Morning Brief

8 former Malaysian Bar Presidents issued a joint statement asking for a proper explanation from AG Tan Sri Idris Harun as to why a discharge not amounting to an acquittal (DNAA) was granted to Riza Shahriz Abdul Aziz, Najib Razak’s stepson. Ragunath Kesavan, one of the signatories tells us the rationale behind this statement and why this is important. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy...

With political uncertainty continuing, the role that Sarawak plays in determining who runs the country cannot be underestimated. Professor James Chin, Professor of the Asian Studies at the University of Tasmania gives us an update on the local political scene and whether GPS will switch sides. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ibrahim Suffian, Programme Director at Merdeka Centre analyses the latest political maneuvers in Malaysia with a deep dive on the major political parties and their respective strategies. He also weighs in on politics of East Malaysia and how they remain the king makers. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The weekend's political drama saw Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia announce that former Prime Minister and founder, Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad, has lost his party membership alongside four other lawmakers. The purported reason for the sacking was because they chose to sit among the Opposition during the May 18th parliamentary sitting. Tun Mahathir has since come out to challenge the move, and we speak...

Chinese lawmakers have approved new national security laws applying to Hong Kong, dealing what critics call a 'killer blow' to the city-state's autonomy. To get more insight into this, we speak to Kelvin Lam, Hong Kong southern district councillor and former HSBC Greater China Economist, about what this move will mean for Hong Kong's independence, and what Beijing may do next. See omnystudio.com/l...

J Solomon, Secretary-General, Malaysian Trades Union Congress (MTUC) blasts the government for postponing the implementation of the amendments to the Workers' Minimum Standards and Housing and Amenities Act 1990 from 1 June to 1 September. Migrant workers live in packed quarters and are at risk of catching diseases. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The local film industry is set to return to work with SOPs in place. Ahmad Ibrahim, President of Film Director's Association of Malaysia (FDAM) gives a sneak preview of what to expect and also discusses the challenges faced by local talent and the appointment of Zakaria Abd Hamid as the new Chairman of FINAS (National Film Development Corporation Malaysia). See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy...

Tik Tok, launched in 2016, has been downloaded over 2 billion times and recently brought in Disney’s streaming guru, Mark Mayer, as their new CEO. The parent company, Bytedance, is the world’s most valuable startup and has a private valuation of between $105 billion and $110 billion, with talk that it could be worth up to $180 billion in an IPO. But with on-going privacy and censorship...

Prof. Steve Tsang, Director of the China Institute at SOAS, University of London weighs in on what to expect of President Tsai Ing Wen’s government in handling relations with China and the US. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Professor Dato Dr Adeeba Kamarulzaman, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Malaya discusses the government’s response to treating detained undocumented immigrants. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As Covid-19 ravages the economy, Malaysia's populace continues to have to deal with politics in the form of the continuing battle between former PM Tun Dr Mahathir and current PM Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, with the upcoming Bersatu party elections. Dr. Oh Ei Sun, Senior Fellow, Singapore Institute of International Affairs, discusses the permutations. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy informat...

There’s no firm date on when schools will re-open. How are students coping learning online? Should schools reopen soon? Datin Azimah, PAGE Chairman (Parent Action Group for Education) talks about her concerns. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The UK’s move to restart live Premiership football has the world divided. But beyond the theatre and health implications of restoring contact sports there's much more to the discussion, including broadcast rights and their payments. Football Financial Analyst Kieran Maguire discusses. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Amidst the Aidilfitri celebrations, Indonesia has deployed hundreds of thousands of army and police personnel across the vast country to enforce social and physical distancing rules following a record surge in infections in the past week. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With infection rates only second to the US, we examine the social and economic impact the virus has had on Russia. Anton Pravednikov, Researcher at Moscow State University attempts to gives us the answer whilst also sharing his insight into President Putin's political plans. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What is the new normal for the Malaysian auto industry in the Covid-19 era. How badly impacted will the sector be and how can car companies still sell their cars when physical distancing is part of the SOPs? Daniel Fernandez, founder of automotive news website dsf.my tell us his views and also weighs in on Malaysia's ability to be the automotive hub for Asean. See omnystudio.com/listener for priva...

Since the implementation of the Conditional Movement Control Order, some F&B businesses have been allowed to operate with SOPs in place. However, the impact has been harder on some parts of the sector than others. We speak to Jennifer Ong, Founder and CEO, HAPA Group, about whether F&B can survive new physical distancing rules, the future of banquets, and how businesses are having to pivot...

With unemployment set to rise as the country faces a recession, should the government focus on saving jobs or creating new jobs? We ask Achim Schmillen, Senior Economist for Social Protection & Labour at World Bank Group what the answer is. He also weighs in what other things the government should focus on to help job creation. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Even with this Conditional Movement Control Order in place, many Malaysians are still hesitant to resume spending in physical stores. With footfall at shopping centres still far from pre-Covid numbers, we reach out to Datuk Seri Garry Chua to get a current snapshot of the retail sector, and to discuss how things may change in a post-Covid world. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy informa...

Countries around the world are starting to look into ways to revive stagnant tourism industries in a way that would at the same time prevent a resurgence in Covid-19 infections. To that end, the concept of the 'travel bubble' has been introduced; allowing travel corridors between specific countries which can be slowly expanded as more countries become coronavirus green zones. To get more insight i...

Countries around the world are starting to look into ways to revive stagnant tourism industries in a way that would at the same time prevent a resurgence in Covid-19 infections. To that end, the concept of the 'travel bubble' has been introduced; allowing travel corridors between specific countries which can be slowly expanded as more countries become coronavirus green zones. To get more insight i...

Malaysia as a country is highly dependent on foreign labour, particularly in the area of jobs classifie as '3D', or dirty, dangerous, and difficult. Against the backdrop of Covid-19 health concerns, we examine this topic in conversation with Dr Niaz Asadullah, Professor of Economics, Universiti Malaya - who speaks about why Malaysians are so reluctant to take up these 3D jobs, and what needs to be...

Under the shadow of Covid-19, many startups are finding it hard to cope as movement restrictions curtail business and keep Malaysians at home. To that end, the Ministry of Finance has allocated a sum of RM100 million to fund the Technology Startup Funding Relief Facility (T.S.F.R.F.), formed to assist technology startups affected by the pandemic. Here to allay some concerns, including over vetting...

Covid-19 has affected every financial instrument, some negatively and others positively. However, cryptocurrencies have been a beneficiary of the pandemic, with Bitcoin appreciating on a year to date basis. We speak to T.M. Lee, co-Founder of CoinGecko to find out why. He also warns of the risks, as the track record to this new store of value is short. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy infor...

Yesterday's historic one-day Parliamentary sitting opened with the Yang di-Pertuan Agong warning lawmakers against throwing the country into political turmoil once again, particularly as the people are still faced with the Covid-19 pandemic. In the wake of the sitting, we speak to Dr. Bridget Welsh, Honorary Research Associate at the University of Nottingham Asia Research Institute and longtime co...