General

Datuk Seri Azalina Othman, Pengerang MP, has said that she will propose a Private Members’ Bill in the upcoming Parliament sitting to introduce recall elections, as a way to prevent party hopping. We look at how recall elections work, and how they would benefit the political landscape.

Image Source: Keyur Nandaniya, Unsplash

Youth participation in politics, as politicians and as voters, has been making headlines. We open up a conversation about it by first, exploring why some analysts have suggested that young politicians aren’t stepping up enough. Then, we speak with UMNO’s Shahril Hamdan to find out how young people can navigate the political scene. Finally, we discuss if the events of the last two years alienated young voters.

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The UK is planning to introduce what they call a world-leading plastic packaging tax from April 2022. However, several campaigners are calling for disposable nappies to be exclued in their list of items as child poverty remains a prevalent issue. Shawn tells us more.

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Humanities courses around the world - literature, language, arts, history - have been struggling with funding and cuts, particularly because of the pandemic. We check in with a professor to see what the situation is at a local public university.

Image Source: Elisa Calvet B., Unsplash

During the July Parliamentary sitting, Minister of International Trade and Industry Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali said that workplace clusters specifically within the manufacturing sector only contributed fewer than 10 percent of new COVID-19 cases, compared to “sporadic cases” in the community. This was an inference that workplace clusters are not a major contributor to the severity of the pandemic. We get mathematician Dr David Benjamin Lim to walk us through his modelling of the clusters, and ask USM family medicine specialist Dr Mastura Mohd Sopian how these clusters could be better managed and prevented.

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The Democratic Action Party (DAP) is currently the single party with the most Parliamentary seats -- 42. Despite having the strongest numbers, the party feels almost sidelined when it comes to political maneuverings, particularly when it comes to matters of a PM candidate. And what about race-based politics? DAP has made it clear that they’re not a race-based party/Chinese-based party, but are they forced to play the game nonetheless? In this episode, we’re joined by Howard Lee, DAP Youth Chief, to discuss the curious case of the DAP.

Image credit: Howard Lee Facebook page and dapmalaysia.org

Buka Sekolah Kami! is a coalition of teachers, parents, educational institutions, medical professionals and grassroots organizations, who believe that the cost of school closures greatly outweigh the benefits. They are advocating for policy makers to prioritize the reopening of schools on a national level, and the need for a decentralised solution, and an end to blanket policies. In this first episode of our series on the issue, we speak to Joanna Menon Lim, one of the founders of the campaign, and Siti Suhaila Mohamad, a mother of three and a former management consultant, about what exactly they are advocating for.

In response to the influx of people switching careers or even resigning entirely, dubbed ‘The Great Resignation’, how can employers retain their existing talent?

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Anime avatars are becoming wildly popular across many streaming platforms, garnering over 1.5 billion views monthly on YouTube alone. The trend is often thought to have started in Japan back in 2016 with Kizuna AI, created by a Japanese start-up named Activ8, one of several agencies who design characters and hire actors to embody them online, earning revenue through donations using YouTube’s Super Chat function. We’ll be exploring the world of Vtubers, and asking whether they could be a signal for the next frontier of digital entertainment.

Image Credit: @projekhikayat | Twitter

As part of our 64th Merdeka Day celebrations, we’re taking a look this week at Malaysia: The Next Chapter - companies and people who exemplify the potential in Malaysia’s future. Jadi Batek is one of the biggest batik and souvenir shops in Kuala Lumpur. Established in 1976, it was the only batik shop in Bukit Bintang during the 70s and 80s. Colin Yong talks to us about the evolution of the business, his efforts in reviving batik and the story behind taking the helm of the family business.

Image Credit: Jadi Batek | jadibatek.com