PETALING JAYA: Registering for the AstraZeneca vaccine this time around proved to be quite a challenge for applicants. As work was carried out to fix the site, some applicants noticed that the “register now” button kept appearing on and disappearing from the website. There were complaints of not being able to select preferred appointments as the grid with the appointment dates would not load after applicants clicked on their respective states. There were also complaints of applicants not receiving a message after completing their registration, leaving them wondering if their applications went through. Close to 1pm, CITF tweeted that more than 300,000 of the slots up for grabs on Wednesday had already been taken.

PETALING JAYA: The latest round of AstraZeneca registrations were slightly delayed as the site’s technical team worked to update it. On Twitter, the Covid-19 Immunisation Taskforce (CITF) notified applicants about the delay saying registration would begin at 12.15pm instead of noon on Wednesday (May 26). On Twitter, the Covid-19 Immunisation Taskforce apologised for the delay and inconvenience it caused to those who were waiting to register. At the registration counter, workers said they would be switching to manual entry methods instead. However, the process remained seamless and there was no apparent delay in the process, with queues moving along swiftlyMORE TO COME

SINGAPORE (The Straits Times/ANN): Convinced he was taking an X-ray via the phone, as instructed by who he thought was a police officer, the student posed topless, blindfolded and gagged, while on a video call. The scammers had contacted the student earlier this month, and convinced him he was under investigation. The scammers then told a 33-year-old man here to pass the student a mobile phone and SIM card. In the case of the 61-year-old, the scammers had allegedly told him the student was an important witness. After the student had initially stopped contacting his family and friends, his parents in China made a police report on May 16.

SINGAPORE: Asia’s surging coronavirus infections and slow pace of vaccinations is testing the limits of what central banks can do to further support what, until recently, had been the world’s stand out economic recovery. With interest rates already low, the likely policy response will centre on more government borrowing, relegating central banks to a supporting role. That backdrop will overshadow decisions this week where policymakers are expected to keep rates on hold – Indonesia, South Korea and New Zealand. “In my view, there is little room for further monetary policy stimulus, at least in terms of traditional policy levers like interest rate cuts, ” said Tuuli McCully, head of Asia-Pacific economics at Scotiabank. The Bank of Korea is also expected to remain on hold when it meets tomorrow.

PETALING JAYA: Those looking to register for the second round of the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine opt-in programme, which opens to Malaysians under 60 at noon today (May 26), are hoping the process would go smoothly. Among those eager to try his luck is 52-year-old Edwin Lim who missed his chance to get a slot during the first round of registration on May 2. Others also hoped that the registration site at www.vaksincovid.gov.my would be able to handle heavy loads of people trying to get a spot. Please anticipate a high volume at noon, ” said Mike Wai on Facebook on Wednesday (May 26). The second round of the opt-in programme still has around one million slots available.

With 70% of breaches originating on endpoints, there is no question that endpoints are a top target of attacks, ” Raz told StarBiz. To meet this need today, Cisco said it has a scalable, flexible, and simple cloud-based solution called Cisco Meraki that would be useful for companies to consider. “Cisco Meraki optimises networks through cloud-managed infrastructure and a streamlined interface to offer organisations and IT teams the answer to their unique security, networking, and infrastructure needs, ” Raz said. There is also Cisco Meraki Security Appliances that can be remotely deployed in minutes using zero-touch cloud provisioning to enable 100% centralized cloud management for security, networking, and application control. Meanwhile, Meraki Systems Manager features an easy-to-use web-based dashboard that allows organisations to centrally provision, monitor, and secure all endpoint devices within the organisation, while keeping the network aware of constantly changing devices.

READING the tributes from former students to their ex-teachers on Teachers’ Day, “Students pay tribute to mould-breaking educators” (StarEdu, Sunday Star, May 16), prompted me to reflect on the nature of the teaching profession these days. The teachers mentioned in the tributes are some of the gems among the 450,000-strong educators who are all aspiring to fulfil the theme of this year’s Teachers’ Day celebration, “Learning for knowledge, shaping a new generation”. Teaching currently requires teachers to upgrade their digital skills to enable them to deliver lessons effectively in this Covid-19 pandemic era of closed schools and home-based learning. To meet the needs of these students, many teachers are going the extra mile to help them with home-based lessons. Educators should truly walk the theme of Teachers’ Day so that their students will one day pay tribute to them: “Thank you teachers for all your dedication and passion in teaching that have made us what we are today!”TING LIAN LEE , Johor Baru

MELAKA: Police here have summoned the human resources manager of an Ayer Keroh factory to have his statement recorded after several workers were seen roaming around public areas with pink wristbands on. ACP Afzanizar said that a video and photos showed that foreigners were buying groceries and other items at Taman Ayer Keroh Heights shops while wearing wristbands placed by the health authorities during a Covid-19 screening at the factory. On the investigation, ACP Afzanizar said the police will record the statements of all the individuals who allegedly violated the quarantine order. Earlier, Ayer Keroh assemblyman Kerk Chee Yee said he had received videos and pictures from four locals showing the individuals roaming around the row of shops at the area on Tuesday(May 25). He said there were allegedly some 15 individuals who were photographed roaming around with their wristbands.

IPOH: People here are hoping that the AstraZeneca Covid-19 opt-in vaccination programme will be extended to Perak owing to rising cases in the state. “A reason for the slow vaccination process is the lack of vaccination centres and manpower. It is said that there is an abundance (of AstraZeneca vaccines) in other states. The second round of bookings for the AstraZeneca vaccine started on May 23 for those aged 60 and above, with 1.2 million doses being offered to people in Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Penang, Johor and Sarawak. Photographer Khairul Eezuan Zulkepli, 30, said he would gladly sign up for the AstraZeneca vaccine.

“The SOP limits our flexibility in factory operations and our ability to respond to increased demand for products. Frepenca committee member Datuk Heng Huck Lee said most, if not all, manufacturing companies were in support of tightening the SOP. Lim said working hours differed for staff members, depending on the departments concerned. Penang Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers called for operations workers to be allowed onsite while the movement of management staff could be more restricted. Its chairman Datuk Jimmy Ong said the latest SOP allowed only 60% of all workers, be it in operations or management, to work onsite.

KUALA LUMPUR: Kamarozaman Jamaludin knew that all was not well when his daughter called him on her way home, crying and screaming. “I was even more distressed when I heard the wailing of other injured passengers on the train, ” said Kamarozaman, 55. Bernama reported that commuters on the train had a harrowing moment when it suddenly stopped before they were flung by the impact of the collision with another train. Aliq Luqman said that before the accident, the train had stopped for 15 minutes before moving again. He said some passengers were injured by the train’s broken glass panels while some were tossed around as the train stopped suddenly (when it hit the emergency brakes).

Sofia Sapega, 23, who is from Belarus, steered clear of politics, her mother Anna Dudich told Reuters in an interview on Tuesday. The young couple were returning from a two-week vacation in Greece on Sunday when their Ryanair flight to Vilnius was forced to land in Minsk. Sapega was detained on Sunday, and on Tuesday her lawyer was told she was being held for two months. Speaking from the Belarus town of Lida, Dudich said she feared for her daughter's health and safety in detention. Then she sent one final text after the plane was forced to land in Belarus.

GDANSK, Poland (Reuters) - Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer hopes that winning the Europa League would be the start of "something more" for the club. United take on Spanish side Villarreal in Wednesday's final in Gdansk, looking to win their first trophy since a Europa League success under Jose Mourinho in 2017. "It is a bright future for this team, a young team, it's a team we've rebuilt over the last few years. "When players sign to play for Man United, they sign to win trophies. They accept the challenge of being the best, because this is the best club in the world so that's the pleasure of the pressure of Man United."

"The Federal Reserve will be driven by whatever their numbers tell them. "After many years of no inflation we clearly see price increases," the Wall Street CEO said. If that is the case, the Federal Reserve will have to raise interest rates at some point," he said. Morgan Stanley's CEO and economists have divided before only for Gorman to be proved right. In early 2015, he said he would "put good money" on the Fed lifting rates that year.

PETALING JAYA: Star Media Group Bhd (SMG) has announced a net loss of RM14.2mil for the first quarter ended March 31,2021 from RM3.9mil reported in the same quarter a year ago. “However, we saw a growth in Star’s digital revenue of 17% against last corresponding quarter, which was mainly attributable to the increase in the digital advertorial, growth marketing and paywall subscription revenue, ” SMG said in a filing with Bursa Malaysia. Business and consumer behaviours remain uncertain but the group has taken drastic measures to contain the impact, ” SMG said. SMG group CEO Alex Yeow on Monday said that going forward, the group aims to have 30% of its revenue come from new businesses that may be related to property or digital products. “Going forward, we want to change this to 40% (newspaper-related); 30% (segments such as radio and events); 30% (diversification into new businesses).