Morning Brief

As South Africans voted in the most hotly contested elections in 30 years with the ruling party, the African National Congress expected to lose their majority. Dr. Dirk Kotze, Professor of Political Science, University of South Africa tells us who are the political parties involved, what are the priorities of the 28 million South Africans who are registered to vote and what is the likely outcome as results will only be known on Sunday.

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The uproar over the awarding of a demand responsive transit (DRT) pilot project in Selangor to Asia Mobiliti, whose co-founder is the husband of Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh has put the spotlight on gaps in the government procurement process. Pushpan Murugiah, CEO of C4 weighs in on the reforms needed in government procurement to ensure transparency and public trust.

Image Credit: Asia Mobiliti

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Protests have been taking place outside Taiwan's parliament  drawing up to tens of thousands of demonstrators to voice their opposition to contested reforms  backed by the opposition Kuomintang and the Taiwan People’s Party. Brian Hioe, Co-Founding Editor of New Bloom Magazine explains why this bill is so controversial and what this means for the President Lai Ching-te's ability to govern.

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The proposed deal to take Malaysia Airport Holdings (MAHB) private has sparked debate from both proponents and detractors. M. Shanmugam, Contributing Editor with the Edge helps us discern whether this is a good deal for shareholders and national stakeholders. 

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National-level celebrations for HAWANA 2024 (National Journalists Day) were held in Kuching, Sarawak over the weekend. During the event, comments by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim on the relevance of World Press Freedom Index rankings raised questions about the government's commitment to free, independent media. We discuss the divergence between government rhetoric and action concerning news media with Wathshlah Naidu of the Center for Independent Journalism (CIJ).

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On Saturday, some parts of Kuala Lumpur and PJ were also hit by a storm which caused many trees to fall causing damage although this time, no loss of life. We speak to Lim Yi Wei, Assemblywoman of Kampung Tunku as to whether there is enough funding at the state level to ensure that these trees are safe whilst keeping that balance between development and the natural environment.

Image Credit: Fire and Rescue Department

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Leaders from China, Japan, and South Korea convened for their first trilateral meeting in over four years with a focus on trade and security. William Pesek, Columnist, Nikkei Asia tells us what implications this summit has against the backdrop of increasing tensions between US and China.

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The general elections in India are winding towards the end, and surprising Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s target of more than 400 seats for his coalition appears to be a harder goal to achieve than expected. We speak to Dr Rahul Mishra, Associate Professor with the Jawaharlal Nehru University on why the outcome of a wipeout of the opposition is less certain and what this means for geopolitics in the region.

Image Credit: EPA images

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Last Saturday, the Coalition for Clean and Free Elections otherwise known as Bersih held their annual Congress. 19 motions were approved in line with the causes they champion. We discuss their assessment of the government's progress in institutional reforms with Faisal Abdul Aziz, Chairman of Bersih.

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Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has visited Japan for the second time within six months. This trip saw him meet with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. Zarina Zainuddin, an analyst in Foreign Policy and Security Studies at ISIS Malaysia talks about what this means for both countries' bilateral relations.

Image Credit: Prime Minister's Office of Malaysia Official Website

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