Khairy said that more and more of his political colleagues were being seen in photos at meetings without their masks on despite the fact that some of them have underlying health issues. “More and more of my colleagues are being seen in photos at meetings without masks on. “The UK is experiencing a wave, in part, because of their obstinate refusal to mask up. On Thursday, he had said the downward trend of daily Covid-19 cases, which has hovered between 7,000 to around 6,000 over the past week, is expected to increase soon, in part due to cross-state travels. Yesterday, Malaysia logged 5,828 new Covid-19 cases, bringing the cumulative number of infections to 2,426,050 since the outbreak began early last year.

It took a long time for me to realise that Idris isn’t an exclusive Malay or Muslim name. Idris is the Muslim prophet mentioned in the Quran, a name associated with being righteous, studious, smart and learned in Arabic. Following the contention over the name Timah for a Malaysian-made whiskey, some people have also been irked by a whiskey named Omar available for sale here. But the word “omar” also means “amber” in Gaelic, and the whiskey in question is owned by a Taiwanese distillery in the county of Nantou. He said that Timah was neither a Muslim name nor a person’s name but a type of metal, adding that there is no man named Timah.

Roughly a quarter of China’s over 4,000-listed firms have already published earnings or preliminary results for the season. Goldman Sachs has lowered 2021 earnings growth for mainland-listed firms to 20% this year from 27% earlier, while CICC expects the number of sectors with disappointing results to outnumber those that beat expectations. CITIC Securities sees profit growth slowing around 85% in the third quarter for the sector. Among the worst-hit are agriculture firms as pork prices plummet, with less than a quarter that have reported so far seeing profit growth, Huatai said. Gemdale Corp reported a decline of 26% for third quarter earnings, while Financial Street Holdings Co warned of a slump of up to 30%.

“Subsequently, the foundation will spread its wing of protection to other Malaysian Family children who also need such assistance. This is the meaning of inclusiveness, togetherness and gratitude in the Malaysian Family concept,” he said. He also expressed hope that all Malaysians will remain united by putting aside their differences and celebrate their togetherness as one big Malaysian Family. “I urge the Malaysian Family to jointly help this generation. My hope, with the presence of the Malaysian Family Foundation, is that no more children will have to go through hardship on their own,” he added.

WITH strong subscriber growth in fixed broadband, fixed-line players are expected to fare better than mobile operators in 2021, according to equity analysts. “Encouragingly, the fibre broadband passes have reached 211.4% of Q3 2021 target of 179,013 net additions despite a tightened lockdown from June to August 2021. Also, the collaborative efforts among industry players in achieving higher household penetration continue to bode well for the fixed operators like Telekom Malaysia Bhd (TM) and TIME Dotcom Bhd . With a wider fibre footprint, these companies would benefit from higher subscriber growth as evidenced in the first half of 2021. UOB Kay Hian Research believes fixed broadband subscriber growth will continue to improve beyond the lockdown period.

PETALING JAYA: The Health Ministry reported 5,828 new Covid-19 cases on Saturday (Oct 23). Health director-general Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah tweeted that this brought the cumulative infections in the country to 2,426,050. The number of new cases according to state will be shared by the Health Ministry on its CovidNow portal.

A CLINICAL trial conducted by Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) called ‘Efficacy of Multigrain Supplementation in Type II Diabetes Mellitus’ has returned positive results. The 18-month clinical trial ran from Jan 1, 2020, to June 30, 2021, at USM’s Advanced Medical and Dental Institute in Kepala Batas. The clinical trial was registered with the U.S. National Library of Medicine (ClinicalTrials.gov) under the NCT identifier NCT04597229. “In 2018, the Health Ministry of Malaysia certified Oat King as a Healthier Choice Food. Following the announcement of the clinical trial results, Dr Lee and Dr Foo were reappointed as nutrition and technical consultants respectively for TG Ocean.

KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 22): In an interesting twist to the event, Serba Dinamik Holdings Bhd managing director (MD) and chief executive officer Datuk Dr Mohd Abdul Karim Abdullah bought one million shares or a 0.03% stake on Friday. Serba Dinamik is back in the limelight. At the 12.30pm market break on Friday, Bursa Malaysia announced that it would suspend the trading of Serba Dinamik securities from 2.30pm until further notice. Prior to the suspension, Mohd Abdul Karim had sold all of his warrant holdings although the derivative price was near record low prices. Read also:Bursa orders Serba Dinamik to reveal factual findings on special independent review by TuesdayBursa suspends trading of Serba Dinamik securities from 2.30pm on Friday until further noticeSerba Dinamik shares, warrants fall after MD disposes of entire warrant holdingAbdul Karim disposes of entire warrant holdings in Serba Dinamik at near record low prices

The NHRAP, which underscored civil and political rights; economic, social and cultural rights; rights of the vulnerable group; rights of the indigenous and the natives of Sabah and Sarawak; and international obligations, was launched in March 2018 when Azalina was Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department under Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s premiership. Azalina had yesterday suggested the reintroduction of the NHRAP as although Malaysia had laws in place for civil protection, the problem lies in legal enforcement. Its traction grew following several rape culture incidents, with the most controversial one involving an actor who came under fire for his casual comments about enjoying a rape scene. “The more important component for social change is to eliminate prejudices, and the gender-stereotyped roles of women and men,” she added. Islamic Youth Movement of Malaysia vice-president (women’s affairs) Fatin Nur Majdina Nordin said the recent rape culture issues were symptomatic of a sick society.

KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 22): Analysts on Friday (Oct 22) cut their earnings forecasts for Supermax Corp Bhd after the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) said it will detain imports of disposable gloves produced by the group on forced labour allegations. It also opined that Supermax will need to lower its ASPs in other markets to fill the void. “Hence, Supermax would now need to sell its gloves in other markets, which may have lower ASPs, until the CBP matter is resolved. “We reiterate 'hold', with a lower TP of RM2.16 (12.8 times calendar year 2023 PER),” it said. Read also:US Customs issues seize order on Supermax products on forced labour findingUS import ban expected to have significant impact on Supermax's earnings, say analysts

PUTRAJAYA: Complete vaccination for adolescents between 12 and 17 will be a condition that will be stated in all standard operating procedures soon, says Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob. The Prime Minister said this was decided at the Covid-19 pandemic management special committee meeting, which also agreed that all conveniences enjoyed by fully vaccinated adults should be extended to teenagers who have been fully inoculated. “This period is to ensure that about 80% of our adolescents who have received their first dose, will be fully vaccinated by then,” he said on Friday (Oct 22). The National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme for adolescents kicked off on Sept 20. As of Oct 21, the number who had received their first dose stood at 2,524,156 individuals, or 80.2%.

"The suspension is effected pursuant to paragraph 16.02(1)(c) of the Main Market Listing Requirements in the interest of maintaining an orderly and fair market in the trading of Serba Dinamik's securities," Serba Dinamik said in a Bursa filing. "Accordingly, all structured warrants relating to Serba Dinamik will also be suspended at the same time," Serba Dinamik said. Bursa said in a separate statement on Friday the bourse regulator "has resolved" to suspend the trading of Serba Dinamik securities including all structured warrants relating to the company from 2.30pm on Friday until further notice in the interest of maintaining an orderly and fair market in the trading of Serba Dinamik securities. Bursa's decision to suspend trading of Serba Dinamik's securities until further notice could have been prompted by news quoting Serba Dinamik's Bursa filings that Serba Dinamik group managing director and chief executive officer Datuk Dr Mohd Abdul Karim Abdullah had sold the entire 55.9 million Serba Dinamik warrants directly owned by him. According to Serba Dinamik's Bursa filings on Thursday (Oct 21), the 55.9 million warrants represented 6.34% of Serba Dinamik's issued warrants.

If we are to create a harmonious global order of people respecting one another and having kind and compassionate thoughts for all, we need to rethink our religious education a mite. One nation-destructive methodology I see in religious education is to place every adherent in a fenced-up place or tight box so that they can all be “safe” from the “outside” world. If you notice, education in this country, from kindergarten to PhD level, does nothing more than fit you into a safe box. Unfortunately, one cruel deed by bad religious adherents done onto others not of the same faith etches that incident in people’s minds as a “religious conflict”. There is too little emphasis placed on teaching religious history and conflicts that are purely the result of human vanity, pride and arrogance.

KUALA LUMPUR: After clearing a key vote in parliament, Malaysia is set to raise the limit on government debt for the second time in a little over a year as it seeks to fund additional pandemic support measures and bolster its economic recovery. Malaysia intends to boost its Covid Fund to RM110bil, from RM65bil, according to the bill. Malaysia is among several South-East Asian nations seeking additional ways to fund support programmes as they recover from one of the world’s worst Covid-19 outbreaks. Thailand last month raised its debt limit to accommodate higher borrowing and spending, while the Philippines is nearing a key threshold. Malaysia’s previously announced pandemic aid packages require an additional allocation of RM27bil, Tengku Zafrul told lawmakers.

MCA National Public Complaints and Service Bureau deputy chief Chua Jian Boon’s family home was splashed with red paint two weeks after he received his first threat from scam syndicates. Chua said he was on his way home from work when the incident occurred at 11pm last week. I arrived home to see cars belonging to my father and brother splashed with red paint. “I appeal to Tunku Mahkota Johor Tunku Ismail Ibni Sultan Ibrahim to help us stop such incidents from happening again, not just in Kulai but throughout the state,” he added. Meanwhile, Johor MCA Youth chief Ling Tian Soon, who was also at the scene, said MCA would continue helping those seeking protection from such threats.