By KINIBIZ
It has been a tumultuous Ramadhan for Malaysians, who already have enough on their minds to dampen the festiveness of the coming Aidilfitri anyway.
There was already rising living costs due to the goods and services tax (GST) kicking in from April 1, which while a positive development economically still led to higher prices – sometimes unduly so. After removal of subsidies for pump prices, we have slowly seen prices of petrol climb back up, eating further into our wallets.
More recently, a swathe of scandals and controversies have weighed our minds further down. The biggest must be the allegation by The Wall Street Journal last week that a huge sum of over RM2 billion was transferred to bank accounts belonging to the prime minister in 2013.
Cue strong statements which, upon closer inspection, does not quite deny the very specific allegation made. And then this week the prime minister’s lawyers sent a letter of clarification which some, whether through simple misconception of what suing means or otherwise, have touted as constituting legal action. It’s not.
Meantime, our nation’s reputation has taken a damaging hit with so many unanswered questions and opaque handling of various controversies.
These are troubling times to be a Malaysian. So many issues within and so much uncertainty over the future. Can we, shackled by so many problems, ever move beyond them and progress? There is hope still, but it dims by the minute as we tarry.
For your reading pleasure in between Raya preparations this weekend, we have compiled below some of our best news, analyses and comments published this past week which you may have missed:
Pick 1 – Who needs RM40 billion high-speed rail? There is much aglow on the proposed high-speed rail linking Kuala Lumpur and Singapore, but can it really work? Critics say whichever way you look at the project it just doesn’t make sense economically despite the oft-touted multiplier effect. Read all about it here.
Pick 2 – Postpaid price wars: Winners and losers. It began with a new entry-level postpaid plan by Celcom, which was the first in the country to allow unused data to be carried forward. Undercut, its peers responded and now the telco sector is seeing a full-blown price war. Get the lowdown here.
Pick 3 – Najib, 1MDB and the ringgit. Earlier this week ringgit hit 3.8 to the US dollar for the first time since the Asian financial crisis. Some cried “Greece”, but what about the allegations against the prime minister, increased political tension and all-round uncertainty on the nation’s future Read on here.
Pick 4 – What the Fitch? A potential downgrade by Fitch Ratings agency caused all sorts of panic among Malaysia’s investors. Was the fear justified or is there more than meets the eye? Our resident cat talks to a few Malaysians on whether they are concerned. Some still saw the brighter side of things. Read on here.
Pick 5 – Najib’s depressed, so is the ringgit (and so are we). What with the scandal in Majlis Amanah Rakyat’s (Mara) property purchases and the looming threat of a Fitch rating downgrade at the time, the prime minister complained of depression. Then things got worse. Read further here.
Pick 6 – Greece: Can birds of different feathers flock together? Last weekend, the big global news was the people of Greece voting to accept or reject a bailout package offered by the troika of the European Central Bank, EU, and International Monetary Fund. What went wrong and how can the mess be sorted out? Read here.
Pick 7 – Five things the Greek debt crisis shows us. Those with a taste for economic drama would have followed the ongoing Greek debt crisis closely for months. And there are lessons to be learned despite our geographical distance from the unfolding saga. Find out more here.
Pick 8 – Money, that fickle mistress of the economy. The concept of currency has allowed mankind to rise above foraging, building majestic civilisations on pooled resources. But money is a fickle mistress to manage, with both scarcity as well as excess of it capable of delivering headaches. Read on here.
Pick 9 – A reformer’s downfall. That man came with sweet promises, swaying voters with pledges of change. But the reformer’s tune soon shifted as the days, then the years dragged on, culminating in a scandal that rocked the country amid his claim that he did not pocket a single cent. Read on here.
Pick 10 – Greece’s vote for sovereignty. Greeks have voted resoundingly against the austerity measures that the nation’s creditors want to impose in exchange for further aid. But this is mostly symbolic and real sovereignty entails exiting the euro zone as well as introducing a national currency. Read on here.
If you like these, here’s a great deal. Get much more for just 87 sen a day by clicking here. You’ll get full access to KINIBIZ online plus a free copy of our fortnightly print magazine for the promotional price of RM318 a year.
Because whether you prefer online or print, nothing starts your day like the sharpest read in town. From all at KINIBIZ, we wish you a happy Aidilfitri. Maaf zahir dan batin.
— By Khairie Hisyam Aliman, News Editor
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