Greater financial woes to come
We know the pandemic has ravaged our economy. But yesterday, we received further confirmation that things will continue to be bad for a while yet.
In other news, our Covid-19 numbers remain low with recoveries ever increasing, and, a certain political party is being rather pushy in calling for snap polls.
Will more debt also mean higher taxes?
The country could possibly hit its debt ceiling by the end of the year, thanks to the Covid-19 pandemic and resulting restrictions, and it’s not good news for us. Just how will we be affected?
Meanwhile, schools reopened for upper secondary students yesterday, with the Health Ministry saying it will work with the Education Ministry to decide if students at other levels can return, and when; and, PKR prefers to have snap elections called rather than support a certain former PM’s motion of no confidence against the current PM.
The gloves come off in Pakatan
That almighty heavyweight punchup between a two-time ex-PM and an ex-PM-in-waiting has escalated. The latter has ‘offered’ a reduced position on the Cabinet to the former should Pakatan Harapan regain power. The response? Basically, to take a long walk off a short cliff.
Meanwhile, the same ex-PM may have finally bitten off more than he can chew, attacking another former PM as well as the current PM; the Education Ministry has extended the school academic calendar to Dec 17; and, our Covid-19 numbers are back in the single-digit realm.
Malaysia’s slow return to normalcy continues
July 1. That’s the day you’ll be allowed to take in a film and/or enjoy a cool dip in the pool. But what else can we expect from Malaysia’s soft reopening?
Elsewhere in today’s newsletter, more cases of Covid-19 infections are recorded in Pedas, PKR orders its reps to keep their views to themselves, and the thorny issue of a 27-year-old constitutional amendment is dredged up.
PKR stands its ground
According to PKR, it’s still committed to Pakatan Harapan. But is its decision to reject Mahathir Mohamad as the pact’s Prime Minister candidate just delaying the inevitable?
In other news, discounts on electricity bills are announced, Malaysia opens its borders a wee bit, and a three-way contest with only one possible victor looms in Chini.
The ‘New Normal’: What It Means For Malaysians
The “new normal” is a word bandied about so much in recent days. In this two part series, Between The Lines takes a look at what moving forward would actually look like for Malaysia as we emerge from over two months under near total lockdown.
Is this the end of Pakatan?
It’s just a small matter, concerning who should be the Grand Poobah of Pakatan Harapan Plus. But the impasse (or should we say argument) over whether it should be a a septuagenarian or a nonagenarian is now threatening to send the coalition the way of ancient ancestors of men.
In other news, the current PM (and his buddies) has filed an application to strike out a suit by a former PM (and his buddies); a certain Boy Wonder is claiming to be the latest victim of a purported government crackdown on dissent; another person is being investigated for a statement not made by her; and, two Indonesians are on the lose and feared to be spreading Covid-19 among people in Sarawak.
Liar, liar pants on fire
Our perennial PM-in-waiting, Anwar Ibrahim, says Pakatan has consensus as to who should be their PM should they return to power, but a DAP man says nothing has been decided yet because PKR can’t seem to agree with the rest of the coalition.
Meanwhile, a whole slew of restrictions have been relaxed under the recovery movement control order (RMCO), even as a new cluster of infections has been identified; the cops seem to be confused as they investigate a DAP MP over a posting she made debunking fake news; and, defence lawyers for a former PM are crying foul over some obscure change to charges against him.
What’s in a question?
What appears to be a government crackdown on dissent continues as a DAP MP is investigated for merely “asking a question”, while a news organisation is in trouble for allowing certain comments on one of its articles.
In other news, our great leaders in Pakatan Harapan Plus are still at an impasse as to whether it should be an old man or a much older man who should lead them to glory; we could be in even more trouble in terms of unemployment by the end of the year; and, a former top civil servant says another top civil servant wasn’t pressured to do something bad, even though the latter had earlier said otherwise.
Is the worst yet to come?
Malaysia’s unemployment rate is at a 30-year high, and it could get worse. Much, much worse. Especially if that long-rumoured second wave of Covid-19 infections becomes a reality.
In other news, two Sabah state reps break on through to the Perikatan Nasional side, our Covid-19 numbers go up, and no one can be certain if kindergartens and pre-schools are being allowed to open on July 1, or just pre-schools.