General

In this edition of A Bit of Culture, we welcome back Kulturpop’s Matt Armitage and BFM producer Julian Yap to the fold. Matt begins on the state of live events and puts forth a question - should event organizers continue investing in virtual performances or return to the conventional way of hosting live events after the pandemic is over? Then, Kam steers the conversation to non-fungible tokens (NFTs) which have been a trending topic recently - ponders on the future and reality of cryptocurrency in the world of art. Lastly, the trio discusses romantic comedy, are there people out there that still watch this sub-genre, and is it still flourishing?

Villarreal win the Europa League after an epic 22 kick penalty shootout. Did the 2 teams do enough to entertain? Antonio Conte and Zinedine Zidane have left their positions at Inter Milan and Real Madrid respectively. Who do the teams turn to? Previews of Bahrain v Malaysia, Brentford v Swansea and Man City v Chelsea.

Recently, there have been reports of snaking queues at Covid Assessment Centres (CACs), where patients have had to wait for hours to get assessed. We get a ground perspective of how CACs are coping with the surge in cases, and how they can be better managed.

Image Source: Mat Napo, Unsplash

Health Minister Datuk Seri Adham Baba has said that the government is mulling fines for people who fail to show up for their vaccine appointments, but is this the best way to solve the problem? We discuss other possible strategies to ensure that people actually get vaccinated after they register, and then speak with a company that is transporting the elderly to vaccination centres.

Image Source: CDC, Unsplash

Yesterday, Khairy Jamaluddin announced that the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine will be re-included under the main vaccination programme, and that the government may soon allow the public to choose their vaccines on MySejahtera. We discuss the pros and cons of letting people choose their vaccines with Dr Lo Ying-Ru, WHO Representative to Malaysia, Brunei Darussalam and Singapore.

Image source: Mat Napo, Unsplash

Today, there is better acceptance and understanding of depression as a mental health condition. But people with depression still face a challenging journey when it comes to getting proper treatment and support. Consultant psychiatrist Dr Michael Ang walks us through the spectrum of treatment for depression, and why patients shouldn’t lose hope. This show is part of Health in a Pod, a health education campaign brought to you by Johnson & Johnson Malaysia. 

If you need emotional support or just want to talk to someone anonymously, you can call Befrienders KL at 03 7627 2929.

What does it take to ensure accessible healthcare for refugees? How does the stigma from the general public as well as the other social and economic barriers that they face hinder refugees’ access to healthcare here in Malaysia? On this episode of Good Things, we speak to Dr Susheela Balasundaram, Head of the Public Health Unit at UNHCR. Working with the UN agency since 2007, she shares her experience of working with refugees both in Malaysia and abroad, and why it’s important for us to ensure that refugees should not be left behind when it comes to accessing healthcare.

Image source: UNU-IIGH

Phase 2 of the COVID-19 vaccination programme is now underway. In this ongoing series, senior citizens who have gotten their jabs share their stories, to allay fears and concerns about getting the vaccination. This episode features Juwita Wan, 61, from Kuala Lumpur, who opted-in for the first round of the AstraZeneca vaccination programme.

Law & Behold - now a monthly segment - continues to arm Malaysians with constitutional literacy, and is done in collaboration with The Malaysian Bar and the University of Malaya's Faculty of Law. This month, we discuss two cases in the courts that concern citizenship in Malaysia, how the Federal Constitution is being interpreted in these cases. First, the case involving a 10-year-old boy, who was born to a Malaysian father and a Filipino mother, and the landmark decision on his citizenship appeal in the Federal Court. Following that, we look at the case involving Family Frontiers and six mothers, who have filed a suit to seek a declaration that Malaysian women married to foreigners have the right under the Federal Constitution for their overseas-born children to be Malaysian citizens. Finally, we take a brief look at the government's stand on how we're going to vaccinate stateless individuals in Malaysia, to protect us all from COVID-19.

Resident committees of three major low-cost flats, with more than 20,000 residents from the B40 group, realised they too have to be proactive as the pandemic takes its toll on the frontliners.