Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim at the launch of the MAB Academy at KLIA today. (Bernama pic)
SEPANG: Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has reminded Malaysia Airlines to learn from its past mistakes, stating that values such as good governance and integrity are more important than beautiful buildings and large offices.
Anwar said that when he was the finance minister in the 1990s, he was wary about the potential dangers stemming from the lack of transparency surrounding Malaysia Airlines’ privatisation.
“Under the Madani administration, I have repeatedly stressed the need for good governance and a clear vision,” he said.
“Management must be diligent, frugal and trustworthy. Focus on this, learn from past experiences, and avoid leakages.
“Let’s prove to the nation, people and the international community that we will be able to raise this airline’s dignity if it is managed properly.”
He was speaking at a ceremony to launch the Malaysia Airlines Berhad (MAB) Academy and the ground-breaking for the airline’s flight simulator centre here today.
Anwar, who is also the finance minister, praised sovereign wealth fund Khazanah Nasional and Malaysia Aviation Group (MAG) for turning Malaysia Airlines around and making it profitable. Khazanah Nasional is Malaysia Airlines’ sole shareholder via its subsidiary, MAG.
Last month, MAG announced it had posted RM766 million in net profit for the financial year ended Dec 31, 2023, marking the first time Malaysia Airlines’ parent company has recorded a profit since it was formed in 2015.
MAG, which posted a net loss of RM344 million in FY 2022, has also seen a 31% increase in revenue, from RM10.61 billion to RM13.85 billion, and a 64% jump in net operating profit, from RM540 million to RM889 million.
Anwar also said Malaysia Airlines should be managed properly and transparently for the benefit of the national carrier’s workforce, who he said should be properly compensated for their services to the country.
“Let’s not underestimate this issue because the airline’s employees have families and deserve our attention and consideration,” he said.
“A company that is well managed, with decisions made carefully, prudently and transparently, will result in a better future for the employees.” - FMT
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said a few months after he began chairing Khazanah meetings, the allowance was deposited into his bank account but he returned the money and declined any further payments. (Bernama pic)
PUTRAJAYA: Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said today he has returned to Khazanah Nasional Berhad the allowance he received as chairman of the government’s investment arm, while reiterating that he does not draw a salary for his position as prime minister.
“Earlier, I chaired the Khazanah meetings…apparently the chairman and prime minister are entitled to allowances, of which I was not aware. The allowance was deposited into my bank account for a few months, but I informed them that I would not be taking it.
“I returned the Khazanah allowance and instructed them not to pay it,” he said.
Anwar, who is also finance minister, said he declined to accept the Khazanah allowance and prime minister’s salary while the country’s economy has not fully recovered.
After taking office in November 2022, Anwar said he would not accept a salary as prime minister and described it as a first step towards gaining the people’s confidence in his leadership.
“I have experienced extreme hardship and suffering, which has taught me that when in power, I should do my best to help uplift the fate of the people.
“That’s why I say, I am not from a wealthy family and I do not take a salary as a prime minister. Some people say I don’t take a prime minister’s salary but take a salary as finance minister. That is not true,” he said.
Anwar said the government has addressed hardcore poverty in Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Negeri Sembilan, Melaka, Penang, Perak and Johor. “We are working towards addressing it in other states as well,” he said. - FMT
Penang chief minister Chow Kon Yeow visiting an audio and visual exhibition in George Town today. (Facebook pic)
PETALING JAYA: Penang chief minister Chow Kon Yeow said today a group of companies who recently participated in Selangor’s integrated circuit design park are expected to announce their business plans in Penang tomorrow.
“The same group of people who went to Selangor are talking to Penang as well and tomorrow they will be here to announce a few investments,” Chow told reporters in George Town today.
Chow noted that Penang may not have an integrated circuit design park but that does not mean that no chip design companies are operating in the state.
He said Penang will be transformed into a global hub for technology, innovation, and creative industries before 2030.
Integrated circuits are microchips used in electronic devices, such as computers, smartphones, and televisions, to perform various functions such as processing and storing information. - FMT
Nurima Juli, 34, and her stepbrother, Sadam Kiram, 30, were charged in the magistrates’ court in Tawau today with the murder of Nurman Bakaratu in an oil palm plantation last year. (Bernama pic)
TAWAU: The former wife of e-hailing driver Nurman Bakaratu, whose body was discovered in an oil palm plantation here last year, was charged with his murder today.
Nurima Juli, 34, was jointly charged with her stepbrother, Sadam Kiram, 30. The pair nodded in understanding after the charge was read out to them before magistrate Dayang Aidaku Amira Aminuddin.
No plea was recorded as murder cases fall under the jurisdiction of the High Court.
According to the charge, they are accused of causing the death of Nurman, 61, between 7.30pm and 11.30pm on Jan 13, 2023, at an oil palm plantation near Jalan Anjur Juara, Jalan Apas Batu 5, here. The charge carries a maximum punishment of death on conviction.
Deputy public prosecutor Fakhrurazi Ahmad Salim appeared for the prosecution, while the defendants were not represented.
Eight people previously accused of the killing were acquitted on Jan 25 after the prosecution decided to drop the case when Nurima, the key prosecution witness, confessed to killing her ex-husband with a pair of scissors in his Myvi car.
Among the eight were former Eastern Sabah Security Command intelligence chief Mat Zaki Zain. - FMT
Former FAM deputy president Khairy Jamaluddin said leaders from the corporate world should be roped into the body due to their strong management skills.
PETALING JAYA: Former Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) deputy president Khairy Jamaluddin believes the time is ripe for the national football body to undergo a leadership change to ensure the sport’s long-term development.
Khairy said while FAM’s current crop of leaders have done well at the helm of the football body, its management and governance can be further strengthened over the next five to 10 years.
“I don’t want to blame the current management (but) I think it’s time for a transition in FAM,” Berita Harian quoted the former youth and sports minister as saying.
“Perhaps someone with experience from outside the sports management (world) can be considered.
“I would like to see (candidates) from the corporate world because they have a commitment to management, governance, and administration.”
Khairy was speaking to reporters after meeting football fans at an event ahead of the Battle of the Reds – a friendly match between former Liverpool and Manchester United stars – at the Bukit Jalil National Stadium on Saturday.
He also downplayed suggestions that he is a suitable candidate to take over from Hamidin Amin as FAM president, saying he has not thought about returning to the football body, especially since the role requires a high level of commitment.
“I believe there are more qualified candidates to lead FAM. Even though the daily tasks are carried out by the general-secretary, the president’s role is one that is fairly ‘hands-on’.
“The FAM president may need to be involved in daily management, and I might not have the time to do that. So I feel it wouldn’t be fair for me to try my luck in the upcoming FAM election,” said Khairy, who is a member of the board of directors of the Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) football club.
Although the Berita Harian report made no mention of it, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) is investigating FAM following a poison-pen letter which contained numerous allegations against the national football body.
Last month, a poison-pen letter accused FAM of fraud, abuse of power, mismanaging funds, discrepancies in salaries and benefits, issues with the Harimau Malaya squad, and the lack of transparency in the tender process for the national training centre in Putrajaya.
MACC chief commissioner Azam Baki said yesterday the agency is only investigating matters related to the national training centre and will not look into allegations about FAM’s administration.
Hamidin previously dismissed the poison-pen letter as “defamatory”, and said the association was considering lodging a police report. - FMT
KUALA LUMPUR: The ringgit ended the week on a better footing against the US dollar, likely due to the lower-than-expected first quarter (Q1) US gross domestic product (GDP) data.
SPI Asset Management managing director Stephen Innes said the firmer ringgit may also be attributed to the local note’s oversold condition, higher energy prices, and a relatively stable domestic risk environment.
The US economy posted a growth of 1.6% in Q1 versus a consensus forecast of 2.5%.
The overnight US data also revealed higher-than-expected inflation alongside the weaker-than-anticipated growth, triggering a sell-off in risk assets and a spike in US Treasury yields.
“This scenario typically spells trouble for the ringgit. However, the ringgit experienced a relatively uneventful day and closed a touch stronger,” he told Bernama.
Meanwhile, Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist Afzanizam Rashid said the lower-than-expected US GDP data could have reignited hopes for an interest rate cut in the US.
At 6pm, the ringgit improved to 4.7650/4.7710 against the greenback from yesterday’s close of 4.7745/4.7775.
The ringgit traded higher against a basket of major currencies.
It rose vis-a-vis the British pound to 5.9644/5.9719 from 5.9748/5.9786 yesterday, went higher versus the Japanese yen to 3.0408/3.0451 from 3.0677/3.0698 and improved against the euro to 5.1157/5.1221 from 5.1211/5.1243 previously.
The ringgit also traded mostly higher against Asean currencies.
It appreciated versus the Thai baht to 12.8902/12.9120 against 12.8939/12.9087 at yesterday’s close and was flat versus the Philippine peso at 8.26/8.27.
The local currency edged up vis-a-vis the Indonesian rupiah to 293.9/294.4 from 294.9/295.2 and increased against the Singapore dollar to 3.5021/3.5068 from 3.5120/3.5144. - FMT
The unveiling of Pakatan Harapan and Perikatan Nasional candidates for the upcoming Kuala Kubu Baharu by-election has ended speculation on potential contenders in the race.
Although there were other ideas on the table, both camps ultimately presented their most promising strategies, aiming to win the by-election by appealing to their respective support bases.
Previously, rumours swirled that Harapan could field Hulu Selangor Municipal Council (MPHS) councillor Saripah Bakar from DAP as a candidate to win over Malay voters. On the other side, Gerakan repeatedly appealed for another opportunity to contest the seat.
In the end, Harapan named Housing and Local Government Minister Nga Kor Ming’s press secretary, Pang Sock Tao, as the coalition’s candidate.
On the following night, on April 25, PN announced that Bersatu’s acting Hulu Selangor division chief Khairul Azhari Saut would contest under the coalition’s banner, despite vigorous lobbying from Gerakan.
While there is still time to change tack before tomorrow’s nomination day, the decisions made by both sides indicate a strategic re-evaluation and show that the contest for Kuala Kubu Baharu has already started even before the nomination.
Khairul Azhari Saut (right)
PN’s decision to pick a Bersatu candidate over Gerakan reflects a shift in strategy from courting Chinese Malaysian voters to doubling down on its Malay support base.
Meanwhile, Harapan’s move demonstrates DAP’s determination to consolidate its Chinese support base and avoid repeating its mistake at the 2014 Teluk Intan by-election in Perak, where it fielded Malay candidate Dyana Sofya Mohd Daud and lost.
Both changes are linked to Kuala Kubu Baharu’s shifting demography.
Increase in Malay voters
The state constituency is a mixed seat where Chinese voters originally made up the largest proportion, but this composition has changed over the decades.
The Malay electorate has grown from 32.7 percent during the 2013 general election to 49.3 percent in the 2023 state election, while the Chinese electorate shrank from 42.7 percent to 30.6 percent.
The remaining 17.9 percent are Indian Malaysian voters, and 2.1 percent are voters of other ethnicities.
According to calculations by Selangor DAP treasurer Ong Kian Ming, Harapan won as much as 99 percent of the Chinese support and 80 percent of the Indian support in Kuala Kubu Baharu during the Selangor state election last year, while Malay support was only 22 percent.
In other words, PN garnered nearly 80 percent of the constituency’s Malay voters in the state election last year.
Riding on a wave of popular support, PN also won 22 state seats in Selangor and deprived the Selangor Harapan-BN government of a two-thirds majority. The Hulu Selangor parliamentary seat and two of the state constituencies within it also fell to PN, leaving Kuala Kubu Baharu the only one still in Harapan control.
If PN is seen as leveraging its Malay support base to spearhead an assault to seize the state seat, Harapan’s move can be interpreted as stabilising its Chinese support base to shore up its defences.
But are Chinese voters still Harapan’s stalwart supporters?
Growing Chinese, Indian discontent
Following the controversies surrounding KK Mart and former Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak’s reduced sentence, there is a sense of disquiet within the Chinese community. The rising cost of living and the service tax increase in March further fuelled anger against the government.
Although the level of dissatisfaction is unlikely to turn into protest votes for PN, it could still mean a lower turnout of Chinese voters that is detrimental to Harapan’s chances at the by-election.
Likewise, there is also growing discontent among the Indian electorate with controversies such as Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s presiding over a religious conversion of an Indian Malaysian and the chastising of an Indian student.
The lack of an ethnic Indian minister following last December’s reshuffle is another point of contention.
Several quarters comprising former ministers, former Harapan leaders and allies, as well as NGO representatives are also mobilising a campaign in Kuala Kubu Baharu to “stab” Anwar by calling for Indian voters to boycott the election as a way to protest the government’s supposed neglect of the Indian community.
In Kuala Kubu Baharu, where Indian voters account for nearly 18 percent of the electorate, a successful boycott will undoubtedly hurt Harapan’s chances.
Ong, who is a political scientist by training, previously outlined three scenarios for the by-election, two of which would result in a defeat for Harapan.
Only one scenario saw Harapan holding onto Kuala Kubu Baharu, but even then, only by a margin of fewer than 1,000 votes.
However, tomorrow is just nomination day. Beyond that, Harapan still has 14 days of campaigning and therein lies the opportunity to turn the tide and secure its last stronghold in Northern Selangor.
