Toll, PTPTN loans to feature in PH manifesto 2.0?

Pakatan Harapan (PH) is expected to bring up the issues of toll and PTPTN loans again in its manifesto for the 15th general election (GE15), despite its failure to fulfil some of the pledges it made at the previous polls four years ago.
Nevertheless, political analyst Mazlan Ali said PH would likely exercise more caution in framing its manifesto this time, taking a leaf from its experience in and after GE14.
"The terms might be different," Mazlan, of Universiti Teknologi Mara, said.
"They might study whether or not these can be implemented. The previous manifesto looked like it was done without too much thought."
PH's GE14 manifesto, titled "10 promises in 100 days", had offered among others the abolition of the goods and services tax (GST), targeted petrol subsidies, EPF contributions for housewives, and the postponement of PTPTN refunds for those earning RM4,000 and below.
The PTPTN refunds and toll collections had attracted the bulk of voters' attention, as the former involved graduates who would previously be blacklisted for missing payments.
The issue of tolls, meanwhile, had had an impact even during the days of Barisan Nasional (BN) rule, when the coalition had tried to woo voters with the abolition of several toll plazas in addition to the construction of a toll-free Pan Borneo Highway and Central Spine Road.
But PH's pledges were later seen as unrealistic, with Dr Mahathir Mohamad, the prime minister at the time, admitting that the manifesto was "not a holy book".
PH's popularity began to fade several months after the election, on the back of the perception that it had failed to make good on its promises.
Mahathir himself later said that the manifesto was created as PH did not think that it would be able to form the federal government.
Maszlee Malik, meanwhile, PH's education minister, said that graduates must continue paying their PTPTN loans regardless of what the manifesto said.
And PH's works minister Baru Bian had said it was up to the people to "keep dreaming" about the abolition of tolls.
PH kept its promise to abolish the GST and to introduce the i-Suri scheme for housewives.
For the toll issue, it lowered the toll rate on the North-South Highway by 18% but extended the concession to the operator from 2038 to 2058.
Political analyst Awang Azman Pawi said the pledges contained in manifestos should be realistic in nature.
Awang, of Universiti Malaya, said the issues of PTPTN and toll would influence public support for the coalition in question.
"But they will need to explain their source of income to cover these expenses," he said.
"Without a realistic explanation, it will be difficult for the people to accept. There might also be a backlash from those who feel they have been cheated."
During the GE14 campaign, Damansara MP Tony Pua had said that the takeover of toll concessions was estimated at RM6.2 billion compared to the RM400 billion stated by BN.
Liew Wui Chern, a lecturer at Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman, said the manifestos would function as a guide for the voters on the direction and policies of the future government.
Although they might not be "holy books", he said, they were nonetheless important as a benchmark for voters to evaluate the performance of the party they chose.
"There will be changes," he added. "Some might think that the manifesto is useless since it's a policy document, but it shows the direction of political parties and their goals.
"Voters can use the manifesto as a report card to assess how well a party performs, and whether or not they would vote for the same party again in the future."
Mazlan meanwhile said it might be better for PH to leave out the issues of toll and PTPTN, given that it had previously failed to achieve its pledges on these.
"Perhaps they should put forth a more general manifesto this time," he added.


African Union looks elsewhere as India slows supply of AstraZeneca jab

The African Union’s (AU) disease control body said on Thursday it has dropped plans to secure AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccines for its members from the Serum Institute of India over global shortfalls of the jab.In January, the AU announced plans to secure up to 500 million additional AstraZeneca shots for its 55 member states but last month India put a temporary hold on all major exports of the shot to meet domestic demand as infections rose.AstraZeneca has touted its shot as the vaccine for the world because it is the cheapest and easiest to store and transport, making it well suited to the needs of developing countries.The change came the day after British and European regulators said they had found possible links between the vaccine and rare cases of brain blood clots, while nonetheless still recommending its use.John Nkengasong, head of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), said the possible link had not caused the AU’s decision and repeated that “the benefits of receiving the vaccine outweighs the risks”.However, he said the AU had shifted its efforts to securing doses from Johnson & Johnson, citing a deal announced last week to supply the continent with up to 400 million doses of its vaccine beginning in the third quarter.African countries will still receive their AstraZeneca shots through the global vaccine-sharing facility Covax.AstraZeneca makes up the vast majority of doses that African nations expect to receive through Covax, which aims to deliver 600 million shots to some 40 African countries this year, enough to vaccinate 20% of their populations.As of Thursday, nearly 13 million doses had been administered on the continent of 1.3 billion people, according to the Africa CDC.Nkengasong said on Thursday the subsequent delays in deliveries of AstraZeneca doses are complicating vaccination drives across the continent.“The ability to predict when doses will be available is critical for planning first and second rounds of doses,” he said.Matshidiso Moeti, who heads the World Health Organization’s Africa office, told a news briefing, “I am very much assured that the AU decision is not to do with doubts about the safety and other considerations on the AstraZeneca vaccines. It’s simply to recognise that there are challenges with the volumes that are available.”Russia and China are also offering vaccines, but enthusiasm in Africa has so far been dampened over questions about their higher cost and availability in large volumes.The virus has killed approximately 114,000 people across Africa and infected 4.33 million.


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On LHDN accessing taxpayers’ bank accounts

The much talked about proposal to introduce a new section, i.e. Section 106A, of the Income Tax Act 1967, was passed through the Finance Bill 2021 in the Dewan Rakyat on Dec 15, 2021. This new Section 106A grants the power to the director general of inland revenue (DGIR) to call for bank account information for the purpose of making a garnishee order application.Following the passing of the Finance Bill, there have been various headlines, discussions, and speculations surrounding this topic. Many have wrongly interpreted the true intention of the introduction of this new section. A simple interpretation is that now the Inland Revenue Board of Malaysia (LHDN) can ask for one’s bank account information and use that information to impose income tax and collect additional tax. It is intended to promote tax compliance and provide the ability to recover tax debts due to the government.It is important for Malaysian taxpayers to really understand this new power granted to LHDN under Section 106A so that they are not misguided. The power to call for bank account information must be for the purpose of making garnishee order application. One must be clear of the definition of garnishee proceedings.Garnishee proceedings is a process of enforcing a money judgment by the seizure or attachment of debts due or accruing to the judgement debtor that form part of his property available in execution. This would mean that a civil proceeding must have been instituted against a person and a judgment has been obtained against that person for LHDN to be able to obtain the bank account information of that person from the financial institutions. The purpose of obtaining such bank account information is for LHDN to make the application to the court for a garnishee order (i.e. to recover tax due and payable by the person to the government).The DGIR must have a notice under his hand to request for such information. The new Section 106A does not permit or extend the power to the DGIR/LHDN to obtain such information for other purposes.In addition to the above, Subsection (2) of the proposed Section 106A prohibits the financial institution from disclosing to any person that such request was made to the financial institution. This does not mean that LHDN has a free hand to ask for bank account information of a taxpayer from financial institutions in “secret” or “private” without the taxpayer’s knowledge. The personal and bank account information of taxpayers is still protected by the respective banking secrecy laws, such as the Personal Data Protection Act 2010 (PDPA).There are also a few other observations that can be made from this Section 106A. “Financial institutions” in question here only covers the banks (including Islamic banks and development financial institutions). This shows that the new power granted does not extend to investment accounts with asset managers, fund managers, and life insurers.Another important point is the term “bank account information” itself. It is unclear which bank account falls under the purview of the request to be made under this new section, i.e. Would it be confined to savings and current accounts? Would LHDN consider the financing accounts/loan accounts that the taxpayer needs to serve? Would LHDN consider the commitment attached to the bank account, e.g. capital commitment for a loan, standing order to pay bills or staff salaries etc?From another point of view, the banks themselves would need to set up robust processes to address the request for bank account information by LHDN under the new Section 106A and protect the confidentiality of such request. Failure to do so would expose the banks to a fine of RM200 to RM20,000 or imprisonment for a term of 6 months or both under Section 120A of the Income Tax Act 1967.The public at large should not be worried by the introduction of the new Section 106A. The new power granted to LHDN can be seen as far-fetched but in reality, it may not be widely applicable or implemented against people on the street who have been complying with their income tax obligations.Mohd Fariz Mohd Faruk is tax audit and investigation executive director of Deloitte Malaysia.The views expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the position of MalaysiaNow.


Najib applies for more time to file appeal petition over SRC conviction

Former prime minister Najib Razak has applied for an extension of no later than April 25 to file an appeal petition to the Federal Court to set aside his conviction in the misappropriation of RM42 million in SRC International funds.Najib filed the application through Messrs Shafee & Co at the Federal Court on April 11.According to his supporting affidavit released to the media today, Najib said the grounds of the judgment prepared by the judges of the appeals court contained 176 volumes in total and the defence only received them on March 31.“It is impossible for my defence team to study all the records of appeals and prepare a complete appeal petition in such a short time to address all of the issues raised by the Court of Appeal judges.“The grounds of judgment should be scrutinised by examining the notes of the proceedings at both stages to ensure accuracy in the findings, inferences made and applicable laws,” the Pekan MP said.On Dec 8, 2021, the Court of Appeal upheld Najib’s conviction, 12-year jail sentence and RM210 million fine for misappropriating RM42 million belonging to SRC International.Judge Abdul Karim Abdul Jalil, who presided with Has Zanah Mehat and Vazeer Alam Mydin Meera, unanimously dismissed Najib’s appeal against the High Court decision on July 28, 2020.Najib subsequently filed an appeal at the Federal Court.


‘Alarming’ virus surge prompts new Bangladesh lockdown

Bangladesh has announced it will impose a tough new lockdown starting Monday, after a “dangerous and alarming” surge in Delta variant cases of coronavirus.All government and private offices will be shut for a week and only medical-related transport will be allowed, the government said late Friday.“No one can step out of their homes except in emergency cases,” a statement added.Health department spokesman Robed Amin said police and border guards would be deployed to enforce the lockdown and the army may be involved if needed.“It is a dangerous and alarming situation. If we don’t contain it now, we will face an India-like situation,” Amin told AFP, referring to a surge in cases in neighbouring India in April and May.Infection rates have been rising sharply since mid-May in Bangladesh, home to around 170 million people.On Friday the government recorded almost 6,000 new cases and 108 fatalities, the second-highest death toll yet in the pandemic.Authorities say the situation in districts near the Indian border is catastrophic, with hospitals in the cities of Khulna and Rajshahi overwhelmed.Infection numbers in India have fallen sharply in recent weeks, with fewer than 50,000 new cases reported on Friday, down from more than 400,000 daily in early May.But authorities in the western Indian state of Maharashtra on Friday tightened restrictions because of concerns about a new variant, Delta-plus, around 50 cases of which have been reported nationwide.


Police arrest Canadian protest leaders

Canadian police on Thursday began arresting leaders of the trucker-led protest that has choked the capital’s streets for three weeks and provoked the government into calling on rarely used emergency powers.A video posted to the Twitter account for the so-called “Freedom Convoy” showed Tamara Lich, one of the organisers, being taken into police custody on Thursday night.The earlier arrest of another leader, Chris Barber, was also captured in a video shared on the same account.The convoy had started with truckers protesting against mandatory Covid vaccines to cross the US border, but its demands have grown to include an end to all pandemic restrictions and, for many, a wider anti-establishment agenda.At its peak, the movement also included blockades of a half-dozen US-Canada border crossings – including the key route between Windsor, Ontario and Detroit, Michigan.Earlier on Thursday, Lich posted a tearful video to say she was expecting to be arrested.She called on supporters to flood the capital, saying truckers already in place “are gonna stay and fight for your freedom.”“If you can come to Ottawa and stand with us, that would be fantastic,” she said.But city police chief Steve Bell said access to downtown Ottawa would be restricted to prevent people joining the demonstration, and he warned of “imminent” action against those already there.“I implore anyone that’s there: Get in your truck… and leave our city streets,” Bell told reporters.‘They have to stop’Criticised for failing to act decisively, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau this week invoked the Emergencies Act, which gives the government sweeping powers to deal with a major crisis.It is only the second time such powers have been invoked in peacetime.Police were deployed in force into the area around the Canadian parliament, where hundreds of big rigs remained parked.“We’ve begun to harden the perimeter around the protests,” Bell said.“What I can tell you is this weekend will look very different than the past three weekends.”Trudeau defended his decision to resort to the Emergencies Act, saying the act was not being used to call in the military, and denied restricting freedom of expression.The objective was simply to “deal with the current threat and to get the situation fully under control,” he told the House of Commons.“Illegal blockades and occupations are not peaceful protests… They have to stop,” he said.Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino said the situation in Ottawa was “precarious.”The demonstrators had been given an ultimatum late Wednesday by Bell to leave or risk arrest and truck seizures.In a statement, he pledged “to take back the entirety of the downtown core and every occupied space,” while warning that “some of the techniques we are lawfully able and prepared to use are not what we are used to seeing in Ottawa.”Truckers responded by blaring horns, waving Canadian flags on the ends of hockey sticks, and chanting “Freedom!”‘Risk of serious violence’Emergency powers have been invoked in Canada only once before, in 1970 by Trudeau’s father, former prime minister Pierre Trudeau, to crush Quebec separatists who had kidnapped two officials and set off bombs in Montreal.Officials had announced Wednesday a negotiated peaceful end to the last of the border blockades, which Mendicino said had cost the economy billions of dollars.In documents filed to the Commons, the government laid out its rationale for invoking the Emergencies Act, saying the trucker convoy has created a critical and urgent situation that cannot be dealt with under any other Canadian laws.It cited “a risk of serious violence and the potential for lone actor attackers to conduct terrorism attacks.”In a letter to provincial premiers, Trudeau decried the protests as “a threat to our democracy.”Police this week arrested dozens of protesters, including four people charged with conspiracy to murder police officers at a checkpoint between Coutts, Alberta and Sweet Grass, Montana.They also seized dozens of vehicles, as well as a cache of weapons that included rifles, handguns, body armor and ammunition.Authorities have also moved to freeze bank accounts, and choke off crowdfunding and cryptocurrency transactions supporting the protesters.


DAP-Anwar ban stays, top Umno leaders say as PAS warns allies

Senior Umno leaders have broken ranks with Ahmad Zahid Hamidi following their president’s statement that MPs are free to decide whether to join PKR’s Anwar Ibrahim, who recently claimed he has the majority to topple the Perikatan Nasional (PN) government.This comes as PAS, Umno’s closest ally with whom it formed the historic Muafakat Nasional alliance last year, issues a reminder that the pact between them gives clear priority to Malay political unity and rejects any cooperation with DAP and Amanah.Many on the Umno Supreme Council who spoke to MalaysiaNow share the same view.They said they were still committed to the decision made in the wake of the political crisis which saw the collapse of the Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition earlier this year for party MPs to only switch political alliances en bloc.Umno vice-president Ismail Sabri Yaakob also said the party was not abandoning its earlier rule of thumb about working with other coalitions – its rejection of Anwar itself as well as DAP, the Malay party’s arch-enemy for decades.Ismail, the senior minister for security, said this was the same stand taken by Zahid who had even threatened to sack those who do not comply.He said he was confident that no Umno MPs would back Anwar, who on Wednesday declared that Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin had lost support from MPs.Anwar also said he had a large margin of support, describing it as “formidable” with a Malay-Bumiputera dominance.But Ismail refused to take the claim seriously.“Anwar said he had 10 names (of Umno MPs backing him), then it became 15, perhaps it will be 50 soon,” the Bera MP was quoted as saying in Sabah.Supreme Council member Abdul Rahman Mohamad was also sceptical about Anwar’s claim, calling it “sandiwara” (theatrics).“If indeed he has 10 Umno MPs as he claims, show the list,” Abdul Rahman told MalaysiaNow.The deputy minister also said Anwar’s announcement was a ploy to get support from voters ahead of the Sabah state election tomorrow.“It is obvious that it is to swing voters’ sentiments. It will never happen because Sabahans are fed up with Anwar’s behaviour,” he said.He added that Anwar’s “propaganda” would have no impact on Gabungan Rakyat Sabah, the alliance comprising parties from PN, Sabah Barisan Nasional (BN) as well as Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS).Yesterday, MalaysiaNow quoted an Umno MP as saying that “one to three” MPs from the Malay party could be joining Anwar.“At least two of them would include the same persons over whom Dr Mahathir Mohamad backed out from joining Muhyiddin’s coup in February,” the MP said.At the height of the political crisis in February, Mahathir had said he would not be part of any new coalition if it comprised Umno leaders who were facing corruption charges, including Zahid and his former boss Najib Razak.Yesterday, MalaysiaNow reported that Umno was split between two camps, for and against Anwar’s plan to form a government led by him.The two factions are led by Zahid and Mohamad Hasan, the Umno deputy president who has consistently spoken out against any move by the party to return to power outside of the ballot box.Meanwhile, another Umno leader viewed Zahid’s statement as a veiled threat to Bersatu and Muhyiddin.He said the breakaway Malay party should be honest in dealing with its allies in PN, and that the clash of PN and BN candidates in several Sabah seats showed there was still no unity in the federal ruling coalition.“From the overlap of seats between PN and BN to the move to nominate Hajiji Nor as the Sabah chief minister, Bersatu has shown it is acting as a bully,” Supreme Council member Aziz Kaprawi told MalaysiaNow.Zahid’s remarks suggesting he is open to joining Anwar’s camp does not surprise the seasoned Anwar watcher.Zahid was Anwar’s closest ally when the duo led Umno in the late 1990s.But it is his 47 charges of criminal breach of trust, corruption and money laundering that would have led Zahid to come out with a statement seen as supportive of Anwar.Many believe Zahid had hoped to have the charges against him dropped when he allied himself with Muhyiddin, who broke away from PH in February.“But that is not likely to happen, as seen in the case involving Najib, who was found guilty despite throwing support behind PN,” said an Umno insider.


Babies born without wisdom teeth ‘show humans now evolving faster’

Anatomical changes in modern humans show that we are still evolving, say Australian scientists. And not only that but in evolutionary terms we are actually speeding up.In a study published in the Journal of Anatomy, researchers found that there have been several changes in human anatomy which seem to show that we are evolving faster than at any point in the last 250 years.One of their findings is that more babies are being born without wisdom teeth.Wisdom teeth are the final teeth to emerge in early adulthood. They usually appear sometime between the ages of 17 and 25.The skulls of our human ancestors had larger jaws containing more teeth which helped to chew the early human diet of roots, meat, and nuts – but today, we no longer need them.Lead researcher Teghan Lucas, of Flinders University in Adelaide, said “As we have learnt to use fire and process foods more, a lot of people are just being born without wisdom teeth. Faces are becoming a lot shorter, with smaller jaws meaning there is less room for teeth.”The investigation also found a “significant increase” since the late 19th century in the prevalence of an additional artery, called a median artery, in people’s forearms.Lucas said, “If this trend continues, a majority of people will have a median artery of the forearm by 2100.”“A lot of people think that humans have stopped evolving,” said Lucas. “But our study shows that humans are indeed still evolving. This is what we call micro-evolution in modern humans.The researchers called their findings “evolutionary trends”, saying that they are “perfect examples of how we are still evolving”.


Another 207 deaths as new cases top 16,000

Another 16,117 Covid-19 cases were recorded today, taking total confirmed infections in the country to 1,044,071.Selangor recorded 6,616 cases, Kuala Lumpur 2,457, Kedah 1,000, Johor 907, Sabah 741, Melaka 674, Negeri Sembilan 669, Penang 618, Kelantan 592, Perak 583, Sarawak 405, Pahang 403 and Terengganu 317.Putrajaya recorded 122 cases, Labuan 11 and Perlis two.Active cases stand at 170,224 with 1,023 in the ICU and 524 in need of respiratory assistance.Another 11,526 patients were discharged, bringing total recoveries to 865,439.However, 207 more deaths were reported, pushing the virus toll to 8,408.


Chinese ships leave Vietnam waters after US-China talks

A Chinese research ship and its escort, which operated for nearly a month in Vietnam's exclusive economic zone (EEZ) in the South China Sea, left those waters on Monday night, vessel-tracking experts said, just after high-level US-China talks.
Chinese vessel Xiang Yang Hong 10 began sailing in Vietnam's EEZ on May 7, at times flanked by a dozen ships, and regularly crossing gas and oil fields operated by Russian companies, according to vessel-tracking data.
On Monday, after US and China senior officials held talks in Beijing that both parties called constructive, the Chinese vessel and its escort of more than half a dozen ships began their journey back to China's Hainan island, leaving Vietnam's EEZ around midnight.
Asked about the movements of the ships, China's foreign ministry did not comment about the return to Hainan.
"The Chinese scientific research vessel carrying out normal research activities in maritime waters under China's jurisdiction is legitimate and proper. The issue of entering another country's EEZ does not exist," it said in a statement.
Under international law, ships are allowed to sail through foreign EEZs, but unauthorised surveys are not permitted and China's operations in the South China Sea have long been problematic for countries in the region, as Beijing claims most of the energy-rich sea, including foreign EEZs.
In a rare public protest, Vietnam's government on May 25 urged the Chinese research ship and its escort to leave the country's EEZ after a visit to Hanoi by senior Russian official Dmitry Medvedev.
At 0300 GMT on Tuesday the Chinese research ship was seen approaching Hainan, said Ray Powell, who leads Stanford University's Project Myoushu on the South China Sea.
Vietnam's fisheries surveillance ships turned back after the Chinese vessel and its escort left Vietnam's EEZ around midnight Vietnam time, Powell added.
Vietnam-based researcher Van Pham, who heads independent non-profit South China Sea Chronicle Initiative (SCSCI), confirmed the ships had left Vietnam's EEZ but warned that Hainan was not the research ship's home port, and after a break there it could resume activities in the South China Sea.
Vietnam's foreign ministry did not reply to requests for comment.


Curfew lifted in Melbourne as Covid-19 cases fall

Covid-19 cases  are falling in Melbourne, Australia, and so several of the restrictions under which residents have been living were lifted today.The city was under a tight nightly curfew from 9pm to 5am, which Victoria state Premier Daniel Andrews announced late on Sunday night would be lifted.From Monday, Melburnians can return to work, and meet outside in groups of up to five people from two households.The limit of one person going shopping once per day has also been removed.“Seven weeks ago, our average case numbers were peaking at more than 400 every single day,” Andrews said on Sunday. “Today, Melbourne’s rolling case average is 22.1. It’s a remarkable thing, and an achievement that belongs to every single Victorian.”But Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison is urging Andrews to ease more restrictions in the coming weeks.Morrison said, “As it stands, this lockdown is already longer than that faced by residents in many cities around the world. We remain deeply concerned about the mental health impacts of a prolonged lock down on Melbourne residents.”Melbourne was hit more severely than other Australian cities.Its coronavirus infections soared in late July and early August, peaking at nearly 700 cases in a day, causing Andrews to declare a state of disaster across the state of Victoria on Aug 2.This Monday, Victoria recorded only five new coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours, the lowest daily increase in 108 days, according to the state’s Department of Health and Human Services.With the Victoria outbreak contained, the number of cases has stayed low in Australia’s other states as well. According to CNN, on Sunday only two other states apart from Victoria reported cases: seven in Western Australia, and one in Queensland.


Listen to the voice of Malaysian mums, says Annuar as Putrajaya panned in citizenship case

Annuar Musa has appeared to back the right of Malaysian mothers to automatic citizenship for their children born abroad, as criticism grows over Putrajaya’s decision to appeal against a recent judgment.“I think the voice of Malaysian mothers should be heard,” Annuar, the communications and multimedia minister, said in a brief comment.He said as the issue touches on laws and policy, it should be discussed at the Cabinet level.“I believe the Cabinet is the most suitable forum to discuss this matter in the spirit of Keluarga Malaysia,” he said, referring to the phrase promoted by Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob.At least two ministers have welcomed the Kuala Lumpur High Court’s ruling last week that children born overseas to Malaysian women married to foreigners are automatically entitled to Malaysian citizenship by operation of law.Plantation Industries and Commodities Minister Zuraida Kamaruddin urged the government to implement the decision, while Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar, the law minister, said the court ruling was in line with the constitution’s guarantee of non-discrimination.Despite this, Putrajaya said it would appeal the ruling, drawing criticism from rights groups and several opposition politicians.On Sept 9, judge Akhtar Tahir ruled that Malaysian women married to foreign men have the same right as Malaysian men married to foreign women in this regard.The suit was filed on Dec 18 last year by the Association of Family Support & Welfare Selangor & Kuala Lumpur (Family Frontiers) and six Malaysian women married to foreigners.They sought six specific court orders, including a declaration that Section 1(b) and Section 1(c) of the Second Schedule, Part II of the Federal Constitution be read harmoniously with Article 8 (2) to include Malaysian mothers as a condition for children born abroad to be given automatic Malaysian citizenship.


5 hot topics ahead of Sabah polls

With just two days to go before voters decide on their next state government, the race for support in Sabah is heating up, with candidates and parties alike zooming in on issues likely to influence the selection process.So-called hot topics which have featured heavily throughout the campaign period include the giving of land grants, the matter of local governance, a candidate’s remarks on the 2013 Sulu incursion in Lahad Datu, the issue of clean water supply, and the state’s economic development.Land grantsDuring the 14th general election in May 2018, Warisan pledged in its manifesto to give land grants to the people of Sabah.MalaysiaNow understands that Warisan president Shafie Apdal, who is also the incumbent chief minister, personally travelled to each district in the state to hand out the grants after the dissolution of the state assembly on July 30.According to the Chief Minister’s Office, 10,686 native land titles were handed out throughout Shafie’s 26 months in power.‘Sabah for Sabahans’The matter of local representation appeared early on in the campaign period, with parties saying that only those originating from Sabah were entitled to represent the people.Usno, Upko, Warisan and Umno were among those who broadcast this view, with Sabah Umno saying it had been granted autonomy in the state by party president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.However, Warisan insists that Umno is a peninsula-based party and will not fight for the rights of Sabahans.Barisan Nasional (BN) meanwhile maintains that Warisan is not a true Sabah party given the inclusion of peninsula-based outfits DAP, PKR, and Amanah in its coalition, dubbed “Warisan Plus”.The slogan it spread during its campaign was “a vote for Warisan means a vote for DAP”.And Usno, which was dissolved in the 1990s before being revived in 2013, asserts that it is the “original” Sabah party as it was established in the state.Sulu incursionWarisan’s Segama candidate Mohamaddin Ketapi created a stir when he said on the campaign trail in Lahad Datu that security forces in the 2013 stand-off with Sulu militants in Tanduo had fought with “chickens and dogs”.His remarks which went viral sparked a backlash from many who accused him of trivialising the sacrifices of the security forces, 10 of whom died in the conflict.Mohamaddin, a member of Warisan’s Supreme Council, later apologised for his words, maintaining however that he had never insulted those who lost their lives.He said he was only highlighting the present-day difficulties faced by security forces due to what he called BN’s failure to strengthen the country’s border assets.Clean water supplyFifty-seven years after joining Malaya and Sarawak to form the federation of Malaysia, Sabah still struggles with the long-standing problem of getting clean water.This is especially the case for those who live in water villages, which are built on stilts above the sea.In its election manifesto, Warisan promised to resolve the problem. However, the Covid-19 pandemic which hit Malaysia earlier this year put a halt to the project meant to ensure the supply of clean water to homes.In the meantime, villagers are forced to buy clean water in barrels at RM7 per 220 litres.Economic developmentWhether in the city or the countryside, the matter of economic development lies close to the heart of Sabahans.According to the statistics department, Sabah was ranked as the poorest state in the country last year with 19.5% or nearly 100,000 households living in poverty.The highest poverty levels were recorded in the districts of Tongod, Pitas, Kota Marudu, Beluran and Telupid.Notwithstanding the perennial nature of some of these issues, political analyst Musli Oli believes the opposing parties are tackling them with a positive attitude.“The matter of land grants was successfully neutralised by the opposition as the majority of applications and approvals occurred before any change of government,” he said.As for the matter of infrastructure, he said any difficulty in addressing problems was due to economic obstacles.But he said Mohamaddin’s remarks had damaged Warisan’s image in the election.He also dismissed the issue of local identity, saying it would not be a deciding factor in the polls.“‘Sabah for Sabahans’ is no longer an issue,” he told MalaysiaNow. “Everyone is championing it. There’s no more excitement about it like there used to be.”


'What kind of work is that?': Post-SPM clashes arise between parents and children

Aliya Nadiah Dzulfitri was fighting to hold back her tears of joy as she searched for her mother outside the school hall on June 8, clutching her SPM result slip showing her score of 6 As from the total of eight subjects taken.
The entire family celebrated over lunch at a restaurant, commemorating what they saw as the start of a new chapter in Aliya's life.
But by evening, some of her joy had begun to fade as a misunderstanding arose with her mother over her plan to study psychology at a public university.
"My mother doesn't understand what I say about the field of psychology," Aliya told MalaysiaNow.
"Whether it's medical psychology, clinical, or modern. She still tells our relatives that I want to become a counsellor. But that's not what I want to do."
Che Izzudin Che Mad, a fellow SPM graduate from Kuantan, encountered a similar clash of views with his family when he told them he wanted to become a designer.
Che Izzudin dreams of working behind the scenes, especially in online designs for products and brands.
"But they think that I want to design clothes or do interior designing, even though they know that I have no aptitude for either job," he said.
"I'm good at computer programming and using designer software, like Canva," he added, referring to the graphic design platform used to create graphics and presentations.
Generation gap
A project manager at an NGO who asked to be known as Hisham said he, too, had gone through the same situation after completing his studies.
Hisham graduated with a degree in law from a local university. However, he never had any interest in working a normal office job.
"I didn't even want to become a lawyer," he said.
Instead, he joined an NGO that dealt with gender issues and domestic violence and began his career as a research officer.
"When I started working with the NGO, I kept it a secret from my family," he said.
"They wouldn't have understood what the job entailed, and I didn't know how to make them understand about the work that I was doing."
Until today, his mother is still in the dark about the context of his career – for her, it is enough to know that he is gainfully employed.
Speaking to MalaysiaNow, he said there was a generational gap made bigger by the rapid development of technology and artificial intelligence.
He said these developments had led to a rapid and widespread difference in the job market.
"These days, their children might not refer to them anymore when choosing a field of study or work," he said.
"What would happen if their children kept pushing them aside in the belief that there is no need to ask, they will not understand?"
For him, the situation underscores the importance of keeping abreast of what is happening in the world.
"Parents will always need to know what is going on in their children's lives, even though those children may be grown up and building a life of their own," he said.
"That is also one of the elements of humanity and family."


Court rejects MACC's remand request against district police chief

The Kuantan Magistrate's Court today rejected a remand application by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) against a district police chief to facilitate investigations into allegations of bribery involving over RM1 million.
Magistrate Tengku Eliana Tuan Kamarulzaman rejected the application by MACC deputy public prosecutor Rifah Izzati Abdul Mutalif according to Section 117 of the Criminal Procedure Code.
Lawyer Bob S Arumugam, who was representing the senior police officer, told reporters later that Tengku Eliana had concurred with his argument, citing a recent decision by the Temerloh High Court that the MACC must use its own act when applying for a remand order.
On May 19, the Temerloh High Court ruled that Section 49 of the MACC Act gave specific powers to the MACC, including on investigations that cannot be completed within 24 hours.
Earlier, the 53-year-old senior police chief arrived in court at 8.58am clad in MACC lock-up attire.
It was reported that a senior officer was detained by the MACC here yesterday on suspicion of receiving bribes of over RM1 million between 2017 and 2022 as an inducement not to act against entertainment centres.


All full, stay home! Sarawak health chief pleads with public

Health authorities in Sarawak today said ICUs in the state are overrun with patients, urging members of the public to play their part in staying at home as infections continue to mount.“Our ICU beds are overrun or in other words full across Sarawak,” state health department director Dr Chin Zin Hing said in a statement.“Doctors are working very hard every day to turn over the ventilators or ICU beds so that the next patient that needs it can benefit from it. No amount of ventilators will be sufficient.“We are in a crisis and I strongly appeal to you all to play your part. Please stay at home!”Chin said if Covid-19 transmissions are not curbed, 10% to 20% of cases would need hospital admission and 5% to 10% would need ICU care.In Sarawak, he said, there were only 53 ICU beds in four major hospitals.“At the moment, at all major hospitals in Sarawak we are running 92 ICU beds. All full!” he said, adding that each bed would be used for an average of 10 days.According to the Sarawak Disaster Management Committee, occupancy of Covid-19 ICUs at hospitals in the state has reached 77%, with 70 patients in 92 beds.“Sibu Hospital is treating 35 Covid-19 patients in the ICU and Sarawak General Hospital is treating 11 patients in the ICU.“In Bintulu Hospital, there are six Covid-19 patients in the ICU, five in Miri Hospital, nine in Kapit Hospital and four in Sarikei Hospital,” it said in its daily statement.Sarawak also recorded another three clusters today, bringing the total number of active clusters in the state to 83.It recorded 433 new Covid-19 cases today, 61.89% of which were detected in the districts of Miri, Kapit, Sibu, Kuching and Belaga.Sarawak has recorded 38,816 cases since the outbreak was first detected in the country.


Apologetic Embolo gives Swiss 1-0 victory over Cameroon

Switzerland edged Cameroon 1-0 courtesy of a goal against the run of play by apologetic Breel Embolo versus the country of his birth for an opening win in World Cup Group G at the Al Janoub Stadium on Thursday.
While it was a good day for the Swiss it was a bad one for African football, whose teams in Qatar have yet to score a goal in the tournament.
Apart from Cameroon, Tunisia as well as Morocco and Senegal all failed to find the net in their opening matches. Ghana are in action later on Thursday against Portugal.
Embolo, born in Yaounde but raised in Basel, struck three minutes after the restart from a Xherdan Shaqiri cut-back to put the Swiss top of the group.
The 25-year-old refused to celebrate the goal on his 60th international appearance, lifting his hands in the air and frowning as the small group of Swiss fans cheered wildly at Al Janoub Stadium.
"We know his story. I told him before the game 'Breel, friendship until the start, then they are your opponents," Switzerland coach Murat Yakin said.
"Football write such stories but he completed his mission. I am very happy with his performance."
Serbia play Brazil in the other group match later on Thursday.
Good chances
The Swiss goal came after Cameroon had dominated the first half, missing several good chances to take the lead.
The Indomitable Lions, who eliminated Algeria in a playoff to qualify for the tournament, had outplayed Switzerland in the first 45 minutes with quick combinations, speed and power as their opponents remained toothless up front.
They carved out their first chance after 10 minutes with Bryan Mbeumo testing goalkeeper Yann Sommer before Karl Toko Ekambi sent his rebound over the bar.
The Swiss were in trouble again a little later with in-form forward Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting winning possession to charge into the box only for Sommer to block his effort.
In search of their first win at a World Cup in 20 years, Cameroon were bolder, taking on their opponents in one-on-one situations, while the Swiss rarely managed to get into the African side's box.
Switzerland, who reached the last 16 in the two previous World Cups, struck at the start of the second half with veteran Shaqiri cutting into the area and Embolo tapping in what proved to be the winner.
An almost identical move just past the hour almost saw the Swiss score again but Ruben Vargas's shot was pushed wide by keeper Andre Onana to keep his team in the game.
Cameron failed to replicate their first half performance and were lucky not to concede another in stoppage time through Haris Seferovic.
"The next match is decisive for us. We have to create opportunities," said Cameroon coach Rigobert Song.
"In football when you dominate, you have to finish. It is true that we had more opportunities but we didn't complete them. That's what made the difference. The goal just did not come."
The Swiss next play Brazil on Monday with Cameroon taking on Serbia.


Putting quality over quantity in public transport

Following the recent Budget 2021 measures involving public transport initiatives of around RM15 billion to enhance the mobility of the people and stimulate the country’s economy, the government should also keep an eye on other crucial aspects of public transportation, namely accessibility.Train stations in Malaysia are mostly less accessible, as stated by data scientist Nabil Ersyad on his Twitter thread.His research, based on his own experience and the use of data analytics, can also be concrete evidence of people’s hardships and their main obstacles in choosing public transportation as their primary mode of transportation, especially in terms of accessibility.He complained that it takes a long time for people to get to work using the public transportation system, especially the Klang Valley train systems. He then shared isochrone maps that represent our public transportation’s low accessibility.What Nabil has shown is something exciting, truthful and indeed an eye-opener for people. The important things he mentioned are that people take about five to 15 minutes to walk to the nearest station – some areas could take longer than that. He also praises the Montreal stations that cover much more walkable areas for their population compared to the Klang Valley.Based on another Twitter source, Khalid Karim proposed 11 Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) corridors that would be more advantageous than the development of the MRT 3.In terms of concept, according to the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy, the BRT corridor is a section of road or neighbouring roads served by a bus route or multiple bus routes with a minimum length of 3km or 1.9 miles with dedicated bus lanes.Khalid explicitly tweeted that “these proposed 11 BRT corridors will give far greater benefits to Klang Valley citizens than one single 40km MRT 3 and only for about 30% of the cost of MRT 3”.As the government intends to allocate large sums of money for the development of public transportation systems, the accessibility aspect of the development process must also be balanced in this regard.For instance, most walkways in Malaysia are difficult to access, not in good condition for walking in several areas and far from the community. It is also inconvenient for those who have limited access to shuttle buses or other modes of public transport.Once all these factors are put into our public transportation system, it will make it easier to encourage the people to use public transportation in their daily lives, thereby also attaining the objective of reducing the country’s carbon footprint and helping Malaysia move towards being a smart city.But this comes with one necessary condition, which is the smart mobility that specifically aims to reduce congestion and encourage quicker, greener and cheaper transportation choices.Suppose Malaysia succeeds in encouraging people to fully utilise public transportation while achieving the main goals of smart mobility. The country can undoubtedly move a step closer to becoming a smart city.Based on Budget 2021, Transport Minister Wee Ka Siong said the allocation would cover the Rapid Transit System Link from Johor to Singapore, the MRT 3 project in the Klang Valley and the Gemas-Johor Bharu Electrified Double-Tracking Project.Indeed, the people would be pleased to hear that, especially urban dwellers who rely mostly on public transportation for their daily activities. Still, transportation authorities should also play a part in assisting the government in improving the public transportation services.After that, the goal of the country to effectively push the people’s demand to utilise public transportation is likely to be achieved, similar to how other countries such as Singapore and Japan have managed to do it.Nevertheless, based on a survey by the Centre for Governance and Political Studies in 2019, 87.3% of people in the Klang Valley drive alone to their workplaces in the central business district of Kuala Lumpur, which is ranked the highest in the world in the single-driver category.This demonstrates that our country is still far behind others in terms of public transportation utilisation, which could be due to the crucial factors that have been neglected by the related authorities in the development process.That is why the government should consider improving our public transportation system, perhaps more on “quality” instead of “quantity” so that the people can comfortably utilise our public transportation system.As for managing the dissatisfaction of people with the inefficiency of our public transportation system, the government should start thinking about the real challenges when it comes to public transportation systems, perhaps by taking into account the people’s suggestions like Nabil and Karim did.The improvements to our public transportation system should include proper urban planning so that it does not hinder the people from choosing public transportation as their main method of travel.Farhan Kamarulzaman is a research assistant at independent think tank EMIR Research.The views expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the position of MalaysiaNow.


Ex-Felda boss Isa Samad gets temporary release of passport for umrah

The Court of Appeal today allowed an application by former Felda chairman Isa Samad for the release of his passport for travel to perform the umrah.
A panel of three judges headed by Kamaludin Md Said allowed the application after Isa’s lawyer, Mohamed Baharudeen Mohamed Ariff, informed the court that his client would leave to perform the umrah on Feb 10.
"My client will return to Malaysia on Feb 23, and I request that the passport be returned on March 7," said Baharudeen, who was present with lawyer Abu Bakar Isa Ramat.
The prosecution, represented by deputy public prosecutor Afzainizam Abdul Aziz, did not object to the application which was filed on Jan 10. Kamaludin, sitting with judges Hashim Hamzah and Azman Abdullah, agreed for Isa, 73, to return the passport to the court on March 7.
In March last year, the Court of Appeal allowed Isa's application for the temporary release of his passport to attend his stepson's convocation ceremony at a university in the UK.
Isa was convicted by the High Court on Feb 3, 2021 of nine charges of corruption involving RM3 million in the purchase of Merdeka Palace Hotel & Suites in Kuching, Sarawak.
He was sentenced to six years' imprisonment for each charge, a total of 54 years, but would only have to serve six years as the jail sentences were to be served concurrently.
He was also fined RM15.45 million, in default of 18 years' jail.
However, the court allowed him a stay of execution pending his appeal, raising his bail amount from RM800,000 to RM1.5 million.
The appeal hearing has been set for March 7.


Australia PM defends Aukus submarine deal against critics

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Thursday defended the country's A$368 billion plan to acquire nuclear submarines, after two former leaders criticised the deal over its cost, complexity and potential sovereignty issues.
Unveiled on Tuesday in San Diego, the multi-decade Aukus project will see Australia purchase US Virginia-class submarines before joint British and Australian production and operation of a new submarine class, SSN-Aukus.
After criticism from Malcolm Turnbull and Paul Keating, both former prime ministers, Albanese said that the deal was necessary given the buildup of Chinese military power in the region, which he called the largest since World War Two.
"China has changed its posture and its positioning in world affairs since the 1990s... that's the truth of the matter," he said.
Turnbull said on Thursday that the Aukus project would take longer and cost more than an alternative plan to buy conventional French submarines, "recklessly" scrapped in 2021.
"We've been caught up in this hoopla where anyone who expresses any concerns about it is accused of being or implied they are lacking in patriotism," Turnbull said.
Paul Keating, a former prime minister under the ruling Labor Party, on Wednesday called Aukus the worst foreign policy mistake by the party since a failed bid to introduce conscription in World War One.
Buttressed by bipartisan support in Parliament, criticism of the security pact has been mostly confined to academics, former politicians and minor parties.
Opting for nuclear submarines in the US-Britain alliance over conventional alternatives would leave Australia with fewer submarines while constraining the country's ability to operate independently of the US, he said.
"Anthony Albanese screwed into place the last shackle in the long chain the US has laid out to contain China," he said.
Some analysts have argued nuclear submarines are preferable because their superior range and stealth will help protect Australia's trade routes from Chinese aggression.


India’s pollution board warns of Delhi air emergency

India’s pollution control body warned of a looming health emergency in New Delhi as deteriorating air quality in the capital turned the sky a murky grey.The city is ranked one of the world’s most polluted, with a hazardous melange of factory emissions, car exhaust fumes and smoke from agricultural fires settling in the skies over its 20 million people each winter.On Saturday, levels of harmful PM 2.5 particles topped 300 on the air quality index. That number is more than 10 times the safe daily limit set by the World Health Organization.A reading over 300 for 48 hours would initiate emergency measures in the capital, including the closure of primary schools and severe traffic restrictions.The Central Pollution Control Board on Friday told New Delhi residents to “limit outdoor activities and minimise their exposure” and advised government authorities to prepare “for implementation of measures under ’emergency’ category”.It added the poor air quality would likely run until Nov 18 due to “low winds with calm conditions during the night”.On Saturday, the Supreme Court suggested imposing a pollution lockdown on Delhi to help with the air quality crisis.“How will we live otherwise?” chief justice NV Ramana said.The burning of agricultural waste in Delhi’s neighbouring states – largely behind the megacity’s pollution levels every winter – has continued despite a Supreme Court ban.The number of farm fires this season has been the highest in the past four years, according to government data.At the COP26 global climate summit this month, Prime Minister Narendra Modi made it clear that carbon emissions-cutting pledges from India and other developing nations would require finance from rich, historic emitters.A 2020 report by Swiss organisation IQAir found that 22 of the world’s 30 most polluted cities were in India, with Delhi ranked the most polluted capital globally.The same year, the Lancet said 1.67 million deaths were attributable to air pollution in India in 2019, including almost 17,500 in the capital.


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1MDB had trouble during audit after documents seized in police raid, court told

1MDB faced difficulties during an audit process in 2015 after the police raided its office and seized documents a day before an interim report on the initial findings of the state-owned sovereign wealth fund was presented to the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), the Kuala Lumpur High Court heard today.This was suggested by counsel N Sivananthan to former National Audit Department (NAD) audit director Saadatul Nafisah Bashir Ahmad, 66, during cross-examination at the 1MDB audit report tampering trial involving former prime minister Najib Razak and former 1MDB CEO Arul Kanda Kandasamy.The seventh prosecution witness agreed with Sivananthan, who is acting for Arul Kanda, that the police had also seized documents during the raid carried out on July 8, 2015.PAC received the interim report of 1MDB from then auditor-general Ambrin Buang on July 9, 2015.Sivananthan: Are you aware that the police had seized documents from 1MDB on July 8, 2015?Saadatul: I heard in the news but I don’t remember the exact date and what documents were seized.Sivananthan: Are you aware that the interim report to PAC was presented on July 9, 2015?Saadatul: Yes, we presented (it). I don’t remember the actual date but three to four months after our audit.Sivananthan: Under the circumstances, do you agree with me that it (the raid and seizure) would have put 1MDB in a little bit of a difficult position, bearing in mind that police had seized the documents and they, therefore, had to request those documents back from the authorities for the audit process?Saadatul: Yes.Sivananthan also suggested to the witness that 57 areas of the 1MDB audit report were amended after Arul Kanda gave additional information to NAD, to which Saadatul replied: “I’m not sure, but the wording was amended.”Sivananthan then asked the witness to refer to an intensive documentary exhibit to verify the amended part in the audit report.At this juncture, judge Mohamed Zaini Mazlan directed Sivananthan to give the witness more time to answer the question as she needed to go through the intensive documentary exhibit first.Najib, 68, was charged with using his position to order amendments to the 1MDB final audit report before it was presented to PAC to avoid any action being taken against him, while Arul Kanda, 45, is charged with abetting Najib in making the amendments to the report to protect Najib from being subjected to action.Both of them were charged under Section 23 (1) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission Act 2009, which provides for a jail term of up to 20 years and a fine of no less than five times the amount of gratification or RM10,000, whichever is higher, upon conviction.The trial will continue on Sept 27.


Afghan war over, everyone pardoned, say Taliban

The Taliban said Tuesday the war in Afghanistan was over and that all their opponents would be pardoned, as they held their first news conference since seizing power from the Western-backed government in Kabul.“War has ended… (the leader) has pardoned everyone,” spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said, adding: “We are committed to letting women work in accordance with the principles of Islam.”Shortly before he spoke, the Taliban’s deputy leader Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar – who also co-founded the movement – arrived in Kandahar, landing in the insurgent group’s former capital just days after they took control of the country.Mujahid said the Taliban would soon be establishing a government, but gave little detail of its make-up apart from saying they would “connect with all sides”.“All those in the opposite side are pardoned from A to Z,” he said.“We will not seek revenge.”Asked what the difference between the movement that was ousted 20 years ago and the Taliban of today, he said: “If the question is based on ideology, and beliefs, there is no difference… but if we calculate it based on experience, maturity, and insight, no doubt there are many differences.”“The steps today will be positively different from the past steps,” he added.


Khairy willing to contest any seat in GE15

Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin today said that he still does not know where he will be contesting at the 15th general election (GE15) although he is prepared to accept any seat offered by the Umno leadership.
"I do not know (which parliamentary seat). Let the party leaders announce it. I will accept any constituency offered to me," he told a press conference in Putrajaya.
The three-term Rembau MP is giving way to Umno deputy president Mohamad Hasan to defend the seat.
There had been speculation that Khairy was not on the list of Barisan Nasional (BN) candidates for Negeri Sembilan, with some media reports saying he was almost certain of contesting the Sungai Buloh parliamentary seat in Selangor.
Meanwhile, Khairy said that Covid-19 positive candidates in GE15 will need to undergo isolation as stipulated by the health ministry, adding that they can use social media to campaign during their quarantine period.
He advised candidates and supporters of contesting parties to set an example by observing health protocols during their campaign rounds.
"If you are making house-to-house visits, visiting bed-ridden patients at home, show a good example by wearing face masks.
"When holding a ceramah in a packed hall, political parties and the organisers should make announcements telling those present to wear masks," he added.
Polling has been fixed for Nov 19, with nomination to be held on Nov 5 and early voting on Nov 15.


Welcome to the Church of 400 Rabbits – care for a tequila?

Last week, England exited its second national lockdown and entered a system of tiered restrictions where towns and areas are assigned to one of three tiers judged on their current Covid-19 risk.The city of Nottingham falls into the highest-risk Tier 3 category, which requires that hospitality venues remain closed, other than for delivery and takeaway.An Aztec-themed tequila bar previously known as “400 Rabbits” has now become the “Church of 400 Rabbits” after its owner spotted a loophole in the Tier 3 rules saying that places of worship, unlike pubs, can admit people inside their premises.Owner James Aspell has applied to Nottingham council to certify his church as a place of meeting for religious worship, but he isn’t hopeful.He told CNN, “It’s a tongue-in-cheek effort to shine a light on the ridiculousness of the government’s new tier system and how contradictory the rules are. Even if we were moved down into Tier 2 we still wouldn’t be able to open without serving what they call ‘a substantial meal’.”He described “the whole Scotch egg fiasco” which has engrossed the British public this week. A Scotch egg is a hard-boiled egg wrapped in sausage meat and deep fried in breadcrumbs. After much debate, the government has now declared it a substantial meal rather than a snack, which makes a vital difference in the tier restrictions.Other establishments are searching for working loopholes too. The Caxton Arms pub in Brighton is trying to bypass Tier 2 restrictions by serving a beer named Substantial Meal.400 Rabbits isn’t the first business to try the “place of worship” trick: last month Poland’s Atlantic Squash and Fitness Club rebranded itself as the Church of the Healthy Body in a similar effort to keep open.The Church of 400 Rabbits is now seeking congregants through its website with great success. Worshipers are signing up all the way from Nantucket to Novosibirsk, but the church is still keeping its fingers crossed, hoping for a miracle from Nottingham council.


Why some parents are in no rush to get their kids jabbed

While the government has said that Covid-19 vaccination for children below the age of 12 is not compulsory, the voluntary approach adopted in lieu of such a directive may be part of the reason many parents have decided to give the shot a miss despite receiving an appointment under the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme for Children (PICKids).Psychologist Fauziah Sa’ad said the flexibility given had caused many parents to adopt a wait-and-see approach, wanting to find out more about the effects of the vaccine, particularly over the long term, before allowing their children to get jabbed.Fauziah, of Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris, said this was in contrast to the conditions set for adults, who are required to receive the full regimen laid out by the health ministry before they are allowed to participate in public activities.“Because it is not compulsory, parents might feel that there is no need to rush into getting their children vaccinated,” she said.“There are also some who believe that their children already have the antibody levels needed to fight off the Covid-19 virus, and do not need additional protection.”Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin recently revealed that more than 600,000 children given appointments through PICKids were no-shows on the day itself.Of the 1.63 million appointments given by the health ministry since Feb 3, he said, only a million had turned up.Under PICKids, children were initially given only the Pfizer vaccine. The Sinovac jab was added to the list a month later, on March 3, although the health ministry stressed that Pfizer remained the vaccine of choice for children in this age group.Khairy said the health ministry would continue its campaigns to spread awareness about the benefits of vaccination as part of efforts to convince parents to get their children jabbed.In his latest update on related developments, he said that more than 100,000 children below 12 had contracted the virus so far this year.Fauziah also pointed to the spread of fake news on social media, saying false or misleading information about the vaccines had the biggest impact on parents who had little knowledge about the jabs to begin with.Viewing the vaccines through such a negative lens, she said, they would be reluctant to let their children be jabbed.Checks by MalaysiaNow of social media platforms like Facebook found that each statement issued by the health ministry would be met with disparaging comments and accusations.Other users would share videos with worrying content, such as clips showing a person fainting, and claim that vaccines were to blame despite strong denials by the health ministry.A 33-year-old woman who asked that her name be withheld said she was worried about sending her child for vaccination even though he began attending primary school this year.She herself has been fully vaccinated and recently received a booster dose as well. But she is concerned about the effects the vaccine might have on her son, who just turned seven years old.“There’s just too much information on social media about how the vaccine is supposedly unsafe for children,” she told MalaysiaNow.“Eventually, such things made me sceptical as well.”Nevertheless, she said her family members had assured her that the vaccine was safe for children, and that the side effects were not as severe as claimed on social media.“I will send my son to be vaccinated once he receives an appointment through MySejahtera,” she added.


Decision on AstraZeneca jabs in 2 weeks, says Khairy

The government will decide whether Malaysia continues to use the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine or not at the Covid-19 Vaccine Supply Access Guarantee Special Committee meeting in two weeks’ time.Khairy Jamaluddin, the minister in charge of the vaccination programme, said the government would then study any additional information to be tabled by the panel of experts from the health ministry before making a decision.He said the government had noted the report from the European Medicines Agency (EMA) which confirmed for the first time that there was a link between the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine and blood clotting cases.“In this case, before the announcement (by the EMA), our stance was as stated by Health Minister Dr Adham Baba two days ago that we will proceed with the AstraZeneca vaccine.“However, I think the safest approach is to refer back to the committee based on the recent information that we have obtained from the EMA,” he told reporters after an event in Kuala Lumpur today.On April 7, the EMA’s safety committee concluded that unusual blood clots with low blood platelets should be listed as very rare side effects of the AstraZeneca vaccine.However, Khairy, who is also the science, technology and innovation minister, urged the public not to worry about any reports pertaining to the AstraZeneca vaccine which is scheduled to arrive next month, as the committee has enough time to decide whether to use the vaccine or not.On the proposal to issue Covid-19 vaccine passports to those who have received the vaccine, Khairy said the document should contain the details of the vaccination and screening test within 72 hours before a trip, for reference.“As announced by Qatar, they will only let people in without quarantine if there is proof of vaccination and a screening test. We have not made any decision… if we will relax some travel restrictions for those who have been vaccinated. They have to have some proof,” he said.He also said the government plans to give the Orang Asli the complete Covid-19 vaccine in just one shot as this would ease the management of vaccinators and prevent the Orang Asli community from having to make multiple trips to get vaccinated.He said so far, there are only two types of single-shot vaccines that have undergone the third phase of clinical studies, namely CanSino which is now under the registration process with the National Pharmaceutical Regulatory Agency, and Johnson & Johnson (J&J).“If we want to purchase J&J, it can only be delivered in the fourth quarter of the year. In comparison, I think CanSino is earlier and if the registration is approved, we can use it in the rural areas,” he said.


Canada to ease travel requirements as Covid cases decline

Canada will ease entry for fully vaccinated international travellers starting on Feb 28 as Covid-19 cases decline, allowing a rapid antigen test for travellers instead of a molecular one, officials said on Tuesday.Antigen tests are cheaper than a molecular test and can provide results within minutes.The new measures, which include random testing for vaccinated travellers entering Canada, were announced by federal government ministers at a briefing.Canada will monitor conditions with an eye on dropping coronavirus testing requirements for fully vaccinated Canadians who make short trips – less than 72 hours – abroad, usually to the US, Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos said.“These changes are possible not only because we have passed the peak of Omicron, but because Canadians across the country have listened to the science and to experts,” Duclos told reporters.About 80% of Canadians are fully vaccinated and over 40% have also taken a booster dose, according to the health ministry.The global travel advisory for Canadians is also being changed. Previously the government recommended against all non-essential travel, and now it is only urging citizens to take precautions.“Though today’s announcement brings us one step closer to where our industry needs to be, in requiring pre-departure rapid antigen tests, the government missed an opportunity to align with other international jurisdictions that removed pre-departure test requirements for fully vaccinated travellers,” the Canadian Travel and Tourism Roundtable industry group said in a statement.Suzanne Acton-Gervais, interim president of the National Airlines Council of Canada, said: “Today’s announcement by the federal government is a step forward both for travellers, our industry, and for the Canadian economy, which relies on trade and tourism.”Several provinces, including Alberta, Saskatchewan, Quebec and on Monday Ontario, Canada’s most populous province, have announced a relaxation of restrictions imposed during the pandemic as coronavirus infection rates fall.Ontario said it will speed up its plan to remove proof-of-vaccination requirements and lift pandemic-related capacity limits for many businesses, while the western province of Alberta ended its mask requirements for school children on Monday.Protesters have blocked border crossings and paralysed the centre of Ottawa for weeks asking for governments to roll back pandemic restrictions. Provincial premiers have denied loosening restrictions to appease them, saying instead that the limits are no longer needed to contain Covid-19.


No survivors in Jersey building blast, rescuers say

Rescuers in Jersey on Sunday gave up hope of finding survivors from an explosion that flattened a three-storey apartment block, confirming five deaths, and another four people thought to be lying under rubble.
Police said at least five people were confirmed killed in the blast early Saturday in the Channel island's port capital St Helier, following a suspected gas leak.
"The number of Islanders confirmed to have been killed in the blast is now five," said police chief Robin Smith after earlier giving a provisionally tally of three dead and around 12 more unaccounted for.
"There are a number of residents, we're working on the assumption of four, that are unaccounted for," Smith added in a statement after confirming confirming the search-and-rescue operation had been moved to a recovery operation.
The next phase would involve a "meticulous and painstaking search of the debris" which could take over the coming weeks.
A gas leak was the "likely" cause, he said, adding: "But as you often hear the police service say, we keep all our options open."
Aided by sniffer dogs and urban rescue experts from southern England, Jersey emergency workers had picked through the rubble overnight.
'Horribly wrong'
Firefighters were called out to investigate the smell of gas on Friday evening, more than seven hours before the explosion fire chief Paul Brown.
He conceded that something had gone "horribly wrong" given the subsequent disaster, but insisted Jersey islanders could still have confidence in his service.
"We have been searching and we will not stop searching for people's loved ones," Brown said.
Jersey's gas supplier, Island Energy, said it was working with the fire service to understand what happened.
Like many others in St Helier, Jersey's Chief Minister Kristina Moore said she was woken by the blast.
"Across the island you could hear this extraordinary sound," she told the BBC.
"It's unthinkable news, we're all absolutely devastated and really concerned for the people who are involved, for those whose lives have been lost."
Around 40 residents near the destroyed flats had to be relocated on Saturday, sais officials, and Moore praised the community for rallying round
The incident caps a tragic week for Jersey, a British Crown dependency not part of the UK, whose economy relies on banking, tourism and fishing.
The coastguard Friday gave up a search for three Jersey fishermen missing for nearly 36 hours after their wooden boat hit a cargo ship and sank.
The freighter is owned by Condor Ferries, whose Jersey offices lie near the destroyed apartment block.
"We must call on the collective strength of the island community," Moore said after the twin disasters.


Deputy PM deal witnessed by ministers from Umno, Bersatu, says Muhyiddin aide

An official of Muhyiddin Yassin today confirmed an agreement that Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob would appoint a deputy prime minister from Bersatu, saying the deal had been witnessed by ministers from both that party and Umno.
Marzuki Mohamad, Muhyiddin's senior private secretary-general during his time as prime minister, said the parties involved had agreed that the deal could not be made public.
"It was signed by Muhyiddin and the prime minister on Aug 17, 2021, and witnessed by a minister from Bersatu and another minister from Umno," he said in a statement today.
"As the official of the eighth prime minister at the time, I was directly involved in preparing the agreement."
The appointment of a deputy prime minister became an issue after Muhyiddin, who is chairman of Perikatan Nasional, said the matter had been raised during a meeting with Ismail.
Muhyiddin, who resigned from the top office after losing the support of the majority last August, said he had met with Ismail to consider what he said was the previous agreement between the coalition and the prime minister.
"We are not asking for more (than what has been agreed), only about the appointment of a deputy prime minister and ministers as well as those involving government-linked agencies and statutory bodies as well as the government’s allocations," he said.
Communications and Multimedia Minister Annuar Musa later said it was not wrong for Muhyiddin to raise the issue, but that any appointment of a deputy prime minister or other members of the Cabinet was the prerogative of the prime minister.
The prime minister's economic adviser Shahril Hamdan meanwhile denied any agreement between Ismail and Muhyiddin.
"There is no agreement as far as I know," he said. "If there was, why are we only hearing claims of it now?
"And if there was, why are there senior ministers?" Shahril, the Umno information chief, was reported as saying.
Muhyiddin himself had appointed Ismail as his deputy prime minister despite having senior ministers in his Cabinet.
In his statement today, Marzuki said a clause in the agreement had stated that the documents in the deal could not be published or disclosed in any form.
"They can only be kept for reference by the parties involved," he said.


Include graduate unemployment in budget retabling

Graduate employability has remained a perennial issue over the past few years, with countless numbers of graduates struggling to find suitable jobs upon completing their studies. This situation not only compromises the fate of our future talents but also puts our country’s growth at risk, economically and socially.
Weak graduate marketability in Malaysia has resulted in youth unemployment and a lack of high-skilled workers to fulfil the needs and demands of the future workforce.
The graduate statistics as reported by the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) revealed the highest percentage of unemployed graduates in 2020, to 4.4% (202,400 graduates unemployed) against 2019 when the rate of unemployment stood at 3.9% (165,200).
Despite several initiatives such as JaminKerja Keluarga Malaysia which saw an allocation of RM4.8 billion, Penjana HRD Corp (RM500 million in allocation from 2020 to 2021) and [email protected] (RM6.5 billion) to reduce the number of unemployed graduates, the employability rate remains relatively high while the number of vacancies is still low.
Graduates have been left with no choice but to work for the minimum wage or at non-graduate jobs in order to survive the high cost of living and make ends meet. This situation not only adds to the context of underemployment, it also contributes to the neglect of talents from a future high-skilled workforce that would benefit the economy as well as Malaysia's social trajectory.
Despite the expected drop in unemployment rate in 2023 from 3.7% to 3.5%, the economic report by the finance ministry discloses that the forecast only reflects a small-margin reduction, with more attention from the government needed to ease the problem of graduate unemployment. The proliferation in the number of graduates does not tally with the number that the job market can absorb, which makes it hard for them to find a job.
The government should look at ways to create new job opportunities, but these opportunities must not be taken lightly. The graduates must be offered jobs that will create value and long-term worth that contributes to the youth and national developments.
Maybe it is time for the relevant authorities to take another look at the delivery system of higher learning institutions or universities in the country. They should prepare undergraduates for the reality of what the job market is looking for instead of focusing on paper qualifications, to ease the problem of mismatched graduates who have to job hop from one company to another or who may not find employment at all.
The youth and sports and human resources ministries should be more proactive and embark on more effective approaches and measures to enhance graduate marketability.
The emergence of the k-economy has spawned a new notion of workplace literacy, changing the traditional covenant where employees expect stable or lifelong employment. The retention of employees will probably be based on skills and knowledge that can provide advantages to companies.
The establishment of the Knowledge Economy Division in the Economic Planning Unit of the Prime Minister’s Department signifies the need to support the growth of conducive economic development through ICT development with the purpose of transforming Malaysia into an innovative, digital knowledge-based economy. Platforms such as technical and vocational education and training (TVET) can be further explored.
The higher education ministry recently announced new aspirations through 11 focuses including the rearrangement of the national TVET. This is a good sign that can push the potentiality of TVET in training and producing high-skilled graduates with high marketability.
However, having platforms like TVET to nurture our future talents might be insufficient if the government fails to bridge the gap in so far as cooperation with the private sector is concerned. It must work hand in hand with private companies, especially key industry players and investors, to produce better job placements.
Public and private organizations should be encouraged to set up programmes to employ potential fresh graduates as part of their corporate social responsibility. This helps to inject new blood for new ideas and a younger, capable workforce for key job continuity.
Maybe it is time for the government to revisit the strategic thrusts in the Shared Prosperity Vision 2030 (SPV2030), which serves as a blueprint of its commitment to making this country a nation that achieves sustainable growth alongside equitable distribution. Maybe there are viable recommendations in the blueprint that can be beneficial, especially in tackling the issues of unemployment and underemployment.
The third strategic thrust of SPV2030, "Transforming Human Capital", mentions a focus on the need to enhance Malaysia’s workforce. It also highlights the importance of recognising human capital through professional training and skills retraining at every level, from school to the work environment, to bridge the gaps between the knowledge, skills and attitudes of graduates with industrial needs and demands.
This pillar outlines several suggestions such as strengthening partnerships with industry players, improving quality control mechanisms and cultivating students’ interest towards future job prospects that will lead to a more skilled workforce, produced and directed towards high national productivity.
Hopefully, the issues of graduate unemployment and underemployment will be included and given focus during the retabling of this year’s budget.
Decades ago, a university degree meant a guaranteed path to a well-paid and stable career. Unfortunately, this is no longer the case. The missing link between the production of graduates and their absorption into the labour market must be found for the good of all.
The views expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the position of MalaysiaNow.


Sosma leads to abuse, Kit Siang reminds Anwar govt

DAP veteran Lim Kit Siang today became the latest to speak up against the government's decision not to review the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012 (Sosma), urging Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim's administration to prioritise legal reforms in order to do away with the abuse long linked to the controversial law.
Lim, speaking in the wake of Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail's defence of the law, said it was because of such abuse that MPs from Pakatan Harapan (PH) had voted in July against the extension of Subsection 4(5) of Sosma, which gives the police special powers to detain suspects without producing them in court.
Lim recalled, among others, the arrest of former Bersih chairman Maria Chin Abdullah and Pejuang's Khairuddin Abu Hassan under Sosma, saying the government should ensure zero repeat of "the abuses of Sosma in the last decade".
He also reminded the government that former home minister Hamzah Zainudin had agreed with MPs from both sides of the divide that there were unfair clauses and provisions under Sosma, and that the government needed more time to conclude consultations with stakeholders before moving ahead with amendments.
"The Anwar government should complete Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s government consultations on the repeal of the draconian provisions in Sosma, and bring the amendments to Sosma to Parliament in the February session to prevent a repeat of the abuses of Sosma in the last decade," Lim added.
The debate on Sosma arose after Saifuddin said at a press conference on Dec 13 that the government had no intention of reviewing the law.
He maintained his stand despite calls, including from his PH colleague in DAP, Gobind Singh Deo, for him to reconsider his position.
He said Sosma allowed the court process to take place, and compared it to its predecessor, the Internal Security Act, saying that under Sosma, the period is "only 28 days".
He also said that arrests under Sosma were only done on "reliable intelligence and evidence".
He later acknowledged that there were several sections and clauses in Sosma that needed to be amended and studied by the home ministry.
"Certain sections and clauses cannot remain there forever and should be given due consideration over time.
"But at the moment, I say no, because I have only been at the ministry for two weeks," he told reporters on Dec 15.
The stand also ruffled the feathers of rights activists and drew criticism from government backbenchers who urged PH to be consistent.
"When faced with legislation oppressive in nature, discussions must be held and points of view taken moving ahead in line with our push for reforms," said Damansara MP Gobind.


No giving way to Bersatu at GE15, GPS says it again

Sarawak’s ruling Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) today reiterated its decision not to give way to candidates from Bersatu at the 15th general election (GE15), notwithstanding its friendly ties with the peninsula-based party. GPS chairman Abang Johari Openg said the coalition would instead contest all 31 seats once GE15 is called.“We will cross that bridge when we come to it,” he said when asked about Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin urging him to consider allowing candidates in the state to contest parliamentary seats in Sarawak.“But GPS will definitely contest all 31 seats.”Bersatu, led by Perikatan Nasional chairman Muhyiddin, currently holds two federal seats in Sarawak: Puncak Borneo and Saratok.Both are held by former PKR members: Willie Mongin in Puncak Borneo and Ali Biju in Saratok.GPS, comprising Abang Johari’s Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu, the Sarawak United Peoples’ Party, Parti Rakyat Sarawak and the Progressive Democratic Party, is widely seen as a kingmaker in federal politics.Its support, along with that of PAS, was seen as crucial to the success of the so-called Sheraton Move which saw the collapse of the Pakatan Harapan government in February 2020.Last year, Muhyiddin said that an understanding had been reached at a meeting with Abang Johari, the Sarawak premier, several weeks before the state election in December.He said the understanding included Bersatu giving way to GPS by not contesting the Sarawak election and GPS in turn working with Bersatu at GE15.“We had an understanding that for the state election, we would support GPS,” he said.“Abang Johari understands, and he said that for the general election, that’s open. That’s what he said.”


California scrambles to fix levee as another storm looms

Emergency workers scrambled Monday to stabilise a California levee after a breach forced thousands from their homes, as another major storm loomed, threatening more flooding.
Houses were inundated and vehicles submerged when the Pajaro River burst over a crumbling levee overnight Friday into Saturday, with firecrews going door-to-door to rouse sleeping residents.
By Monday morning, the hole had widened to 300 feet (100 meters), said officials in Monterey County, south of San Francisco.
"Emergency temporary repair work to stabilize the breach is underway," the county said in a statement.
"Flood waters are moving through the community and southward. Residents who have not left the area are still encouraged to do so."
Rescue teams, including divers, were working in the region, the county said, although no deaths or injuries have been reported.
More than 10,000 people throughout the county have been told to leave their homes because of the Pajaro River and nearby Salinas River, which is also expected to flood over the coming day.
The area was hit by flooding in January as a long line of atmospheric rivers – ribbons of moisture that run through the atmosphere – dumped trillions of gallons (liters) of water on California.
County Sheriff Tina Nieto said the flooding from the breach was even more intense.
"People are taking it seriously," she was quoted as saying by the San Francisco Chronicle.
"This is real. Mother Nature is fickle. It’s a holy moly situation."
Meteorologists said that while rain had eased off, it would be back late Monday and into Tuesday, with more than two inches (five centimeters) expected on ground too wet to absorb any more water.
Brooke Bingaman, lead meteorologist for the National Weather Service (NWS) in the Bay Area and Monterey Bay, said the danger of more flooding was very real.
"It is critical that you leave areas that are expected to be impacted," she said in a video posted to Twitter.
"Remember, it's better to stay the night in a strange place than to wake up to rising water in your home or to realize that you've been cut off due to closed roads all around you."
The parade of winter storms that have pummeled California have caused hundreds of millions of dollars of damage as they washed out communities, brought down power lines and caused landslides.
More than 20 people have died.
Mountainous areas have seen near-record snowfall over the winter months, leading to huge snowpacks and fears that relatively warm rain now could cause a huge melt that will overwhelm watercourses.
Meteorologists said the atmospheric river flowing over the US West from Monday night would exacerbate that risk.
"Additional heavy rain and snowmelt will result in more widespread flooding from Tuesday into Wednesday, particularly in low elevations and areas with increasing temperatures impacting snowpack," the NWS warned.
"Creeks and streams will continue to be vulnerable to flooding from additional rain and snowmelt," the agency said, predicting several feet of heavy snow over the Sierra Nevada range.
On the other side of the country, New York state was bracing for heavy snowfall from a storm forecast to pack 100km/hour winds and potential to knock out power.
Governor Kathy Hochul declared a state of emergency Monday night, saying the storm could be deadly, and urged people not to travel on Tuesday.


Oil price shoots past US$100, highest in 8 years

Oil prices surged, with Brent breaching US$100 a barrel for the first time since 2014 on Thursday as Russia attacked Ukraine, exacerbating concerns that a war in Europe could disrupt global energy supplies.After Russian President Vladimir Putin authorised what he called a special military operation, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said in a tweet that Russia had launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine and was targeting cities with weapons strikes.Brent crude hit a high of US$102.48 a barrel, the loftiest since September 2014, and was at US$102.06 a barrel at 0547 GMT, up US$5.22, or 5.4%.US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures jumped US$4.85, or 5.3%, to US$96.95 a barrel, after rising to as much as US$97.40, the highest since August 2014.Oil prices have surged more than US$20 a barrel since the start of 2022 on fears that the US and Europe would impose sanctions on Russia’s energy sector, disrupting supplies.Russia is the world’s second-largest oil producer, mainly selling its crude to European refineries, and is the largest supplier of natural gas to Europe, providing about 35% of the latter’s supply.“Russia’s announcement of a special military operation into Ukraine has pushed Brent to the US$100/bbl mark,” said Warren Patterson, head of ING’s commodity research.“This growing uncertainty during a time when the oil market is already tight does leave it vulnerable, and so prices are likely to remain volatile and elevated,” he added.Western nations and Japan on Tuesday punished Russia with new sanctions for ordering troops into separatist regions of eastern Ukraine, and threatened to go further if Moscow launched an all-out invasion of its neighbour. So far, there are no sanctions on energy trade.“It’s not just geopolitical risk that is the problem but the further straining of supply,” OCBC economist Howie Lee said.“Russian oil supply will disappear overnight if faced with sanctions… and Opec can’t produce fast enough to cover this gaping hole.”Some members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) said there is no need for the group and its allies to increase output further as a potential deal between Iran and world powers will increase supplies. Some Opec members are already struggling to meet current targets.Japan and Australia said on Thursday they were prepared to tap their oil reserves, together with other International Energy Agency (IEA) member countries, if global supplies were hit by hostilities in Ukraine.Analysts are also warning of inflationary pressure on the global economy from US$100 oil, especially for Asia, which imports most of its energy needs.“Soaring oil prices come at an especially difficult time,” HSBC economist Frederic Neumann said.“Asia’s Achilles heel remains its vast import needs for energy, with surging oil prices bound to take a hefty bite out of income and growth over the coming year.”The US and Iran have been engaged in indirect nuclear talks in Vienna, in which a deal could lead to the removal of sanctions on Iranian oil sales and increase global supply.Iran on Wednesday however urged Western powers to be “realistic” in talks to revive the 2015 nuclear deal, and said its top negotiator was returning to Tehran for consultations, suggesting a breakthrough in its discussions is not imminent.Additionally, US crude stockpiles rose six million barrels last week while distillate stocks fell, according to market sources who were citing American Petroleum Institute figures late on Tuesday.Ahead of government data on Thursday, analysts forecast a 400,000-barrel build in crude and a drawdown in fuel stockpiles.Gasoline inventories rose by 427,000 barrels and distillates stockpiles fell by 985,000 barrels, the API data showed according to the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity.


Thailand targets US$11 billion tourism revenue in H2 as Covid controls ease

Thailand aims to generate 400 billion baht (US$11 billion) in tourism revenue in the second half of the year, the government said on Tuesday, as the tropical holiday destination welcomes back more visitors after pandemic-induced border controls.
The Southeast Asian nation has seen a rebound in tourism numbers in the first eight months of 2022, registering more than 4 million tourists, government spokesman Rachada Dhnadirek said. It is aiming for 10 million tourists this year.
The foreign arrivals so far, mainly from Malaysia, India and Singapore, have generated revenues of 176 billion baht (US$4.93 billion), according to the government.
The return of international tourists have resulted in the registration of 549 new tourism-related businesses in the first seven months of the year, up 169% year-on-year, Rachada said citing commerce ministry data.
The Thai government has recently announced that it will extend one of its most popular tourist visas from 15 days to 30 days starting in October, to further boost the sector.
Last year, foreign arrivals plummeted to just 428,000 because of the Covid-19 pandemic, compared with a record of nearly 40 million arrivals in 2019 when tourism made up 12% of the country's GDP.


Najib loses bid to reinstate civil suit against AmBank Islamic, two others

Former prime minister Najib Razak today lost his appeal at the Court of Appeal to reinstate a civil lawsuit against AmBank Islamic Bhd and two others over the mismanagement of his bank accounts.A three-member bench comprising justices Yaacob Md Sam, Hadhariah Syed Ismail and Ahmad Zaidi Ibrahim unanimously dismissed Najib’s appeal and ordered him to pay costs of RM40,000 to AmBank Islamic and AMMB Holdings Bhd, and RM35,000 to former customer relationship manager Joanna Yu Ging Ping, the respondents in the appeal.Yaacob, who delivered the court’s decision, said the criminal charges faced by Najib in the SRC International case could not be caused by AmBank Islamic, AMMB Holdings Bhd and Yu.“It is a matter of the sole or unfettered discretionary power of the attorney-general, being the public prosecutor, to institute any criminal charges proceedings under the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission Act 2009, the Penal Code and the Anti-Money Laundering Act,” he said.He also said that the issues in Najib’s civil suit and in his SRC International criminal case were similar, if not identical.Yaacob said the court was of the view that Najib was seeking to proceed with his civil suit to undermine the criminal proceedings and findings by the High Court and Court of Appeal in the SRC International case.Yu was one of the prosecution witnesses in the trial where Najib was charged with seven counts of misappropriating RM42 million in SRC International funds.On July 28, 2020, High Court judge Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali convicted and sentenced Najib to 12 years’ imprisonment and fined him RM210 million over the SRC International case.The Court of Appeal upheld the High Court decision on Dec 8 last year, while Najib has filed an appeal against his conviction and sentence at the Federal Court.Najib was also appealing against the decision of the High Court in July 2020 which struck out his suit against the bank and Yu, which he claimed, among others, had committed negligence when handling his bank accounts by disclosing them to fugitive businessman Low Taek Jho or Jho Low.In the court’s decision which was delivered online, Yaacob said the civil suit filed by Najib against the banks and Yu was not for the purpose of seeking damages, but rather a “collateral attack” on what had already transpired before the court in his SRC International case.Collateral attack means legal action to challenge a ruling in another case.Yaacob said he agreed with the submissions of the respondents’ lawyer that the administration of justice would become chaotic if a declaration of innocence or relief from any criminal wrongdoing could be obtained from the civil court, which would also intrude into the domain of the criminal court.He said it could not be right to have the same issues adjudicated by both the civil court and the criminal court.“It is to be noted that the appellant (Najib) has been found guilty of those criminal charges by the High Court and on appeal by the appellant, the findings and decision of High Court were upheld by the Court of Appeal,” he said, adding that the court took judicial notice that Najib’s appeal to the Court of Appeal against his conviction and sentence was unanimously dismissed on Dec 8 last year.Yaacob said in the Court of Appeal’s judgment in the SRC International case, the court agreed with the findings of the High Court on the issue of Najib’s knowledge relating to the operation of his bank accounts.Najib’s lawyer Muhammad Shafee Abdullah indicated to the court that he would bring the matter to the Federal Court.Lawyer Gurdial Singh Nijar represented Yu, while Yoong Sin Min and Benjamin John Dawson acted for the banks.


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