Morning Brief

Electoral watchdog Bersih has been calling for constituency development funds to be given equally to all MPs irrespective of their support for or against the government of the day. The urgency of this issue has returned to the forefront after 4 opposition MPs declared their support for the Madani government citing the need for funding allocations for their respective constituencies. Bersih's executive director Ooi Kok Hin talks to us about the challenges in institutionalising a CDF law.

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The APEC summit, which has a membership of 21 countries, is ongoing in San Francisco. As a bloc, its members produce around 11.4 trillion US Dollars in exports. Calvin Cheng, Senior Analyst in the Economics, Trade and Regional Integration division at ISIS tells us what the benefits of joining this bloc especially from the Malaysian perspective.

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With the increased scrutiny on the constitutional validity of the Control of Smoking Products for Public Health Bill 2023, New Sin Yew, Constitutional and Human Rights Lawyer tells us to what extent are legal arguments based on the Constitution, considered absolute, and is it valid to consider this bill as unconstitutional.

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The Indonesian embassy has reported that approximately 90% of complaints received are related to domestic helpers. To raise the standard of protection, the maximum recruitment cost for a new Indonesian domestic worker is RM15,000, and applications can only be done via Sistem Maid Online (SMO) and Sipermit owned by the Indonesian Embassy. We check in with His Excellency Datuk Hermono, Ambassador of the Republic of Indonesia to Malaysia if that would help to ensure a fair and just working environment.

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The Indonesian embassy has reported that approximately 90% of complaints received are related to domestic helpers. To raise the standard of protection, the maximum recruitment cost for a new Indonesian domestic worker is RM15,000, and applications can only be done via Sistem Maid Online (SMO) and Sipermit owned by the Indonesian Embassy. We check in with His Excellency Datuk Hermono, Ambassador of the Republic of Indonesia to Malaysia if that would help to ensure a fair and just working environment.

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The Economy Ministry is in discussions with banks and financial institutions to develop an energy transition financing mechanism for companies to participate in green projects. We ask Cedric Rimaud, Independent Sustainable Finance Consultant the difference between that and green financing and what have been the recent challenges in this space.

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See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With the increased scrutiny on the constitutional validity of the Control of Smoking Products for Public Health Bill 2023, New Sin Yew, Constitutional and Human Rights Lawyer tells us to what extent are legal arguments based on the Constitution, considered absolute, and is it valid to consider this bill as unconstitutional.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We dissect the second meeting between US President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum after a rocky year of tensions between the two superpowers. We speak to Dr Pradeep Taneja, senior lecturer in Asian studies from the University of Melbourne on the outcome of this high-level meeting.

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Sirul Azhar Umar has been freed from detention in Australia. Convicted for the murder of Mongolian model Altantuya Shaariibuu, can he be extradited since the mandatory death penalty has been abolished? However, the death sentence can still be meted out, subject to the court's discretion. We ask Edmund Bon, lawyer from Amer Bon Advocates for his insights on the matter.

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Malaysia will reach the status of a “super-aged nation” by 2056 as more than 20% of the population will be above the age of 65. Yet, EPF has highlighted that 45% of Malaysians do not have 100 thousand ringgit in savings upon retirement. Munirah Khairuddin, Country Head and CEO of Principal Malaysia tells us what are some the possible solutions to this structural issue.

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