The Malaysian Constitution provides that Parliament would automatically dissolve five years from the day MPs were sworn in (and not five years from polling day 9 May 2018), which means the 14th Malaysian Parliament will expire on 15 July 2023, exactly a year from now.…
Globally, we are living in a new era with heightened great power competition and geopolitical challenges. Defense and international relations are more talked about now than any time in the past three decades since the end of the Cold War. The years and possibly decades…
Barisan Nasional has been promoting the idea that it is the guarantee of stability. UMNO President Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi even claimed that only with Barisan Nasional winning two-thirds majority and with the return to the old order that stability would return to Malaysia.…
I attended the Progressive Alliance conference titled “Asia’s Social Democratic New Deal for Peace, Democracy, Recovery, Sustainability” in KL over the weekend. The conference was officiated by DAP Secretary-General Sdr Anthony Loke. DAP International Secretary Sdri Jennie Lasimbang and the Conference Convenor Sdr Howard Lee…
Now is the time. From Sabah, Sarawak, Penang, and now Johor, states are dissatisfied with the concentration of power and resources in the hands of the Federal Government, and the resultant lack of economic and infrastructural development. In the Royal Address to the Johor State…
Yesterday, Asia woke up to US Federal Reserve 0.75% rate hike, the largest since 1994. The Fed is trying to battle the highest inflation in four decades or so. Whereas the rest of the world, particularly Asian economies, will have to deal with inflation AND…
I read with great amusement Transport Minister Datuk Seri Wee Ka Siong’s response to my earlier statement about traffic congestion. Wee in an interview with China Press on 30 May was quoted as saying that too many vehicles, about 33 million of them, on the…
I am stunned that both current Prime Minister Dato’ Sri Ismail Sabri Yaakob and convicted former Prime Minister Dato’ Sri Najib Razak are bringing back the idea of introducing the goods and services tax (GST) for Malaysia. The regressive tax proposal has been pushed by…
In a front-page interview with China Press on 30 May, Transport Minister Datuk Seri Wee Ka Siong made two important statements: First, there are too many vehicles on the road. Having 33 million registered vehicles is comparable to Malaysia’s population of 33.8 million. Second, the…
A few days ago, various parts of Johor Bahru were once again inundated with water. Floods are not new but flash floods have become more regular and have caused greater damage. Their regular occurrence is both a manifestation of the effects of climate change and…