Consider This

While the pandemic is a global crisis, national governments will have to deal with its economic impact individually.  Melisa Idris and Sharaad Kuttan speak to Firas Raad, World Bank Group Representative to Malaysia, to put the Prihatin Package in comparative perspective.

Pakatan Harapan today released a statement following the announcement by the Prime Minister, both welcoming its “conciliatory” tone but had its own criticisms. Melisa Idris and Sharaad Kuttan speak to Wong Chen, PKR Member of Parliament for Subang for his personal take on the Prihatin Package.

Despite assurances of enough food for all, panic-buying and hoarding is a continual challenge. To get a view from the ground. Melisa Idris and Sharaad Kuttan speak to Peter Odle, General Manager of The Food Purveyor, which operates the Village Grocer, Ben's Independent Grocer and Pasaraya OTK.

Could the country have been better prepared for this unexpected scenario? Melisa Idris and Sharaad Kuttan speak to Dr Sarena Che Omar, Senior Research Associate, Khazanah Research Institute

Do we need a more holistic definition of food security to better deliver for the populace under the MCO and to plan for a future crisis? Melisa Idris and Sharaad Kuttan speak to Dr Sarena Che Omar, Senior Research Associate, Khazanah Research Institute on food security under the MCO.

Just over 100 new confirmed cases were reported as of noon today. This is the lowest daily increase in 10 days. And it comes after a record increase of 212 cases yesterday. Melisa Idris and Sharaad Kuttan scour the news of the latest on Covid-19 and more.

According to the Director-General of Health, by the end of this week, Malaysia will double our daily testing capacity to 7,000. And by the first week of April, it will be increased to 16,500 daily tests. Melisa Idris and Sharaad Kuttan speak to Dr Musa Nordin, Consultant Paediatrician and formerly with the now-defunct Health Advisory Council, on the importance of testing.

Today Thailand’s Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has announced that the country will go into emergency mode for one month starting this Thursday, March 26th. Melisa Idris and Sharaad Kuttan speak to Datuk Jojie Samuel, Malaysian Ambassador to Thailand, on the impact of the Covid-19 on Malaysians there and on bilateral relations.

Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin announced that EPF account holders, aged below 55, can access their savings - to cope with the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Will this be enough to ensure households have enough resources to ride out the pandemic in the next few months? Melisa Idris and Sharaad Kuttan speak to Nungsari Ahmad Radhi, economist and Chairman, Khazanah Research Instit...

Yesterday the government assured refugees that they will not be targeted for arrest if they come forward for testing. But how much awareness is there within the broader refugee community in Malaysia about Covid-19, about social distancing, about testing? Melisa Idris and Sharaad Kuttan speak to Lilianne Fan, Chair, Rohingya Working Group, Asia Pacific Refugee Rights Network.

In reaching out to those who attended the Seri Petaling tabligh to come forward, Health director-general Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said he didn’t want to stigmatise them. But stigmatisation is happening Melisa Idris and Sharaad Kuttan speak to Ahmad Fuad Rahmat, Assistant Professor with the School of Media, Languages and Culture at the University of Nottingham Malaysia about the cultural dynam...

How do we ‘flatten the curve’ while ensuring that households have enough resources to ride out the Covid-19 pandemic in the next few months? Melisa Idris asks Christopher Choong, Deputy Director of Research at Khazanah Research Institute, on Consider This.

#KitaJagaKita is an effort initiated by a group of good Samaritans with the aim of linking "kind-hearted people" with organisations to assist groups that are badly affected by the Restriction of Movement Order. Melisa Idris learns more about this initiative, from Hanna Alkaf, an award-winning Malaysian author and #KitaJagaKita team member.

How can we use psychology and behavioral science in fighting the spread of Covid-19? Melisa Idris speaks to consulting psychologist, Dr Brendan Gomez, about what the government should consider in when rolling out new measures under the Restriction of Movement Order.

Following the collapse of the Pakatan Harapan federal government, new political alignments have also emerged at the state level. This has led to three new state governments being formed - one of them being Perak. Melisa Idris speaks to Howard Lee, former state exco for Youth, Sports and Human Development for Perak, about the political developments in the state.

Melisa Idris speaks to Howard Lee, Chief of DAPSY, about the party’s efforts to address shortcomings in communication efforts. Howard Lee is also the former state exco for Youth, Sports and Human Development for Perak.

Melisa Idris speaks to Howard Lee, former Perak state exco for Youth, Sports & Human Development, and assemblyman for Pasir Pingi, about the voter response to the political developments in the state and how it is being expressed and addressed.

Yesterday Malaysia recorded the third consecutive day of three-digit increase in Covid-19 cases. Melisa Idris speaks to Dato' Dr Amar-Singh HSS, Senior Consultant Paediatrician, about the projected trajectory the pandemic will have in Malaysia, the estimated number of deaths from Covid-19, and what this will mean for our hospital capacity.

Governments around the world are scrambling to respond to the Covid-19 pandemic. But what can business do? How can they contribute? Melisa Idris speaks to Arnaud Bernaert, Head of Shaping the Future of Health and Health Care at the World Economic Forum, about the need to tap into the resources and ideas of the private sector, including the development of a safe, manufacturable, vaccine for Covid-1...

As the Restriction of Movement Order comes into effect, Melisa Idris and Hafiz Marzukhi discuss the information released by authorities regarding interstate travel, and other Covid-19 related news from the day. 

Following the announcement by the National Security Council that all students in private and public higher education institutions must return to their hometowns during the Restriction of Movement Order period, many students were caught out by the short notice. Melisa Idris and Hafiz Marzukhi speak to Haziq Azfar, President of the Students' Union of Universiti Malaya about the plight of local stude...

What does the Restriction of Movement Order mean for employers and employees? Melisa Idris and Hafiz Marzukhi speak to Lim Wei Jiet, lawyer and Secretary-General, National Human Rights Society (Hakam)

Malaysia will impose a nationwide movement control order for two weeks, from Wednesday 18th March until Tuesday 31st March, in a bid to curb the spread of Covid-19. Melisa Idris and Hafiz Marzukhi take a closer look at the six measures that were announced.

Melisa Idris and Hafiz Marzukhi speak to Professor Dato' Dr Adeeba Kamarulzaman, Dean of Medicine at Universiti Malaya about the two-week nationwide movement control order, and how it could help "flatten the curve". Professor Adeeba is also a member of the special Selangor task force to tackle the Covid-19 outbreak in the state.

What does this two-week nationwide movement control order mean for Malaysians? Melisa Idris and Hafiz Marzukhi speak to Dr Khor Swee Kheng, a physician and public health expert who is currently reading Public Policy at the University of Oxford.