It’s eight days to polling day and all candidates from various parties and coalitions are in a frenzy campaigning to their voters. Who will make up the next government? What are they offering this GE15 (15th General Election)?
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If you’re wondering where to find the manifestos launched so far, here are the links to the ones available online:
More to come. 
Environmental pollution is fast becoming a global concern which can aggravate and lead to fatal outcomes. To address this alarming issue, IJM Land Berhad (IJM Land) along with SWM Environment Sdn Bhd (SWM Environment) are determined to educate and raise awareness on the importance of preserving the environment and encouraging recycling habits among the younger generation by working together with SJK (C) Tung Hua, S2 Heights.
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With the mission to provide greener and more conducive living conditions for all, IJM Land’s KITARecycle programme saw the involvement of 1,028 students from SJK (C) Tung Hua. Prior to the campaign, the primary school students were tasked with two competitions: the Recycling Art Project (an individual competition) and the Recycling Heroes Campaign (a class competition).
The individual competition aims to nurture and guide students to recycle and develop innovative ways to reuse waste by designing unique animal artwork. Additionally, students were tasked to collect recyclables for the class competition, where those with the most collections were rewarded with thermos flasks.
Mr Chai Kian Soon, Senior General Manager of IJM Land Berhad shared that the leading property developer has been dedicated to protecting the environment. To ensure everyone plays their role in contributing to a greener environment, IJM Land took this opportunity to inculcate the habit of recycling among the community.
“We wanted to emphasise recycling habits in schools to ensure the younger generation understands the effects of improper waste disposals and urge participation in this campaign. We are determined to bring positive changes to mother nature, and with every step of our efforts to uplift the environment, we hope to get the involvement of our community,” said Mr Chai.
In addition to the competition and prize-giving ceremony, SWM Environment also conducted an Environmental Awareness Talk to provide the students with information on recycling and proper waste management, at the same time IJM Land handed over one unit of ‘rumah KITARecycle’ to SJK (C) Tung Hua to further cultivate sustainability practices among the school students.
“We are glad to be part of this significant campaign because this will help the children deepen their knowledge and become more aware of the present environmental issues. Each of us is responsible for the environment and it is crucial to instil green habits in children from an early age. They represent the future, and they are the ones we will rely on to bring about these positive changes,” said Mr Choo Leong Ei, Headmaster of SJKC Tung Hua.
The continuous effort of IJM Land’s KITARecycle programme was initiated in January 2022 to develop positive environmental behaviour among the community in Seremban 2. Apart from promoting the 3Rs (reduce, reuse, recycle) among school students, the environmental collaborative initiative between IJM Land and SWM Environment expects to make recycling a daily practice for the residents.
Upon contributing twelve custom-made ‘rumah KITARecycle’ as a local placement recycling bin in Seremban 2 gated and guarded residential areas, the property developer will contribute another two units of recycling bins to the Residents Association of Serena & Safiya and Pearl 132 respectively by the end of November.
“We hope to embrace recycling with our community and by providing more recycling facilities, it would encourage them to separate their waste at home while also allowing them to practice and adapt to waste segregation to reduce waste to landfills,” concluded Mr Chai.
For more information on the above initiative, please visit http://seremban2.ijmland.com/.
Source: IJM Land Berhad
This election season, many voters especially Undi18 and first-time voters are asked who to vote for. In response, many are asking who the next prime minister (PM) should be instead, followed by discussions around the current PM candidates including caretaker prime minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob (BN), Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim (Pakatan Harapan), Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad (PEJUANG) and Tan Sri Datuk Muhyiddin Yassin (Perikatan Nasional).
Last night, Barisan Nasional (BN) candidate for Sungai Buloh, Khairy Jamaluddin, has gone on record for the first time to say that he intends to lead UMNO (United Malays National Organisation), a coalition member of BN, as well as to be the prime minister of Malaysia in the future. Is Khairy stepping up the plate in his leadership role for the nation?
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Khairy said he is ready but first needs to win the Sungai Buloh parliamentary seat in the 15th General Election (GE15) on 19 November 2022.
“If the people of Sungai Buloh give me the mandate, then Sungai Buloh will not be the limit. I will bring the people of Sungai Buloh… (and) one day, we will lead Malaysia… In Shaa Allah (God willing),” he said during his talk on Tuesday at Taman Saujana Utama in Sungai Buloh.
“With Allah SWT’s destiny and the support of my friends, one day, I want to lead Umno. One day, I want to be your prime minister and develop this country, but I must capture Sungai Buloh first.”
Khairy admits that although this is not yet the time for him to become the PM, the time has come for him to declare his ambition to lead the country as the premier someday. He reiterated that if BN wins GE15, BN’s PM candidate Ismail Sabri – whom he described as his big brother – would be the prime minister.
The caretaker health minister said, “I’m 46 years old, I can wait for a while, but not for too long. I’m ready but I have to prove it with Sungai Buloh first.
“If the people of Sungai Buloh support me, I can inform the party that I came (to fight) in the dragon’s den with a majority of 26,000 votes but I won a seat for BN.
“I want to lead the party and I want to lead the country,” he continued.
Currently a PKR (People’s Justice Party) stronghold, it will be a seven-way contest in Sungai Buloh. Khairy, who was also the former member of Parliament for Rembau, will be facing Ramanan Ramakrishnan (Pakatan Harapan), Akmal Yusoff (PEJUANG), Hj Mohd Ghazali (Perikatan Nasional), Ahmad Jufliz (Parti Rakyat Malaysia), and two independent candidates, Syed Razak Alsagoff and Sifu Linda.
Spritzer is pleased to announce that the Company has won the national award under beverages, for the water category of the World Branding Awards – Brand of the Year 2022-2023, a premier award recognition programme organised, assessed, evaluated and judged by the World Branding Forum. This is Spritzer’s eighth (08) consecutive year winning the prestigious award.
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The national award was presented to Spritzer on 3 November 2022 at Kensington Palace, London. The 15th edition of the World Branding Awards – Brand of the Year 2022-2023 saw more than 3,500 brands from over 45 countries nominated across multiple categories under three levels – global, regional and national, with only 250 brands declared winners.
The award is uniquely judged and assessed through three streams, with each stream contributing a percentage to the total score – with brand valuation and public online voting each getting 30% weightage and consumer market research getting 40% weightage. Only one national award is given to a brand from each product or service category from participating countries.
Spritzer would like to take this opportunity to thank all their loyal consumers, suppliers, and business partners for the support. The management wants to also thank the Spritzer team who worked hard to make this happen. This award is testimony to the quality of their silica-rich mineral water.
The source of Spritzer’s silica-rich natural mineral water extracts from underground aquifers in a pristine 390-acre site located in Taiping, Perak neighbouring a tropical rainforest. Spritzer will continue to offer only the best quality to consumers and is active in supporting community initiatives.
Source: Spritzer
At the recent 11th Public Relations Global Network (PRGN) Global Best Practice Awards, Malaysian public relations (PR) agency Perspective Strategies was named the biggest winner – taking home four Gold Awards in the Advocacy & Awareness, B2C/Consumer Communications, B2B Communications and Communications to Gen-Z categories, and three Silver Awards in the Public Affairs, Influencer Campaigns and Thought Leadership & Expert Positioning categories.
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“We are humbled and truly grateful to be recognised by the Public Relations Global Network during the PRGN Best Practice Awards. This year, there were a total of 106 submissions, showcasing the depth and quality of PR and Strategic Communications work from all over the world,” said Andy See, the Principal Partner and Managing Director of Perspective Strategies.
“We are eternally grateful to our clients for their confidence and trust in us, and these awards are a tribute to the work and commitment of the entire team at the firm. Importantly, this recognition is an excellent reflection of the quality of strategic communications work we have right here in Malaysia. The team has clearly showcased the ‘Malaysia Boleh’ spirit,” he added.
Two gold awards were clinched for PR campaigns executed for MAGGI Malaysia. For the B2C/Consumer Communications category, Perspective Strategies leveraged nutritionists, dietitians and macro-parenting influencers as key opinion leaders (KOLs) to introduce the brand-new MAGGI Nutri-licious, the first instant noodles in Malaysia to be certified with the Healthier Choice Logo (HCL). The win in the Communications to Gen-Z category was for the showcase of young talent in the MAGGI Secondary Cooking Competition with the aim of nurturing the younger generation to display their extraordinary cooking talent, as well as make the right nutritional choices.
Winning the gold award in the Advocacy & Awareness category, Perspective Strategies worked with Durex Malaysia to create a campaign that was anchored on creating a movement towards positive sexual health education, by partnering with various non-profit organisations and prolific individuals who share the same goals. The campaign also provided insights into Malaysian youths’ sexual attitudes and behaviours with its nationwide Durex #COMETOGETHER Survey, whilst engaging youth on the ground via workshops at colleges and universities.
“While we continue to augment our success stories in conceptualising consumer-focused campaigns through differentiated, multi-platform strategies, a large part of the communications work lies in business-to-business and thought leadership activations. The landscape of the PR industry has indeed witnessed the convergence of both disciplines, driving towards more cohesive stakeholder communications,” commented Tan May Lee, Partner and Executive Director of Perspective Strategies.
The final gold award received was in the B2B Communications for the work done for FedEx Malaysia, which focused on a strategic partnership with the SME Association of Malaysia as well as a multi-platform outreach to further raise the brand affinity of FedEx amongst the Small-Medium-Enterprises (SMEs) in Malaysia.
The PRGN Best Practice Awards is held annually as part of the global PR network’s effort to recognise and celebrate the best of its partner agencies’ work throughout the world. This year, the awards took place in Singapore during the network’s global meeting, aptly titled the PRGN Asian Summit 2022, as this was the first time the event was hosted in Southeast Asia.
PRGN is one of the largest networks of independent agencies in the world, present in over 50 market centres in Africa, Asia-Pacific, Europe, South America and North America. For further details on the PRGN Global Best Practice Awards 2022, please visit https://prgn.com/news/prgn-best-practice-awards-2022-in-singapore/.
While Malaysia is trying to get back on track with economic recovery, the Russia-Ukraine war, extreme weather patterns, China’s zero Covid policy, the impact of the Fed’s aggressive interest rate hikes, etc., are some of the global crises which continue to prevent many from reverting to pre-pandemic levels.
Due to the unusual and increasing volume of rainfalls over the past months, some Malaysians stay in low-lying, flood-prone areas with no option but to absorb unmitigated costs and damages from flooding – affecting necessities such as electrical appliances, furniture and cars.
Moreover, the continuously depreciating ringgit and rising food price inflation have drastically reduced disposable income among middle- and low-income Malaysians. They have started to feel the pain of needing to spend more money out of their pockets due to increasingly expensive imported food and goods.
Thus, the climate change threat has become a very concerning issue due to the impact on the severity of flooding.
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Flood damages will further shrink people’s available income to spend. Not only do they have to pay more in terms of food, but they also have to fork out more money to repair their cars and repurchase home furniture.
Eventually, they may reduce the amount of food intake or sacrifice their nutrition intake to survive.
Furthermore, the overnight policy rate (OPR)’s triple hike this year (so far) has worsened the situation by compelling more vulnerable Malaysian households to pay additional accrued interest for their housing and car instalments (on a monthly basis).
As the current OPR has increased by 0.5 per cent (from two per cent in May to 2.5 per cent in September), more Malaysian individuals and families are expected to be vulnerable in managing various expenses ranging from utilities and food to children’s education.
A 0.25 per cent increase in OPR for an RM500,000 home loan with a 30-year tenure implies that Malaysian households have to pay an additional RM71 monthly instalment. Over a 30-year period, the borrower has to pay an additional RM25,560 in total for interest payments.
Free Malaysia Today reported on 18 October that economic stability and job security are the “rice bowl” issues that concern young voters the most.
Political analyst James Chin opined that young people are relatively more worried about their future prospects due to the pandemic, as they are just starting out their adult lives and career in an unpromising and dampened economic environment.
Despite food and income accessibility having worsened since the emergence of the Covid-19 pandemic, Budget 2023 did not emphasise how to generate more revenue for the rakyat to better cope with the risks associated with extreme weather events (particularly floods) and increasing costs of inflation.
Thence, GE15 is an opportune time for political parties or coalitions to think about feasible solutions associated with these issues.
In order to win the hearts of the voters once again and ensure that they go out to vote during this GE15, an important national election that will determine the direction of the country for the next decade, at least, climate change, food and income are major issues that political parties or coalitions should champion as the core themes of their electoral pledges.
The following are some policies that politicians could consider introducing during their campaign period:
Climate Change
Instead of continuously turning empty land into commercial or residential building development projects, political parties/coalitions could propose more green spaces – acting as urban water (artificial) “catchment” areas and sponges to divert excess water from the heavy downpours.
Parks, walking trails and community gardens are the green lungs that could integrate the natural environment well with the built environment. Residents also could relax their minds with jogging, walking and cycling activities.
However, to minimise frequent flash flood occurrences, political parties/coalitions have to express commitment to improving the carrying capacity of rivers and drains – either widening, deepening or both.
Food
Political parties/coalitions could introduce food aid vouchers (both paper and electronic/digital) among the B40 and the hardcore poor households and individuals.
In ensuring low-income groups have sufficient access to nutritious food (i.e., eggs, vegetables, chicken and rice), political parties/coalitions could work alongside private sector donors to specify the food items that could be claimed with food vouchers from the supermarkets, hypermarkets, etc.
Via fostering public-private partnerships (PPPs), food aid vouchers can be a form of initiative that would reduce the financial burden of low-income earners.
With lesser money needed to spend on food, vulnerable and struggling households could allocate money to purchase digital devices, Internet data and upskilling courses, among others, that could enhance their employability, and business prospects if they wish to become entrepreneurs.
Income
Instead of encouraging Malaysians to look for gig economy jobs (i.e., e-hailing drivers or delivery riders), political parties/coalitions have to show their aspiration to create more high-skilled, high-income jobs in major cities such as Kuala Lumpur, Petaling Jaya, Georgetown, Johor Bahru, Kuching and Kota Kinabalu.
However, high-skilled job creation has to come with a great emphasis on research and development (R&D), whereby academia and industries can identify the latest industry trends in a strategic collaboration with the government.
Designing jobs based on current market demand would enhance the country’s productivity. At the same time, it would raise the disposable income level of Malaysians, enabling Malaysia to move towards a high-income nation in the next decade or so.
For Malaysians in rural areas, handicrafts and other related survival skills workshops would enable them to sustain themselves economically without leaving their villages.
A “one kampung, one industry” agricultural development policy could also be initiated to improve the earning prospects of rural folks.
Nonetheless, effective monitoring mechanisms are required to ensure the policies are implemented based on the desired input (I), output (O), outcome (O) and impact (I). The IOOI model framework has always been advocated by EMIR Research (see Figure 1: Input-Output-Outcome-Impact model).
Let us pray that Malaysia will have stable and good governance after GE15, enabling the country not to fall into a quadruple whammy – of climate change, pandemic, recession and inflation and, hence, possibly stagflation.
This article was written by Amanda Yeo who is a Research Analyst at EMIR Research, an independent think tank focused on strategic policy recommendations based on rigorous research, and is an excerpt from the original article of the same title.
*Disclaimer: The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of NHA – News Hub Asia.
In Malaysia, general elections are held every five years. Even though the 14th Parliament expires on 16 July 2023, five years after it began meeting on 16 July 2018, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong dissolved the legislature on 10 October 2022 at the request of the incumbent Prime Minister, as announced later that day by the Prime Minister. Constitutionally, the general elections must be held in 60 days, making 9 December 2022 the last possible election date.
It’s often said that the right to vote is our right to speak, and elections are about choosing the party that best represents our interests. So, does the outcome of national elections have any impact on employment? If so, does voting directly affect hiring and firing in the economy? Or is there more to it than that?
In this article, we explore how elections can impact employment positively or negatively.
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What is employment and why is it important?
Employment occurs when people are paid to do work that helps society function: businesses can produce goods and services and earn profits, which they use to remunerate their employees. A person who is employed contributes to the economy, builds skills, earns money, and becomes a tax-paying member of society. Employment is vital because it allows people to earn a living and contribute to society. Thus, understanding the employment-election relationship is crucial.
Election cycle and employment
Every few years, elections take place and are a lengthy process. Elections can be general or by-elections, and local or national. Depending on the type, they may be called when the sitting government loses the majority of seats in Parliament. In addition, they may be called when the people need to decide whom they want to lead the country.
In the months leading up to an election, speculation about its impact on the economy and employment is common. Elections do not affect employment immediately, however. After all, an election is a decision-making process that happens every few years. Hiring managers, on the other hand, make daily decisions about the composition of the workforce.
Elections and employment: A causal relationship
Election results have a direct impact on the strength of the economy: if one party wins and another loses, the sharing of power affects what policies are enacted. By extension, these policies will have a direct impact on the strength of an economy, which will in turn affect employment.
For example, if a government chooses to reduce tax rates, this is likely to increase investment in the economy and improve productivity, which in turn leads to more jobs. If, on the other hand, a government decides to increase taxes, this negatively impacts the number of money people have to spend and invest. This can slow economic growth and lead to fewer jobs.
Election results also have an indirect impact on employment by influencing the health of the economy: if people are optimistic about the future and feel confident in their country’s economy, they’re more likely to invest in the economy and open or expand businesses. This creates more jobs.
Conclusion
In Malaysia and globally, unemployment levels are never static, and there are highs and lows. If the economy slows or moves into a recession, hiring plans also slow down, and some companies even consider layoffs. It is still possible to hire in a down economy but spending and hiring are scrutinised more closely.
It is more likely that business leaders will make decisions to spur company growth when they are confident in the political system and the economy. Conversely, if key decision-makers are less confident, they may be less likely to invest and spend, which certainly affects future hiring plans.
In the new normal, hiring will continue across many industries, and companies must remain competitive for talent. For companies to compete for a larger share of the available talent, they must provide candidates with an easier, streamlined, and time-efficient hiring process. Boosting talent acquisition competitiveness requires organisations to consider the following solutions:
Initially, it may seem that the election result will have a direct impact on hiring. After all, if a party is voted into power, it will be able to enact its policies, including hiring and firing. The opposite is true. Although the election may change some policies and abandon others, it doesn’t directly affect employment.
*This article was written by Melissa Norman, founder and managing director of Aisling Group.
**Disclaimer: The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of NHA – News Hub Asia.
Casio Computer Co., Ltd. announced today the release of the latest addition to the PRO TREK line of outdoor watches. The new PRW-61MA is a collaboration model designed with the Swiss outdoor brand MAMMUT.
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This latest release, the PRW-61MA, brings PRO TREK and MAMMUT together for a design that is perfect for an urban outdoor lifestyle.
The watch comes with a cloth band and interchangeable soft urethane band that suit a variety of different occasions and clothing styles. The primary cloth band features the monochromatic MAMMUT Alpine all over print of spectacular views of snowy mountains for which the outdoor brand’s designs are known. The tag on the band is embroidered with the MAMMUT mammoth logo. The soft urethane band is a simple black design with the mammoth logo on the band loop for everyday wear. The timepiece also incorporates the signature MAMMUT orange on the brand name logo on the watch dial, the hour and minute hands, buttons, and other design accents.
Another important aspect of this collaboration is both brands’ commitment to environmental conservation. MAMMUT focuses on eliminating hazardous substances from its manufacturing processes as it develops sustainable products, and the PRO TREK is the first Casio line to incorporate watch parts made with eco-friendly biomass plastics, which were introduced in March 2022. Reflecting the passion for conserving nature that the two outdoor brands share, the PRW-61MA employs sustainable materials. The cloth band is made of recycled PET material from plastic bottles and other plastics, while the soft urethane band is made of biomass plastics using raw materials from castor seeds and corn. The case and case back are also made of biomass plastics.
In addition, the watch is equipped with the Tough Solar charging system, which effectively converts light from the sun, fluorescent lamps and other sources to power the watch, eliminating the need to regularly replace the battery, thereby further reducing environmental impact.
Source: CASIO COMPUTER CO., LTD
FedEx Express, a subsidiary of FedEx Corp. (NYSE: FDX) and one of the world’s largest express transportation companies, is enhancing its services with delivery notifications and personalized options now available on WhatsApp. The integration of one of the world’s most popular instant messaging apps into the FedEx® Delivery Manager International (FDMi) e-commerce solution is being launched in Malaysia and eight other markets in the Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa (AMEA) region – Australia, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
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FDMi is an interactive e-commerce delivery solution that provides customizable delivery options and alerts. E-tailers using the solution can offer their residential customers the ability to pick the timing and location of their deliveries to fit their schedule – and change the delivery address when the shipment is in transit – giving them extra flexibility at no extra cost.
The WhatsApp instant messaging social media platform has 2 billion active monthly users globally. Over 80% of the population over the age of 16 in Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and the UAE use it making it the most favoured social media platform in each market. In Australia and New Zealand, the Whatsapp platform is used by around 40% of the population and by more than one in four Filipinos.[1] With such high penetration in each market, the integration of WhatsApp into FDMi makes it a much more effective solution for e-tailers to offer to their shoppers.
Recipients expecting inbound deliveries receive a WhatsApp notification from FedEx upon shipment pickup. FedEx uses a META verified WhatsApp business account which helps to mitigate the risks of recipients responding to scams perpetrated on WhatsApp using the FedEx brand. Recipients can message and chat with FedEx directly as well as access tracking status and re-direct options with the click of a button directly in the WhatsApp chat window.
“At FedEx, we are committed to a customer-centric approach where we continuously innovate our services to meet demands. In this Information Age, customers seek efficient e-commerce solutions for convenience and flexibility. The integration of WhatsApp into our digital solutions will provide consumers with more seamless and personalised services. The convergence of business opportunities with the advent of digital solutions will pave the way in helping businesses remain competitive and sustainable while consumers benefit from the enhanced product deliveries,” said SC Chong, Managing Director, FedEx Express Malaysia.
The integration of WhatsApp into FDMi is a win-win for all participants in the e-commerce ecosystem. In an increasingly competitive online marketplace, FDMi helps e-tailers, especially SMEs, provide a differentiated service offer. Customers get more peace of mind through the traceability of their package on their mobile device as well as an enhanced online shopping experience. It also helps FedEx minimize delivery attempts to recipients who may not be at home.
Malaysia takes further steps in its democratic journey for the first time in its 59th year anniversary with the automatic inclusion of all adults above the age of 18 being eligible to vote. Previously unlike other democratic nations in Asia, the voting age in Malaysia was 21 and now it is 18.
News Hub Asia spoke to Datuk Dr Rais Husin, one of the leading political commentators in Malaysia, about the strategic landscape of the next 30 days leading up to the 15th General Election (GE15) on 19 November.
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When asked about the recent announcement by the Election Commission of Malaysia (EC) in terms of the dates for the upcoming election, Dr Rais said that due to the dissolution of Parliament on 10 October, nomination, formal campaigning and polling day will all take place in the “middle” of a monsoon season.
“Due to climate change and, therefore, the pattern of Tropical Depression as a result in recent years is not to lose momentum as it moves inland along the East Coast but to continue onwards towards the southwest.
“This is why we see abnormal rainfall and heavy downpour in the Greater Klang Valley, which includes Malaysia Vision Valley 2 (that encompasses the conurbations of Negeri Sembilan – the Nilai-Seremban sub-region).”
He continued, “The timing precipitated by the gung-ho politicians can’t be more un-propitious and represents “sheer imperviousness” to the woes already suffered by rakyat reeling, as it is, from previous the floodings – which also comes with enormous financial and economic costs.”
When speaking about the favourability of the dates for various parties, Dr Rais added, “Definitely, the timing is meant to favour the incumbents. It could well be said that the aim is a form of voter suppression – with the monsoon season as the larger context. It’s probably hoped that this would induce a lower turnout or discourage a high turnout that will most probably be advantageous to the other side. This is so as many outstation and overseas voters are known to be voters of a particular coalition in opposition since the Sheraton Move.
“The sudden move to call for a general election even as it comes not long after the three state elections of Melaka, Johor and Sarawak combined with the larger context of the monsoon season is expected to dampen voter enthusiasm. There could also be lingering voter fatigue in relation to the three states alluded.”
He continued, “The caretaker Prime Minister in cahoots with the Umno top leadership could also be wanting to exploit the perceived disunity and fragmentation of the anti-BN forces, including PN. It’s vital for Umno to maintain its stereotypical “near-dominance” in the seats with absolute Malay majorities, i.e., of 65 per cent and above, and in the rural areas.”
In terms of understanding strategies that will be rolled out in the coming days by various political parties, strategist Dr Rais, who is also the president and chief executive officer of EMIR Research, is of the opinion that “We should be bracing for the re-ignition of the toxic mix of ethno-religious rhetoric and dog-whistling being pumped into the media and social media, in particular, in order to yet again divert attention from the issues of corruption, especially pertaining to the “court cluster”, as some still have pending cases.”
He continued, “These politicians will need to stress the Malay-Muslim character of the in-coming government – to “remind” the Malay voters who comprise the majority of the consequences of otherwise.
“Of course, the other strategy would be to harp on the shortcomings and perceived flaws of the previous administration, with particular emphasis on the 22-month-old PH government. The so-called “semi-austerity” measures implemented will be blown out of proportion.”
He also said that talks about the “poor” performance and selling out of Malay-Muslim economic or financial institutions like PNB (Permodalan Nasional Berhad) and Tabung Haji will be revived.
“There would what be now considered as unjustifiable cries that government contracts will once again dry up – which will also hit the Class D (small) Malay contractors hard – since the opposition has expressed deep concerns about the levels of the national debt and mounting debt service charges.
“Rightly so, but precisely the concerns are also whether government expenditure is properly spent and accounted for – rather than leaked and wasted due to wanton corruption and systemic inefficiencies and therefore not reaching the intended targets so that there’s minimal outcomes and impacts,” he continued.
When sharing his understanding of the concerns of the average citizen, Dr Rais alluded to the National Worry Index as formulated by Emir Research.
Dr Rais explained that the focus of public expenditure of the government of the day should be on the “tummy or perut economy”, which includes addressing the high cost of living; providing affordable housing and access to quality healthcare; addressing the issue of unemployment (and under-employment), especially among youths (together with the personal debts incurred in order to survive the hardships of life, and access to quality education.
“These are what concerns the rakyat (the people). The National Worry Index (as formulated by EMIR Research) has shown that the worries of the rakyat revolves around these five major, critical and fundamental issues.
“At the end of the day, Budget 2023 (and future Budgets) and overall government spending must be based on good governance, radical transparency and the IOOI (input-output-outcome-impact) model.”
“We must ensure that the allocations (input) are not only spent (output) but that the spending achieve their desired goals such as reducing reliance on unconditional cash transfers/UCTs (outcomes) and, thereby, providing the financial space for recipient households to progress towards a higher level of self-sufficiency in the form of transition from low-income wage earner to a micro-entrepreneur (impact),” he concluded.
Dr Rais Hussin was formerly the supreme council member of the Malaysian United Indigenous Party (BERSATU). Last week, Dr Rais officially joined the People’s Justice Party (PKR). He stated that his political journey with the pact would be based on a few core principles, namely justice, reform, inclusiveness and progress.
