Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin of Terengganu and Yang di-Pertuan Besar of Negeri Sembilan Tuanku Muhriz Almarhum Tuanku Munawir.Pahang Regent Tengku Hassanal Ibrahim Alam Shah and Raja Muda of Perlis Tuanku Syed Faizuddin Putra Jamalullail also attended the meeting.Kelantan ruler Sultan Muhammad V, however, was absent.Earlier, several top government officials were spotted entering the palace to brief the rulers on matters pertaining to public health, security, politics and the economy.They were Chief Secretary to the Government Mohd Zuki Ali, Chief of Defence Forces Affendi Buang, Inspector-General of Police Acryl Sani Abdullah Sani and health director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah.Yesterday, Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin and chairman of the Special Independent Committee on Emergency 2021, Arifin Zakaria, were also granted an audience with Sultan Abdullah.The king had granted face-to-face and virtual audiences to numerous political party leaders to hear their views on various issues since last Wednesday.


Over 10,000 reportedly detained at recent Navalny rallies in Russia

More than 10,000 people were detained at recent rallies in Russia in support of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny with many subjected to mistreatment in police custody, monitors said Wednesday.Navalny’s supporters took to the streets in cities across the country on consecutive weekends last month calling for his release from detention and denouncing Kremlin rule.Hundreds more filled the streets of the capital Moscow Tuesday evening, after Navalny, 44, was ordered behind bars for nearly three years on old embezzlement charges.At nationwide rallies over the last two weeks, more than 10,000 people were seized by police, the OVD-Info group that monitors opposition protests reported Wednesday.Detainees are held for hours “in horrid and stuffy conditions, without food or the opportunity to use a bathroom”, OVD-Info analyst Grigory Durnovo told Ekho Moskvy radio.He added that lawyers from the group, which provides free legal aid to detained protesters, were at times not given access to detention centres.Navalny called on Russians to take to the streets after he was detained last month on arrival in Moscow from Germany where he had been recovering from a poisoning with a Soviet-designed nerve agent.A court in the capital on Tuesday ruled that he must spend two years and eight months behind in prison for violating the terms of a 2014 suspended sentence on fraud charges.Russian police and investigators continuously issued warnings ahead of rallies, threatening arrests and criminal probes, to discourage protesters from joining.Over the course of two weeks, several Navalny allies were also detained and key aides have been placed on house arrest pending criminal charges.Navalny’s arrest and the violent police crackdown on protesters has met with condemnation by international rights groups and Western governments, including the US, Britain and France.


Restrictions on anti-vaxxers, constitutional or a denial of rights?

As more of the country’s social and economic sectors reopen with greater freedoms allowed for the fully vaccinated, questions have arisen over the fate of those who choose not to get jabbed, and whether the restrictions imposed on them are in line with the rights laid out in the Federal Constitution.Certain business premises, for example, can only welcome customers who have completed their vaccinations, and even leisure activities such as catching a movie over the weekend must now be preceded by proof of full vaccination.Civil servants, meanwhile, were told to get jabbed by the start of the month, with disciplinary action and the threat of dismissal awaiting those who continue to hold out.But while such measures might be labelled as draconian by some, legal experts who spoke to MalaysiaNow said they are well within the government’s right.Andrew Harding, a professor at the National University of Singapore, said the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases Act 1988 or Act 342, which is currently being used to fight the pandemic, is constitutionally valid.“The constitution allows restrictions on personal liberty in accordance with the law, according to Article 5(1),” he said, referring to the clause which states that no person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty except in accordance with the law.Harding, who has carried out research on the Federal Constitution, also cited Article 10 (2)(b) which states that freedom of assembly is subject to such restrictions as deemed necessary in the interest of the security of the federation.Meanwhile Wilson Tay who teaches law at Taylor’s University said restrictions on fundamental liberties must be proportionate in nature.“They must relate to an objective of sufficient importance to justify overriding a constitutionally protected right,” he told MalaysiaNow.“The steps taken to achieve that objective must also be reasonable and clearly justified.”Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said last month that the government would “make life difficult” for those who refuse to be vaccinated, sparking protest from those who said that such a move would be against the constitution.Critics also said that those who refuse to be jabbed have been oppressed and denied their rights, with some pointing to reports stating that MPs who do not get vaccinated will not be barred from entering the Dewan Rakyat.Tay said whether Khairy’s warning was constitutionally valid would depend on the severity of the measures contemplated.As for unvaccinated MPs who are permitted to enter Parliament, he and Harding said the issue is more complex than the analogy allows.“MPs enjoy parliamentary privilege and cannot be prevented from attending Parliament,” Harding said.“In this sense the law does apply a double standard but it is not invalid for that reason.”Tay meanwhile said double standards would only exist if a person who is unvaccinated is barred from dining in at a restaurant but an unvaccinated MP is allowed in.While Malaysia’s vaccination rate has been acknowledged and praised on the international stage, there are still pockets of people who remain hesitant or outright resistant to getting jabbed.It was revealed in Parliament on Wednesday that some 29,000 civil servants have yet to receive their shots.One option which has been taken by a handful of countries is to make vaccination compulsory. Only three countries have taken this route so far: Indonesia, Micronesia and Turkmenistan.Indonesia announced in February that those who refuse vaccination could be denied social assistance or government services or be made to pay a fine.Micronesia and Turkmenistan meanwhile have made it compulsory for their adult population to be jabbed.A more common approach, taken most recently by Britain, is to make inoculation mandatory for those in the healthcare sector.But Harding does not think that making vaccination compulsory will solve anything.“People have a right not to be vaccinated,” he said. “Meanwhile, society has a right to protect itself by imposing restrictions on those people.“We have a right to decide, but decisions also have consequences.”


Time to end the culture of impunity at MACC

As another death has occurred in the custody of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), the Teoh Beng Hock Trust for Democracy condemns the third custodial death case at the MACC. We are gravely disappointed that there is still a lack of meaningful reform after the death of Teoh Beng Hock under the MACC, and would like to emphasise the importance of the safeguards and rights of the detainees. The victim was arrested by MACC and believed to be a suspect involved in illegal mining in the state of Pahang. According to reports, the victim was sent to Hospital Putrajaya by MACC when he was found to be feeling ill. However, according to the chief commissioner of MACC, Azam Baki, the victim passed away while receiving treatment at the hospital. Firstly, we strongly believe that the MACC chief is not in a legal position to attempt to give an explanation of the incident or to hastily conclude the cause of death. It should have been the duty of the police and Coroner's Court to establish the truth behind the case, to ensure full transparency. Most of all, as the chief of MACC, any explanation from Azam of a death that happened under his supervision should not be taken as conclusive evidence in the name of impartiality. Echoing the views of Lawyers for Liberty, we therefore form the conclusion that the MACC chief had "no business rushing into conclusions or explaining the cause of death". Secondly, whenever a death in custody occurs, we also notice that enforcement officials have the tendency to push the "responsibility" to the hospital. The language that Azam has employed – where MACC officials first found the victim to be unwell and he subsequently passed away in hospital – is too similar to the numerous deaths that occurred in police custody. The causal explanation where the detainee passed away while receiving treatment does not do justice to the family and would cause the public to lose confidence in MACC. Given that there were two custodial death cases at MACC in the past 14 years – Teoh and Ahmad Sarbani – and the conclusion of the Court of Appeal that there was a pre-fall injury on the neck of Teoh and that one or more unknown persons caused his death, the police must conduct a thorough investigation of the new custodial death case, including from the angle of torture leading to death. The police must not be misled by Azam that the decreased died of natural sickness. For the public to continue having faith in MACC, the investigations must be impartial and transparent to uncover the truth behind. Justice must also be done where firm action needs to be taken if there was foul play involved in the latest death under MACC supervision. While MACC has recently shown itself to be fearless in performing its anti-corruption duty where action has been taken even against a former prime minister, MACC still falls behind in observing and respecting the rights of detainees. We are shocked to hear from MACC deputy director Wan Shaharuddin Wan Ladin that the right to legal representation does not apply to those who are summoned by MACC as witnesses. Lest we forget, this is the same excuse that was employed by the officials of MACC when they refused Teoh's request for legal representation. The tragic death of Teoh should be a lesson and opportunity for MACC to revise its SOPs and ensure that the right to legal representation is observed, to protect both the detainee and public faith in MACC. Even after 14 years, MACC refuses to acknowledge, never mind reform, this practice which contravenes the Federal Constitution. We demand that the Pakatan Harapan-led government seriously consider reforming the MACC and ensure that its anti-corruption crusade does not run afoul of human rights principles. The right to legal representation and freedom from torture must be guaranteed, and officers violating the rights of detainees must be brought to justice. More urgently, justice must be done and seen to be done. The police must investigate the truth behind the latest death in custody under MACC and action must be taken if there was foul play behind it. The culture of impunity of MACC can only be eliminated if the government takes bold action on previous custodial deaths cases at MACC, including Teoh and Sabarni, and prosecutes the related officers in accordance with the law. Ng Yap Hwa is chairman of the Teoh Beng Hock Trust for Democracy.
The views expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the position of MalaysiaNow.


Big bad losses as millions of books destroyed in flood

As the country struggles to deal with the aftermath of what has been described as the worst flooding on record with warnings of more to come, the list of losses and damages continues to grow.Adding to the dismal catalogue are millions of books that had been stored in a warehouse in Shah Alam, one of the areas in Selangor worst hit by the floods which took authorities in the state by surprise.Andrew Yap, co-founder of BookXcess, puts the retailer’s losses at 3.5 million books – more than the two to three million originally estimated.Speaking with MalaysiaNow at the 200,000 sq ft warehouse in Section 33, Taman Alam Indah, he said it had taken time for his staff to “really assess” the damages suffered during the floods.“You need to count every single book, then only will you know the total losses,” he said.But books were not the only things in the warehouse lost to the massive deluge that left many areas in Shah Alam nearly completely submerged. They also lost equipment such as forklifts, bookshelves and packing machines.BookXcess co-founder Andrew Yap speaks to MalaysiaNow about the losses sustained during the recent floods.“Those were our most important machines,” said Yap, who along with his wife Jacqueline Ng is also behind the popular Big Bad Wolf book fairs.“We can’t send out books without wrapping them.”He said they would need to wait another three weeks or so for more machines to arrive, adding that operations are currently paralysed.Outside the warehouse, mountains of damaged books grow taller and taller as more waterlogged volumes are added to the piles. Some whose height has outstripped their stability collapse, toppling over the fence to land on the ground outside where new mountains begin to form.Children play among the discarded books, searching like miniature treasure hunters for those that are “still good” in their eyes.A man sorts through the damaged books dumped in piles outside the BookXcess warehouse in Shah Alam.Most of them are from the surrounding neighbourhood, including the low-cost apartments nearby.“The community there was badly affected by the floods, too,” Yap said.“They said that some of the books in the piles could still be used, and they asked if they could take them. We couldn’t say no to that, so we let them pick any books they wanted.“We never really stopped them, but we did remind them to clean the books before using them,” he added.But despite the glee of the young treasure hunters outside, the sad truth remains that most of the books are unsalvageable.Even those that escaped the floodwater have been affected by the humidity in the warehouse, which rose sharply in the wake of the disaster.“Normal humidity is 30%, but ours went up to 70% or 80%,” Yap said. “That’s why we have to throw out all the affected books because if we keep them in the warehouse, the humidity level will become higher.”Staff members clear racks of books in the warehouse which was flooded up to five feet during the recent floods which swept across large parts of Shah Alam.Inside, the water rose to about five feet but even books that were stored at 10 feet and above were affected.“The books that were not shrink wrapped are already affected. We have to throw them all away, too,” he said.The decision, although hard, was also obvious as they wished to avoid the health hazard posed by the dirty flood water.The cleaning process has been ongoing for two weeks and is expected to continue for another fortnight.For 12 days after the floods, the warehouse was without electricity, forcing them to rely on a generator in order to clean the place.Workers use tractors to scoop up the flood-damaged books and place them in a dumpster to be taken for recycling.Reluctant to see anything go to waste, they have arranged for the damaged books to be taken to a recycling centre where they will be given a new lease of life albeit in some other form.But even so, for Yap, it is disheartening to see millions of books destroyed just like that.“We have an emotional attachment to books, and we can identify the details of every single book that we see destroyed,” he said.“Each book is powerful. They provide knowledge, and 3.5 million books could have gone to someone else’s home. They could have brought joy to other people – and now, we can’t do that anymore.”


Honduras military takes over prisons after dozens die in riot

Honduras' military began taking control of the country's violent prisons on Monday, following a gang dispute that left 46 inmates dead at a women's detention center last week, officials said.
Leftist President Xiomara Castro announced last week she would hand the military police control of the prison system, a departure from a past stance of demilitarising security, as her administration seeks to stop organised crime activity inside prisons.
Official video showed hundreds of shirtless male inmates, many tattooed and with their heads shaved, arranged on the floor of Honduras' high-security Tamara prison with their arms over their heads, guarded by heavily armed soldiers.
The images show similarities to ones shared earlier this year by neighboring right-wing El Salvador's government, which has beefed up prison security and locked up more than 62,000 alleged criminals during a crackdown on gangs.
"Our mission is to defeat organised crime inside the prisons and we are (also) going after the intellectual authors operating from outside," Defense Minister Jose Manuel Zelaya said in a tweet.
Tamara, where some 4,200 inmates are crammed into a facility with a capacity to accommodate 2,500, is one of two prisons, along with La Tolva, that the military police assumed control over on Monday, Armed Forces spokesperson Antonio Coello said.
In Honduras, some 20,000 inmates coexist in 26 overcrowded prisons, with a United Nations report saying that the country's prisons are 34.2% over capacity.
Military police on Monday seized pistols, machine guns, ammunition, magazines and grenades from an area of the Tamara prison occupied by the Barrio 18 gang, Colonel Fernando Munoz told reporters.
"The corruption in the prisons is over. We are going to control it and there will be no calls coming out of here to order extortions or executions," the officer said in a press conference.


Submit proposal on allocation for MPs, opposition told

The opposition must submit their proposal to the government on the amount to be allocated for MPs from the opposition, said Deputy Prime Minister Fadillah Yusof.
Fadillah, who is tasked to discuss the proposed allocation with the opposition, when asked about the progress of his discussions, said since the current government is a coalition government and not the Pakatan Harapan (PH) government, the opposition needs to submit their proposal.
“We (the government) are still waiting for the opposition’s proposal. They say there is no need to submit a proposal but they (the opposition) must be reminded that this is not the PH government. This is the unity government," he told reporters after chairing the second national mineral council meeting, in Putrajaya today.
On April 4, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim reiterated the government’s willingness to offer opposition MPs the same allocation given to MPs in the government bloc.
On April 6, it was reported that three Perikatan Nasional MPs were appointed to discuss the proposal (allocation for opposition MPs) with Fadillah.
The three opposition MPs identified for the discussion are Hamzah Zainudin, (Kota Bharu MP) Takiyuddin Hassan and Radzi Jidin (Putrajaya MP).
Fadillah said the opposition needs to submit a proposal on the proposed allocation to ensure a smooth transition towards political stability.


SC clears Azam, says no laws breached in shares ownership

The Securities Commission (SC) today cleared Azam Baki following an investigation into allegations in a series of online article accusing him of conflict of interest in the purchase of shares, saying the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief had not breached any laws.In a statement, it said its investigation was centered on a claim that Azam had breached the Securities Central Depository Act 1991 (Sicda), which states that a trading account must be opened in the name of the beneficial owner or the authorised nominee.“The SC has concluded its inquiry and based on the evidence gathered, the SC is not able to conclusively establish that a breach under Section 25(4) of Sicda has occurred,” the market regulator said in a statement.A screenshot of an email from SC chairman Syed Zaid Albar meanwhile has been making the rounds, informing Azam that the SC has closed its inquiry file on him.“Based on our inquiry and the documents obtained from relevant parties, we find that we cannot conclusively find/show that a breach of securities law under s.25(4) Sicda 1991 has occurred,” it said.“As such, the SC has closed its inquiry file accordingly.”Azam had been due for questioning by the Parliamentary Select Committee on Agencies under the Prime Minister’s Department, a committee comprising MPs from Pakatan Harapan, Perikatan Nasional, Barisan Nasional as well as GPS and Warisan.He was under investigation over claims of conflict of interest in the purchase of company shares following a series of blog articles by an activist linked to local NGO C4 Center.He later issued a demand letter to the writer of the articles, Lalitha Kunaratnam, with the MACC lodging a police report against her describing her claims as false and unsubstantiated by evidence.He had also been under fire from top Pakatan Harapan leaders who called for him to go on leave and for MACC’s Anti-Corruption Advisory Board chairman Abu Zahar Ujang to be investigated after the latter cleared Azam of allegations of conflict of interest.But Azam said last week that there was no need for him to step down, adding that only the Yang di-Pertuan Agong could give such instruction.


2,451 new cases, 5 more deaths

Another 2,451 Covid-19 cases were recorded today, taking total confirmed infections in the country to 133,559.Selangor recorded the most new cases with 564 (23%), of which 342 were from clusters and close contact screening.This was followed by Sabah (409) and Negeri Sembilan (351).Johor recorded 302 cases, Penang 273, Kuala Lumpur 198, Kedah 65, Kelantan 61, Sarawak 55, Melaka 50, Perak 42, Pahang 36, Putrajaya 17, Terengganu 16, Perlis eight and Labuan four.Active cases stand at 26,185 with 177 in the ICU and 82 in need of respiratory assistance.Five new clusters were detected:1. Mikro (Johor Bahru, Kulai, Pontian and Kota Tinggi in Johor; 97 cases)2. Symphony Magazine (Timur Laut and Seberang Perai Utara in Penang; 44 cases)3. Pasai (Sibu and Mukah in Sarawak; 38 cases)4. Teknologi Kesidang (Melaka Tengah in Melaka; 18 cases)5. Palut (Dungun in Terengganu; 10 cases)Another six ended, leaving 256 active clusters throughout the country.Another 1,401 patients were discharged, bringing total recoveries to 106,832.However, five more deaths were reported, pushing the virus toll to 542.


Philippines warns virus ‘surge’ possible after Delta strain detected

Philippine health officials warned Friday of a possible surge in coronavirus infections as the first locally transmitted cases of the highly contagious Delta variant were recorded and more than three million people went into lockdown.Eleven local cases of the more virulent strain have been detected, including two in the national capital region, the health department said, citing results of genome sequencing conducted this week.The cases dated back to May and June and authorities were checking to ensure they had been “appropriately traced and managed”, Health Undersecretary Rosario Vergeire told reporters.“The government has started preparing our health system,” Vergeire said.More hospital beds were being made available for Covid-19 patients and oxygen supplies increased in case of a “surge” in cases, she said.The Philippines has recorded around 1.5 million coronavirus infections since the start of the pandemic, the second-highest in Southeast Asia.But a deficient contact tracing system means the real figure is likely much higher.Record infections earlier this year sent the national capital region and surrounding provinces into lockdown as soaring numbers of patients threatened to overwhelm hospitals.Cases have eased in recent months, hovering around 5,000 or 6,000 a day. Covid-19 rules have been relaxed in many parts of the country but masks and face shields are mandatory in public.But as the Delta variant fuels infections around the world, the Philippines has tightened border restrictions for travellers from some of the worst-hit countries, including neighbouring Indonesia.Until this week cases of the strain had been detected only among quarantined Filipino workers returning from overseas.Among the 11 local infections, six were on the southern island of Mindanao and were “part of a large cluster of cases”. All of them have recovered.One of the two cases in the national capital region died, the department said.Asked about the delay in detecting the Delta variant, Philippine Genome Center executive director Cynthia Saloma told AFP they had limited processing capacity and had prioritised samples from hotspot areas.Some regions were also slow to submit samples, she said.More than three million people living in areas where the Delta infections were found have been sent into lockdown until the end of the month.Residents in the central province of Iloilo and the southern cities of Cagayan de Oro and Gingoog have been ordered to stay home, non-essential business shuttered and religious services banned.The detection of Delta infections in the community comes as the Philippines struggles to vaccinate its population of 110 million due to tight global supplies and logistical challenges.Some cities recently suspended inoculations after running out of shots – just as vaccine hesitancy among Filipinos declines.Only 4.3 million people are fully vaccinated while more than 10 million have received their first jab.


Be reasonable about Covid test fees at airports

The authorities should seriously look at scrapping the need for Covid-19 tests for arriving passengers at international airports across the country who have gone through the mandatory test 48 hours before departure.Singapore, Indonesia and the Philippines have either stopped testing for arriving air passengers or have voiced the need to do so.This should be a mutual agreement among the three countries to simplify and make it convenient for arriving passengers.Travellers who have done pre-departure tests should not be compelled to do another test on arrival. Arriving passengers just want to clear immigration, pick up their luggage, and head home.Back-to-back Covid-19 tests will only discourage foreigners from looking at Malaysia as a holiday destination. The reason is extra expenditure.Malaysian carriers and tour operators will also be on the losing end.Another issue is the disparity in charges for Malaysians and foreigners.A professional RTK-Antigent (nasal) test costs RM100 for Malaysians and RM160 for foreigners.The Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) test meanwhile costs RM250 for Malaysians and RM350 for international arrivals.The Rapid RT-PCR test costs RM370 and RM470.I am not a medical professional but I would like to say that the charges should be standardised for Malaysians and international travellers.Another issue is what the arriving passengers would pay compared to what clinics in the city would charge.The world has suffered through the past two years. The pandemic literally brought travel to a complete halt.Businesses including airlines and tour operators have suffered huge losses, with some even pulling the curtains down.People have suffered financially, too.Please be more reasonable with the charges if back-to-back testing is made mandatory.Have more than one service provider at the KLIA main terminal and klia2 so that arriving passengers will not be kept waiting too long.This is not the time to make extra money with exorbitant charges.The views expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the position of MalaysiaNow.


Rohingya education poses no threat to national sovereignty, minister says

The admission of Rohingya refugees to pursue their studies in institutions of higher learning (IPT) in Malaysia will not compromise the country's sovereignty, said Higher Education Minister Mohamed Khaled Nordin.
Commenting on the dissatisfaction expressed by some parties over the move to allow Rohingya refugees to study at local universities, he said education is the right of every human being and Malaysia cannot be selfish in this matter.
"There is no problem (with the issue of sovereignty). We (Malaysia) are one of the civilised countries that understand that we are also expected to help refugees," he told reporters after officiating the Semarak Siswa Madani programme in Putrajaya today.
Yesterday, the media reported that the International Islamic University of Malaysia (IIUM) was ready to offer places to study for Rohingya refugees, whose education will be funded using the US$50 million donation from the Qatar Fund for Development (QDF).
Mohamed Khaled said the Rohingya refugees who are qualified to continue their studies at local universities will also be funded by the QDF.
"In this context (education), Qatar is providing donations for Rohingya refugees and we have called on Qatar and other organisations to help many other refugees, like those from Palestine, Syria and Bosnia," he said.
In 2017, Qatar pledged to provide financial support to Malaysia to implement humanitarian projects for Rohingya refugees.
Meanwhile, at the event, Khaled also presented RM2,000 to each of the 31 IPT students who contributed gold medals in the 32nd SEA Games in Cambodia in May.


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No complaints on price hikes during recent festive seasons, says domestic trade minister

The government did not receive any complaints regarding price hikes or the unavailability of essential goods during the past three festive seasons, said Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Minister Salahuddin Ayub.
Speaking during the oral question-and-answer session in the Dewan Rakyat today, he said this was based on statistics obtained by his ministry during the recent Christmas, Chinese New Year, and Hari Raya Aidilfitri celebrations.
"Reports on the maximum price control scheme during the festive seasons, beginning from when we took office, including Christmas, Chinese New Year, and most recently Aidilfitri, show 'zero complaints'," he said.
"There were no complaints about price increases or the unavailability of essential goods. The only issues were minor ones, such as the absence of price tags."
He said this in response to a question raised by Batang Sadong MP Rodiyah Sapiee.
However, Hulu Terengganu MP Rosol Wahid from Perikatan Nasional criticised Salahuddin's response, saying the Amanah leader was detached from reality, as the people's complaints proved otherwise.
Rosol also questioned whether the government was able to fulfil the promises made by Pakatan Harapan to lower oil and car prices before coming into power.
"The prime minister gave assurances of reduced oil prices. Experts said there would be a formula to reduce car prices," he said, referring to Anwar Ibrahim and Rafizi Ramli.
"So, to what extent can these be implemented in the ministry to ensure that the people out there, especially the B40 group, are not burdened?"
The Pulai MP then defended his response by stating that the data received was from enforcement agencies.
"The chief enforcer wouldn't lie. It's not possible.
"Food prices have increased, that might be true.
"If we say that the price of basic goods have suddenly increased, that is not true because the government controls that," added Salahuddin.


Asia’s factories hit by pandemic-related supply disruptions

Asia’s factory activity lost momentum in August as a resurgence in coronavirus cases disrupted supply chains across the region, raising concerns faltering manufacturing will add to economic woes caused by slumping consumption.Southeast Asia, a low-cost manufacturing hub for many global companies, was hit particularly hard with factory activity shrinking in Vietnam, Indonesia and Malaysia because of virus outbreaks and output suspensions, surveys showed on Wednesday.In a worrying sign for the global economy, China’s factory activity also slipped into contraction in August for the first time in nearly 1-1/2 years as Covid-19 curbs, supply bottlenecks and high raw material prices weighed on output.Export power-houses Japan, South Korea and Taiwan also saw manufacturing activity expand at a slower pace in August, a sign chip shortages and factory shutdowns in the region could delay a sustained recovery from the pandemic-induced slump.“Virus disruptions add to the list of headwinds for the region’s producers, including semiconductor shortages and high shipping costs,” said Alex Holmes, emerging Asia economist at Capital Economics.The weakness in Asia contrasts with conditions in Europe, where factories are mostly expected to maintain a brisk pace of expansion as its highly vaccinated economies reopen.The surveys highlight the pandemic’s broadening damage in Southeast Asia, where soaring infections and subsequent lockdown measures have hurt both the service and manufacturing sectors.Delta outbreaks in the region have caused supply chain headaches for the world’s largest manufacturers, many of which rely on auto parts and semiconductors made in low-cost bases such as Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia.“If the strict lockdown measures continue, Southeast Asia may find it hard to remain a global production hub,” said Makoto Saito, an economist at NLI Research Institute.China’s Caixin/Markit Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) fell to 49.2 in August, from 50.3 in July, breaching the 50-mark that separates growth from contraction, a private sector survey showed on Wednesday.The result was well below market expectations, underscoring the fragile nature of China’s recovery that had helped the global economy emerge from the pandemic-induced doldrums.The private survey followed official PMI released on Tuesday, which showed the index falling in August but staying above the 50 mark.Japan’s PMI eased to 52.7 from 53.0 in July with new export orders posting their first contraction since January. South Korea’s index also fell to 51.2 in August from 53.0 in July.In Vietnam and Malaysia, activity was hurt by lockdown measures and rising infections that forced some factories to suspend operations.Vietnam saw factory activity shrink to 40.2 from 45.1 in July. Malaysia’s PMI stood at 43.4 in August, up from 40.1 in July but staying well below the 50-threshold.Once seen as a driver of global growth, Asian’s emerging economies are lagging advanced economies in recovering from the pandemic’s pain as delays in vaccine rollouts and a spike in Delta variant cases hurt consumption and factory production.Growth in India’s factory sector activity also slowed as persistent pandemic-related weakness weighed on demand and output, forcing firms to cut jobs again following a brief recovery in July.


'Peacemaker' PAS bent on stopping return of PH?

Questions continue over whom PAS will choose to work with for the 15th general election (GE15), even as political parties snap into election mode following the dissolution of Parliament this week.
For political observer Ahmad Atory Hussain, PAS may be following its own "formula", seeking to play the role of conciliator between the two other Malay parties: Umno and Bersatu.
Speaking to MalaysiaNow, he said the Islamist party had long wanted to unite Umno and PAS, in a bid to strengthen the Malay political scene against opposition pact Pakatan Harapan (PH).
"PAS is indebted to Umno which has helped it financially and with whom it formed the Muafakat Nasional (MN) agreement in 2019," Atory added.
"The same goes for Bersatu. PAS often says that if Muhyiddin Yassin had not gone through with the Sheraton Move, PAS would not have tasted power at the minister and deputy minister level, or held positions in GLCs."
Atory believes there is a strong possibility that PAS will help both Umno and Bersatu in GE15, the date of which will be set when the Election Commission (EC) meets on Oct 20.
He said this meant that PAS would lend its support in any constituency contested by Umno and Bersatu by refraining from fielding candidates of its own for those seats.
"Take the Sabah state election," he said. "PAS didn't contest a single seat. But after the election, they got one state seat as a gift from the Sabah government."
Even if the seat in question is contested by both Umno and Bersatu, he said, PAS would provide support as long as PH does not field its candidate there as well.
If such a scenario does play out, he said, the PH candidate would cause a split in votes, potentially leading to victory for the opposition coalition.
"But PAS has its own solution: in parliamentary seats where the Malays form the majority, it will let Umno and Bersatu compete.
"If Umno wins, good. If Bersatu wins, that's fine as well. What's important for PAS is that the seat is won by either of these two parties," he said.
But political analyst Mujibu Abd Muis said PAS' formula of wanting to play the peacemaker between Bersatu and Umno would not work unless PH wins GE15.
Consequently, he said, a re-evaluation would be done after the election is over.
He said if Perikatan Nasional (PN) and Barisan Nasional (BN) lose, chances are that the three political parties will come together once more.
There are a total of 28 seats with Malay majorities of 50% or more.
Atory said this meant that PH would have a chance of winning in the event of three-way fights with BN and PN.
"But if Umno, PAS and Bersatu cooperate only in those 28 seats, Umno or Bersatu might win in straight fights," he added.
"This is assuming that Umno and PAS vote for whichever candidate is fielded in that seat.
"The question is: will Umno and Bersatu agree to this?"
Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi previously said that PAS had been given three conditions to meet in order for any cooperation for the election, including the severing of ties with PN and Bersatu.
Zahid also said that PAS would need to officially confirm that it had cut ties with both coalition and party.
Umno vice-president Mohamed Khaled Nordin however said PAS had failed to fulfil these conditions.
PAS secretary-general Takiyuddin Hassan meanwhile said that the unity of the ummah would be easier to achieve if all of the main Malay-Muslim and Bumiputera parties worked towards stability in the country and the well-being of the people.


Azhar asks Azalina to sit in as temporary Dewan speaker

Speaker Azhar Harun temporarily vacated his seat in the Dewan Rakyat today, leaving former deputy speaker Azalina Othman Said to chair the ongoing sitting.Such a move is allowed under Standing Order 7(3) which states that the speaker may at any time during a sitting ask a member to take the chair temporarily without formal communication to the house.“Such member shall be invested with all the powers of Tuan Yang di-Pertua, until Tuan Yang di-Pertua returns,” it reads.When questioned by Mohamad Sabu (PH-Kota Raja), she jokingly compared her situation to mut’ah, the term used for contract marriage under Shia Islam.When contacted, Azhar said the move was allowed to enable him to attend to other matters.On why his deputy Mohd Rashid Hasnon was not asked to take over, Azhar said Rashid had already chaired earlier.He added that he would return to chair the sitting later today.Azalina, the Pengerang MP, resigned as one of the two deputy speakers on Aug 23, days after she joined about a dozen MPs aligned with former prime minister Najib Razak and Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi in withdrawing their support for the Perikatan Nasional administration led then by Muhyiddin Yassin.She cited among others a conflict of roles and responsibilities as a member of the Umno Supreme Council and an MP in the ruling coalition.She also called for the post of speaker and deputy speaker to be filled by those who are impartial and who hold no political posts.Her replacement was expected to have been appointed yesterday. However, the election was postponed to the next sitting in October to allow an amendment the Federal Constitution to increase the number of deputy speakers from two currently to three.Two names have been mentioned for nomination: Pontian MP Ahmad Maslan, the candidate from the government bloc, and Teluk Intan MP Nga Kor Ming, the Pakatan Harapan candidate.


More than 1,000 Afghan troops flee Taliban into Tajikistan

More than 1,000 Afghan troops fled into neighbouring Tajikistan in the early hours of Monday after clashes with the Taliban, the Central Asian country’s national security committee said.Taliban militants have launched several major offensives in northern Afghanistan in recent weeks as US and international troops withdraw from the country, including seizing its main crossing into Tajikistan last month.On Monday, Tajikistan’s national security committee said that 1,037 Afghan government troops had fled into the ex-Soviet country “in order to save their lives” after clashes with the Taliban during the night.“Taking into account the principle of good neighbourliness and adhering to the position of non-interference in the internal affairs of Afghanistan, the military personnel of the Afghan government forces were allowed to enter Tajik territory,” the committee said in a statement distributed by Tajikistan’s state information agency Khovar.It said the Taliban had taken “full control” of six districts of the Badakhshan province bordering Tajikistan in Afghanistan’s northeast.Several hundred Afghan troops had already crossed into Tajikistan after the Taliban unleashed its onslaught in early May.The militants have seized dozens of Afghanistan’s districts, raising fears that that the Afghan military will collapse once US and international troops complete their withdrawal from the country in September.US President Joe Biden has ordered the departure of all US forces from Afghanistan by this year’s 20th anniversary of the Sept 11 attacks that triggered the invasion.


Missing submarine found, all 53 crew killed, says Indonesia

All 53 crew aboard an Indonesian submarine that disappeared last week were killed, the military said Sunday as it confirmed the vessel had been found in pieces on the seafloor.Authorities said that they picked up signals early Sunday from a location more than 800m deep – far below what the KRI Nanggala 402’s steel hull was built to withstand.They had used an underwater submarine rescue vehicle supplied by neighbouring Singapore to get visual confirmation of the stricken vessel.“It was broken into three pieces,” said Navy Chief of Staff Yudo Margono.More parts from the doomed submarine were also retrieved, including an anchor and fluorescent orange safety suits for emergencies, authorities said.The discovery comes a day after the navy had first confirmed the retrieval of fragments from the submarine and declared that it had sunk, effectively ending any chance of finding survivors.Among the earlier items recovered were a piece of the torpedo system and a bottle of grease used to lubricate periscopes.They also found a prayer mat commonly used in Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim-majority nation.Warships, planes and hundreds of military personnel had led a frantic search for the submarine since it disappeared this week during training exercises, hoping for a miracle rescue before its known oxygen reserves ran out.But on Sunday, Indonesian military head Hadi Tjahjanto said there was no chance of finding any of the crew alive.“With deep sadness, I can say that all 53 personnel onboard have passed,” he told reporters.President Joko Widodo described the sailors as Indonesia’s “best patriots”.“All Indonesians convey their deep sadness over this incident, especially to the families of the submarine crew,” he said.Authorities have not given an explanation for the accident, but said that the submarine may have suffered a blackout that left its crew unable to resurface.They discounted an explosion, however, saying Saturday that the evidence suggested the submarine came apart as it was crushed by massive water pressure in the vast depths.“Submarine hulls are pressurised… but when they’re breached then water would come flooding inside,” said Wisnu Wardhana, a maritime expert at Indonesia’s Sepuluh Nopember Institute of Technology.“Can you imagine if water with that kind of pressure hits people?”Retired French vice-admiral Jean-Louis Vichot earlier told AFP that a submarine’s hull could collapse “like a folding accordion” if it hits depths way beyond its limits.Salvage operationAny salvage operation would be risky and difficult, navy chief Margono said.“We’ll discuss it to make a decision on how to lift the submarine in this condition,” he said Sunday.“I want to lift it, but how do we bring it up from (these depths)?”Neighbouring Malaysia, as well as the US, India and Australia, were among the nations helping in the hunt.Search vessels, reconnaissance aircraft and submarine rescue ships had been deployed to scour a zone of about 34 sq km.The submarine – one of five in Indonesia’s fleet – disappeared early Wednesday while it was scheduled to do live torpedo training exercises off Bali.The crew asked for permission to dive. It lost contact shortly after.Later, search teams spotted an oil spill where the vessel was thought to have submerged, pointing to possible fuel-tank damage, and a catastrophic accident.The submarine – delivered to Indonesia in 1981 – was seaworthy, the military said.The model has been used by more than a dozen navies around the world.But investigators would look at the Indonesian submarine’s age as a potential factor, analysts have said.The disaster was among a string of fatal submarine accidents over the past few decades.Among the worst was the 2000 sinking of the Kursk, the pride of Russia’s Northern Fleet.That submarine was on manoeuvres in the Barents Sea when it sank with the loss of all 118 aboard. An inquiry found a torpedo had exploded, detonating all the others.Most of its crew died instantly but some survived for several days before suffocating.


China's factories power ahead, inflation ticks up in Europe

China's factory sector grew in February at the fastest pace in more than a decade in a boost for global economy recovery hopes, while data across Europe underlined that inflation in the region was still not under control.
Adding to evidence that activity is rebounding in China after the removal of strict Covid-19 curbs, its manufacturing purchasing managers' index (PMI) released on Wednesday climbed to 52.6 last month against 50.1 in January, while a private sector survey also showed growth for the first time in seven months.
"China's PMIs beat market expectations across the board, propelled by the reopening after dropping Covid restrictions and the resumption of activity after the lunar new year holiday," said Duncan Wrigley at Pantheon Macroeconomics.
"This is an encouraging set of data, but still is only one month, and challenges remain."
Asian stocks bounced off a two-month low and headed for their best day in seven weeks on Wednesday. Global oil prices went higher, underlining how a strong Chinese recovery could fuel global inflation through increased energy demand.
It remains unclear how a strong Chinese recovery could ultimately feed into prices elsewhere, as the inflationary impact of its higher energy demand could be offset by the extra supply of goods it brings to the world's economy.
Stubborn inflation
In Europe, German data showed the fight against inflation still has some way to go. Prices in the region's largest economy rose 9.3% year-on-year in February, beating analyst expectations of a rise of 9.0% and higher than January's 9.2% increase.
That came after readings earlier this week showed prices rising faster than expected in France and Spain, challenging the view that inflation in the region had clearly peaked.
"The interest rate step announced for March will not be the last," Bundesbank President Joachim Nagel said of the European Central Bank's strongly flagged intention to raise rates by a further 50 basis points this month across the euro area.
"Further significant interest rate steps might even be necessary afterwards, too," he added.
Separately, S&P Global's headline factory PMI for the euro area slipped to 48.5 from 48.8, but the output index - which feeds into a composite PMI due on Friday and seen as a good gauge of overall economic health - climbed to 50.1 from 48.9.
"The brighter production picture first and foremost reflects a broad-based improvement in supply chains, with deliveries of inputs into factories quickening on average to a degree not seen since 2009," said Chris Williamson, chief business economist at S&P Global.
Outside the euro area, British manufacturing activity shrank last month but at the slowest pace since July and factories were more optimistic as the threat of a deep recession eases.
Asian strain
India and Australia saw economic growth slow in the quarter to December, and South Korea's exports fell in February for a fifth straight month, highlighting the pain slowing global demand was inflicting on the region's manufacturers.
The region's weaker data underscores the challenge Asian policymakers face in reining in inflation with higher interest rates, without choking off economic recoveries already facing pressure from the global economic slowdown.
China's recovering economy, the world's second largest, may not be enough to offset headwinds from weak chip demand and supply constraints for export-reliant economies such as Japan.
Japan's final au Jibun Bank PMI fell to 47.7 in February from 48.9, dropping at the fastest pace in more than two years.
That followed data showing a big drop in Japan's factory output in January on slumping production of cars and semiconductor equipment, casting doubt on the Bank of Japan's view the economy was on course for a steady recovery.
Factory activity continued to shrink in Taiwan and Malaysia in February, and expanded at a slower pace in the Philippines, surveys showed.
India's manufacturing activity expanded at the slowest pace in four months in February, but remained relatively strong amid buoyant domestic demand, its PMI survey showed.
Separate data showed South Korea's exports fell 7.5% in February from a year earlier, marking the fifth straight month of declines, partly due to a plunge in semiconductor exports.


Company threatens to sue portal over 10-year mining lease renewal

A company involved in mineral mining in Selangor has accused MalaysiaNow of making false and malicious claims in a report revealing a 10-year renewal granted to it to carry out mining activities on two plots of government land.“It has caused our client considerable distress and embarrassment and our client has been gravely injured in its reputation and has been and brought into public odium, contempt and ridicule,” lawyers for KL Larut Sdn Bhd said in a letter demanding apology and compensation from the news portal.The company, whose chairman is Klang-based businessman Thiagarajan Pavadai, also threatened the portal with legal proceedings and warned it from repeating the “allegations”.Thiagarajan, 66, better known as Oms Thiagarajan, is known for his close ties with PKR president Anwar Ibrahim, and has often been in the news related to Indian community issues.State firm bypassed in mining contract to private companyMB urged to explain lucrative mining lease to private firmOn Nov 7, MalaysiaNow reported that the Selangor government bypassed its own state mining firm Kumpulan Semesta Sdn Bhd when it approved the application from KL Larut to renew its lease on two lands measuring over 1,000 acres in Kuala Selangor.Checks revealed that the decision breached a 2015 circular issued by the state’s director of land and minerals, which stated that all mining licences on state land must be done through open tender.The report also quoted an industry source as saying that the two plots of land, measuring about 300 and 748 acres each, could rake in as much as 300,000 metric tonnes of sand and minerals every month with a market price of over RM5 million.On Nov 8, Selangor assemblyman Haniza Talha demanded MB Amirudin Shari to explain the renewal granted to KL Larut.She said the decision to extend the mining lease for KL Larut Sdn Bhd to 2030 was a violation of guidelines on mineral mining in Selangor.“The land belongs to the government and should have been returned to the government once the 10-year lease ended, instead of it being renewed for another 10 years,” she said.Sand mining in Selangor is a multi-million ringgit business, but illegal sites caused millions of ringgit in lost revenues to the state, forcing it to consolidate all mining activities under Kumpulan Semesta, a company under Menteri Besar Selangor Inc headed by the MB himself.


Singapore, Indonesia launching green lane for essential business and official travel

Singapore and Indonesia have agreed to set up a reciprocal green lane (RGL) for essential travel between the two countries.Applications for the RGL will open on Oct 26 and travel will start soon after, Singapore’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) said on Monday (Oct 12).Indonesian citizens as well as Singapore citizens and residents are eligible for the RGL, also referred to by Indonesia as the travel corridor arrangement, said MFA.Travellers will have to abide by Covid-19 prevention and public health measures agreed by both countries, including pre-departure and post-arrival polymerase chain reaction (PCR) swab tests from mutually recognised health institutions.Travellers will have to take the first PCR test 72 hours before departure, and the second test upon arrival at the airport or ferry terminal. Travellers will bear the costs of the tests.Operational details regarding the RGL, including the procedural requirements, health protocols and application process will be announced “in due course”.Applicants from Indonesia must have a sponsor from a government agency or enterprise in Singapore. Similarly, Singaporeans wanting to enter Indonesia must have a sponsor from the government or a business entity.Singapore now has RGL arrangements for essential travel with China, Malaysia, Brunei, South Korea and Japan.It has also unilaterally lifted border restrictions for some visitors from Vietnam, Brunei, New Zealand, and Australia, excluding Victoria state.


Govt pledges spending, green goals in 5-year economic plan

Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob on Monday tabled a new five-year economic plan, boosting infrastructure spending and committing to a carbon tax under climate change goals as the country looks to chart its way out of a pandemic-induced slump.Launching the 12th Malaysia Plan in Parliament, Ismail said the country’s financial position was expected to improve in 2023, with the economy targeted to grow 4.5%-5.5% per annum in the next five years.Malaysia posted average annual growth of 2.7% between 2016-2020, dragged down by a 5.6% contraction last year due to the outbreak of Covid-19, the prime minister said.Gross national income per capita rose to RM42,500 (US$10,150) in 2020, about 20% lower than the level required to become a high-income country. Malaysia now expects to reach that target by 2025, Ismail said.“The 12th Malaysia Plan is a comprehensive development plan that will introduce a number of reforms to ensure sustainable economic growth and more equal distribution of opportunities and results,” Ismail said.Malaysia’s export-driven economy has taken a hit from the pandemic. The central bank slashed its full-year growth forecast to 3.0%-4.0% from 6-7.5% last month – the second cut this year.The government will spend RM400 billion (US$95.53 billion) on existing and new development projects between 2021 and 2025, compared with RM260 billion in the 11th Malaysia Plan, Ismail said.These include new highways and rail networks linking rural areas with urban and industrial hubs, more affordable housing, as well as improvements in health, education, and broadband connectivity.Malaysia also aims to become a carbon neutral country by 2050, Ismail said, adding that economic instruments such as carbon pricing and a carbon tax will be introduced.The government also pledged to stop building coal-fired power stations, as it continues its efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions intensity of GDP by 45% in 2030, he said.Other promises included plans to reduce the country’s dependence on foreign labour, provide support to small and medium-sized businesses, and turn Malaysia into a regional investment hub.


Anwar's focus on Muhyiddin's rule over Umno-led govt fuels speculation on pact

Anwar Ibrahim's move to focus his attacks on Perikatan Nasional (PN) over Barisan Nasional (BN) ahead of the Nov 19 polls could foreshadow a post-election pact between the Pakatan Harapan (PH) chairman and Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, analysts say.
Jeniri Amir, a senior fellow at the National Professors Council, said Anwar appeared to be treading carefully to avoid burning bridges with BN as the campaign period for the general election continues.
"He believes BN will win more seats than PN, especially in terms of Umno versus Bersatu," Jeniri told MalaysiaNow.
Anwar, in a recent Facebook post addressed to voters in Tambun, had criticised the PN government, saying former prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin failed to manage the country in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Muhyiddin, meanwhile, said on the campaign trail that Anwar as the opposition leader had only levelled criticism during the pandemic instead of coming forward to fight Covid-19 together.
PH won federal power in the 2018 general election, toppling the BN government for the first time in Malaysia's history.
It collapsed after 22 months amid calls for Dr Mahathir Mohamad, the prime minister at the time, to hand over power to Anwar as previously promised.
Mahathir eventually resigned while Bersatu, which had joined hands with PKR, DAP and Amanah under the PH banner, exited the coalition.
Muhyiddin was appointed as prime minister in Mahathir's stead, but resigned 17 months later after losing his majority support due to a group of Umno MPs aligned with their president, Zahid.
Umno vice-president Ismail Sabri Yaakob took over the top office in August 2021.
Analysts and political observers have said that no single coalition is expected to win enough seats at the upcoming election to form a government on its own.
"So all of the blocs, including those from Sabah and Sarawak, are being very careful now," Jeniri said.
Political observer Mazlan Ali of Universiti Teknologi Malaysia said Anwar was very disappointed with PN, especially Bersatu and Muhyiddin whom he said Anwar held responsible for the collapse of the PH government.
However, he said Anwar's criticism could also be seen as PH's strategy to win as many parliamentary seats as possible by attacking its enemies, including both PN and BN.
"PH doesn't necessarily concentrate on PN alone because there are times when they attack BN as well," he said. "It depends on the situation."
Mazlan added that Anwar's criticism, whether of BN or PN, did not rule out the possibility of PH working together with either coalition.
"Nothing is for certain in the world of politics," he said.


Record number of migrants arrive in Britain in boat crossings on a single day

The number of migrants arriving in Britain in small boats hit a record for a single day on Monday, as the rise in dangerous crossings over the English Channel continues despite the government's plans to deport those arriving illegally to Rwanda.
Britain's Ministry of Defence said 1,295 people in 27 boats were intercepted after making the crossing from the European mainland on Monday. The figure surpasses the previous daily record of 1,185 set last November.
The outgoing Prime Minister Boris Johnson had hoped that the threat of deporting people to Rwanda announced in April alongside other efforts, such as handing the navy the responsibility for intercepting migrants, would act as a deterrent to those arriving in dinghies and small boats.
Under an agreement struck in April, Britain will send tens of thousands of migrants who arrive on its shores illegally more than 4,000 miles (6,4000km) to the East African country.
The policy will be the subject of a legal challenge in London's High Court in early September when a coalition of human rights groups and a trade union will argue that the Rwanda policy is unworkable and unethical.
The first planned deportation flight in June was blocked by a last-minute injunction from the European Court of Human Rights.
"The rise in dangerous Channel crossings is unacceptable," a government spokesperson said. "Not only are they an overt abuse of our immigration laws but they risk the lives of vulnerable people, who are being exploited by ruthless criminal gangs."
In 2021, 28,526 people were detected arriving on small boats - with the highest number from Iran followed by Iraq, Eritrea, and Syria. So far this year, more than 22,000 migrants have come to Britain, with government officials warning 60,000 could arrive by the end of the year.
Both candidates vying to replace Johnson as prime minister, Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak, have promised to push ahead with the Rwanda plan.


Johor delegates to skip debate at Umno general assembly

Delegates from Johor will not be involved in any debate at the Umno general assembly which starts tomorrow in Kuala Lumpur following the crisis over the appointment of the new menteri besar.It is learnt that in a meeting of Johor Umno leaders including division heads at the official residence of the menteri besar in Saujana last night, Johor Umno liaison chairman Hasni Mohammad had urged Umno members not to prolong the issue.“On the other hand, he (Hasni) was magnanimous. He did not want the matter to be amplified,” a source told Bernama when contacted today.According to the source, Hasni also wanted to stop the efforts of a handful of Johor Umno delegates who were against the appointment of Hafiz Ghazi as the 19th Johor menteri besar.It is learnt that the meeting in Saujana last night began at 9pm and ended at about 3am with those present stating their undivided support for Hasni’s leadership.Onn Hafiz, 43, who is Machap assemblyman, was sworn as the 19th menteri besar of Johor at Istana Serene today, taking over the post from Hasni.Hasni had been named as the sole menteri besar candidate by Barisan Nasional chairman Ahmad Zahid Hamidi during the campaign for the Johor state election.At the polls on Saturday, BN won a super mandate of 40 seats out of the 56 in the state assembly, leaving it in a comfortable position to form the state government.However, three days after BN celebrated its victory, there was no indication on whether Hasni would return to lead the state government until rumours emerged linking Onn Hafiz and Umno Supreme Council member Mohd Puad Zarkashi to the post.


'Squid Game' grabs early Emmy awards, setting up drama battle

South Korean drama "Squid Game" landed its first Emmy awards on Sunday, taking home an acting honor and three other trophies in the run-up to next week's battle for television's best drama.
Lee You-mi won the accolade for guest drama actress at the Creative Arts Emmys for playing Ji Young, a young woman forced to compete in a risky quest for riches after she is freed from prison in the dystopian Netflix Inc series.
The actress accepted the accolade on stage at a theater in downtown Los Angeles, speaking a few sentences in Korean before yelling in English: "I'm so very happy!"
The Creative Arts Emmys honored behind-the-scenes artists such as sound engineers, hair stylists and cinematographers as well as guest actors.
Lead actor and other awards will be handed out at a televised red-carpet event on Sept 12. "Squid Game" will compete for the top drama honor, the first non-English language series to be nominated for that prize.
Rivals for the award include Netflix's "Stranger Things," which earned five Creative Arts awards, including music supervision, for a season that featured Kate Bush's 1985 song "Running Up That Hill." Inclusion in the series sent the song to the top of music charts.
HBO's media dynasty drama "Succession," also in the hunt for best drama, secured one award on Sunday, for casting.


Influenza: a jab in time can save money and heartache

The nation is reeling from the Covid-19 pandemic and preoccupied with how to stay safe from the virus, but now is a good time to remember another viral respiratory illness which never quite goes away: the flu.Covid-19 and influenza are both contagious respiratory illnesses that attack the respiratory system: the nose, throat and lungs.Although the symptoms can look similar, the two illnesses are caused by different viruses.A lot of people make the mistake of thinking the flu is just a strong cold, but it is not.The deadliest epidemic of all time began circling the globe in late 1918. By spring of the next year, 100 million people were dead – more than the infamous medieval Black Death killed in a century.The race to develop a vaccine against the terrifying “new” illness influenza was as frantic then as the current race for vaccines against the coronavirus has been, and took much longer to succeed.A lot of people make the mistake of thinking the flu is just a strong cold, but it is not.But by 1955 an effective vaccine had been developed in the US, and within a few years vaccinations reduced the flu to a recurring nuisance rather than a devastating plague.These days, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), 250,000 to 650,000 annual deaths worldwide are attributed to complications from influenza, such as pneumonia.It is most often transmitted in tiny droplets expelled when an infected person coughs, sneezes or talks.Southeast Asia, where flu can be contracted at any time of the year, ranks third in the world for flu mortality.While it may have been reduced to a painful nuisance for most, it is still potentially deadly for some.Symptoms and effects can be mild to severe across all age groups but children under five and adults over 65 are the highest-risk groups.Dr Rizah Mazzuin Razali, a geriatrician from Kuala Lumpur Hospital, tells MalaysiaNow the risk of mortality is highest of all for elderly people with comorbidities common to that age group, such as heart disease, hypertension, and diabetes.Although flu vaccines have been around for decades, new versions are developed twice a year as the influenza virus rapidly changes.Southeast Asia, where flu can be contracted at any time of the year, ranks third in the world for flu mortality.While their effectiveness varies from year to year, most provide modest to high protection against influenza.WHO and healthcare professionals all around the world recommend getting the jab, especially for the elderly.Rizah never tires of telling people how important it is for them to care for older family members by getting them vaccinated against flu without waiting for symptoms to show.Unlike young people, the elderly generally do not exhibit typical symptoms of influenza, she says. “By the time they actually become symptomatic, it is probably already quite far into the illness and they can run into life-threatening complications.”Rizah, who is also a member of the Malaysian Influenza Working Group, always assures her patients and their families that flu vaccines are safe and give good protection.“Patients who are vaccinated yearly have good outcomes,” she says, adding that they rarely experience any side effects.Being vaccinated for flu also reduces the numbers of elderly people hospitalised with their comorbidities.“Many older people are hospitalised quite frequently due to their chronic illnesses, and we can reduce their risk of hospitalisation due to lung infections,” says Rizah.The 2021 budget provides tax exemption for those who purchase the flu vaccine.WHO and healthcare professionals all around the world recommend getting the jab, especially for the elderly.Private hospitals and some general practitioners are offering vaccinations.Rizah admits the cost of purchasing a flu vaccine may not be cheap but insists it is a good investment as treatment for influenza will definitely cost more.“Caring for the elderly is never cheap. Hospitalisation can cost from about RM1,000 to RM2,000 per day and an average stay for someone frail is 10 to 14 days,” she tells MalaysiaNow.The Spanish flu, Russian flu, H1N1 have all claimed millions of lives over the years.The flu is not just a heavy cold.And now, Rizah tells MalaysiaNow that Covid-19 and influenza infections can happen together, and the elderly are particularly vulnerable against the backdrop of the Covid-19 pandemic.


Woman sues Beijing after dad dies of Covid-19

The Chinese city of Wuhan is now infamous around the world as the place most people believe Covid-19 began.Back at the beginning of 2020, people there began dying of a mystery illness with no name. It turned out to be the start of the worldwide Covid-19 pandemic.It was said that the virus first appeared in a wet market and jumped from exotic species destined for the dinner table to humans. Or it was developed in a Wuhan lab and somehow escaped.Thousands of deaths later, Wuhan is back to normal. Sky News describes people crowding the streets, filling restaurants and bars, and swimming in the Yangtze River for exercise.But for those who lost loved one to the virus, nothing can ever be normal again.Zhao Lei’s father contracted the disease at the end of January.The emergency services were already overwhelmed by then, and there was no ambulance to take him to the hospital. His family tried to walk him through the freezing cold until finally they were picked up by a tuk tuk.He died of respiratory failure in the emergency waiting room. She is still angry at the government, whom she blames for his death.“I think the government covered up the fact that the virus could spread from people to people. I hold the government accountable and ask them to pay the due price.”In what most would regard as a foolhardy course of action, she is suing the Chinese government.In China that just doesn’t happen.Hers is a courageous fight against a system that does not tolerate dissent.China has always insisted it has acted openly and transparently in its handling of Covid-19.And yet the police have already visited her mother, warning that Zhao Lei should drop the case and not talk publicly.The authorities do not want anyone spoiling their narrative of China’s triumph over coronavirus.The Communist Party of China and General Secretary Xi Jinping are the heroes of this story, and they don’t want a provincial 39-year-old woman turning them into the villains.But she is determined.“I won’t give up,” she says. “I hope to get justice for my father’s death.”Exiled Chinese activists believe her case will get nowhere because the authorities deny they covered up the serious nature of the illness.Zhao Lei herself contracted Covid-19 soon after her father and is still feeling its mental effects.But this brave woman insists she is not fighting the courts for herself.“I don’t want my father to have died for nothing.”


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