Consider This

What is the ethos of planning that our laws recognise and how far is actual governance from it? The judgement of the Court of Appeal that quashed a DBKL development order for a proposed high-rise project in the area highlighted issues of governance - conflicts of interests, duty to provide reasons for decisions, to adhere to plans - and in this instance, the KL Structure Plan.  Melisa Idris and Sharaad Kuttan speak to Datuk Dr Gurdial Singh Nijah, lead counsel for the TTDI Residents about the significance of the judgement.

Recently Projek Wawasan Rakyat and ABIM created a platform to allow medical frontliners to express their concerns anonymously. This followed the publication of letters to the press expressing frustration and exhaustion. Is this just to be expected in the extraordinary situation that the Covid-19 pandemic presents? Melisa Idris and Sharaad Kuttan speak to Toh Puan Dr Safurah Jaafar, former director Family Health Development Division, Ministry of Health.

"Dengar Sini: Kisah Frontliners” by Projek Wawasan Rakyat and ABIM wasn’t the regular showcase of platitudes and praise for medical frontliners. Anonymous comments by medical frontliners were read out detailing less than optimal conditions. Why is there a silence - self-imposed perhaps - about these problems? 
Melisa Idris and Sharaad Kuttan speak to Dr Sean Thum, Advisor, Malaysian Medics International, a medical-student led organisation.

Medical frontliners around the world have suffered inordinately either by being at risk from infection or being overworked in failing health-care systems. What have we learned about our own system - its strengths and deficiencies - and are we confident they will be addressed? Melisa Idris and Sharaad Kuttan speak to Dr Adriana Tan, Vice President of MMI Doctors, a branch of Malaysian Medics International.

As the government prepares for the rollout of the national vaccination programme, the question of whether to vaccinate foreign workers for free is still being debated. What will it take to ensure that all non-citizens, who officially make up 10% of the Malaysian population, will have free and equitable access to Covid-19 vaccines?

Melisa Idris and Sharaad Kuttan speak to Rani Rasiah, coordinator, Migrant Workers' Right to Redress Coalition and Head of Migrant Desk at Parti Sosialis Malaysia.

Health experts & activists have repeatedly sounded the alarm on the dire need for more health facilities in Sarawak and Sabah - which collectively cover a bigger geographical area than the peninsula and  still suffer from a smaller distribution of doctors and specialists than the peninsular; a lack of medical centres and amenities -- that in turn raise the cost in accessing health care; and poor supporting infrastructure like roads, clean water, and electricity, that affect one’s overall health and quality of life. Melisa Idris and Sharaad Kuttan speak to Agnes Padan, Women Chief for PKR Sarawak.

Has the Covid-19 pandemic unmasked the structural problems of the health care system in Sarawak, with sufferers of non-Covid-19 disease struggling to gain access to the public healthcare system. Melisa Idris and Sharaad Kuttan speak to Dr Michael Teo, Member of Parliament for Miri.

Every Malaysian child is supposed to get a Bacillus Calmette–Guérin vaccine (BCG) jan which is given to prevent tuberculosis. So why are we seeing an emergence of the disease? Aren’t all children getting it, is it not being given in a targeted way or is the vaccine, developed 100 years ago, losing its efficacy?  Melisa Idris and Sharaad Kuttan speak to Dr Helmy Haja Mydin, Consultant Respiratory Physician at Pantai Hospital KL.

Exactly one year ago, Malaysia recorded its first Covid-19 case. Malaysia has since reported 689 deaths from Covid-19 and  a cumulative total of 186,849 cases. We’ve since come to learn more about the disease -- but has our approach to managing the pandemic evolved accordingly? Melisa Idris and Sharaad Kuttan speak to Prof Datuk Dr Adeeba Kamarulzaman, Professor of Medicine and Infectious Diseases, Universiti Malaya and Dr Helmi Zakariah, WHO Panel Member for Artificial Intelligence in Disease Outbreak.