☕️ Pak Lah, Malaysia's fifth PM suffers from dementia

1. MARKET SUMMARY

2. QUEEN ELIZABETH II - NUMBERS AT A GLANCE

70 years - Queen Elizabeth II is Britain’s longest-reigning monarch. She became the Queen in 1952 at 25 years old. She overtook Thailand’s King Bhumibol Adulyadej to be the world’s second longest-reigning monarch. The longest goes to France’s Louis XIV, with a 72-year and 110-day reign from 1643 to 1715.

>USD500 mil worth of personal assets the Queen has accumulated from her investments, art collection, jewellery and real estate. Halfway there to be a billionaire.

GBP86.3 mil - the annual income received by the Queen in 2021/22 through a tax-payer fund known as the Sovereign Grant, which is used for official travel, property maintenance, and operating and maintenance costs of the Queen’s household in Buckingham Palace. It works out to a GBP1.29 per UK citizen. See the Royal Household’s financial statement for 2021/22 here. Can we get similar transparency in Malaysia? 

3 assassination attempts on the Queen’s life. She escaped unharmed in all attempts.

3. IN MALAYSIA 🇲🇾

Suicide Awareness PSA, in relation to the World Suicide Prevention Day 2022 on September 10.

Suicide is no laughing matter. Life is hard as it is. Seek help if you need one, and lend a hand to the people around you if they need one. Whatever struggles that you are going through right now, remember that you are still alive, and as an American rapper, Pitbull once said, ‘every day above ground is a great day, remember that!’. In 2019, Malaysia recorded a suicide rate of 5.8 per 100,000 population, with an estimated five suicide deaths per day. We can do better.

Najib Razak backs out in the suit against Putrajaya

In Najib Razak’s suit over charges of power abuse in several prosecutions involving him, including the 1MDB scandal, Najib has decided to discontinue the suit against the Government, which is named as the second defendant. However, the suit against the first defendant, former attorney general Tommy Thomas will still proceed. Through the suit, Najib is seeking a declaration from Tommy Thomas that he conducted a wrongful exercise of lawful authority during his time in public office and also RM1.9mil in damages.

63,000 Mara-sponsored students - more money coming their way

Putrajaya recently announced the increased stipend for local and overseas students sponsored by Mara, where local students will see an increase up to RM950 per month, while overseas students will see a hike without exceeding the RM7,600 per month ceiling. The increase in allowance is timely, as the rate had not been revised for over 13 years (and also maybe because GE15 is around the corner). With the revision of the living allowance, perhaps the government needs to revise its policy on the mandatory ‘return-to-Malaysia’ clause for publicly funded students, especially overseas students, in order to curb the chronic brain drain problem the country is facing at the moment.

No hurry to impose the Borneo quota of Dewan Rakyat seats

Recently, the special council on the Malaysia Agreement 1963, chaired by PM Ismail Sabri, agreed to restore the 35% East Malaysia quota for seats in Dewan Rakyat, which is important to safeguard the interest of Sabah and Sarawak in the federation. A 35% quota would entitle the two states to a total of 78 seats, of which they have only been allocated 56 seats so far. According to Sarawak’s ruling coalition chairman, Abang Johari Openg, he said that the coalition is in no hurry to claim the 35% quota at the moment. A quick history lesson, Malaysia is a federation, which is a geopolitical entity in which smaller entities such as states, come together to form a bigger entity. Other federations in this world are Argentina, Germany and India.

People living in Klang, Kuala Selangor, need to be cautious of the high tide.

The Selangor state government issued a warning (for 14 and 15 September) to residents living in Klang, Kuala Selangor and nearby areas due to the high tide phenomenon that can exceed heights beyond five metres. The state government had implemented several short-term precautionary measures to mitigate any future scenarios, such as the installation of additional pumps and the sending of advance equipment to relief centres in frequently flooded areas.

Shorts:

1. Former PM Abdullah Ahmad Badawi is suffering from dementia, as confirmed by the health minister and his son-in-law, Khairy Jamaluddin. Pak Lah’s condition is worsening, reaching a stage where he is having trouble communicating verbally. A short video to understand more about dementia here.

2. A freelance preacher was arrested as the man was allegedly sexual harassing teenagers aged between 17 and 18, whom he met through motivational camps held in schools around Selangor.

3. Parkson Holdings Berhad’s subsidiary, Parkson Retail Group, is set to sell RM182 mil commercial properties in the old town area of Qingdao, China in the background of operational losses suffered due to the weakening spending power of local consumers.

4. The preliminary discussions for IHH Healthcare Berhad to acquire 100% of Ramsay Sime Darby Health Care in a deal worth RM5.67bil is going nowhere and recently concluded without a binding agreement.

5. De facto law minister said that the Cabinet has agreed in principle to draft a Bill on political contributions, where the proposed legal framework of the Bill will be presented to a technical committee for further refinements.

4. AROUND THE WORLD 🌎

Ukraine reclaims territory, local Russian lawmakers call for Putin’s removal.

Ukraine’s military has recaptured Kupiansk in east Ukraine, a key supply hub held by Russian forces for months. Kyiv also reported battlefield successes in the north and south of the country. Ukraine’s military said it has liberated more than 1,000 sq kilometres of Ukrainian territory in the past few days.

Local Russian lawmakers in both St Petersburg and Moscow issued calls on Russia’s Parliament to remove Russian President Vladimir Putin from power and charged him with high treason for launching the war on Ukraine. Ballsy moves in a country where dissenting voices lead to imprisonment or unexplained deaths. Not too long after, the lawmakers were informed by the police they will be charged “due to actions aimed at discrediting the current Russian government”.

New understanding of how cancer works, potentially preventable

Researchers say they have discovered how cancer is formed and DNA mutation isn’t entirely the reason, transforming conventional understanding of cancer. This discovery came from exploring why non-smokers get lung cancer, which was due to air pollution. Instead of cancer being caused by DNA mutations, air pollutants called particulate matter 2.5 (known as PM2.5) trigger damage accumulated over time even in healthy cells that turn it cancerous. Identifying the triggers means designing cancer-blocking pills becomes a potential method to prevent cancer.

‘Squid Game’ on track to make Emmys history

Netflix and South Korea’s popular drama made history to be the first non-English language series to earn a best drama series nomination and stand a chance to be the first foreign-language TV show to win the top honours for best drama. The Emmys Awards ceremony will take place on Monday night.

On the eve of the Emmys, Squid Game star Lee Jung-jae landed a major American studio role to play the male lead in the new Disney+ Star Wars series The Acolyte.

Shopee - more international retreats

After exiting three international markets in the first half of 2022, Sea’s e-commerce arm Shopee announced to its employees that it will shut down local operations in Chile, Colombia and Mexico and leave Argentina entirely. It will operate a cross-border model for the first three countries. Brazil will not be affected as Shopee has become a dominant player, with revenue in this market rising 270% from a year earlier. The retreat will shift focus to its home market - the company’s leadership has given directives to achieve profitability in its key Southeast Asian markets by 2023.

SHORTS

1. 2 Swedish powerhouses are joining hands - furniture maker IKEA and EDM band Swedish House Mafia are teaming up to launch a limited edition collection, called the OBEGRÄNSAD collection, with over 20 pieces to cater to music fans, producers, DJs and creators.

2. Burger King in the US announced its plans to invest USD400 mil over the next two years to renovate its restaurants and on advertising in its attempt to reinvent the brand. It has more than 7,000 outlets in the US.

3. Apple CEO Tim Cook shared at the annual Code Conference that his biggest debate with Steve Jobs was over how the iPhone was sold at debut - through a subsidy model vs revenue-share strategy. In the end, both methods were adopted, but it was Cook’s approach that catapulted iPhone to stardom.

5. FOR YOUR EYES 👁👁

1. Guess how many countries have never been invaded by the British?

2. A short documentary on the Batang Kali Massacre - an atrocity committed by British troops, killing 24 unarmed villagers during the Malayan Emergency.

3. Growing calls to return the 2 diamonds on the crown jewels to India, South Africa after Queen Elizabeth’s death