INSIDE
TELLING IT AS IT IS
Tepid response to WFH proposal
Fighting Covid-19 war in the lab
ON THURSDAY MARCH 11, 2021
No. 7737 PP 2644/12/2012 (031195) www.thesundaily.my
Ideology over race █ BY RAJVINDER SINGH
newsdesk@thesundaily.com
P
ETALING JAYA: Ideology,
rather than race, should be
the medium to shape the
future of Malaysia, and this
can only be achieved by doing away
with race-based parties.
Over and above that, the political
agenda must give way to government
and people agendas.
Senior fellow at the Malaysian
Council of Professors Dr Jeniri Amir
said politicians now need to look
beyond race, and the people should
no longer put up with those who
continue with the racial agenda.
“If we want to move forward as a
nation, we have to do it as one
people. We cannot allow those who
use race for their own interests to be
a part of it,” he told theSun when
commenting on a statement by
Pakatan Harapan
page
2
page
4
PARCHED FIELD ...
Farmer Mohd Redzuan
Rahim, 49, checks out the
soil of his padi field in
Pinang Tunggal, North
Seberang Perai, Penang,
which has cracked up under
the scorching sun amid the
current dry spell.
– MASRY CHE ANI/THESUN
o Political interests must give way to
government and people agendas for
nation to move ahead
vice-president Datuk Seri Salahuddin Jeniri said that while PN
Ayub that the Perikatan Nasional (PN) government leaders are mostly
government has failed despite the fact Malays, they do not share the same
that “99.9% of its leaders” are Malays. political ideology.
Jeniri lamented the fact that even “This is very selfish and self-
after 60 years as an independent serving. They are not putting the
nation, Malaysia has failed to move nation’s interests before their own.
away from race-based politics. “Such “As long as political parties
a move is long overdue,” he said. continue to play the race card, we, as a
“Inclusiveness must be the byword nation, will be left behind as others
and this is a long time coming. move ahead,” he added.
Unfortunately, some political parties Jeniri said leaders of race-based
are not interested.” political parties are more interested in
He said politicians now only fight their own survival than that of the
for the interests of their own races and nation.
in the process, they create tension and “They must learn how to put the
prevent social integration. “Such an nation’s interests ahead of their
agenda only results in short-term own and only then can we move
gains,” he said. Turn to forward. In simple terms, they
— must fight for the whole
page 3 nation, not their own interests,”
he added.
 2 theSUN ON THURSDAY | MARCH 11, 2021
NEWS WITHOUT BORDERS
WFH concept may not suit everyone
█ BY ALISHA NUR MOHD NOOR
newsdesk@thesundaily.com
PETALING JAYA: The proposal by
Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin
Yassin to make the work-from-home
(WFH) option a permanent feature
has been met with lukewarm
response.
Stakeholders and workers
interviewed by theSun yesterday
revealed that such an arrangement is
not ideal for many sectors.
Even for those who can meet their
professional obligations from home,
various distractions make it difficult
to get work done.
Malaysian Employers Federation
(MEF) executive director Datuk
Shamsuddin Bardan said businesses
and employees should be allowed to
decide whether to adopt the
arrangement.
School authorities told to assess students
KUALA LUMPUR: School
authorities have been instructed to
observe and assess the performance
of the five million students who are
back in classes for face-to-face
learning.
Education Director-General Dr
Habibah Abdul Rahim said this is
necessary to ensure that no one
drops out.
“If we know the performance of
students, we can close the gap in the
learning process.”
The Education Ministry has
aligned the curriculum, in terms of
content, pedagogy and assessment,
Haj quota for Malaysians increased by 10,000
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia has agreed to
raise the haj quota for Malaysia by
another 10,000 places.
In addition, the Saudi
government will increase palm oil
imports from Malaysia from 318,000
tonnes last year to 500,000 tonnes
this year.
The value of palm oil exported to
the Middle Eastern country last year
was RM900 million.
These were among the takeaways
in the four-day official visit by Prime
Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin to
the kingdom.
oSome employees find distractions at home
counterproductive and stressful, survey shows
“It should not be made
compulsory.”
He was commenting on a
statement by Muhyiddin that the
government is looking into extending
the WFH arrangement with full pay
for both public and private sector
staff to enable workers to care for
ailing family members or, in the case
of men, to help their wives look after
newborn children.
Shamsuddin said the views of all
stakeholders should be considered
before such a policy is formulated.
He said the MEF Fringe Benefits
Survey 2020 revealed that 49.3% of
workers interviewed complained of
to facilitate the move, she added.
Primary school children and
preschoolers started classes again
this month, while secondary school
students will follow next month,
after a year of home learning forced
by the Covid-19 pandemic.
“The ministry also held a
transition programme for Year One
pupils this year, an intervention
programme for preschoolers who
could not attend school (last year),
and have now moved to Year One,”
she said yesterday in an interview on
“One-Year of Achievement of the
Ministry of Education” on the
Muhyiddin, who has left for the
United Arab Emirates on the second
leg of his tour, said Malaysia also
signed a memorandum of
understanding with Saudi Arabia to
ease and simplify the pre-clearance
process for Malaysian haj and
umrah pilgrims, making it the first
country listed on the “Mecca Road
Service” initiative.
“All we had before this was a mere
pilot project. With this initiative, it
will be a permanent feature,” a
diplomat said.
The higher haj quota was agreed
too many distractions at home. Half
of them also said teamwork was
lacking.
Of the 138 people who responded
to the survey, 89.9% said they were
not able to work from home.
Shamsuddin pointed out that
some tasks, such as in production,
have to be performed on-site. “For
these jobs, employees have no option
but to be physically present on all
work days.”
On the issue of benefits, he said
that for employees who are entitled to
a fixed transport allowance, this
benefit should only be suspended on
days when they work from home.
Selamat Pagi Malaysia programme
produced by RTM’s TV1.
She said the transition
programme for Year One pupils was
aimed at managing pupils’ socio-
emotional aspects, attitude, literacy
and numeracy factors so that they
would not be left behind.
The reopening of secondary
schools on April 4 involves Group A,
namely Johor, Kelantan and
Terengganu, while other states in
Group B will start school sessions on
April 5.
She added that at the primary
school level, almost three million
to during an audience the prime
minister had with Prince
Mohammed bin Salman bin
Abdulaziz Al-Saud, the Crown
Prince, who is also the kingdom’s
deputy prime minister and minister
of defence, at the Al-Yamamah
Palace here on the final day of the
visit, Bernama reported.
To raise ties to a higher level, both
countries have also agreed to set up
the Saudi-Malaysian Coordination
Council to pave the way for regular
consultations and follow-up on
matters of mutual interest
Mother of two school-going
children Theresa Ng, 35, said that
being a marketing manager, it is
difficult for her to fully focus on her
work if she is at home.
“For some, it may be a blessing but
not for me, as I end up having to
juggle both work and household
chores. If I am at home, of course my
biggest distractions are my two
daughters as they are bound to seek
my help with their school homework.
“If I work at the office, it would go
a long way in helping to keep my
stress level in check. I will be able to
fully focus on my work. At home, God
forbid, my emotions could be
unstable and I am worried that
someday, I might just lose my temper
with my kids.”
Siti Hamidah Mohamad Nor Azli,
a senior human resource manager in
a retail company in the Klang Valley,
Pupils of SJK(C)
Khai Chee,
Segambut,
Kuala Lumpur
on the first day
of their return
to classes.
– ADIB RAWI
YAHYA/
THESUN
students at 7,781 schools nationwide
returned to classes.
Issues raised by parents such as
school uniforms and safety of school
children were also given due
attention by the ministry, she said,
adding that flexibility was given to
students to wear appropriate and
neat clothes to attend school from
March 1 to March 26.
She explained that the ministry
had allocated RM300 million for the
provision of thermometers, hand
sanitisers, soap and other necessities
in schools to ensure the safety and
health of students. – Bernama
and benefit.
The two leaders also spoke on the
economy, defence, education, food
security, trade and investment in
their discussion.
Commenting on criticisms by
certain quarters in Malaysia over his
official visit, Muhyiddin said:
“What’s important is the outcome of
the visit. What the rakyat want from
this visit and its outcome.”
The official visit, at the invitation
of King Salman bin Abdulaziz
Al-Saud, was carried out under strict
standard operating procedures.
suggested that WFH should be
presented as a choice for employees.
“The phrase: ‘Don’t take your
work stress home with you’ is not
applicable if you are working from
home,” she pointed out.
“Truly, having to juggle household
chores, looking after the children and
attending to work at the same time
will be a total nightmare. It will be a
train wreck for any woman,” she
added.
Congress of Unions of Employees
in the Public and Civil Services
president Adnan Mat said on
Tuesday that a comprehensive
approach is needed if the WFH
concept is to be extended.
“Facilities should be provided to
achieve the desired productivity level
and prevent employees from getting
blamed if they cannot perform well
when working from home.”
‘Use travel bubble
initiative to
boost tourism’
KUALA LUMPUR: The Ministry of
Tourism, Arts and Culture wants
Malaysians and local tourism
companies to take advantage of the
Targeted Tourism Bubble initiative to
boost domestic tourism.
Its minister, Datuk Seri Nancy
Shukri, said the “bubble”, which
allows travel between states under
the recovery movement control
order (RMCO), would indirectly
open up space and opportunities for
businesses in the sector to return to
full operations.
“Certainly, this can be the
beginning of a new chapter, as a
catalyst for the industry to rise again,
further helping the survival of
workers involved in the tourism
sector,” she said in a
statement yesterday.
Nancy said it was a good move
that the government has now
allowed direct activities for the
creative industry in RMCO and
conditional movement control order
zones.
The activities include official
government programmes, music,
arts, dance, theatre, musicals,
comedy, cultural and heritage
performances. – Bernama
Proposal to raise
Socso contribution
KUALA LUMPUR: The Human
Resources Ministry is studying a
need to raise Social Security
Organisation (Socso) contributions
under the Employees’ Social Security
Act 1969 (Act 4) without adding to the
people’s burden.
Its minister, Datuk Seri
M. Saravanan, said the contribution
rate had never been raised since the
agency was established in 1971,
adding that his ministry found
contributions had increased from all
job sectors, including from the
informal sector.
“The people are more aware of the
benefits (of Socso) because they
provide protection. I believe the
situation calls for a slight increase
that will not burden the people …
maybe we can increase it by RM1 or
RM2 to widen the protection.
“From 1971 until today, total
contributions have risen by over
100% but we have never raised the
rate. Employees now contribute 0.5%
of their monthly salary to Socso.”
– Bernama
 3
theSUN ON THURSDAY | MARCH 11, 2021

NEWS WITHOUT BORDERS

World climate change challenges

oLeadership and
policies big factors
in addressing
global warming
█ BY HAKEM HASSAN
newsdesk@thesundaily.com
PETALING JAYA: Corporate
leadership and alignment of
policies are key to addressing global
climate issues.
Corporations must be more
sensitive to the risk of climate change
vis-a-vis its impact on investment
opportunities. At the same time,
government policies have to strike a
balance among economic, climate
and energy priorities.
Only when these challenges are
met can the promises of the 2016
Paris Agreement on addressing
climate change be achieved, said
Datin Seri Sunita Rajakumar, who
founded Climate Governance
Malaysia (CGM) in May 2019.
Malaysia is the first and only
country in Asia and second in the
world to join the Climate
Governance Initiative (CGI).
National associations like CGM,
known as “chapters”, work together
to promote the adoption of the World
Economic Forum Principles for
Effective Climate Governance.
Sunita, who will represent
Malaysia at the CGI Global Summit
2021 on March 23, told theSun that it
has become more important now for
businesses to demonstrate an
integrated and strategic approach
towards addressing climate change.
“To achieve this, the leadership in
corporations, specifically the board of
directors, must be equipped with the
right tools to make the best possible
decision for the long-term resilience
of their organisations.”
Sunita said the factor that will
determine whether humanity will
succeed in delivering the promises of
the Paris Agreement is no longer just
about de-carbonising the world’s
energy systems.
“We are now facing a triple crisis –
climate, biodiversity and pollution. It
is important that we are able to
preserve biodiversity to maintain the
carbon sinks in the natural
ecosystem,” she said, adding that it
would entail transforming the world’s
food production systems.
“Apart from a high degree of buy-
in for stated national ambitions (on
addressing climate issues) and the
involvement of the private sector or
industries, there must be sound
understanding of public sentiment
for climate problems to be solved.”
She said policies on economic
development, energy generation and
climate change must complement
one another to preserve the socio-
economic well-being of the people.
The urgent need for action to be
taken immediately to implement
climate governance to enhance
resilience will be the key message
and recommendation that CGM will
present at the March 23 summit.
Sunita noted that while many
other policies and regulations can
help (in addressing climate change),
“we are still a long way from where
the carbon price needs to be” in order
to get to zero carbon emission.
She said a number of companies
have already committed to ensuring
zero-carbon emission from their
operations, the generation of the
power they use and in the global
supply chain.
Carbon in the atmosphere creates
a greenhouse effect, thereby raising
temperatures. An increase in the
global temperature above 2°C would
have a catastrophic impact.
“Therefore, this transformation
(in the effort to reduce carbon
emissions) must be the most
significant in economic history. Two
degrees is the limit.
“If any investor continues to
demand higher returns at the
expense of climate stability, we will
have a problem,” she said.
“Any activity that puts resilience at
risk is not in anyone’s interest.”
The March 23 global summit, to
be convened online, will bring
together business leaders, regulators,
experts, the academia and corporate
governance experts to discuss and
take steps towards reducing the risk
of a climate emergency.

‘Very difficult to change current political trend’ Increased checks

Universiti Teknologi Malaysia told theSun.
geostrategist Prof Dr Azmi Hassan made “It will be very difficult to move away
sidestepping the government’s and the
people’s agendas.”
on open burning
the observation that the country’s from this kind of politics,” he added. Azmi said this has led to the view that JOHOR BARU: The Department of
political direction has remained He said accusations that the PN the government is under the control of Environment (DoE) in Johor has received 213
the same after 60 years of From government has not been an just one group of people. reports on open burning from Jan 1 to March 9.
independence. front effective administration stem from He believes that it is possible for State Health and Environment Committee
“Political parties in this page the fact that none of the member Malaysia to eventually move away from chairman R. Vidyananthan said Johor DoE,
country are mostly race-based. parties share the same ideology. race-based politics “but it will take time”. together with other relevant agencies were
“They count on people of the “Circumstances put them together to He said one way was for race-based implementing several measures to prevent
same race and religion for support, not serve a need. They also bring along their parties to band together to represent the open burning, especially conducting physical
people who share the same ideology,” he individual political agendas, thereby real structure of Malaysian society. patrols to monitor such activity by irresponsible
parties.
“The frequency of air monitoring through
New policy to woo the use of drones in fire risk and flammable
areas such as peat land and landfills has been

quality investors
KUALA LUMPUR: The government will
introduce a new national investment policy
to attract more high-quality investors as the
country moves towards a high-income
nation, said Senior Minister (International
Trade and Industry) Datuk Seri Mohamed
Azmin Ali.
He said a working paper on the proposed
policy has been approved and endorsed by
the Economic Action Council (EAC) and
will be presented to the Cabinet this month.
“After long deliberations and
engagement with Bank Negara Malaysia,
the Ministry of Finance (MoF) and the
Malaysian Investment Development
Authority (Mida), we thought it is timely for
us to introduce this new investment policy.
“The purpose of this national investment
aspiration is to attract quality and
technological investment so that we can
prepare our workforce to meet the
industry’s demand,” he said after attending
a special assembly at the Ministry of
International Trade and Industry (Miti)
yesterday.
Following deliberations among Miti, EAC
and Mida, Mohamed Azmin said it was
decided that a proposal to introduce new
incentives to attract foreign investors into
Malaysia will be further discussed with MoF.
In another development, Mohamed
Azmin said the National Security Council
has approved the implementation of the
Safe@Work initiative, which will be officially
launched by Prime Minister Tan Sri
Muhyiddin Yassin in the coming weeks.
He said the initiative will create an
“industry bubble” between workers who
have been identified as close contacts of
Covid-19 positive cases and their
workplace, so that the industry will remain
operational and productive.
“We will segregate the workers who are
close contacts, and create a ‘bubble’
between the hostel and the factory so that
the workers will be transported within the
‘bubble ’.
“The business will continue to operate so
that they can increase production and
productivity. I am also happy that this
initiative has the support of the industries,”
he added. – Bernama
raised, and communication, education and
public awareness programmes have also been
enhanced,” he said in a statement yesterday.
Vidyananthan added that Johor DoE
constantly monitors air quality through eight
DOE automated stations in the state, and
weather forecasts by the Malaysian
Meteorological Department, apart from
stepping up enforcement.
He said air pollutant index (API) readings at
the eight DoE automated stations at 9am
yesterday showed that one station recorded
good air quality, six stations recorded moderate
levels while one station recorded unhealthy
levels.
Vidyananthan also advised the public,
especially landowners, to monitor their land,
especially in areas that can easily catch fire such
as peat land, agricultural areas, farms,
construction sites, landfills, forests, bushes and
industrial areas. – Bernama
Northern gateway
to boost economy
PUTRAJAYA: The potential of the Kota
Perdana Special Border Economic Zone
(SBEZ) in Bukit Kayu Hitam, Kedah to attract
new investments will accelerate the
government’s efforts to revive the economy
post-Covid-19, said Finance Minister Tengku
Datuk Seri Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz.
He said the border town of Bukit Kayu
Hitam has the advantage of being the main
gateway for cross-border trade in the northern
region.
“The main gateway in the north for cross-
border trade with an estimated value of RM40
billion yearly should be capitalised on to the
maximum,” he said at the signing of a land deal
at SBEZ between Hartalega NSM Sdn Bhd and
Northern Gateway Free Zone Sdn Bhd
yesterday.
Northern Gateway Free Zone is a subsidiary
of Northern Gateway Sdn Bhd, the principal
operator of SBEZ, which is also a wholly-owned
entity of Minister of Finance Incorporated.
Tengku Zafrul said the development of
property components in SBEZ was part of the
GREEN INCOME ... Mohamad Syafiq Osman and his wife Diani Iqlema Mohd Radzi checking Finance Ministry’s efforts to rebrand the
a tank used to cultivate Wolffia, commonly called watermeal or duckweed, that the couple sells development concept at the border town.
as high-protein aquatic pet feed. – BERNAMAPIX – Bernama
 4 theSUN ON THURSDAY | MARCH 11, 2021
NEWS WITHOUT BORDERS
Fighting Covid-19
war in the lab
oVarsity examines, tracks killer organisms that
cause infectious diseases to contain outbreaks
KUCHING: It is like a scene from CSI: Crime
Scene Investigation. The immaculately placed
microscopes, petri dishes and test tubes are a
familiar sight for fans of the American forensics
crime drama series.
But instead of solving murder cases, this
laboratory at the Institute of Health and
Community Medicine (IHCM) in Universiti
Malaysia Sarawak looks for significantly tinier
killers – organisms that cause infectious diseases.
Since the outbreak of Covid-19 a year ago,
IHCM has been at the forefront of the campaign
to contain the infection.
Its work on testing samples and genome
sequencing to detect changes in the virus has led
to the discovery of two variants of the Covid-19
virus that are different from the one found in
Sarawak during the outbreak’s initial stage in
March last year.
The new strains are similar to the ones found
in Indonesia and the United Kingdom, but there
is no evidence they are more infectious.
The discovery of the new variants underlines
the importance of constant genome surveillance,
said IHCM director Prof Dr David Perera.
“We need to know if the virus is changing and,
if it does, where the changes are because they
affect the efficacy of the vaccine.
“There will then be a potential for the vaccine
to fail, which means, we may not get the
protection we need (even with the vaccine).”
18,010
1,448 151
7 betamethasone 17-valerate, which are
19
20
99
83
561
103
0 “The substance can also affect the
11
273
Perera explained that some of the Covid-19
vaccines now only target certain proteins in the
virus and, if a mutation occurs, it will weaken the
effect of these vaccines like what happened in the
South Africa strain.
“So, we need to track changes in the virus for
at least the next one to two years as long as we still
have positive (Covid-19) cases.”
IHCM, which has four researchers and 20
staff, also plays an important role in responding
to any viral outbreak in Sarawak, like the measles
outbreak some time ago.
Perera told Bernama scientists are globally
looking at different variants of the virus as huge
numbers of Covid-19 genome sequences are
being submitted daily through online
data-sharing platforms like Gisaid.
Gisaid is an online initiative that promotes
rapid sharing of data on flu viruses, including the
coronavirus that causes Covid-19. Through these
collective depositories, researchers from all over
the world can see the origins of a particular virus
and how it keeps changing.
“That’s how we are able to tell, for example,
that the virus we found (in February) is related to
the UK variant that was exported to Indonesia
and became a prevalent strain there.
“There are six to seven entities in Malaysia that
have contributed to the depositories. IHCM is
among the three biggest contributors from the
country,” he said.
317,717
298,516 1,191
2,137 5 Poisonous substances found in cosmetic cream
8 yesterday the notification of the cosmetic
1 0
10
54
199
Malaysia’s efforts against virus
impressive, says US envoy
KUALA LUMPUR: The United States
Ambassador-designate to Malaysia Brian
McFeeters said he is very impressed with
Malaysia’s responses to Covid-19.
He said these include the efforts in
preventing the spread of the virus and
treating the Covid-19 patients, as well as the
vaccination programme, Bernama reported.
“The whole world is challenged by this
crisis, every country is doing its best,” he said.
“I think Malaysia, from what I understand,
I’m not an expert, but Malaysia is doing a
wonderful job.”
McFeeters was speaking to reporters after
witnessing the handing of US contribution to
the Covid-19 Integrated Quarantine and
Treatment Centre 2.0 at the Malaysia Agro
Exposition Park Serdang yesterday.
The donation, consisting of Covid-19 test
kits and personal protective equipment
(PPE) worth US$75,000 (RM309,000), was
provided by the US Department of Defence,
United States Indo-Pacific Command
Overseas Humanitarian, Disaster and Civic
Aid office.
“I hope this donation of PPE and quick
test kit benefits the frontliners.
“I hope the donation is a recognition of
our long-standing close relationship and
joint effort to provide humanitarian
assistance during
the crisis,”
McFeeters (left) and Selangor Health Director Datuk Dr Sha’ari Ngadiman during the presentation of
contributions to the Health Ministry at the Malaysia Agro Exposition Park Serdang 2.0 Integrated
Hospital yesterday.
KUALA LUMPUR: The FS Turmeric Cream, a
cosmetic product to treat pimples and acne
scars, has been found to contain mercury and
harmful to health.
Health Director-General Tan Sri Dr Noor
Hisham Abdullah said in a statement
product has been cancelled by the
Pharmaceutical Services director of the
Health Ministry and is not allowed to be sold
in the country.
“Mercury is prohibited in cosmetic
products because it is harmful to health.
When absorbed into the body, mercury can
cause damage to the kidney and nervous
system.
development of the brain in infants as well as
cause rashes, irritation and changes to the
skin. The people are advised not to use the
cosmetic product.”
He said the cream also contained
betamethasone 17-valerate, which is a
medicine registered with the drug control
McFeeters said, in fluent Malay.
US companies in Malaysia have also been
active, with over RM7 million contributed to
Covid-19 relief efforts over the last year.
The US is committed towards global
Covid-19 relief efforts, and the country has
pledged US$4 billion through 2022 with half
already given to Covax, making it the largest
contributor to the Covax effort.
On US-Malaysia relationship, he said
apart from the Covid-19 pandemic, the
embassy is focused on building stronger ties
between the two countries in any way
possible.
“The three main areas are the economic
relationship, security relationship and
people to people ties, such as exchange
programmes, education and learning about
each other’s systems that include maybe
having (Malaysia’s) members of parliament
visit the US Congress.
In terms of economic ties, McFeeters said
both countries have very impressive and
continuous trade with about
US$60 billion every year. The United States
has also invested about US$10 billion in
Malaysia, which produced close to 100,000
jobs for Malaysians.
“So one of my priorities as ambassador is
(to) try to build on both trade and
investment,” he
added.
authority, and can only be used on the advice
of a health professional.
The substance can cause side effects such
as thinning of the skin, irritation, or risk being
absorbed into the blood stream.
He said retailers and distributors of the
cosmetic product have to remove the item
from their shelves immediately.
Selling and distributing the product would
be a violation of the Control of Drugs and
Cosmetics Regulations 1984.
Individuals infringing the regulation can
be fined not more than RM25,000 or jailed not
more than three years or both for the first
offence and fined not more than RM50,000 or
jail not more than five years or both for the
subsequent offences.
Members of the public are encouraged to
check the notification status of a cosmetic
product by surfing official National
Pharmaceutical Regulatory Agency’s (NPRA)
website at ww.npra.gov.my or download the
application of NPRA Product Status
application available on Google Play Store.
– Bernama

Help for women to better themselves
█ BY SHIVANI SUPRAMANI
newsdesk@thesundaily.com
PETALING JAYA: Non-governmental
organisation (NGO) Women of Will
(WOW) aims to live up to its acronym
by transforming the lives of
disadvantaged women in Malaysia.
WOW president Datin Goh Suet
Ling said the organisation, which was
formed in 2016, targets B40 women,
their families and the communities
they live in.
“Our efforts focus on supporting
B40 women – prioritising single
mothers as they are the most
economically-vulnerable, having to
support themselves and their
families,” she told theSun.
WOW also works with the
communities these women live in by
developing and carrying out
sustainable initiatives.
“A community kitchen was set up
at the Batu Muda People’s Housing
Project (PPR), while a sewing centre
was opened at the Program
Perumahan Rakyat Termiskin (PPRT)
in Lembah Subang.
Ghafar Baba’s
son charged
over offensive
statement
JOHOR BARU: Former Batu
Berendam MP Datuk Mohd
Tamrin Abdul Ghafar pleaded not
guilty in a sessions court here
yesterday to a charge of making an
offensive statement against the
Johor royalty on his blog last year.
Mohd Tamrin, 71, who is also
the son of the late former deputy
prime minister Tun Abdul Ghafar
Baba, claimed trial after the charge
was read out to him before judge
Wan Mohd Norisham Wan Yaakob.
According to the charge sheet,
Mohd Tamrin, using his blog
“tamrintunghafar”, knowingly
communicated the words that are
offensive in nature with the
intention to hurt the feelings of
other people.
The words were posted on the
Facebook page of “Dato Tamrin
Tun Abdul Ghafar”.
The blog posting was in relation
to an article about the Tunku
Mahkota of Johor, Tunku Ismail
Sultan Ibrahim as well as the Sultan
of Johor, Sultan Ibrahim Sultan
Iskandar.
Mohd Tamrin, who is currently
unemployed, is alleged to have
committed the offence at the
Media RPO Services office in Jalan
Persiaran Southkey 1, Kota
Southkey at about 7pm on Feb 2
last year.
He is charged under Section
233(1)(a) of the Communications
and Multimedia Act 1998 (Act 588).
If convicted, Mohd Tamrin is liable
to a fine not exceeding RM50,000 or
imprisonment for up to a year, or
both.
He will also be liable to a further
penalty of RM1,000 per day, for
every day that the offence is
continued after his conviction.
Wan Mohd Norisham set bail at
RM8,000 in one surety and fixed
May 23 for case management.
General Crimes and Public
Order Unit head Datuk Yusaini
Amer Abdul Karim and Johor
prosecution director Tengku Amir
Zaki Tengku Abd Rahman
prosecuted the case. – Bernama
oNGO aims to develop and carry out
sustainable initiatives for B40 group, single
mothers, families and their communities
“These are important as they
provide not only sustainable income
but also job opportunities in the
vicinity these women live,” Goh said.
Additionally, the organisation’s
mission is to empower women
and their communities towards
self-sustainability.
“Through our entrepreneurship
development programme – which
provides a combination of
interest-free micro-credit support,
marketing training, financial literacy
and communication, skills training
and business coaching – women are
empowered to start their own
businesses, become financially
independent and be in a strong
position to care for themselves and
their families.
“Similarly, community leaders are
HUGE HAUL ... Police checking cartons of illegal cigarettes at the Pontian police headquarters yesterday that were
seized from a cargo ship off Pulau Kukup in Johor. – BERNAMAPIX
Christians allowed to use the word ‘Allah’
KUALA LUMPUR: The High Court
has ruled that Christians nationwide
can use the word “Allah” and three
other Arabic words in their religious
publications for educational
purposes.
The three other words are
“Baitullah”, “Kaabah” and “solat”.
The ruling, by Appeal Judge
Datuk Nor Bee Ariffin, sitting as High
Court judge, came in a decision to
allow a judicial review application by
a Sarawak native Christian Jill
Ireland Lawrence Bill.
In the application, Jill Ireland had
sought, among others, a declaration
that it is her constitutional right to
have access to Christian publications
in the exercise of her rights to
practise her religion and right to
education, as provided under Article
11 of the Federal Constitution.
She also wanted the court to
declare the Home Ministry’s 1986
circular to ban the word “Allah” in
Christian publications as
unconstitutional and unlawful.
In her ruling, Nor Bee held that
groomed within each of the
communities we work with,
providing them with the knowledge
and skill sets required to help them
develop their own community’s
sustainability,” she said.
Goh said WOW is committed
towards what it does, in order to build
trust with the women beneficiaries
and their communities.
“It is critical that we share our
goals and objectives with them from
the start, and are committed to
delivering them.
“Many of the women and
communities have been in situations
of unfulfilled programmes and
promises. When this happens,
mistrust grows,” she added.
Although WOW subscribes to the
proverb “teach a man to fish rather
the directive by the Home Ministry in
1986 not to allow the use of the four
words is filled with illegality and
irrationality.
“The use of the words would not
disrupt public order,” she said.
She added that the words could
also be used by the community for
teaching purposes as they have been
in use for more than 400 years.
When contacted, Senior Federal
Counsel Shamsul Bolhassan, who
acted for the Home Ministry and the
government, confirmed that the four
words can be used by Christians for
their religious publications.
“However, publications that
contain the four words must carry a
disclaimer that it is intended for
Christians only as well as a cross
symbol,” he said.
The legal battle over the matter
started 13 years ago after Jill Ireland
commenced the judicial review
application on Aug 20, 2008 for the
return of eight (compact discs) CDs
which were seized from her on May
11, 2008, upon her arrival at the Low-
theSUN ON THURSDAY | MARCH 11, 2021
* NEWS WITHOUT BORDERS
than give him a fish”, the effects of the
pandemic have been unprecedented
and have left a debilitating impact on
the B40 communities.
“Our surveys found 70% of our
women beneficiaries were unable to
run their businesses and had utilised
their savings. However, basic
necessities are essential and thanks
to the urgent response and generosity
of our partners and funders, food aid
was provided to these women and
their communities over two to three
times in the past year.
“We also realised that the women
needed to get back into their
businesses, hence, digital marketing
programmes were launched to help
create online marketing platforms,
such as the WOW Ramadan bazaar,”
she said.
“Our partners were also able to
provide capital, enabling these
women to restart their businesses
when their savings were depleted.
The pandemic had also caused
high stress levels and anxiety,
especially to those living in confined
spaces with many children and with
Cost Carrier Terminal in Sepang.
The CDs were with the titles “Cara
Hidup Dalam Kerajaan Allah”,
“Hidup Benar Dalam Kerajaan
Allah” and “Ibadah Yang Benar
Dalam Kerajaan Allah”.
She filed the judicial review
application to challenge the seizure
of the CDs as well as to seek a
declaration that it was within her
constitutional rights to use of
the word “Allah” in Christian
publications.
The High Court had in July 2014
held that the Home Ministry was
wrong to seize the CDs and ordered
it be returned, but did not decide on
the constitutional issues raised by
the woman.
In June 2015, the Court of Appeal
directed the Home Ministry to return
the CDs after dismissing the appeal
by the two (Home Ministry and
Government).
The Court of Appeal in the ruling
also remitted the matter back to the
High Court to hear on the
constitutional issues. – Bernama
5
little or no income opportunities.
WOW helped these women and their
children to get access to emotional
support through partnerships with
other NGOs, she said.
“A community sewing centre was
set up at the start of the pandemic last
year. Although equipped with basics,
the drafting tables and sewing
machines set up in a shop lot
adjacent to PPRT in Lembah Subang
enabled the women to earn an
income during the movement control
order. They stitched personal
protective equipments while
contributing to the efforts of
frontliners.”
To celebrate WOW’s fifth year, the
organisation will be launching a
Community Leadership programme,
which will see 30 leaders across nine
PPRs coming together to be trained,
share their learning experiences and
to implement community projects.
For more information on WOW
and its upcoming events, visit
their official website at
www.womenofwill.org.my. or
contact them at 03-6211 7555.
Cabbie found
hanged in lock-up
KUALA LUMPUR: A 54-year-old taxi
driver, held in police custody over a
drug-related offence, was found
hanged in his lock-up at the Cheras
police station on Monday.
Clothing issued to detainees were
found coiled around the man’s neck
and he was found hanging from a grill
of the lock-up.
Cheras police chief ACP
Mohamed Mokhsein Mohamed Zon
said the taxi driver was spotted by
police personnel on duty when they
were attending to other detainees at
an adjacent cell at 12.30pm on the
same day.
Mohamed Mokhsein said the
deceased was arrested on March 4 for
drug possession. The man, who
tested positive for drug abuse, had
four criminal records.
Mohamed Moksein said the case
has been classified as sudden death
and an internal investigation is under
way by the police Integrity and
Standard Compliance Department.
– by Charles Ramendran
Murder case
solved, say cops
KAJANG: Police believe they have
solved the murder of a 32-year-old
manager with the arrest of a male
colleague yesterday.
Selangor police CID chief SAC
Datuk Fadzil Ahmat said the 57-year-
old suspect had led police to several
locations where items linked to the
case were seized.
“We received information after
questioning the suspect and carried
out a series of raids where we found
items that could help in the
investigations. The case was solved in
less than 24 hours after the case was
open,” he said.
On Monday morning, Nik
Khatijah Nik Mud, a staff of
non-governmental organisation
Ikram Malaysia, was found strangled
to death at her house in Taman Bangi,
Jalan Reko. She was believed to have
been dead for more than 24 hours.
Hours later, police arrested her
colleague and obtained a six-day
remand order to detain him for
further investigations.
 6 theSUN ON THURSDAY | MARCH 11, 2021
NEWS WITHOUT BORDERS

Aussie admits filming, taunting dying cops

CANBERRA: Richard Pusey, an
Australian national, has admitted to
celebrating and filming four police
officers who lay dying on the road
after being hit by a lorry that had
breached its lane on a freeway.
In April last year, the 42-year-old
mortgage broker was driving his
Porsche car on a Melbourne freeway
when four police officers stopped
him for speeding.
While they were completing the
formalities to arrest him, they were
struck by a passing lorry. Pusey, who
was standing a little away, avoided
the crash.
While the police officers lay on the
road, grievously injured, Pusey
pulled out his phone and filmed
them for over three minutes, BBC
News reported.
The four police officers – senior
constables Lynette Taylor and Kevin
King and constables Glen Humphris
and Josh Prestney – died at the crash
site.
According to local media, the
incident is the single biggest loss of
life in Victoria police’s history.
But before they died, Pusey stood
over and taunted Taylor while she
was pinned under the lorry.
According to the video from the
body camera worn by the constable,
Pusey said: “There you go. Amazing,
absolutely amazing … All I wanted
was to go home and have some
sushi” while using expletives
blaming police officers for ruining
his car before fleeing the scene.
Pusey was later arrested from his
home and was charged with offences
related to speeding, drug possession
and reckless conduct offences.
But the police later discovered his
video and found that he had shared it
with his friends as well.
Pusey’s comments in the video
had sparked public outrage.
He admitted to the rare charge of
outraging public decency.
According to local media, the
charge of outraging public decency is
rarely prosecuted in Australia and
there is no maximum penalty for the
charge in Australian law.
The next date of the court hearing
is March 31.
Mohinder Singh Bajwa, who was
driving the lorry, has also pleaded
guilty to the charges of culpable
driving causing death.
Bajwa is expected to face a court
hearing later this week.
– The Independent

Myanmar forces surround Russia slows Twitter,

threatens total block

and arrest protesters

oUN Security Council
fails to reach consensus
on condemning coup
YANGON: Myanmar security forces launched
tear gas and surrounded hundreds of
anti-junta protesters at two places in Yangon
yesterday, witnesses said, prompting the US
embassy to call for their withdrawal.
In New York, the UN Security Council
failed to agree on a statement that would have
condemned the coup in Myanmar, called for
restraint by the military and threatened to
consider “further measures”.
Talks on the statement would likely
continue, diplomats said, after China, Russia,
India and Vietnam all suggested amendments
late on Tuesday to a British draft, including
removal of the reference to a coup and the
threat to consider further action.
Police stormed a compound in Yangon
housing railway staff and surrounded
hundreds of protesters in North Okkalapa
banks, factories and shops since the army
ousted Aung San Suu Kyi’s elected
government on Feb 1.
“We are seeing reports of innocent
students and civilians surrounded by security
forces in North Okkalapa, as well as arrests,”
the US embassy said in a statement.
“We call on those security forces to
withdraw from the area, release those
detained, and allow people to depart safely.”
Police and army officials did not respond
to requests for comment.
Security forces have cracked down with
increasing force on daily, nationwide protests,
leaving the nation in turmoil.
More than 60 protesters have been killed
and 1,900 people have been arrested since the
coup, the Assistance Association for Political
Prisoners, an advocacy group, has said.
In Myanmar’s second city, Mandalay,
protesters staged a sit-in protest yesterday,
chanting: “The resolution must prevail”.
On Tuesday, Zaw Myat Linn, an official
from Suu Kyi’s National League for
Democracy, died in custody after he was
arrested, the second party figure to die in
detention in two days.
continue fighting the army, “even if it costs
our lives”.
Police on Tuesday also cracked down on
independent media, raiding the offices of two
news outlets and detaining two journalists.
At least 35 journalists have been arrested
since the Feb 1 coup, Myanmar Now
reported, of which 19 have been released.
Some police have refused orders to fire on
unarmed protesters and have fled to India,
according to an interview with one officer and
classified Indian police documents.
“As the civil disobedience movement is
gaining momentum and protest(s) held by
anti-coup protesters at different places we are
instructed to shoot at the protesters,” four
officers said in a joint statement to police in
the Indian city of Mizoram.
“In such a scenario, we don’t have the guts
to shoot at our own people who are peaceful
demonstrators.”
The junta has hired an Israeli-Canadian
lobbyist for US$2 million to “assist in
explaining the real situation” of the army’s
coup to several countries, documents filed
with the US Justice Department show.
Ari Ben-Menashe and his firm, Dickens &
BRIEFS
MOSCOW: Russia said yesterday it was slowing
down the speed of Twitter in retaliation for its
alleged failure to remove banned content and
threatened a total block if the US platform did
not comply with its deletion demands.
The move comes weeks after Russian
authorities accused Twitter of failing to delete
posts it said illegally urged children to take part
in anti-Kremlin protests.
Russia has traditionally taken a more
hands-off role in policing the internet than
China but as domestic political tensions rise
over the jailing of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny,
something which triggered nationwide protests,
it has signalled a tougher line.
Roskomnadzor, the state communications
regulator, said in a statement that as of yesterday
there were more than 3,000 posts containing
illegal content on Twitter, which it accused of
ignoring its deletion requests for years.
The regulator did not mention content
related to protests in yesterday’s statement, but
referred to what it said was illegal content on
Twitter containing child pornography,
information about drug abuse and calls for
minors to commit suicide.
“The slowing down will be applied to 100%
of mobile devices and on 50% of non-mobile
devices. If (Twitter) continues to ignore the
requirements of the law, the enforcement
measures will be continued ... (right up to
blocking it),” Roskomnadzor said. – Reuters

district, in another part of the city, yesterday.
More than 100 people were arrested at the
two sites, witnesses said.
Many of the railway staff are part of a civil
disobedience movement that has crippled
government business and included strikes at
“He’s been participating continuously in
the protests,” said Ba Myo Thein, a member of
the dissolved upper house of parliament.
The cause of death was not clear.
In a Facebook live broadcast before he was
detained, Zaw Myat Linn urged people to
Madson Canada, will represent Myanmar’s
military government in Washington, as well as
lobby Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates,
Israel and Russia, and international bodies
such as the United Nations, according to a
consultancy agreement. – Reuters
LINKEDIN CHINA SUSPENDS
NEW SIGN-UPS
BEIJING: Microsoft-owned social network
LinkedIn has halted new member sign-ups
for its service in China while it reviews its
compliance with local laws. LinkedIn has had
a Chinese-language presence since 2014,
when it decided to expand by agreeing to
stick to strict censorship laws, and now has
over 50 million users in China. “We’re a global
platform with an obligation to respect the
laws that apply to us, including adhering to
Chinese government regulations for our
localised version of LinkedIn in China,“ the
firm said in a notice dated Tuesday. – AFP

U.K. COVID VARIANT HAS

HIGHER DEATH RATE
LONDON: The UK variant of Covid-19 is
between 30% and 100% more deadly than
previous strains. In a study that compared
death rates among people in Britain infected
with the B.1.1.7 variant, against those
infected with other strains, scientists said the
new variant had “significantly higher”
mortality. In the UK study, published in the
British Medical Journal yesterday, infection
with the UK variant led to 227 deaths in a
sample of 54,906 patients, compared with
141 among the same number of patients
infected with other variants. – Reuters

BIDEN TO MEET LEADERS OF

AUSTRALIA, INDIA, JAPAN
WASHINGTON: US President Joe Biden will
hold first-ever joint talks tomorrow with the
leaders of Australia, India and Japan,
boosting an emerging four-way alliance
often cast as a bulwark against China. It will
be one of the first summits, albeit in virtual
format, for Biden, who has vowed to revive
US alliances in the wake of the disarray of
Donald Trump’s administration. The meeting
of the so-called “Quad” comes amid rising
CRY FREEDOM ... Tibetan exile activists shouting slogans after being detained by police during a protest to commemorate the anniversary of the tensions with China. – AFP
1959 Tibetan uprising against Chinese rule, outside China’s embassy in New Delhi yesterday. – AFPPIX

‘Honduras president helped smuggle tons of cocaine into US’
WASHINGTON: Honduran President
Juan Orlando Hernandez helped
smuggle tons of cocaine into the
United States, a US prosecutor said
on Tuesday at the trial of an accused
drug trafficker.
That defendant, Geovanny
Fuentes, bribed the president with
US$25,000 in cash and this made him
“untouchable”, prosecutor Jacob
Gutwillig said in opening arguments
at the New York federal trial.
Queen Elizabeth vows
to address racism claims
oAssurance given that issue will be taken
seriously and dealt with ‘by the family privately’
LONDON: Queen Elizabeth II on
Tuesday responded to explosive
racism claims from grandson
Prince Harry and his wife Meghan,
voicing deep concern and
sympathising with their troubles
with royal life.
“The whole family is saddened
to learn the full extent of how
challenging the last few years have
been for Harry and Meghan,” she
said in a statement.
“The issues raised, particularly
that of race, are concerning. While
COMPASSIONATE ENFORCEMENT ... A Texas state trooper persuading asylum-seeking migrants Edith and her son Ordonez, four, to come out of hiding
after the Honduran nationals crossed the Rio Grande River into the United States from Mexico on a raft on Tuesday. – REUTERSPIX
Hackers breach cameras at banks, jails and Tesla
WASHINGTON: A US hacker
collective on Tuesday claimed to
have tapped into footage from
150,000 security cameras at banks,
jails, schools, carmaker Tesla and
other sites to expose “the surveillance
state”.
Images captured from hacked
videos were posted on Twitter with
an #OperationPanopticon hashtag.
The president, said the prosecutor,
“made the defendant bullet-proof”.
Fuentes paid the money to
Hernandez in meetings in 2013 and
2014, the prosecutor said.
Hernandez, who denies all the
allegations against him, has been in
power since January 2014.
Accountant Jose Sanchez, who
was at those meetings, will tell the
jury “the shock, the fear he felt
when he saw the defendant sitting
some recollections may vary, they
are taken very seriously and will be
addressed by the family privately.”
Buckingham Palace has come
under mounting pressure to
respond to the claims made in an
Oprah Winfrey interview first
broadcast on Sunday, which
triggered a crisis unseen since the
1990s.
It set off a whirl of speculation
about the identity of the senior royal
who asked how dark their child’s
skin would be before he was born.
“What if we just absolutely ended
surveillance capitalism in two days?”
a purported member of a group
called APT-69420 Arson Cats asked
amid a string of tweeted images.
“This is the tip of the tip of the tip
of the iceberg.”
The hacker group claimed to have
ferreted out credentials of an high
level administrator account at Silicon
with the president”, Gutwillig said.
Sanchez worked at a rice-growing
company through which the
defendant laundered money, the
prosecutor alleged.
This witness will tell the jury that
the president told Fuentes “that
they’d transport so much cocaine
into the US they’d shove the drugs up
the noses of the gringos”, Gutwillig
said.
Defence attorney Eylan Schulman
Meghan, whose mother is black
and father is white, also spoke about
how she had suicidal thoughts but
failed to receive any support during
her time in the royal family.
The claims reportedly left the
palace in turmoil and scrambling
how best to address it.
Prince Charles, Harry’s father,
earlier ignored a question about
what he made of the interview
during a public appearance.
A YouGov poll of 4,656 people
after the interview aired on British
television on Monday indicated 32%
felt the couple was unfairly treated,
the same proportion as those who
thought the opposite.
Attempts have been made to
draw in Prime Minister Boris
Valley firm Verkada, which runs a
platform operating security systems
online.
“We have disabled all internal
administrator accounts to prevent
any unauthorised access,” a Verkada
spokesman told AFP.
“Our internal security team and
external security firm are
investigating the scale and scope of
theSUN ON THURSDAY | MARCH 11, 2021
NEWS WITHOUT BORDERS
tried to discredit what the witness
allegedly plans to tell the jury.
“Supposedly US$25,000 is all it
costs to bribe a president,” he said.
Sanchez, Schulman said, “has a
lot to gain and little to lose. He has an
asylum application pending with the
immigration service”.
Prosecutors consider Hernandez
to be a co-conspirator of Fuentes in
smuggling tons of cocaine to the US
but they have not charged him.
BRIEFS
Johnson, who has himself been
accused of racism.
But he refused to comment, even
as calls mounted for a full inquiry
and the White House and former US
secretary of state Hillary Clinton
spoke out.
Over 17 million viewers watched
Winfrey’s two-hour interview with
Harry and Meghan on US
broadcaster CBS on Sunday night.
More than 11 million people then
tuned in to watch it in full on
Britain’s ITV, the channel said.
Breakfast TV presenter Piers
Morgan, who accused Meghan of
fabricating the claims, quit his show
on Tuesday, after more than 41,000
complaints about his comments to
the regulator. – AFP
this issue, and we have notified law
enforcement.”
Verkada added that it has notified
companies that rely on its platform.
Surveillance camera imagery
posted on Twitter included a jail cell
block and a man wearing a fake beard
dancing in a bank storage room.
The breach shows the risk of
outsourcing security surveillance to
7
The trial’s first witness, DEA agent
Brian Fairbanks, told the jury he
found Hernandez’s e-mail address
and cell phone number on the
defendant’s phone.
The prosecution also showed the
jury photos of Fuentes’ brother and
son with Hernandez that were found
on his phone.
On Monday, Hernandez tweeted
that witnesses were set to give “false
testimony” against him. – AFP
FLOOD EMERGENCY
DECLARED IN HAWAII
WASHINGTON: Hawaii governor
David Ige declared an emergency
in the US state on Tuesday after
heavy rains brought floods,
landslides and fear of dam failures.
The move came after a dam
overflowed on the island of Maui,
destroying homes, with the dam’s
“unsatisfactory” condition leading
to it being scheduled for removal
this year. The Honolulu
Department of Emergency
Management directed people to
leave Haleiwa, a community of a
few thousand people to the north
of state capital Honolulu. Hawaii
News Now reported that two
people were swept away in raging
waters on Tuesday. One of them, a
27-year-old man, was rescued by
authorities. – Reuters
POPE SEEKS ANSWERS
OVER WEAPONS SALES
VATICAN CITY: Pope Francis
yesterday condemned weapons
manufacturers and traffickers for
selling arms to “terrorists” in
comments reflecting on his recent
trip to Iraq. The pope said he was
grateful to have been able to make
a visit that eluded his predecessors.
On Sunday, the 84-year-old saw
ruins of homes and churches in the
city of Mosul that was occupied by
Islamic State from 2014 to 2017.
“And I asked myself (during the
trip), ‘who sold the weapons to the
terrorists?, who sells weapons to
terrorists today who are carrying
out massacres elsewhere, for
example, in Africa?,‘” he said. “It is a
question that I would like someone
to answer.” – Reuters
IRAN TRIED TO RECRUIT
ME AS SPY: ACADEMIC
CANBERRA: A British-Australian
academic who spent two years
imprisoned in Iran has claimed
Tehran tried to recruit her as a spy
in exchange for her freedom. In her
first media interview since
returning to Australia last
November, Middle East scholar
Kylie Moore-Gilbert said Iranian
officials asked her “many times” to
work as a spy. She was arrested in
2018 and sentenced to 10 years in
jail for espionage, an allegation she
has denied. Moore-Gilbert told Sky
News Australia on Tuesday she was
beaten during her detention and
suffered “psychological torture”
from spending seven months in
solitary confinement. The
academic was released reportedly
in a swap for three Iranians linked
to a botched plot to kill Israeli
officials in Bangkok. – AFP
companies in the internet cloud,
according to Rick Holland, chief
information security officer at risk
protection firm Digital Shadows.
“Verkada positions itself as a
‘more secure, scalable’ alternative to
on-premises network video
recorders. You don’t always get more
secure when you outsource your
security to a third party.”– AFP
 8 theSUN ON THURSDAY | MARCH 11, 2021
SPEAK UP
Motorbikes, mosquitos
and menaces
COMMENT by Andy Hickson
A
S I sit on my hospital bed
waiting for the results of my
blood tests, I am reminded
of the motorcycle rider who
cut into my lane on the way there.
I hear two nurses joking with
each other. “Do you know what they
call victims of motorcycle accidents
on their way to hospital?” asked one.
“Spare parts”, said the other.
Anyone living in Kuala Lumpur
knows about the huge number of
motorcyclists on the road.
On my way to work in the
mornings they buzz around me like
mosquitoes.
Motorbike riders own the roads
in Kuala Lumpur. They make the
rules of the road.
Indicators are rarely used, traffic
lights ignored and road signs are just
suggestions to them.
Motorbike riders, especially the
delivery riders, ride down the wrong
side of the road, ride on pavements
and in bicycle lanes.
I have had more than my fair
share of run-ins with motorcycle
delivery riders.
I say this as a long-term
motorcycle rider myself. I have
driven motorbikes for most of my
adult life, in many countries, across
deserts, through jungles and even on
some of the so-called “dangerous
highways” of Russia, Turkey and
Morocco. I love my motorbikes.
I have probably had over 10
different models in my lifetime, from
little 125cc’s up to big 1200cc’s. Road
bikes, trail bikes and racers. I have
loved them all.
I am a good and experienced
motorcycle rider. I adhere to the
rules of the road, wear my safety
gear and mostly keep to the speed
limit.
My run-ins with motorcycle
delivery riders in Malaysia have
been while driving my car.
As a motorcycle rider myself, I am
always aware and on the lookout for
motorbikes.
I like to give them space and
usually, when safe to do so, give
them priority on the road. By run-ins
I’m talking about arguments, road
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rage and even violence.
Each time I have avoided
crashing into a motorcycle delivery
rider (five times in the last 18
months), as they have cut into my
lane by swerving in front of me, or
jump a traffic light, I would respond
by honking at them.
Without exception, they have
become upset by this and have even
chased me down the road kicking
my car, swearing, threatening me
and my kids in the car.
Their thought has not been,
“thank you, you just saved my life”,
but that I was wrong to let them
know about it by sounding my horn.
In the UK, I was taught that using
the horn was a way to let someone
know you were there, a kind of
helpful warning to potential danger.
I should probably draw your
attention to the following facts:
Research shows that Malaysia has
the highest road fatality accidents
among Asean countries and over
half of these accident fatalities
involve motorcyclists.
Malaysia also has the highest rate
of motorcycle accident fatalities, as a
percentage of the population, than
any other country in the world.
In 2019, 64% of road deaths in
Malaysia involved motorcyclists.
That is mind-blowing but not
surprising. The rates have been
rising year on year.
Although the ignoring of traffic
lights and the lack of indicator use is
very dangerous, what upsets me the
most is seeing parents take their
little children on motorbikes,
especially along dangerous and
packed highways.
It scares the hell out of me. It
sends shivers through my bones.
Little kids, babies even, perched in
front of the rider or held in mother’s
arms.
This, to me, is bad enough. What
makes it even worse is that 99% of
the time, the rider (dad?) will be
wearing a crash helmet and the child
will not.
Over 60% of the motorcycle
accident fatalities in Malaysia
involve a head injury.
URBAN
Experience quality urban lifestyles
for stronger communities.
In fact, I have seen “no”
protective gear on any child on any
motorbike in Malaysia ever. What
are these parents thinking?
I could not even dream of putting
my children in that kind of danger.
This does not just happen in
Malaysia, I see it all over Southeast
Asia, China and India.
In Malaysia, children riding
pillion, involved in motorcycle
accidents, are among the highest
traffic-related deaths.
Communicating these thoughts,
ideas and dangers to people are
really difficult.
For many people in Malaysia, the
motorbike is the only affordable
form of transport available.
Families, particularly in rural
communities, where there is no
public transport or school buses,
often have no other means other
than their motorbike to get their
children to school.
These problems, these dangers
are certainly worth a discussion, a
dialogue.
For me, three things are key.
Firstly, their needs to be a
development of “road courtesy”
among all drivers in Malaysia;
finding ways to communicate a
“thank-you”, letting people filter into
“your” lane without road rage, less
angry flashing of people you want to
overtake at speed and the stopping
of traffic light jumping.
Secondly, parents need to
provide protective gear such as
helmets for their children who ride
on the motorcycles with them.
Thirdly, I believe there needs to
be an awareness campaign, such as
one we had in the UK called “Think
Bike”.
This last point is really important
for car drivers who repeatedly switch
lanes to avoid traffic without
indicating and without looking or
checking for bikes.
Communication is the key to
success. If this article saves just one
life, I will be happy.
Dr Andy Hickson is an English
professor and dean of the Faculty of
Arts and Communication at HELP
University in Kuala Lumpur,
Malaysia. Comments:
letters@thesundaily.com
PUBLICATION DATE
BOOKING & STORY DEADLINE
MATERIAL DEADLINE
COMMENT by Chan
Tour vehicles won’t
save sinking hotels
YESTERDAY, Senior Minister
Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob
announced that travelling for
tourism is now allowed but only
between states under the
recovery movement control order
(RMCO), but not those still under
conditional movement control
order (CMCO).
He said those wanting to travel
for tourism must use the services
of tour agencies registered under
the Tourism, Culture and Arts
Ministry, and use transport
provided by them.
Also, tour agencies will need to
get approval from police for cross-
border travel.
While travelling, they must
proceed directly to the
destination at another RMCO
state and are not allowed to stop
when passing through a CMCO
state. They must also reserve their
accommodation and tourism
activities ahead of the trip.
Going on holidays in private
vehicles is not allowed. If so,
many sinking hotels will soon go
under.
This is because over 99% of
domestic tourists have not been
using transport arranged by travel
agencies or provided by tour
vehicle operators.
An overwhelming number
prefer to drive their own cars or
use e-hailing vehicles or taxis
from the airport or train/bus
stations. It would be prohibitively
expensive to charter a tour car
licensed under limousine taxi for
interstate travel.
Even the cost of using a
passenger van or MPV would be
too much to bear, particularly for
families that can only afford to
stay at tourist-class or budget
hotels, many of which are fast
sinking and workers soon out of
job with little chance of being
employed.
As I have proposed earlier, the
Malaysian Association of Hotel
Owners, Malaysian Association of
Hotels and Malaysia Budget Hotel
Association should jointly work
out a foolproof mechanism and
submit it to the National Security
Council.
The aim is to produce a
controlled legal document that
serves as room confirmation and
6 APRIL, 2021 (Tuesday)
23 MARCH, 2021 (Tuesday)
2 APRIL, 2021 (Friday)
receipt for amount paid.
It would include details of the
issuing hotel, guests’ names and
their identity numbers, check-in
and check-out dates, vehicle
registration or flight number and
others.
In order to save sinking hotels
and accompanying livelihoods,
the scheme must allow all those
planning to stay at licensed hotels
to travel freely within the country,
regardless of CMCO or RMCO,
before it is too late.
If not, it would be most unfair
to hoteliers and workers that have
put on a brave front over the past
year, only to see all their efforts
have been in vain.
If so, they should have just
ceased operations or closed
altogether much earlier, like
many others have done.
Although travel agencies are
also desperately needing help,
compelling the public to use tour
vehicles will not help tour vehicle
operators, as there will be few
takers. Only those who can afford
to stay in 5-star hotels have less
qualms in paying high prices for
road transport.
Sinking hotels require more
than just first aid and must be
treated under intensive care, not
slapped with conditions that
impede recovery.
Travel agencies need effective
measures that have been
proposed by many travel
associations, not token procedures
that are of no real help.
In any case, the groundswell of
dissatisfaction and misery should
not be allowed to fester and
eventually reach a tipping point.
Likewise, sinking hotels
should not be allowed to
submerge unless we want to
practise law of the jungle and
survival of the fittest.
YS Chan is Asean Tourism
Master Trainer for travel
agencies, master trainer for
Travel & Tours Enhancement
Course and Mesra Malaysia
(both programmes under
Ministry of Tourism, Arts and
Culture). He is also a tourism and
transport industry consultant
and writer. Comments:
letters@thesundaily.com
 TELLING IT AS IT IS

LIFESTYLE YOUTH FASHION ENTERTAINMENT

THURSDAY | MARCH 11, 2021

Switching Karthine Maniam uses

henna to tell stories

lanes
>>> Page 4&5
PICTURE COURTESY OF NEETA MANISHAA

Singer Neeta Manishaa prepares

to break new ground in her solo
endeavour
>>> Page 3 Keshika Subbarao
breaks down gender
barriers
>>> Page 7
 ENTERTAINMENT
2 theSun LYFE ON THURSDAY | MARCH 11, 2021
Awan debuts with his brand new single, The Selawat.
A Back on track
WARD-WINNING local alt-
rock band Estranged has
just released a new single,
Tujuan, on their Youtube
channel, Bornaya Records.
With lyrics by bandmember
Richael Gimbang (Rich), the new
song is about finding purpose even
when you’re going through the lowest
points of life.
“Many people are going through
some really tough times. With the
Covid-19 pandemic, people have lost
their incomes, families have been
separated for many months and
uncertainties seem to be everywhere.
Tujuan tells you that when you are on
the brink of wanting to give up, just
hold on for a little longer. It’s in these
difficult, desperate times that you will
somehow recognise your true
potential and purpose,” the band’s
vocalist says. “I’ve heard so many
stories of my friends and family going
through depression, so I wanted to do
something positive about it. I felt that
people everywhere need some kind
of encouragement and
empowerment. We can all actually
get through this.”
Guitarist Nor Hanafi Noor Hadi
(Hanafi), who co-wrote the song with
Rich, adds a more personal
admission: “I want to help those in
need, and if the song can inspire in
any way I’ll be glad. Life will always
have its ups and down and I’ve learnt
to accept that. I have fallen down
many times – back when I was a
teenager, and more recently during
my divorce – but I’m back up again.
Now it’s just me and my son and
though we don’t know what lies
ahead, we have learnt to love and
value ourselves so that we, in turn,
can help others.”
How exactly did the song come
about? In early 2019, Estranged had
huge plans for a road tour across
Sabah, Sarawak and Indonesia and
had even purchased a tour bus for
that purpose but almost overnight the
pandemic came and killed that
dream. The boys were devastated and
lacked the motivation to move on at
that stage. But then they found a new
purpose when they saw the amount
of suffering around them, and felt that
their music had the capacity to
spread kindness at this terrible time
in history, and inspire those who
were facing rock bottom.
Bandmembers Rich, Hanafi and
Din Hormatov decided then that this
was the moment for the band to fully
commit as a social enterprise for
causes in their home, Borneo.
This vision gave the band a
jumpstart and on Aug 29 and 30,
2020, Estranged performed a double
Marine captain turned soul-searching musician
MALAYSIAN-BORN marine
captain, Juhazwan Junaidi a.k.a.
Awan, hits the local music scene
with his debut single The Selawat
recently. The mariner-turned-
musician composed, and produced
the official music video with his very
own production company, HeyYa
Media.
Driven by a passion to create
spiritual music outside the
stereotypical confines of songs that
are usually perceived to be part of
this genre, The Selawat explores the
act of praying to God through the
Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) as well
as explores the different ways
through which people worship.
Awan’s goal with The Selawat is to
remind listeners of the teachings and
exemplary behaviour of the Prophet
(PBUH).
Coming from a musical family
background, Awan grew up watching
his late grandfather playing the
violin and composing many
traditional songs. Apart from that,
having uncles and cousins who were
oEstranged releases new single that aims to
inspire and spread kindness
concert to raise funds for an internet collaborating with other artists from
hub in Kampung Bomboi, Keningau. Borneo, which is why you’ll notice
Twenty percent of proceeds from Miss Universe Malaysia 2020
Tujuan’s merchandise (including T- Francisca Luhong James, who hails
shirts, CD, Pen Drive with a song, from Sarawak, in the Tujuan video.
Umbrella, Scarf, guitar picks and Session musicians Jayasamry Jaissen
many more) will go towards a CSR Buntang and Othneil Luke Suinggi,
projects in Borneo. The band has also from Sabah, as well as popular
set up a community centre in Sarawakian Sape artist Alena Murang
Tambunan and plans to have the first are also featured on the song.
“Farmers Festival” in Sabah when With its new mission and vision,
movement is not restricted anymore Estranged is arguably the first Malaysian
and Covid-19 is under control next rock band to operate as a social
year. The Sabah-Sarawak-Kalimantan enterprise, using its music to spread
road tour has also been postponed, kindness to marginalised communities
not shelved, and is slated to take and be an advocate
place in 2023. for change.
For now, however, Even In the
they will be p a s t ,
working on news
songs; the target
is one song a
month, and
focusing on
how to improve
the quality of
everything they
do.
Estranged has
also
committed
t o
in a band both in the mainstream
and underground music scene, the
dream of creating his own music was
instilled since he was young.
Since then, Awan has always had
a passion for music, drawing
inspiration from renowned artists
such as the late Tan Sri P. Ramlee and
KRU. But it wasn’t until his years in a
religious boarding school that he
discovered the genre “nasyid”,
spiritual music that is usually
performed acapella or with soothing
complementary instruments. And
while he grew to love the genre, there
was an urge in him to create and
compose spiritual songs that moved
beyond what was normally heard.
“Religious songs have always
been synonymous with something
serious. And I want to break away
from that but still remain courteous.
You know, you wouldn’t want to be
rude to religion right? It is very holy
and I still want to be respectful,” said
Awan “And so The Selawat
happened. My vision was actually to
make a doa into something that’s
Estranged had already been making
its presence this way by
collaborating with Lightup Borneo
to bring micro hydrolight to
villages, building internet hubs
for schools in the region and
working actively to promote
the sights and sounds of
Sabah and Sarawak
For Estranged, the
privilege of being able to do
good, uplifts the band every day.
The band, which started out
in 2001, has released four studio
albums – In Hating Memory
(2004), Remain Unknown
(2008), Anugerah Hidup
(2013) and Sepenuhnya
Vol. 1 (2016) – and
over 25 singles.
easy for people to recite. And music
is an element that can help that.”
With the release of his new single
also comes the official launch of his
own production company, HeyYa
Media which he also partnered with
Akmal, a former nasyid singer from
the group Mirwana. The inspiration
behind the creation of this studio
was born from a desire to create
meaningful content that tells a story,
beyond mere aesthetics. Awan
partnered with a group of friends
who came from different
backgrounds to film the music video
for The Selawat and spent his time at
home working remotely, with his
team, to edit and produce the video.
Following the launch of The
Selawat, Awan hopes to finish
composing two new songs before
June 2021, one of which may
potentially be a collaborative piece.
“Who knows? By then I may have
written a duet for someone. But I’ll
never stop making music, because
it’s my passion and no one can kill it,”
said Awan.
(above)
Estranged
before a
show in
Dengkil.
(Left)
Estranged in
Kundasang,
Sabah.
 YOUTH
theSun LYFE ON THURSDAY | MARCH 11, 2021 3

█ BY JASON LIM

S
HIFTING between the genres of
Next Gen
soulful ballad and pop-rock For Neeta, inspiration can
alternative as a solo artiste and as come from dark times, or
the vocalist for her band when she is not actively
iamNEETA, singer Neeta Manishaa is thinking about it. –
about to break new ground in her solo PICTURE COURTESY OF
endeavour when she revealed: “That’s NEETA MANISHAA
going to change soon”.
“Entering the music industry was
rather unpredictable. I started on
YouTube with my bandmates from
iamNEETA in 2011 and the next thing we
knew, we were officially signed artistes
under NAR Records.”
The three-piece band achieved
resounding success in 2012 through their
debut single Tuhan Tolong Aku, and
seven years later, Neeta carved a name
for herself when she won the reality
singing show Big Stage with her song,
Ruang Mimpi.
The 26-year-old said:
“Sometimes, I don’t really
realise how much I’ve changed
but there were moments that
made me think ‘Dang, I can
actually do this’ but I still think
I’ve barely made my mark in
the industry. There is still a lot

Breaking barriers in music

more to learn and experience.
“Not gonna lie, there were
times when things didn’t seem
like it was working but I
don’t believe in giving
up and that is what
carried me this
entire time.”
oSinger Neeta Manishaa expands her eclectic music style into uncharted realms
How do you go
a b o u t
expressing newcomer debuting as a solo artiste. What frustrates you about your role as a
authenticity Right now, I’m leveraging off my strength singer and how has that conditioned the
through your and hopefully when I switch lanes, it way you present yourself?
music?
By
natural and
being
would be well-received.

How do you set the differences being a

\TRIVIA The fact that being seen as a role model
comes with being an artiste. No one is
perfect and I don’t see myself as perfect.
unforced. It’s solo artist and the vocalist of your Spirit animal: Shark. One thing for sure is that the overwhelming
unlikely for band? support from my amazing fans has
artistes to I don’t plan to set any difference Latest obsession: RuPaul’s Drag definitely made me want to do better.
release every between them but I guess both music Race season 13. Personally, my role models are my
single song styles are evidently different and because parents, they keep me in check to always
that we I’ve grown a lot. It’s almost like Neeta as Malaysian artistes you wish to stay humble and be respectful.
w r i t e . a solo artiste is different in her own right. collaborate with: Hael Husaini and The pressure to be ‘good’ is almost non-
Sometimes, honestly, all my friends in the existent simply because I keep my personal
it just won’t You mentioned that Hanya Mimpi is a industry. life very private, away from the public eye.
work out. sequel to Ruang Mimpi. Was that your When I’m on TV or make public
My band intention to tell an unfinished story? Least favourite music genre: Either appearances, I do have to be mindful of my
has some When Ruang Mimpi was released, it was hip-hop or trap even though I listen words.
r e a l l y to compete during the finals of Big Stage. to Cardi B every day. I don’t think I
bizarre And after I was done with the show, I have a definitive answer. How have you been coping with the
unreleased wanted to release another single in the pandemic?
songs that I same style as my debut single. It was I think everyone is just floating around now
think won’t pure coincidence that the two songs but I’m so blessed to still be able to work
ever be (form) a complete story. We were just It’s a song about waiting for someone during such a difficult time through
released lucky. in fate. It speaks of a couple who were hosting. I definitely miss singing in front of
because it’s not destined for each other but timing people and not computers.
us. What is the story behind your latest wasn’t on their side and they had no I’m no different from everyone else, I’ve
Although I’ve single, Jodoh, featuring Radityo? luck getting together. Contrary to been cooking, watching movies and TV
been doing this This is my first duet with a male artiste. popular belief, Jodoh is not a reflection series and producing song covers. I’ll do
for eight years, I Radityo is also under NAR Records and of my story because I’ve had people whatever I can accomplish if I don’t
still feel like a Jodoh marks his debut single. asking me that. procrastinate that day.
 FEATURE
4 theSun LYFE ON THURSDAY | MARCH 11, 2021

Karthine’s henna
crown drawn on
cancer patients.
– PICTURE
COURTESY OF
KARTHINE
MANIAM

The colour of happiness

oMalaysian artist Karthine Maniam uses henna to tell heartwarming stories
█ BY BISSME S. henna. I wanted to draw henna patterns, but draw henna, you tell your client to stand still

H
no one wanted to offer their hands to a seven- until you finish the drawing. Here, you have no
ENNA has always year-old girl to draw on. But my grandmother control. The child in her womb moves on its
been associated with obliged me. own and you just have to wait until he stops
happiness and good moving.
luck. It is common to How did your interest in the art of henna
see henna designs on the hands grow from that first experience? What is the biggest challenge for a henna
of brides at Indian weddings. It started when I was 13 years old. I love artist?
But over the years, the art of doodling on empty pages. My classmates loved It is that the income is never consistent. It
henna has gone beyond Indian the designs I created. They wanted to draw the depends on the wedding season. For example,
weddings. Henna is now no designs on their hands with coloured pens. during the Covid-19 pandemic, the henna art
longer only used on the hands of Later, my friends encouraged me to use henna business has been affected tremendously as
brides. Henna designs now to make the designs on their hands more most weddings have been postponed or
adorn other parts of the body, impactful. cancelled.
as well. Some even use
henna on canvas. Do you remember the first time you got paid Tell us about your family and childhood.
Taking its place as to draw a henna design? My father is a businessman and my mother is a
an art form in its own I was 17. My cousin brother was getting retired school teacher. I have an older sister
right, there are now married. He paid me to draw the henna design who is a doctor. I was an introverted child and
many henna artists for his bride. Whenever brides hire me to draw I lived in my own world. I always used art to
practising this henna designs on them, I will make it a point to express myself. I am happiest when I have
unique art form. listen to their love stories. I want to know how blank paper and colour pencils. Art makes me
One such artist the bride and groom met. I will try to include feel safe.
is Karthine their love story in my henna design for the
Maniam, 29. bride. For example, an Indian man and a
Chinese woman were planning their wedding
When were according to Hindu custom. I learnt that they
you first met in the gym where they are professional
exposed trainers. I drew the bride and groom carrying
to the weights on her hands.
art of
henna? What has been your best memory as a henna
When I artist?
was seven There are two great memories in my life as a
years old. henna artist. It happened in 2015, a woman
It was my wrote to me and said she wanted me to draw a
late paternal henna crown on her head. She had cancer and
Karthine is a grandmother had gone for chemotherapy. Her head was
henna artist w h o completely bald. I told her not to worry about
who pushes introduced the price as I was willing to do it for free. Since
boundaries. – me to then, I have started my own henna crown
PICTURE project where I draw henna crowns on cancer
COURTESY OF patients for free. So far, I have done henna
KARTHINE drawings on 15 patients. I love to see the smiles
MANIAM on their faces when they get these crowns.
I remember an incident where one
cancer patient had tears in her eyes,
because she felt empowered and
confident after getting a henna
crown.
My second great memory as a
henna artist was when I got a
call from a pregnant woman
who wanted me to draw a
design on her belly in 2014.
She wanted to celebrate
motherhood and the
impending birth of her child.
It was a fun experience
drawing henna on a pregnant ‘Tower of the Koutoubia Mosque’ .
woman. Usually, when you

Some of her
other henna
designs. –
PICTURE
COURTESY
OF
KARTHINE
MANIAM
Churchill painting sells for £7 million
A PAINTING of Marrakesh by Britain’s famed
wartime prime minister Winston Churchill,
owned by Hollywood star Angelina Jolie,
smashed expectations to sell for £7 million
(RM40 million) at auction in London last
week.
Churchill, a keen artist, took inspiration
from the Moroccan city and painted The
Tower of the Koutoubia Mosque oil work
during a World War II visit in 1943.
He gave the finished article to fellow
wartime leader, US president Franklin
Roosevelt.
Auction house Christie’s called it
“Churchill’s most important work”.
“Aside from its distinguished provenance,
it is the only landscape he made” during the
war, it added.
The work eventually found its way into the
hands of Jolie, who recently put it up for sale.
After frenzied bidding, much of it carried
out over the phone, the gavel eventually came
down at £7 million, smashing the pre-sale
expectations of £1.5 to £2.5 million (RM8.5 to
RM14.17 million).
Christie’s said in a tweet that the sale figure
with commission was £8.2 million (RM46
million).
Two more of his paintings also went under
the hammer, with the three works together
fetching £9.43 million (RM53.46 million).
The art of giving back
AFTER two decades of hard work, New York
artist Guy Stanley Philoche planned to
celebrate the success of his two-day sold-
out show at Cavalier Gallery a year ago by
buying a US$15,000 (RM61,529) watch.
But an inner voice spoke as the
pandemic hit – telling him that he should
step up and help other emerging artists.
“I made a promise to myself that every
time I sell a painting, I’ll buy a painting,” said
Haitian-born Philoche, 44, who grew up in
Connecticut and was drawing and painting
before he could walk.
Philoche posted a video of himself on
Instagram offering to buy as much artwork
as possible to help fellow artists hurt by the
shutdowns.
“I hit ‘send’ and that’s when I opened
Pandora’s Box,” he said.
Within a year Philoche has spent
US$70,000 (RM287,000) on more than 200
pieces of art from over 150 artists around the
Philoche in his studio in the Harlem section of Manhattan in New York City.
A career army officer before entering
politics, Churchill started to paint relatively
late, at the age of 40.
His passion for the translucent light of
Marrakesh, far from the political storms and
drab skies of London, dates back to the 1930s
when most of Morocco was a French
protectorate.
He went on to make six visits to the North
African country over the course of 23 years.
“Here in these spacious palm groves rising
from the desert, the traveller can be sure of
perennial sunshine... and can contemplate
with ceaseless satisfaction the stately and
snow-clad panorama of the Atlas Mountains,”
he wrote in 1936 in Britain’s Daily Mail
newspaper.
Birthday gift
He would set up his easel on the balconies of
the grandiose La Mamounia hotel or the city’s
Villa Taylor, beloved by the European jet set of
the 1970s.
It was from the villa, after a historic January
1943 conference in Casablanca with
Roosevelt and France’s Charles de Gaulle,
that he painted what came to be regarded as
his finest work, of the minaret behind
the ramparts of the Old City, with
mountains behind and tiny colourful figures
in front.
FEATURE
theSun LYFE ON THURSDAY | MARCH 11, 2021 5
world.
“I’m still going through it, buying it and I
love it,” he said. “I also realise that now that I
have a seat at the table I have to open doors
for people, so I’m making it my mission
now, you know, to give people a shot.”
Philoche’s collection, which includes
pieces by his former professors and his
tattoo artist, has caught the attention of
museums around the world which want to
host it. But first, he wants a New York
exhibition for the works, which are
displayed throughout his small studio
apartment and kept in a storage unit.
“It’s going to be really cool and really fun
and amazing to call some of these artists,
whose work has never been sold before,” he
said.
“I was the first person to buy something
from them and be like, hey, by the way, you
know the painting I just bought, it’s going to
be hanging in the MoMa.” – Reuters
“You cannot come all this way to North
Africa without seeing Marrakesh,” he is
reputed to have told Roosevelt. “I must be
with you when you see the sun set on the Atlas
Mountains.”
A newspaper photograph taken at the time
shows the two wartime Allied leaders
admiring the sunset.
After the US delegation had left, Churchill
stayed on an extra day and painted the view of
the Koutoubia Mosque framed by the
mountains.
He sent it to Roosevelt for his birthday.
“This is Churchill’s diplomacy at its most
personal and intense,” said Christie’s head of
modern British and Irish art, Nick Orchard.
“It is not an ordinary gift between leaders.
This is soft power, and it is what the special
relationship is all about.”
A second Churchill landscape, Scene in
Marrakesh, painted on his first visit to
Morocco in 1935, earlier sold for £1.5 million
(RM8.5 million).
It was painted while on a stay at
Mamounia, where he marvelled at the “truly
remarkable panorama over the tops of orange
trees and olives”, in a letter to his wife
Clementine.
Churchill’s painting of London’s St Paul’s
Cathedral also sold, fetching £880,000 (RM5
million). – ETX Studio
 FEATURE
6 theSun LYFE ON THURSDAY | MARCH 11, 2021
The young and the restless
o Malaysian Millennial Voices features poems by 37 young writers
█ BY BISSME S.
M
A L A Y S I A N
MILLENNIAL VOICES,
published by Maya
Press, is a book of poems
that captures the voices of the young
and the restless. It highlights 69
poems from 37 poets under the age of
35.
“When I called for submission of
poems early last year, I wanted to
make sure it would reach as many
Malaysians as possible,” said Malachi
Edwin Vethamani, 65, who edited the
collection.
“I had to depend on social media,”
said Malachi, a former professor at
the University of Nottingham
Malaysia.
He is also a writer, bibliographer
and a critic and has written a
collection of short stories called
Coitus Interruptus and Other Stories
(2018) and two volumes of poems –
Life Happens (2017) and Complicated
Lives (2016).
Malachi posted the
announcement on his
Facebook page as
well as on
Facebook reading
and writing
groups, and relied
on people sharing
the call on social
media.
About 135
writers submitted
a total of 530
poems. Malachi set
up three panels
comprising15 writers
and literature experts to
Malachi.
Dr. Seuss pulls six books over racist imagery
THEY are beloved by generations of
early readers for their wacky rhyming
tales and mischievous plotlines, but
six Dr.Seuss books are being pulled
because of imagery now considered
racist.
Dr. Seuss Enterprises – the
publisher of the bestselling
children’s books – announced March
2 that it is taking the six titles, which
include If I Ran the Zoo and The Cat’s
Quizzer, out of print.
The move comes as criticism
grows in the United States over the
way minority communities have
been portrayed in many of his books.
Dr. Seuss Enterprises said it had
made the decision after carrying out
a review of its collection last year
with the help of experts, including
teachers.
“These books portray people in
ways that are hurtful and wrong,” the
company said in a statement.
The other titles being consigned
to history are And to Think That I
Saw It on Mulberry Street, McElligot’s
Pool, On Beyond Zebra! and
Scrambled Eggs Super!
“Ceasing sales of these books is
read all the submissions.
The team went
through four
rounds of
selection to
get the final
69 poems to
be published
in the anthology.
“I was really
surprised at the
number of
submissions we
received,” he said.
According to
Malachi, the
panels had to look
for certain criteria
when making their
final selection.
“Creativity in the
use of the English
only part of our commitment and
our broader plan to ensure Dr. Seuss
Enterprises’s catalog represents and
supports all communities and
families,” the statement added.
Dr. Seuss Enterprises made the
announcement on what would have
been the birthday of the famous
children’s book author.
Seuss, born Theodor Seuss Geisel
in Massachusetts in 1904, published
more than 60 books during his
lifetime, including some of the most
popular children’s books of all time.
His most famous works include
The Cat in the Hat, Green Eggs and
Ham and How the Grinch Stole
Christmas.
Seuss’s books have sold more
than 650 million copies and have
been translated into dozens of
languages.
However, his books are being
reevaluated over their portrayal of
Black and Asian people.
A 2019 study published in the
“Research on Diversity in Youth
Literature” journal studied 50 of his
books.
The report concluded that 43 of
language and paying attention to
various poetic literary devices,
especially sound, are what they
looked for,” he pointed out.
He said most of the poems were
written in free verse, and the
language used was contemporary,
youthful and often conversational.
“It has the distinct flavour of
Malaysian English.”
The poems touch on themes that
range from everyday concerns to
identity, growing up, dealing with loss
of parents and grandparents, and
political awareness.
One of the poets featured is
content executive Puteri Yasmin
Suraya, 25. This is the first time her
poems have been published in an
anthology. Some of her poems were
previously published in a magazine.
“I write both short stories and
poems. But poems come naturally to
me,” said Puteri Yasmin.
Four of her poems were chosen for
the collection. Her first poem Ghazal:
On Growing touches on the topic of
moving forward in life while her
second poem So Apropos deals with
the difficulty of ending a fragile
relationship. Her third and fourth
Criticism is growing in the United States over the way minority communities
have been portrayed in many books by Dr. Seuss.
the 45 characters of colour had
characteristics aligning with the
definition of Orientalism.
The two Black characters in the
books were identified as “African”
Yee.
Puteri
Yasmin.
poems Songs for Adonis and
Persephone Leaving have elements of
Greek mythology.
“I am a big fan of Greek mythology
and I draw inspiration from it when I
write my poems.”
She credits her parents for
encouraging her love for books from
and both “align with the theme of
anti-Blackness,” the study said.
Stereotypical characters
portrayed as “Arabian” appear in If I
Ran the Zoo, On Beyond Zebra! and
a young age.
Another poet featured is Yee
Heng Yeh, 25, a translator who is
based in Penang. His three poems
deal with different themes.
The first one deals with politics,
the second is about his childhood,
while the third is about a spider.
“My poems are my personal
reflection of what I experience in
life,” he said.
This is the third time his work has
been published in a book. His first
poem was published in Unmasked:
Reflection on Virus-time while his
second poem appeared in Home
Groan: A NutMag Anthology. Both
books were published late last year.
“I discovered my love for poems
late in life,” he said.
His started writing poems when
he was pursuing a bachelor’s degree
in English and Literature from 2015
to 2018.
He also dabbled in writing scripts
and his scripts were selected for the
Short+Sweet Festival, winning Best
Script in Penang in 2019. Last year,
he also co-wrote a stage play called
Have/Had, that was staged at the
Performing Arts Centre of Penang.
Scrambled Eggs Super!
The Cat’s Quizzer also features
“Arabian” figures as well as a
character portrayed as “a Japanese”.
And to Think That I Saw It on
Mulberry Street, features a “Chinese
boy” with a rice bowl and chopsticks.
The study also noted that Seuss
published anti-Black and anti-
Semitic cartoons in a magazine in
the 1920s as well as racist anti-
Japanese propaganda during World
War II.
On March 6, a school district in
Virginia suggested it was moving
away from Dr. Seuss books while not
banning them completely.
“Research in recent years has
revealed strong racial undertones in
many books written/illustrated by
Dr. Seuss,” Loudoun County Public
Schools said.
In 2017, a school librarian in
Cambridge Massachusetts said she
would not accept a gift of ten Dr.
Seuss books from then first lady
Melania Trump because many of his
books were “steeped in racist
propaganda, caricatures, and
harmful stereotypes.” – ETX Studio
 FEATURE
theSun LYFE ON THURSDAY | MARCH 11, 2021 7

█ BY JASON LIM difficult and complicated as it

O
PPORTUNITIES
participate in sports were
scarce, let alone play
football, when Keshika
Subbarao was a young girl, despite
her keen interest in the sport. She
then turned to the next best thing
available, basketball and volleyball,
which she had alternatively taken
part in throughout primary and
secondary school.
Her persistence to get involved in
football led her to explore other
avenues. At the young age of 14,
Keshika had already started writing
extensive profile pieces regarding
football for various European sports
media platforms, but it was far from
what she had her eyes on – to actually
set foot on the field.
Her stint as a young football
journalist did, however, serve as a
stepping stone to venture deeper into
the industry, where she ended up
involves a lot of problem-solving,
to dealing with high-pressure situations,
having to think on your feet and out of
the box for creative solutions and
resolutions. This is very similar to
Keshika is head working in the sporting industry,
football coach especially as a coach. Beyond that,
for the under- certain skills I’ve learned from my
16 and under- legal training such as the ability to
18 boys’ teams negotiate, analyse matches and
at FC Kuala resolve conflicts also helped me
Lumpur. – massively in my coaching career.
PICTURE
COURTESY OF What does it take to be a youth
KESHIKA football coach in a male-dominated
SUBBARAO sport?
The biggest issue is getting
opportunities based on merit.
Oftentimes, decision-makers and
gatekeepers are still going off on bias,
whether that’s conscious or
otherwise.
For instance, women are often
seen as only capable of coaching
younger age groups or girls instead of

Eyes on the goal

moving to the United Kingdom at age
17 to study and coach.
“I had the opportunity to shadow a
couple of the managers in the League
One teams and work within pro clubs
for an internship across various
departments, including media. That
intensified my interest to pursue this
as a career,” she said.
Keshika speaks of coaching youth
athletes with tender affection,
precisely like a teacher’s unrequited
love for setting up the students for
success in life.
“It brings me great satisfaction
when I see my players fulfil their
potential and achieve their goals,
whether that is becoming
professional, being able to do a
certain skill, play a certain position or
just having fun with their friends.
“Community is the most critical
aspect of an athlete’s life. Coaches,
parents and even the athlete’s school
authorities should work together to
help and support the athlete and
develop their best abilities. That can
range from encouraging the athlete to
have a balanced lifestyle, being open-
minded about their career path in
sport or just being a support system
they can lean on when they need it.”
In addition to being a football coach
being given the opportunity to coach
based on merit, experience or even
their track record. This is just one
example of many different scenarios
where there are barriers for women
working within a male-dominated
sport.
oYouth football coach Keshika Subbarao Keshika
The bright side to this, however, is
being able to influence the younger
encourages
breaks down gender barriers in male- young girls to
generation and showing them that
gender makes no difference and that
dominated sports never let the
opinions of
women can also excel in male-
dominated sports or environments.
others stop
them from Have you seen any form of gender
in Malaysia, Keshika is also the sport believe there is too much getting discrimination or even misogyny
ambassador of Women’s Aid of a difference between involved in here in Malaysia or during your
Organisation and a sport pundit at them at all. The most football. – time in the UK?
BFM radio station. important thing is to PICTURE Unfortunately, they are not limited by
build an emotional COURTESY OF borders. I just found them to exist at
What is the difference between connection with each KESHIKA varying degrees across both
coaching girls and boys? one of them and SUBBARAO countries. It is a little bit less
The minor difference is motivation. treat them as more discriminatory in the UK mainly
Boys are often able to see a clear than just athletes. because they can’t legally
pathway to pursue professionally if discriminate as there are legislations
they want, and that is what they strive Are your Law in place to protect individuals from
for, and are willing to invest time, degree and legal gender discrimination such as the
energy and effort to achieve. Girls, training useful as Sex Discrimination Act 1975 or on a
however, don’t have a clear pathway a football coach? wider spectrum, the Equality Act
to go professional and so many end It definitely gives 2010.
up playing the sport for fitness, me an edge over Misogyny is, however, more
camaraderie and fun. my counterparts. widespread and exists in different
Having said that, I really don’t Law is a field that is forms in both countries.

What do you think should be done

to level the playing field on gender
equity?
Gender equity means fairness of
treatment regardless of gender,
according to their respective needs.
So if gender equity is about fairness,
then we need to make up for the gap
between gender bias and our current
reality.
(far left) Keshika To do that, the first step would be
having a to enact a Gender Equality Act. The
discussion with current legal framework is
the players. – inadequate and equality has still not
PICTURE been achieved. Having a legal
COURTESY OF framework to protect women from
KESHIKA discrimination is the first step that
SUBBARAO would advance our progress in
bridging the gender equality gap.

South Africa’s first female Black helicopter pilot

teaches others to bust the glass ceiling
SOUTH AFRICA’S first Black female
helicopter pilot Refilwe Ledwaba has
some words of advice for anyone
who fears discrimination will
prevent them from achieving their
dreams.
Instead of focusing on those
who seek to do you down, find
some of the many people who
Ledwaba trains young
African women to
become aircraft and
drone pilots.
would be happy to see you doing
what you love and join forces with
them.
Growing up in
apartheid South
Africa with six
siblings and a single,
working mother, Ledwaba
was very close to her local
community but was under no
illusions about the outside world.
“When you are a female and a
Black person, it is a double
whammy,” she said.
“If you don’t have the
right people, you could be (Albert)
Einstein, but you will never make
it.”
Flying solo
It was while training as a cabin crew
to help pay off her student loan that
she found she felt more at home in
the cockpit.
Her white colleagues encouraged
her to become a pilot and one, a pilot
himself, offered to train her for
free if she covered the cost of the
fuel.
In 2005, she got the chance to
learn to fly helicopters at a
government school outside Durban,
where she struggled with nerves and
the idea that women must always sit
with their legs together, something
you cannot do while operating the
controls.
Once again it was a white man
who encouraged her not to give up,
she said.
The moment she flew solo, it
dawned on her that she had broken
the race and gender barriers in one
fell swoop. – Reuters
 MEDIA & MARKETING
8 theSun LYFE ON THURSDAY | MARCH 11, 2021
Becoming high performers
A
CCORDING to
neuroscientist Fanny Nusbaum,
French
intelligence is not related to our
IQs, but to a state that allows us to
become high performers. It is therefore a
process, more than an ability. And the good
news is that it’s within everyone’s reach.
It’s an idea that is making waves when it
comes to notions of intelligence. Doctor in
psychology and researcher in
neurosciences at France’s University of
Lyon 1, Nusbaum, has just published a
book with Editions Odile Jacob entitled Le
secret des performants [‘The secret of high
performers’]. The author, who had great
success with her 2019 book Philo-cognitifs
[philo-cognitive], a term she prefers to
“gifted”, states that intelligence is not a static
capability, but a state that allows us to
achieve high levels of performance.
Contrary to the collective imagination’s
portrayal of a world where there are
“geniuses” and others, we can therefore all
be in a good position to achieve what we
want in the areas of our choice.
In your book, you state that intelligence is
not an intrinsic capacity. Why is that?
Contrary to what we hear, intelligence is a
state, in which we may or may not be, and
which allows us to perform. In other words,
intelligence is a form of action, and not an
ability to use one’s thoughts and sometimes
get lost in them or to “rationalise
effectively”.
There is a tendency to think that a high
IQ is indicative of superior intelligence.
Why would the idea of performance be
more revealing?
It’s true that this is a rather subversive
point of view. In my book, I approach the
intelligence of the top athlete, the
intellectual, the entrepreneur and the artist
in the same way. We tend to privilege
intellectual capacities based on cognitive
reasoning, measured by IQ, in short. But
there are others: the abilities of great
sportsmen like Maradona, of great creative
people, of business leaders ... And even of
Nabilla [a French model and reality TV
star]!
So, according to you, Nabilla figures
among the high performers?
Yes, she is a remarkable woman! What she
has managed to do with her ‘allo’ [famous
‘hello!?’ catchphrase] is extraordinary. I
don’t understand why the nobility of
intelligence is always assigned to those who
are known for their reasoning, those who
know how to debate and argue, in short,
but who, in some cases, actually have great
difficulty accomplishing what they set out
to in their lives – and this while at times
being very critical of others. However, they
are the ones who are described as
“intelligent” – not Nabilla or Maradona,
oIntelligence is not a matter of IQ but rather
a mental state
who have accomplished, to varying
degrees, what few people are capable of
doing.
How does this state of intelligence
manifest itself?
Someone who is in the state of intelligence
works through their actions to build on
their success and manages to create
consensus around them. After a phase of
work and perseverance, the conclusion
leading to accomplishment seems almost
magical. And this state cannot be reached if
one stops to reason and argue; it is a state of
action. Conversely, when one is out of
phase with one’s ecosystem, in
contradiction with one’s environment,
something that happens to all of us at one
time or another, when one’s mind seizes up
and one grumbles about everything and
anything in a kind of systematic
questioning, then one is out of the state.
Intelligence is therefore, according to
you, an action rather than an ability.
Yes, that’s exactly it. Intelligence is not an
ability, it is the dynamic process that leads
to the revelation of an ability. If we want
an analogy – water knows several states:
solid, liquid or gaseous. If there is heat,
water changes state and evaporates. For
intelligence, it is exactly the same thing.
It is the way we will enter into resonance
with an ecosystem/environment that
will reveal one or another of our
capacities.
That said, there is no denying that
some people naturally tend to grasp
ideas faster and more successfully
than others. How can this be
explained?
What these people, “the high
performers” – like the 16 personalities
who spoke to me for my book (including
Emmanuel Durand, boss of Snapchat
France, [rugby star] Frederic Michalak
and Julien Fournie, the darling of haute
couture) – who are more successful than
most of us, have in common are the
three key points of performance: they
sniff out the zeitgeist, take action earlier
than others and maintain unfailing
emotional self-sufficiency. – ETX Studio
Micropreneurs:
the
entrepreneurs
keeping it
small.
What is a
Below: What if
intelligence is
not only
micropreneur?
linked to our MICROPRENEURS. They employ less
IQ, but also to than five people, they want to stay small,
our ability to and they’re actively in favour of a healthy
take action? work-life balance. But who are they
exactly?
Their companies have less than five
employees. And they usually do
everything, from marketing to sales to
accounting. They are highly flexible and
in many ways resemble – but shouldn’t
be confused with – self-employed
people or sole traders. But the micro-
entrepreneur is about more than work,
it’s also a lifestyle choice, encouraging a
healthy balance between work life and
private life for a greater sense of
fulfillment. According to Fora Financial,
many professions fall into this category.
If you’re a blogger, a life coach or a
photographer, you’re probably already a
micropreneur.
Stay small, grow slowly
When it comes to business, the
micropreneur is multi-talented and
adaptable, showing genuine versatility
in their skills and endless curiosity.
Moreover, unlike traditional
entrepreneurs, micropreneurs aren’t
obsessed with the idea of growth at all
cost. They prefer to stay in control of
their time. This position allows them to
vary the services they offer and adapt to
meet demand. That said, micropreneurs
aren’t completely opposed to the idea of
growing their activity, but they often
favour a slower approach to expanding
the size of their business. – ETX Studio

COMMENT by Jason Loh
Re-envisioning FDI for the next lap
O
N the first anniversary of the
Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin
administration, the stage is
set for the next lap of our
economic development, which would
include our continuing reliance on
foreign direct investment (FDI).
Muhyiddin has said that Malaysia
continues to attract FDI, including
Fortune 500 companies.
This is due, not least, to the
incentives the government is offering,
with emphasis on high technology
and the digital sectors.
For example, under the National
Economic Recovery Plan (Penjana)
last year, in an effort to boost
investment activities, business-
friendly initiatives were crafted such
as a 10-15-year tax exemption for new
FDI in the manufacturing sector, with
a capital investment of RM300
million or more.
Other pro-FDI policies include the
setting up of the Project Acceleration
and Coordination Unit – under the
Malaysian Investment Development
Authority (Mida), which in turn
comes under the purview of the
Ministry of International Trade and
Industry (Miti) – last year to provide
end-to-end facilitation for all projects
approved by the National Committee
of Investment and, therefore,
ensuring acceleration of the process
from approvals of projects to
implementation.
In his first anniversary address,
the prime minister also publicised
that the manufacturing sector
attracted most of the approved
investments for the first three
quarters of 2020, which account for
more than half - at 59.5% - of RM65.3
billion worth of investments, and this
is followed by services and other
primary sectors. During the period,
2,935 projects were involved with
64,701 jobs created.
In commenting and clarifying the
state of FDI in Malaysia under the
onset of Covid-19 for the year 2020,
Mida, in its Malaysian Investment
Performance Report (2020),
referenced the total gross FDI inflow
figures for the year from the
Department of Statistics Malaysia as
valued at RM139.9 billion compared
with RM138.8 billion in 2019 – an
COMMENT by Petar Stoykov
Covid-19 emphasised prevention, here’s how
THE Covid-19 pandemic took the
world by storm, throwing
everything in its wake in turmoil,
from everyday people, through
businesses, to governments.
The worst of it all, the delayed
post-factum responses from most
countries ensured that the
measures, whether half-hearted or
not, would not yield the needed
results.
There were some exceptions,
however, such as New Zealand,
Iceland, and Denmark, that
managed to come out on top and
lead the way for pandemic
response in the future.
So, what did we learn from the
pandemic so far? Let’s draw some
conclusions.
Awakening health awareness
Despite the pain and the efforts in
these tough times, there is a silver
lining to it all.
increase of 0.8%.
As the report notes, this is despite
the “movement control order (MCO)
and recovery MCO in the second and
third quarters of last year,
respectively”.
Furthermore, “the decline in net
FDI flows mirrors the situation
Malaysia experienced in 2009 after
the subprime crisis in the US.
(Multinational corporations) in
Malaysia were repatriating higher
amounts of their profits for loan
repayments and retaining earnings to
help their (headquarters) and
affiliates faced with financial
difficulties”.
The country’s FDI-oriented
policies are aligned with the
MyDigital initiative via the Malaysia
Digital Economy Blueprint launched
on Feb 19 by the prime minister,
which aspires to enable Malaysia to
be a “high-value-added economy
and a net exporter of home-grown
technologies and digital solutions”.
The Malaysia Digital Economy
Blueprint: MyDigital sets out the
strategic roadmap that will be
implemented in three phases until
2030.
The initiative complements the
12th Malaysia Plan and the Shared
Prosperity Vision/SPV (2030).
Towards that end, in providing the
requisite and conducive ecosystem
in its capacity as enabler and
catalyser, the government is
committed to:
0 Investing RM21 billion through the
National Digital Network (Jendela)
over the next five years;
0 Investing RM15 billion to roll out
5G nationwide over a period of 10
years;
0 Paving the way for a RM1.65 billion
FDI and domestic direct investment
(DDI) by telecommunications
companies to strengthen
connectivity to the international
submarine cable network until 2023;
as well as,
0 Providing the necessary support so
that between RM12 billion and RM15
billion will be invested by cloud
service provider companies over the
next five years.
As reported in a daily, the digital
economy is expected to make up
It seems that our comfortable
lives were in for a shakeup – giving
a reality check for our health
awareness.
Starting with the mask
mandates and disinfection rules,
we became more aware of how
contaminated our environment
can be.
At the same time, we sought new
(and old) ways to improve our
chances against the deadly disease
by being mindful of our diet and
vitamin intake.
In other words, we set ourselves
on the path of preventive medicine,
and our efforts will have long-
lasting effects into the future.
But what makes prevention so
vital? The success of preventive
medicine lies in stopping small
issues from turning into massive
problems.
What if we wear masks during
flu seasons? What if we get
With green technology and the Fourth Industrial
Revolution in full swing, both aerospace and the
green economy can converge and coalesce in the
future
22.6% of Malaysia’s gross domestic
product and create 500,000 jobs by
2025.
Proactive direct state intervention
in the economy in the form of
investment and fiscal measures on
the one hand and increasing DDI on
the other bodes well for a climate of
continuing flows of FDI into
Malaysia.
Going forward, we need to
reconceptualise and reframe our FDI
in a slightly fresh direction that
preserves both “quality” and
“quantity” of the inflows.
Firstly, we need to leverage on our
competitive advantage in the so-
called “non-economic” investments
such as aerospace.
This requires close strategic
cooperation, collaboration and
coordination between the federal
and state governments as Selangor
is a leading regional hub for aircraft
maintenance, repair and overhaul
as well as the manufacturing and
engineering, and design sub-
sectors.
Last year, the Selangor Darul
Ehsan Aerospace Industry
Coordination Office, which is also the
secretariat for the Selangor
Aerospace Council chaired by the
mentri besar, was formed with the
view of executing the Selangor
Aerospace Action Plan 2020-2030,
among others.
At the federal level, the National
Aerospace Industry Coordinating
Office was established in August 2015
under Miti to primarily oversee the
implementation of the strategies and
initiatives in the Malaysia Aerospace
Industry Blueprint (2030).
In this regard, traditional investors
such as the US continue to play a
pivotal and key role.
For example, as mentioned in a
diagnosed at home and visit
doctors regularly for checkups, not
when we are ill? Would our health
remain the same?
Certainly not. And thankfully,
the number of examples of
companies looking for solutions in
the very same area continues to
grow exponentially.
Innovative prevention-focused
examples
Telemedicine, for example, used to
be a utopic far-away solution.
However, during the pandemic
telemedicine has turned at-home-
diagnostics into reality.
Apps like MDLIVE or Doctor on
Demand have certainly made lives
easier for patients who have found
difficulty receiving the medical
attention they need during the
various degrees of lockdowns
throughout the year.
And on the other hand, some
theSUN ON THURSDAY | MARCH 11, 2021
scholarly article titled, “Malaysia’s
Foreign Policy under Najib: A
Comparison with Mahathir” in 2009,
Composites Technology Research
Malaysia Sdn Bhd (CTRM) and US-
based Goodrich Corporation entered
into a strategic partnership which
“enables the former to manufacture
nacelle components (the enclosed
part of an airplane) in the next two
decades. The contracts were valued
at US$135 million for the next five
years.
The period of the contracts is the
lifespan of the aircraft, and CTRM
project contracts are valued at US$1.5
billion over 20 years”.
The prime minister in the same
first anniversary speech also noted
that aerospace will be a key driver of
growth even as we are shifting
towards a green economy at the same
time.
With green technology and the
Industry 4.0 in full swing, both
aerospace and the green economy
can converge and coalesce in the
future.
Secondly, we need to leverage on
our position within Asean to be an
important gateway and “first-stop”
destination for FDI to the rest of the
region.
And not least, the wider Regional
Comprehensive Economic
Partnership involving Asean plus
Five, i.e., Australia, China, Japan,
Korea and New Zealand, and to be
ratified by Malaysia this year.
Our historical ties with the UK,
fresh from Brexit, and keenness to
foster and forge new strategic and
economic ties with Commonwealth
countries, including Malaysia in
particular, augurs well for a renewed
foreign economic diplomacy that was
affected under the Mahathir-
Thatcher era.
sought to motivate their users
towards better health instead of
catering to the classic ailment-
prescription paradigm that has
been the dominant go-to option for
most in the last few decades.
Nowadays, everybody is familiar
with activity health trackers, such
as FitBit and Samsung Health.
But there have been new niche
entrants that are making steady
waves just as well. Some examples
of these are the Healthy Diet and
Cardiogram.
Then there are those that try to
combine the best of both approaches
in relatively novel markets.
While most apps tend to take a
broader look at one’s general
health and well-being, dental
health is often overlooked.
That is why it is unsurprising to
see the emergence of new solutions
catering to this particular sector,
such as Dentacoin’s Dentacare,
9
* SPEAK UP
Elizabeth Truss, UK’s Secretary of
State for International Trade, has
expressed the country’s commitment
to supporting Asean’s economic
ambition that’s embodied in the
signing of the UK-Asean economic
and digital partnership last
November.
Hence, it is vital for Malaysia to
play its part in stepping up the
implementation of the Asean
Comprehensive Investment
Agreement (2012) to ensure that
relocation of FDI in one member-
country will benefit the original host
country via production network
linkages and integrated supply
chains.
The Asean Comprehensive
Recovery Framework, which aims to
“maximise the potential of the intra-
Asean market and intensify broader
economic integration”, recognises the
2012 Agreement as core instrument
and mechanism.
Towards that end, we could
honour the memory of the late Tun
Abdul Razak Hussein in his export-
oriented industrialisation and pro-
FDI policies at the national level and
the late Tun Lim Chong Eu at the
state level by re-imagining free
industrial/trade zones as harbingers
of regional integration where Asean is
both one export as well as production
market.
This requires reconceptualisation
of the sub-regional growth areas such
as Sijori (Singapore-Johor-Riau),
IMT-GT (Indonesia-Malaysia-
Thailand Growth Triangle) and the
BMPGA (Brunei-Malaysia-
Philippines Growth Area) as
integrated free industrial/trade zones
and mega-agglomeration/mega-
clusters for intra-regional as well as
global exports.
Our FDI has always been built on
strong and viable foundations. We
can be confident that for the next lap,
it’ll continue to be so.
Jason Loh Seong Wei is head of
social, law and human rights at
EMIR Research, an independent
think tank focussed on strategic
policy recommendations based on
rigorous research. Comments:
letters@thesundaily.com
Health Training app.
What is particularly unique
about the app is that it combines
gamification of habit building with
monetary rewards, as well as
offering teledentistry features.
And it all comes together in one
central interface. Getting paid to
brush your teeth? Now that’s a first!
Keeping all of these examples in
mind, it is clear that there is a cup
for every taste when it comes to
taking better care of one’s health,
especially in pocket-sized terms.
But the question of whether or
not this will be enough to save us
from the next pandemic remains.
Still, it is better to try and fail than
not try at all.
After all, every step we take for
the improvement of our health is a
step in the right direction.
Comments:
letters@thesundaily.com
 SunBIZ
THURSDAY
S E C U R I T I E S S D N.
197201001092 (12738-U)
B H D.

A Participating Organisation of Bursa Malaysia Securities Berhad

MARCH 11, 2021
A Trading Participant of Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Berhad
Editorial: Tel.: 03-7784 6688
Fax: 03-7785 2624/5
Participation Bought Sold Net Email: sunbiz@thesundaily.com
% RM m RM m RM m Advertising: Tel: 03-7784 8888
Fax: 03-7784 4424
44.8 Institutions 3130.5 3321.8 -191.3 Email: advertise@thesundaily.com
40.2 Retail 2894.9 2890.2 4.7
15.0 Foreign 1171.8 985.2 186.6
15.05 28.81 134.29 1.55 8.62 58.58 18.00 57.06
100.0 7197.2 7197.2 0.0
Preliminary stats (excluding trade amendments). For final data, please refer to www.bursamalaysia.com
KLCI STI HANG SENG SCI NIKKEI TSEC KOSPI S&P/ASX200
Source: Burs Malaysia 1,639.83 3,079.72 28,907.52 3,357.74 29,036.56 15,911.67 2,958.12 6,714.11

INDICES
KL MARKET SUMMARY
March 10, 2021

CHANGE
Sweeter terms to woo
upstream investments
FBMEMAS 11,952.40 +117.47
FBMKLCI 1,639.83 +15.05
CONSUMER PRODUCTS 638.92 +6.82
INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTS 190.10 +2.88
CONSTRUCTION 186.64 +4.74
FINANCIAL SERVICES 15,835.50 +93.10
ENERGY 973.54 +1.62 PETALING JAYA: Petroliam
TELECOMMUNICATIONS 733.70 +19.76 Nasional Bhd’s (Petronas) decision oFitch Solutions says Malaysia’s national
HEALTH CARE
TRANSPORTATION
3,038.60
826.15
+30.35
+6.05
to put up 13 offshore exploration
blocks for bidding in the 2021 oil and gas company aims to spur new
PROPERTY
PLANTATION
737.29
7,182.13
+12.38
+14.45
Malaysia Bid Round (MBR), an
improvement compared with the exploration and stem reserves base decline
FBMSHA 13,181.00 +158.31 nine and six blocks that were
FBMACE 10,352.40 +162.70 offered in the 2018 and 2019
TECHNOLOGY 81.52 +1.37 rounds respectively, implies that For the latest bid round, of However, the contract
the country remains keen to the 13 blocks, nine are situated terms for the four deepwater
TURNOVER VALUE attract more foreign direct in shallow waters near proven blocks will continue to abide
11.007 BIL RM7.197 BIL investment into the upstream producing zones and at water by existing 2018 revenue over
sector to spur new exploration depths of no more than 200 cost (ROC) terms whereby
and stem declines in its proven metres, while the rest are in permitted cost recovery
5 MOST ACTIVES
March 10, 2021
reserves base.
In a note, Fitch Solutions
deep waters, offshore Sabah
and Sarawak. The round also
ranges from 30% to 80% and
the contractor-take of profits
seen whether the set of
incentives outlined above will
pointed out that international attracted some 250 attendees is calculated using the ratio be enough to coax global IOCs
STOCK VOL CLSG (sen) +/– (sen) oil companies’ interest in from across Europe, North between cumulative income to invest,” it said.
DNEX 1,289,742,400 89 +16 traditional oil and gas plays risks America and within Asia- and cost. “For instance, the shallow
DNEX-WD 1,074,263,000 37.5 +3 cooling off as cost reduction, Pacific. Apart from that, the round water blocks may not have the
SAUDEE-WA 368,398,400 14 +10 improving shareholder returns Interested firms have until will have other non-fiscal size or the scope to attract larger
SAUDEE 259,549,700 78 +24 and decarbonisation efforts take August to submit their bids, incentives, which include the oil majors, although smaller
GFM-WC 221,913,100 17 +2 on greater precedence. while the evaluation and award ability to bid for more than domestic firms or oilfield
“Petronas is expected to of the PSC to successful bidders one block under a single PSC services companies may find
maintain its focus on domestic will take place before the end of scheme, the ability to transfer the scale sufficient to be
5 TOP GAINERS
March 10, 2021
activities, although the growing
investment burden on the state-
2021 according to Petronas’
current timeline.
work commitments from one
block to another and
profitable.”
Fitch Solutions reasoned that
owned entity (SOE) looks Fitch Solutions highlighted simplified administrative the anticipated cooling off of IOC
STOCK VOL CLSG (RM) RM unhealthy, while the SOE itself that the SOE has introduced processes during evaluation, interest is as much a reflection of
NESTLE 52,100 136.90 1.20 has sought to diversify into new “enhanced profitability terms” milestone review and audit an ongoing shift in long-term
FANG-2XL 100 12.78 1.12 business areas in recent (EPT) for shallow water blocks, phases. corporate strategies than a mere
PETDAG 260,800 20.70 1.10 quarters,” it said. which feature a 70% ceiling for In addition, Petronas reaction to uncompetitive
KOBAY 2,127,200 4.67 0.71 It acknowledged that MBR cost recovery compared with Carigali will no longer be licensing terms, as fossil fuel
F&N 110,300 31.00 0.70 2021 came at an opportune 50% in regular PSCs, as well as a entitled to a mandatory developments are increasingly
time, as this year is set to see higher range set for contractor- equity stake and itwill be shunned in favour of renewables
muted upstream appetite take of profits to 30%-90% subject to the bidding process and decarbonisation efforts.
5 TOP LOSERS
March 10, 2021
return as Covid-19-related
headwinds lift and global oil
depending on profitability of an
underlying asset, from 20%-70%.
if it wishes to partake in a PSC.
On the whole, the research
“This is already affecting
other oil and gas markets across
prices strengthen. It said Petronas also unit sees the stronger PSC emerging Asia where IOCs have
STOCK VOL CLSG (RM) RM Moreover, Petronas has improved incentives for the terms and potential for new begun to slow investments and
CARLSBG 321,600 24.30 0.44 introduced three new production developments of small field block awards provide upside divest upstream stakes, although
VITROX 361,800 14.12 0.38 sharing contract (PSC) terms, each assets and late-life assets, by risks to forecasts for future Malaysia is a much lower risk
KESM 190,600 13.12 0.22 carrying strengthened incentives allowing bidders to set their reserves and output growth in market than similar sized
COMPLET 5,971,000 1.25 0.17 for specific project types in an own desired production splits Malaysia. regional peers and so may appeal
BKAWAN 12,500 17.66 0.16 attempt to attract investors. in their applications. “However, it remains to be to firms that are risk-averse.”

EXCHANGE RATES
Cathay Pacific posts record HK$21.6b loss for 2020
MARCH 10, 2021

Foreign currency Bank sell Bank buy Bank buy

TT/OD TT OD
1 US DOLLAR 4.1900 4.0600 4.0500
HONG KONG: Hong Kong was down by a smaller 32.3%.
carrier Cathay Pacific said Nearly 60% of its 2020
1 AUSTRALIAN DOLLAR 3.2350 3.1070 3.0910 yesterday it suffered a record revenue of HK$47.9 billion was
1 BRUNEI DOLLAR 3.1030 3.0130 3.0050 HK$21.6 billion (RM11.47 from its cargo operations, up
1 CANADIAN DOLLAR 3.2960 3.2080 3.1960 billion) loss last year as the from about 20% in 2019.
1 EURO 4.9700 4.8090 4.7890 coronavirus pandemic wiped Like all major airlines,
out demand for travel – and the Cathay Pacific has seen its
1 NEW ZEALAND DOLLAR 3.0050 2.8950 2.8790 airline warned of a long road to business evaporate during the
1 SINGAPORE DOLLAR 3.1030 3.0130 3.0050 recovery ahead. coronavirus pandemic but the
1 STERLING POUND 5.8160 5.6340 5.6140 Chairman Patrick Healy Hong Kong carrier has had an
1 SWISS FRANC 4.4810 4.3780 4.3630 described 2020 as the “most especially torrid year because it
challenging” in the airline’s 70- has no domestic market to fall
100 UAE DIRHAM 114.9800 109.0300 108.8300
year history and said much will back on.
100 BANGLADESH TAKA 5.0170 4.6920 4.4920 now depend on how effective With the help of a government
100 CHINESE RENMINBI 64.3000 61.8000 N/A and widespread global bailout, Cathay Pacific underwent
100 HONGKONG DOLLAR 54.3500 51.6500 51.4500 vaccination programmes are. a recapitalisation in July that
“It is by no means clear how In December, Cathay’s passenger numbers fell by 98.7% compared raised HK$39 billion.
100 INDIAN RUPEE 5.8300 5.4700 5.2700
the pandemic and its impact with a year earlier, though cargo carriage was down by a smaller But passenger numbers have
100 INDONESIAN RUPIAH 0.0300 0.0271 0.0221 will develop over the coming 32.3%. – REUTERSPIX been some 98% below pre-
100 JAPANESE YEN 3.8470 3.7260 3.7160 months,” he warned, saying the pandemic levels since April and
100 NEW TAIWAN DOLLAR 15.9000 N/A N/A group expected passenger traffic billion for 2020, going deeper thanks mainly to cargo which the for much of last year the
to remain “well below” half of into the red as the year wore on. airline has kept flying throughout company was burning through
100 PAKISTAN RUPEE 2.7200 2.5400 2.3400
pre-pandemic levels throughout Its second half losses clocked in the global health crisis. cash at a rate of up to HK$1.5
100 PHILIPPINE PESO 8.7400 8.2300 8.0300 2021. at HK$11.8 billion, up from The 2020 loss compared with billion a month.
100 QATAR RIYAL 115.9300 110.0500 109.8500 The company’s losses were HK$9.9 billion in the first six 2019 profit of HK$1.69 billion. By the time 2020 closed,
100 SAUDI RIYAL 112.5300 106.8200 106.6200 higher than estimates compiled months of the year when the In December, Cathay’s Cathay’s shares had fallen 29%
by Bloomberg News. pandemic first emerged. passenger numbers fell by for the year. Yesterday they
100 THAI BAHT 14.1800 12.5800 12.1800
Cathay racked up an Revenue was better than 98.7% compared with a year closed 0.56% down. – AFP,
Source: Malayan Banking Berhad/Bernama attributable loss of HK$21.6 expected at HK$46.93 billion, earlier, though cargo carriage Reuters

BAuto Q3 profit up 22%,
declares 1.5 sen dividend
oGroup sees improvement in domestic sales and positive
feedback from its aggressive promotional campaign
PETALING JAYA: Bermaz Auto Bhd’s (BAuto)
net profit for its third quarter ended Jan 31,
2021 increased 21.8% to RM33.08 million
from RM27.15 million in the previous year’s
corresponding quarter, largely due to the
higher profit contribution from the domestic
operations, which was mainly from higher
unit sales.
It reported a 27.9%
increase in revenue to
RM597.98 million in the
current quarter under
review as compared to
the revenue of
RM467.46 million
registered in the corresponding quarter of the
previous year.
The improvement in sales volume for the
domestic operations was mainly attributed to
the positive impact from the Short-Term
Recovery Plan (Penjana) economic stimulus
package introduced by the government in
June 2020 which provides 100% sales tax
exemption on CKD vehicles and 50% sales tax
exemption on CBU vehicles from June 15,
2020 to Dec 31, 2020.
“The market also reacted positively to the
group’s aggressive promotional campaign
with free six years of warranty and six years of
free maintenance to boost sales. The sales
BNM allows foreign
banks to trade ringgit
interest rate swaps
PETALING JAYA: Bank Negara Malaysia
(BNM) will allow non-resident banks to
trade ringgit-denominated interest rate
swaps (IRS) without any underlying
commitment with any onshore bank or its
appointed overseas offices (AOOs) from
March 15.
In a statement, it said this approval
follows a a pilot programme launched in
November last year to provide flexibility
for participating onshore banks and their
AOOsto trade ringgit-denominated
interest rate swap (IRS) with non-resident
banks without any underlying position.
“This flexibility will encourage the
participation of non-resident banks in the
onshore IRS market, thus promoting a
more liquid domestic market to lower
hedging costs for corporates and asset
managers, and funding costs for onshore
banks,” it said.
Chin Hin to take up 45% in Aima Construction for RM31.5m
PETALING JAYA: Chin Hin Group Property Bhd
has proposed buying a 45% stake in Aima
Construction Sdn Bhd for RM31.5 million via a
conditional share sale agreement with
Uniplaza Sdn Bhd which will be fully satisfied
via an allotment and issuance of up to 35.8
million new ordinary shares in Chin Hin at an
issue price of 88 sen per share.
Aima is principally engaged in the business
of construction, contractors, subcontractors,
with a total order book value of RM320 million.
Chin Hin executive director Chiau Haw
Choon said the proposed acquisition will allow
the group to have indirect access to the on-
going and future projects of Aima.
“In addition, it will accelerate Chin Hin’s
expansion plan without an initial cash outlay as
the purchase consideration will be fully
satisfied via allotment and issuance of
volume in the Philippines continued to be
negatively impacted by the Covid-19
pandemic,” the group said in its Bursa filing.
For the nine-month period, the group’s net
profit, however, dropped 31.6% to RM67.12
million from the RM98.05 million registered
in the previous year’s corresponding period,
largely due to lower
profit contribution from
both the domestic and
the Philippines
operations as well as
lower share of profit
contribution from
Mazda Malaysia Sdn
Bhd (MMSB).
The profit contribution from the domestic
operations was lower in spite of higher unit
sales, mainly attributed to a lower gross profit
margin arising from the change in sales mix
and more aggressive promotional activities.
The lower contribution from the Philippines
operations was attributed to lower unit sales
as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The lower share of profit contribution from
MMSB was due to the significant drop in unit
sales from both the domestic and export
markets during the movement control order
(MCO) and CMCO period. The group has also
accounted for the expense relating to the
International tourist arrivals to
Malaysia down 83.4% last year
PETALING JAYA: Malaysia registered 4.33
million international tourist arrivals in 2020,
down 83.4% from 26.1 million in 2019, but the
country is not alone in registering negative
growth in the number of tourist arrivals.
According to the World Tourism
Organisation, Asia and the Pacific recorded an
84% decrease in arrivals. Malaysia’s
neighbouring Asean countries also saw a
significant decline in the number of tourists,
including Thailand (-83.2%), Singapore (-
85.7%), Vietnam (-78.7%), and Indonesia (-
75%), according to the data from the Pacific Asia
Travel Association and National Tourism
Organisation.
Malaysia’s tourist receipts plunged by 85.3%
from RM86.14 billion in 2019 to RM12.69 billion
in 2020, with the average per capita expenditure
recorded at RM2,928, a decline of 11.3% from
RM3,300 in 2019, revealed Malaysia Tourism
Promotion Board (Tourism Malaysia).
Negative growth had been observed for
tourists from every market, namely short-haul
consideration shares. Ultimately, our goal is to
transform the group into a major property and
construction player – therefore this corporate
exercise fits into our strategy perfectly.”
He added that Aima will also be able to tap
into Chin Hin’s network in the property and
construction industry to boost its construction
orderbook.
Aima managing director Khor Ken Yeon said
synergistic benefits are expected to arise as
both Chin Hin and Aima are operating in and
servicing the same industry.
“Especially in regard to Chin Hin’s plans to
launch RM3.73 billion worth of projects in the
coming years, we can expect to see significant
participation from our end as construction
work for properties has been our forte for
several decades,” he added.
The proposed acquisition is expected to be
group’s employees’ share scheme of about
RM2.2 million in the period under review as
compared to RM3.2 million in the preceding
year’s corresponding period.
The group registered a higher revenue of
RM1.65 billion as compared to RM1.46 billion
previously, mainly attributed to the improved
sales volume in the second and third quarter,
as a result of the positive impact from the
introduction of the economic stimulus
package under Penjana as well as the
aggressive promotional campaign introduced
by the group.
The board has approved and declared a
third interim dividend of 1.5 sen per share in
respect of the financial year ending April 30,
2021 to be payable on May 6, 2021. The
entitlement date has been fixed on April 19,
2021. This will bring the total dividend
declared for the financial period ended Jan 31,
2021 to be 3.25 sen per share.
Looking ahead, Bermaz Auto expects the
domestic market to recover from the impact
of MCO 2.0 by the first half of the year,
particularly after the scheduled nationwide
coronavirus vaccination programme.
“In the Philippines, the group is still
cautious and expects the automotive sector to
remain challenging in 2021. The launching of
new and/or new facelift Mazda models are
still very much dependent on market
sentiments and economic conditions.”
As such, the directors anticipate the
performance of the group for the remaining
quarter ending April 30, 2021 to remain
challenging.
market (-83.5%), medium-haul market (-84.7%),
and long-haul market (-79.7%). The massive
drop in international tourist arrivals is attributed
to the closure of Malaysian borders since March
18, 2020 due to the spread of the Covid-19
pandemic.
Asean countries or the short-haul market
remained as Malaysia’s top contributor with a
68.1% share of tourist arrivals, followed by the
medium-haul market with a domination of
20.1% share, which includes East Asia & South
Asia. The long-haul market share was 11.8%
from West Asia, Middle East, America, Oceania,
Europe and Africa.
The top 10 international tourist arrivals to
Malaysia were from Singapore (1.55 million),
Indonesia (711,723), China (405,149), Thailand
(394,413), India (155,883), Brunei (136,020),
South Korea (119,750), Japan (74,383), Australia
(72,680), and Vietnam (64,184).
In terms of overall tourist expenditure, the
top five contributors came from Singapore,
Indonesia, China, India and Thailand.
completed by the third quarter.
To recap, Chin Hin had on Feb 8 announced
its plans spend RM268 million to acquire 81.9
acres of land in the Klang Valley to develop five
different property projects, aiming to generate
RM3.73 billion in gross development value
(GDV) from on-going and future developments
in the next two years.
It has two ongoing projects – Aera
Residence and 8th & Stellar. Aera Residence is a
serviced apartment project in Petaling Jaya
with an estimated GDV of RM332 million.
Meanwhile, 8th & Stellar is a two-tower
mixed-use development comprising serviced
apartments, duplex lofts, office space and
shoplots on a 2.2-acre leasehold tract in Sri
Petaling. Its estimated GDV is RM470 million.
The take-up rate for both projects currently
stand at 98% and 69% respectively.
11
theSUN ON THURSDAY | MARCH 11, 2021
* SUNBIZ
Dutch Lady sells PJ
assets to UEM Land
for RM200 million
PETALING JAYA: Dutch Lady Milk Industries
Bhd (DLMI) yesterday entered into a conditional
sale and purchase agreement (SPA) with UEM
Land Bhd to dispose of its current factory land
together with buildings in Section 13, Petaling
Jaya, for RM200 million.
The buildings are currently occupied by
DLMI for its factory operations and will continue
to be occupied by DLMI as a tenant following
the completion of the SPA.
The use of the gross cash proceeds of RM200
million will be reviewed and determined by the
board by the end 2021, and may be utilised to
finance the construction of its manufacturing
facilities in Bandar Enstek.
DLMI has completed the purchase of three
parcels of freehold industrial land in Bandar
Baru Enstek, Negri Sembilan, for RM56.79
million cash.
The company will, from 2021, begin
constructing manufacturing and warehousing
facilities, support facilities and office facilities. It
is planned for construction of the new facilities
to be completed in three years.
“It is an express condition of the proposed
disposal that DLMI will be granted a tenancy of
the property for two years from the completion
of the SPA (with an option to extend for two
further terms of six months each thereafter).
DLMI will continue its manufacturing activities
on the property until the construction of the
new facilities have been completed and the
new facilities are fully operational.
“Following the disposal of the property,
DLMI will continue its manufacturing activities
on the property as a tenant until the new
facilities are fully ready. DLMI will then fully
operate from the new facilities,“ DLMI said in a
stock exchange filing.
The proposed disposal is expected to result
in a total net gain of RM178.6 million. This will
translate into an increase in earnings per share
by 279 sen.
The proposed transaction is subject to the
approval of DLMI’s shareholders and is expected
to be completed by the end of 2021.
MDV, Kenanga
Investment set up
fintech fund
with RM300m target
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia Debt Ventures Bhd
(MDV) and Kenanga Investment Bank Bhd have
established a fintech fund, with a target size of
RM300 million to support the growth of
financial technology (fintech) companies in
Malaysia.
MDV CEO Nizam Mohamed Nadzri said the
company is looking to fund fintech companies
with scalable and sustainable business models
that provide innovative and disruptive
technology-based product offerings.
“With the country’s urgent need to leverage
technology advancement to drive economic
recovery, MDV and Kenanga Investment are
confident that the new fund will be able to
contribute positively to Malaysia’s technology
and start-up ecosystem.
“This is given the many advantages of
venture debt and venture capital financing as
an attractive and complementary source of
capital for technology companies in achieving
sustainable and profitable growth,” he said in a
statement yesterday.
The fund will see MDV and Kenanga
Investment taking up the role of joint managers
and co-investors on a pro-rata basis.
In the initial investment phase, both MDV
and Kenanga Investment will equally contribute
RM25 million each as seed capital towards the
fund, which would primarily be used to finance
fintech companies at various stages of its
lifecycle to its pre-initial public offering.
Meanwhile, Kenanga Investment Bank Bhd
group managing director Datuk Chay Wai
Leong said the fund will enable unicorn
companies of the future to flourish and
entrench technology in pole position to drive
Malaysia’s post-Covid-19 recovery. – Bernama
12 theSUN ON THURSDAY | MARCH 11, 2021
SUNBIZ
UMW: Strong
vehicle sales
sustained
into February
PETALING JAYA: UMW Group saw
continued encouraging vehicle
sales in February 2021 – through
both UMW Toyota Motor (UMWT)
and its associate company Perodua
– spurred by the sales tax
exemption which has been
extended to June 30, along with
the introduction of improved
models.
UMWT achieved a 32% increase
in sales to 5,074 units in February
this year compared with 3,845 units
recorded for January.
The group said the performance
was supported by the strong
demand for the improved Vios and
Yaris launched on Dec 17, 2020
along with the enhanced Fortuner
and Innova models introduced on
Feb 2, 2021.
Perodua registered a sales of
16,583 units for the month, a slight
decline from 16,894 units reported
for the previous month, mainly due
to lower number of working days in
the month as well as festive
holidays.
On March 3, the associate
company introduced the compact
SUV, Ativa, which expands its
product line-up. The model is the
first under the advanced Perodua
Smart Build blueprint and it is
offered in three variants with on-
the-road prices ranging from
RM61,500 to RM72,000, before
insurance in Peninsular Malaysia.
Since the launch, the model has
received over 6,000 bookings as at
March 5.
Moreover, the group stated that
it will purchase RM8.1 billion worth
of locally sourced components this
year to meet its 2021 production
target.
UMW president and group CEO
Datuk Ahmad Fuaad Kenali
remarked that it will continue to
take advantage of the sales tax
exemption to drive registration in
the first half of 2021.
BASF doubles acrylic
dispersions capacity
in Pasir Gudang
PETALING JAYA: BASF has started up
its new acrylic dispersions
production line in Pasir Gudang,
doubling its capacity to produce
acrylic dispersions serving the
coatings, construction, adhesives,
and packaging industries in Asia
Pacific.
In a statement, the company said
the new production line
complements the existing set-up and
allows the production of new
dispersions technologies, as the new
line is equipped with condensate
stripping recovery technology that
reduces freshwater consumption and
wastewater generation.
As the site is situated in the
integrated multi-purpose Johor Port
Free Trade Zone, the facility is in a
strategic location for exports to the
region.
“With proximity to three world-
class ports, the expansion will be a
key supply point for our customers in
Malaysia, Singapore and other Asean
countries, also in Australia and New
Zealand. The first commercial
quantities will be produced for our
customers in March this year,” said
Asean & ANZ Dispersions & Resins
director Peter van der Zwan.
Hartalega buys land for
RM7b expansion in Kedah
oAcquires 250 acres
in Bukit Kayu Hitam,
option to purchase
130 acres more
PETALING JAYA: Hartalega
Holdings Bhd, through its wholly
owned subsidiary Hartalega NSM
Sdn Bhd, yesterday inked a sale
and purchase agreement with
Northern Gateway Free Zone Sdn
Bhd for the acquisition of 250 acres
of land in Bukit Kayu Hitam, Kedah,
with an investment of RM7 billion
to build 16 manufacturing facilities
over the next 20 years.
Concurrently, both parties also
signed an option agreement for
Hartalega to purchase another 130
acres of land in the same location.
Northern Gateway Free Zone is
a wholly owned subsidiary of
Northern Gateway Sdn Bhd – a
wholly owned entity of Minister of
Finance Incorporated and the
master developer of the Kota
Perdana Special Border Economic
Zone (SBEZ).
With endorsement from the
government, this will see the group
expanding its presence in the
northern region over the long term.
The area earmarked for the
group’s expansion in Kota Perdana
SBEZ is highly conducive to
business due to its free industrial
and commercial zone status. It also
houses an inland port, further
facilitating logistics and operations.
Finance Minister Tengku Datuk
Seri Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz said
the investment decision by
Hartalega is an endorsement of
Kota Perdana SBEZ’s rising status
Petronas in MoUs to collaborate with UAE oil firms
KUALA LUMPUR: Petroliam
Nasional Bhd (Petronas) has signed
two Memoranda of Understanding
(MoU) with United Arab Emirates
(UAE)-based Abu Dhabi National
Oil Company (ADNOC) and Masdar
to pursue collaborations across the
energy value chain.
The MoU with ADNOC spans the
entire oil and gas value chain
wherein ADNOC welcomes Petronas
to seek opportunities to collaborate
in the exploration, development, and
production of Abu Dhabi’s
significant conventional and
unconventional resources.
“The scope extends into
potential research and development
Ni Hsin partners Red One to promote BlackBixon coffee
PETALING JAYA: Ni Hsin Resources
Bhd’s food & beverage (F&B) arm
Blackbixon Sdn Bhd has entered
into a brand partnership agreement
with Red One Network Sdn Bhd to
market Ni Hsin’s new energy coffee
under the brand name “BlackBixon”.
Under the agreement, it has
appointed the mobile virtual
network operator as a partner to
market the product which entails
marketing and customer
acquisition service to promote the
as a new and preferred investment
destination.
“Kota Perdana SBEZ is now
poised to further enhance its
position and reputation in
attracting other high-end and
export-oriented industries,
leveraging on its competitive
advantage such as proximity to the
Malaysia-Thailand border as well as
the Penang Port. This will also drive
economic development in Kedah,
with a huge, positive impact for the
northern region. Most significantly,
the project is expected to generate
more than 12,000 jobs and help
upskill local talent and vendors,
while supporting infrastructure
development,” he added.
This project aims to unlock
value not only for the Kota Perdana
SBEZ, but also for the entire region
via its economic multiplier effect
and applied technology
cooperation in enhanced
hydrocarbon recovery, carbon
capture, utilisation and storage, gas
sustainability, specialty chemicals,
unconventional resources, and
hydrogen technologies.
“In the downstream sector,
Petronas and ADNOC will explore
cooperation in trading, including
the supply of crude and feedstock
and the offtake of refined products.
Both parties will also assess
domestic and international
opportunities to maximise value
creation down the chain,“ Petronas
said in a statement yesterday.
Another potential is in the area of
product in return for a referral fee, in
accordance to the stipulated brand
partnership compensation plan.
The group said that the
agreement is valid for one year and
shall be renewed annually unless
terminated.
Blackbixon’s managing director
Khoo Chee Kong said he believes
Red One’s network can strengthen
its marketing efforts and reach the
target consumers, both business-to-
business and business-to-consumer.
that is expected to trigger more
investments coming to this part of
Malaysia.
Hartalega CEO Kuan Mun
Leong said going beyond the
current Covid-19 situation and
taking a long-term perspective
towards the structural step-up in
global demand, its production
capacity must be accelerated.
“Our growth strategy remains
focused on Malaysia, given its
comprehensive ecosystem and
supply chain for the glove sector.
This expansion plan will further
solidify Malaysia’s positioning as
the largest glove manufacturer
globally.
“Our aim is to cultivate a robust
supply chain as well as upskilling
local talents and vendors, to
transform the region into an
integrated industrial park for
fuel bunkering and in supporting
LNG (liquefied natural gas)
bunkering vessels at ports in the
UAE and the region, it said.
Petronas president and group
CEO Tengku Muhammad Taufik
Tengku Aziz said the collaboration
with ADNOC bears strong
testimony to the shared vision of
both organisations to pursue value
creation through progressive and
cleaner energy solutions as Petronas
navigates the challenges of an
accelerating energy transition.
Meanwhile, Petronas said the
MoU with Masdar will see both
companies working together to
pursue clean energy projects across
“We see our entry into F&B as
strategic for the future of Ni Hsin as
this new business will enhance the
earnings of the company given the
interest in energy and coffee drinks,
as well as the increased demands in
home coffee consumption,” Khoo
said in a press release.
After Malaysia, he revealed that
the group plans to expand into the
regional market for its next step.
Ni Hsin revealed that the
partnership agreement is the result
From left: Hartalega
executive chairman
Kuan Kam Hon, Mun
Leong, Zafrul,
Deputy Minister of
Finance II Mohd
Shahar Abdullah,
Kedah Mentri Besar
Muhammad Sanusi
Md Nor, Public
Service Department
director-general Tan
Sri Mohd Khairul
Adib Abd Rahman,
Northern Gateway
Free Zone director
Syaiful Hafiz Moamat
Mastam, and
Finance Ministry
secretary-general of
Treasury Datuk Asri
Hamidon at the
signing ceremony
yesterday.
medical devices in the future,
establishing the region as an
attractive destination for both
foreign and domestic direct
investment. Upon completion,
Hartalega estimates to contribute
more than 5% of Kedah’s total
GDP,” said Kuan.
Currently, Hartalega is the
world’s leading nitrile glove
manufacturer, producing 43 billion
pieces of gloves per year. The
group’s expansion plans include
the NGC 1.5, which will increase
the group’s capacity to 63 billion
pieces of gloves per year upon
completion.
The longer-term expansion plan
in Kedah will add another 80 billion
pieces per year, bringing
Hartalega’s total capacity to 143
billion pieces of gloves per annum
once fully completed.
Asia and the Middle East, covering
renewable energy and green
hydrogen.
“Both parties will explore joint
participation in large-scale solar
and wind opportunities for utilities,
commercial and industrial
customers, focusing primarily on
Asia.
“The collaboration with Masdar
will complement Petronas’ growing
renewables portfolio under its
renewable energy arm Petronas
New Energy, which currently has
over one gigawatt of solar capacity
in operation and development in
India and Southeast Asia,“ it added.
– Bernama
of its collaboration agreement for
the development and formulation of
health and bioenergy products with
Fiatec Biosystem Sdn Bhd in August
2020, which marks its entry into the
F&B business.
In January this year, it has
appointed Global Coffee Resources
Sdn Bhd as its supplier for the
coffee beans and coffee powders
and filed a patent for BlackBixon to
secure its competitive advantage in
February.
 13
theSUN ON THURSDAY | MARCH 11, 2021

* SPORTS

322 Notices 322 Notices 322 Notices

McIlroy looking
for ‘spark’
COLOUR LITE HOLDING SDN.
Off days ‘just a little too much’
IN THE MATTER OF THE COMPANIES IN THE MATTER OF
ACT, 2016 BHD. THE COMPANIES ACT 2016
AND AND
IN THE MATTER OF (Company No. 200701011246 IN THE MATTER OF
NORSE CROWN CO. (MALAYSIA)
SDN. BHD.
[196501000255 (6080-W)]
(769250-W))
(Incorporated in Malaysia)
(Under Members’ Voluntary
TROPICANA DANGA BAY LAND
SDN BHD
(199601019796) (392148-D)
of late for Irishman
(IN MEMBERS’ VOLUNTARY
Winding Up)

WINDING-UP)
Notice is hereby given pursuant to
Section 439 (2)(b) of the Companies
Act, 2016, that the Special Resolutions
as set out below was duly passed by
the members of the Company on 10
March 2021.
“that the Company will be liquidated
by way of members’ voluntarily
winding-up and that Manoranjitham
A/P N Lechumanam of LMR &
Associates, Chartered Accountants
(NF 0503) at CT-05-20, Level 5,
Subang Square Corporate Tower,
Jalan SS 15/4G, 47500 Subang Jaya,
Selangor Darul Ehsan be appointed
as liquidator to act for the purpose
of winding-up the Company’s affairs,
and distributing its assets, and that
pursuant to Section 456 and Eleventh
Schedule of the Companies Act, 2016
the liquidator may exercise all the
powers and duties as required under
these Sections”.
“That the liquidator be authorised to
divide all or such part of the surplus
assets of the Company as she thinks
fit amongst the members of the
Company”.
Dated this 11 March 2021
By Order of the Board
IN THE MATTER OF
THE COMPANIES ACT, 2016
AND
IN THE MATTER OF
NORSE CROWN CO. (MALAYSIA)
SDN. BHD.
[196501000255 (6080-W)]
NOTICE OF FINAL MEETING
UNDER SECTION 459
OF THE COMPANIES ACT, 2016
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that a
Final Meeting of the members of
the abovenamed company will
be held at Suite A24, 2nd Floor,
Podium A, Plaza Pekeliling, 50400
Kuala Lumpur on 15 April 2021
at 11.00 a.m. for the following
purposes: -
AGENDA
1. To receive the Liquidator’s
account of receipts and
payments and statement
of distribution among the
contributories and to hear any
explanations that may be given
by the liquidator.
2. To approve the following
ordinary resolution:
Disposal of books records
pursuant to Section 518(3)(b)
Companies Act, 2016
That the books, accounts and
documents of the company
and of the Liquidator thereof
shall be destroyed upon the
R
NOTICE OF
REDUCTION OF SHARE CAPITAL
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN THAT pursuant ORY MCILROY is dealing Invitational. In his previous start, feel really good,‘ and then I didn’t
to Section 117(10) of the Companies
Act 2016, a special resolution has
with a bag of mixed McIlroy shot a 71 on Sunday to slip to quite have it.
been passed on 8 March 2021 to
reduce the issued share capital of the
emotions leading up to The a T6 after being in contention early in “The ups and downs are just a
Company from RM222,160,318.00 to Players Championship. the final round. little too much.”
RM219,960,319.00 by returning to the
holder of Redeemable Non-Cumulative He is the defending champion, but “Just trying to get the bad golf a McIlroy ended up finishing eight
Preference Shares of the Company an
amount of RM2,199,999.00. Creditors that win came two years ago. McIlroy little better because the good golf is shots behind Bryson DeChambeau
are requested to send their names,
addresses and particulars of their was nine shots behind Hideki always there and the good shots will on Sunday. He is in the middle of a
objections to the undersigned on or
before 19 April 2021. Any objections
Matsuyama when the tournament always be in there,” he said. stretch of nine events in 12 weeks
received after this date will not be
entertained.
was canceled after the first round last “It’s just when you’re not feeling leading up to the Masters.
year as the coronvarius pandemic quite 100%, that’s when you need to The 31-year-old will arrive at
Petaling Jaya
Dated: 11 March 2021 gripped the world. just be able to manage it a little better, Augusta National next week in search
JEFFREY TAN SIEW YANG “I think I feel a bit better about that and I just haven’t managed it well of his first major title since 2014.
Director than Hideki does,” McIlroy quipped over the last few weeks.” McIlroy will also take another crack at
TROPICANA DANGA BAY LAND SDN BHD
(199601019796) (392148-D)
when asked yesterday about not McIlroy admitted he felt completing the career grand slam of
Unit 1301, Level 13, chasing nine shots to defend his title “dejected” walking off the 72nd hole winning all for majors.
Tropicana Gardens Office Tower,
No. 2A, Persiaran Surian, this year. at Bay Hill on Sunday. Knowing he But he’ll have to find a way to get
Tropicana Indah,
47810 Petaling Jaya, McIlroy enters The Players with had missed another opportunity to more out of his sub-par days – similar
Selangor Darul Ehsan.
consecutive top 10 finishes, but he snap his winless spell, McIlroy told a to how he birdied the final three holes
has also fallen outside the world top reporter he was in need of a “spark.” last year to finish his first round at
10 for the first time in three years. “I’d almost feel better if my game TPC Sawgrass at even par.
322 Notices
The Northern Irishman dipped to was worse,” he said Tuesday. “But it’s “I think that’s where I’m sort of
IN THE MATTER OF No. 11 after struggling to a 76 on the inconsistency of I shot 66 on struggling… I’ll always be able to
THE COMPANIES ACT, 2016 Sunday at the Arnold Palmer Thursday and thought, ‘I’ve got it, I figure it out and find a way.” – Reuters
AND
IN THE MATTER OF

Off-course
(IN MEMBERS’ VOLUNTARY
expiration of three (3) months MARKAS DEVELOPMENT
BRIEFS
WINDING-UP)
after the date of the final SDN. BHD.
Notice is hereby given that the meeting. Registration No. 199701004863
creditors of the above named company
(420359-X)
No fans, families at Tokyo Games, hints chief
which is being wound up voluntarily

distractions
are required on or before 15 day of Dated this 11 March 2021 (In Members’ Voluntary
April, 2021 to send their names and Winding-Up)
addresses with particulars of their LEE OOI CHOO
debts and claims and the names and Liquidator NOTICE OF FINAL MEETING
addresses of their solicitors (if any) THE families of athletes competing at the Tokyo Olympics could be

worry Thomas
to the liquidator of the said Company
at the under mentioned address, and
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN barred from entering Japan to watch them, the Games president has
pursuant to Section 459(2) of the
if so required in writing from the said
Companies Act, 2016, that the suggested in an interview with local media. The comments came as
CALL
liquidator, are by their solicitors or
personally to come in and prove their Final Meeting of the Company will reports said Japan’s government has already decided to exclude
debts or claims at such time and place be held at 41, Jalan Medan Ipoh 6,
as shall be specified in such notice or Bandar Baru Medan Ipoh, 31400 overseas fans from the coronavirus-delayed Games to reduce the JUSTIN THOMAS knows he’s going to
TO PLACE
in default thereof they will be excluded
from the benefits of any distribution
Ipoh, Perak on Tuesday, 13 April risk of outbreaks. The decision on foreign fans is expected to be face the same questions at every event
2021 at 3.00 p.m. for the following
made before such debts are proven.
purposes: announced next week. “This is a chance they may only get once in until he starts to regularly contend again.
Dated 11 March 2021

Manoranjitham A/P N Lechumanam

CLASSIFIED ADS 1. To receive the Liquidators’
Statement of Accounts
their lives, so on an emotional level I want families to be able to
watch,” Tokyo 2020 president Seiko Hashimoto told the Mainichi
“What’s your mental state now?” was
the first one from the media during
Liquidator
CT-05-20, Level 5, Subang Square
showing the manner in which
the winding-up has been
Shimbun daily yesterday. “But we have to think about Japan’s yesterday interview session ahead of The

MS. SHOBA
Corporate Tower, Jalan SS 15/4G,
47500 Subang Jaya, conducted and to hear any medical system, so with a heavy heart I have to say it’s difficult.” Players Championship this week.
Selangor Darul Ehsan explanations that may be given
by the Liquidators.
Thomas’ year got off to a rough start
Tel: 603-56300871
PGA Tour sees ‘light at end’ of tunnel when the television broadcast caught
T 03 7784 8888 2. To resolve that under Section
518(3)(b) of the Companies Act,
2016, the books, accounts and PGA TOUR chief Jay Monahan said yesterday that Covid-19 testing
him uttering a homophobic slur during
the Tournament of Champions.
F 03 7784 4424 documents of the Company and
of the Liquidators be destroyed
after the expiration of three (3)
would continue for the forseeable future but expressed optimism
the pandemic crisis was easing with “light at the end of the tunnel”.
His grandfather also passed away
during the Phoenix Open, and good
months from the date of the Speaking ahead of this week’s Players Championship at TPC friend Tiger Woods is recovering from
Final Meeting.
322 Notices Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, Monahan said: “I think as serious leg injuries suffered in a car
ONG SEOW TAI players become vaccinated, as our constituents become vaccinated, accident.
Liquidator
PERISYTIHARAN JUALAN we’re hopeful that everybody will, but we will continue to provide Thomas admits the distractions have
Dated this testing for the foreseeable future. Hopefully, as we get to a high impacted his golf game.
DALAM MAHKAMAH TINGGI MALAYA DI ALOR SETAR 11th day of March 2021
PERMOHONAN UNTUK PERLAKSANAAN percentage of our players that have been vaccinated, we can start to While he remains third in the official
NO: KA-38-564-12/2020 NOTE:
A member of the Company entitled pull back from the programme that we know as of today. It’s hard to world golf rankings, Thomas has missed
Dalam perkara mengenai Seksyen 256 dan 257 Kanun Tanah Negara, 1965
Dan
to attend and vote at the Meeting determine when that will be, but clearly we see light at the end of two cuts in his past four events. He is
may appoint a proxy to attend and
Dalam perkara mengenai Gadaian Perserahan
No: 3510/2002 bertarikh 13/06/2002 ke atas semua bahagian tanah yang vote instead of him. A proxy may the tunnel. The conversations we’re having with players and with coming off a T15 at The Concession two
dipegang di bawah GM 12614, 629 Seksyen 53,
Mukim Bandar Alor Setar, Daerah Kota Setar, Kedah
but need not be a member of the everybody in our ecosystem have been very positive. I think players weeks ago, but finished 10 shots behind
Company.
Dan are eager to get vaccinated and are certainly studying this.” winner Collin Morikawa.
Dalam perkara mengenai Aturan 83 KaedahKaedah Mahkamah, 2012
“I have definitely been better,” Thomas
ANTARA
HONG LEONG ISLAMIC BANK BERHAD (No. Syarikat : 686191-W) DUTA DUNIA SDN. BHD. Svitolina crashes out in Dubai admitted yesterday when asked about his
DAN
. . . PLAINTIF (Company No. 199501019212 mental state. “But at the same time, it’s a
(348415-H))
RAVINDARAN A/L K. RAMAIYAH (No. Kad Pengenalan : 610516025275)
PUSHPPA A/P MANICKAM KANAGASABAI (No. Kad Pengenalan (Lama): A1724095) (Incorporated in Malaysia) TOP-SEEDED good opportunity for me to try to grow
. . . DEFENDAN (Under Members’ Voluntary Elina Svitolina Elina Svitolina in and learn and get stronger because of it.
Menurut Perintah Mahkamah Tinggi Malaya di ALOR SETAR mengenai Perintah Jualan
Winding Up) suffered a action in Dubai Open “I think it’s kind of put a
dan Perintah bertarikh 23 Disember 2019 dan 22 Februari 2021, adalah dengan ini
diisytiharkan bahawa Timbalan Pendaftar/Penolong Kanan Pendaftar Pusat Operasi e-Lelong NOTICE OF FINAL MEETING “disappointing” 2021 against Svetlana lot of things into
di Kuantan
AKAN MENJUAL SECARA
UNDER SECTION 459 2-6, 6-4, 6-1 Kuznetsova (not perspective,
OF THE COMPANIES ACT, 2016
LELONG AWAM
Pada Hari Isnin, 12 April 2021, Pada Jam 9:00 pagi,
defeat to Svetlana pictured) and
SECARA ELEKTRONIK DI LAMAN WEB e-LELONG, PUSAT OPERASI e-LELONG, NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that a Kuznetsova in her yesterday. unfortunately
KOMPLEKS MAHKAMAH KUANTAN, PAHANG DARUL MAKMUR
NOTA: Bakal pembeli adalah dinasihatkan agar membuat carian Hakmilik secara
Final Meeting of the members of Dubai opener for my golf, it’s
rasmi di Pejabat Tanah dan memeriksa semua tanggungan, bebanan serta mengenal the abovenamed company will
pasti dengan tepat hartanah tersebut sebelum jualan lelongan dijalankan. be held at Suite A24, 2nd Floor, yesterday as American taken a toll on
Sila layari https://elelong.kehakiman.gov.my/bidderweb Podium A, Plaza Pekeliling, 50400 teen sensation Coco that a little bit.”
Kuala Lumpur on 15 April 2021
BUTIR-BUTIR HAKMILIK
at 10.00 a.m. for the following Gauff come through a He’s excited to be
No. Hakmilik : GM 12614
No. Lot : 629 Seksyen 53 purposes: - tension-fuelled second back with the ability
Mukim / Daerah / Negeri
Pegangan
: Bandar Alor Setar / Kota Setar / Kedah
: Hakmilik Kekal
round against Marketa to play in front of
AGENDA
No. Petak/No. Tingkat/No.
Bangunan :
Vondrousova. Kuznetsova more fans, even if it’s
Keluasan Tanah : 0.00 kaki persegi 1. To receive the Liquidator’s rallied back from a set and an only 25% of the
account of receipts and
Pemilik Berdaftar
: 213.00 meter persegi
: RAVINDARAN A/L K. RAMAIYAH, PUSHPPA A/P payments and statement early break down to knock out 200,000 that
Syarat Nyata
MANICKAM KANAGASABAI
: Rumah Berkembar
of distribution among the the two-time champion and typically
Sekatan Kepentingan : di atas tanah yang hendak dimajukan sebagai tapak contributories and to hear any record her 21st match-win in attend The
perumahan itu melainkan tuan tanah bina dan explanations that may be given
peliharakan simpanan jalan itu dan tar menurut taraf by the liquidator. Dubai – the highest tally Players.
Bebanan / Lain-Lain :
Jabatan Kerja Raya among active WTA players. “I haven’t
2. To approve the following
Kawasan Rizab :
ordinary resolution: “Obviously the loss is very been and I’m
Kaveat :
tough because I think I not playing
LOKASI DAN PERIHAL HARTANAH
Hartanah tersebut adalah Sebuah rumah berkembar dua tingkat yang beralamat pos di
Disposal of books records started the match quite good as well as I’d
pursuant to Section 518(3)(b)
No. 36, Jalan Delima 4, Taman Desa Baiduri, off Jalan Gangsa, 05150, Alor Setar,
Kedah. Companies Act, 2016 and I was feeling good going like,” Thomas
HARGA RIZAB
into the tournament and I really said. “But I’ve
Hartanah tersebut akan dijual atas “sepertimana sedia ada” tertakluk kepada satuharga That the books, accounts and love to play here in Dubai,” said been working
rizab sebanyak RM 351,000.00 (RINGGIT MALAYSIA: TIGA RATUS LIMA PULUH-SATU documents of the company
RIBU SAHAJA) dan kepada syarat-syarat jualan yang dilampirkan.Pembida yang berminat and of the Liquidator thereof the fifth-ranked Svitolina. and kind of
hendaklah mendepositkan 10% daripada harga rizab dalam bentuk Bank Draf di atas nama
HONG LEONG ISLAMIC BANK BERHAD 1 HARI BEKERJA sebelum tarikh lelong awam. Baki shall be destroyed upon the Contesting a seventh tweaking
harga belian hendaklah dibayar oleh pembida yangberjaya kepada HONG LEONG ISLAMIC expiration of three (3) months
BANK BERHAD dalam tempoh seratus dua puluh (120) hari dari tarikh jualan. Untuk butir- after the date of the final consecutive three-set match, things. You
butir selanjutnya, sila berhubung dengan:- meeting. Gauff needed two hours to know, at the end
Firma Guaman
Alamat
: MURAD & FOO
: SUITE 10.01, 10TH FLOOR, MWE PLAZA Dated this 11 March 2021
dismiss the Czech 12th seed of the day I’m like
No. Telefon
NO. 8, LEBUH FARQUHAR, 10200, PG, MY
: 04-2631233/300
3-6, 6-0, 6-4 and set up a an iPod Nano; I just
No. Fax : 04-2617097 LEE OOI CHOO third-round meeting with keep shuffling.” –
No. Rujukan : TLN/HLBB/F119/2015 Liquidator
qualifier Tereza Martincova. AFP
14 theSUN ON THURSDAY | MARCH 11, 2021
SPORTS

B Sevilla pay penalty

ORUSSIA DORTMUND striker Erling
Haaland struck in each half as they
advanced to the Champions League
quarterfinals after a 2-2 draw with
Sevilla in their last-16 second leg yesterday to
complete a 5-4 aggregate win.
The Norwegian notched his 20th
Champions League goal in 14 games – and 10th
in the competition this season – with a
controversial 54th-minute penalty after having
tapped in a Marco Reus cutback against the run
of play to give Dortmund the lead in the first
half.
Sevilla hit back with two goals from Youssef
En-Nesyri in the second half, the first a 66th-
minute penalty followed by a stoppage-time
header to make it 2-2.
Sevilla’s second goal set up a frantic finish,
but Dortmund held on to edge through after
their 3-2 win in the first leg last month.
The 20-year-old Haaland has become
Norway’s all-time top scorer in the competition,
with one more goal than current Manchester
5253/2021
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Haaland ‘s goals send Dortmund into Champions League last eight
United coach Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, as
Dortmund reached the last eight for the first
time since 2017.
“This feels so cool,” Dortmund coach Edin
Terzic said. “We are extremely happy because
for us it is not to be taken for granted in the past
years that we are at this stage.”
“Erling is outstanding. We are happy to have
two more Champions League games now for
him to keep scoring.”
Sevilla, who arrived in Dortmund on the
back of three straight defeats, dictated
proceedings from the start and had a good
effort by Lucas Ocampos early on.
Borussia Dortmund’s Erling
Braut Haaland (right) gets past
Sevilla’s Joan Jordan Moreno
during their Champions
10/03/2021 (WED) League, last 16 2nd leg match
at the Signal Iduna stadium
yesterday. – AFPPIX
Without injured Jadon Sancho, Dortmund,
who lost to Bayern Munich in the league on
Saturday, hardly got a look in until Haaland
struck with their first chance of the game in the
35th minute.
The Norwegian put the ball in the net five
minutes after the restart with a superb effort,
but in an extraordinary VAR review, the referee
Cuneyt Cakir first disallowed the goal for a foul
by Haaland and then awarded Dortmund a
penalty for a shirt-pull on the striker minutes
earlier.
Keeper Yassine Bounou saved Haaland’s
spot kick as well as his thundering rebound but
the referee ordered it to be retaken after he said
the keeper had moved off the line.
Haaland slotted in on his second attempt to
take his goal tally in the competition this season
to 10 in six games.
Despite scoring twice Sevilla could not find
another to send the game to extra time.
“We are angry because in the four halves we
were better in three. We missed scoring that
third goal,” Sevilla coach Julen Lopetegui said.
“It wasn’t just dominance,” he addd. “We
didn’t allow a team with spectacular players to
play, they barely left their half. But they have a
lot of individual quality and they showed it, and
it wasn’t easy to deal with that.
“Haaland… is one of the best players in the
world and he’s punished us. We rowed hard to
die on the shore at the end. We wanted to get
through, and I think we deserved to. We played
a great game.” – Reuters/Agencies
Draw Date: 10/03/21 (Wed) Draw No: 5200/21 Venue: PERAK TURF CLUB

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Marseille started this season in the “Being here is a challenge, not a risk,”
Champions League after finishing second he said. “Not speaking the language, it
Visit www.sportstoto.com.my last year in the coronavirus curtailed was the same in Brazil. You have to speak
French season under Andre Villas-Boas. a common language with the players. You
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Marseille won just one game as they passion.” – AFP
 15
theSUN ON THURSDAY | MARCH 11, 2021

* SPORTS

SIDENETTING
Cavani ‘proud’ to be a Devil
Wijnaldum wants to stay EDINSON CAVANI insists he is proud to wear the
Manchester United shirt after speculation over
GEORGINIO WIJNALDUM said he would his future following comments from his father
be “devastated” if he had to leave that he does “not feel comfortable” at the club.
Liverpool after entering the final few The 34-year-old, who signed for Ole Gunnar
months of his contract with no new deal Solskjaer’s side last summer on a free transfer
firmed up. The Dutch international has after his contract with Paris Saint-Germain
long been linked with Barcelona and a expired, has impressed in England, hitting seven
reunion with his former national team goals in 25 appearances across all competitions
boss Ronald Koeman. “The most to date.
important thing is to get back on track
and winning games again and then we
will see,” said the midfielder, who has UEFA Europa League 2020-21
won the Champions League and Premier
League under Jurgen Klopp. “I am really LAST 16, 1ST LEG – MAR 12
happy here and my family is happy here
but there is no news. But I would be Match highlight European form W D L
devastated (if) I didn’t play with this MAN UTD v AC MILAN
team any more, that’s for sure.” The 30-
Old Trafford
year-old, who has made 224
appearances for Liverpool in five years, is Head-to-head
having to consider walking away from Won 5 Drawn 0 Won 5
the club where he has tasted so much Form
success. “Really difficult,” he said. “If that 19 / 10 Goals for / against 15 / 10
happens, you would be leaving a team European statistics (per match)
that you really love. A team that you 6.13 Shots on target 4.63
shared a lot of years together, a team
3.88 Shots wide 3.75
where you feel really comfortable. But on
the other side, you would know the 419 Passes 415
situation why you have to leave. It always 5.38 Corners 4.00
depends on the situation.” 50% Possession 54%
Cavani’s short-term deal expires this summer, Sports network.
but the Uruguayan could extend his stay at Old “We are very anxious. We have always been to
Trafford, with the option trigger a further year on visit him, he has been in very beautiful places
the contract. where people have received him very well.
But there are now suggestions the Uruguay “He has made himself loved, he has made
international is ready to reject an additional many friends, but today he does not feel
season with United, with his father Luis claiming comfortable where he is.
Cavani does “not feel comfortable”. “He has been thinking for more than two
“There is a 60% chance that Edinson will years that he wants to be closer to his family and
come to South America,” Luis Cavani told the TyC that is the reason why I think Edi is going to end
up playing for a team from here in South
America.”
However, Cavani uploaded a photo to his
Instagram yesterday along with the caption
FIXTURES “Proud to wear this shirt ManUtd.”
Slavia Prague - Rangers Cavani’s father went on to suggest a move to
Argentinian outfit Boca Juniors could be on the
Dynamo Kyiv - Villarreal
cards in the future.
Ajax - Young Boys “I would like him to go to play for a team that
Granada - Molde
has a chance of winning something,” he added.
Tottenham - Dinamo Zagreb “We have spoken with Edinson and he always
leans towards Boca because he had many
Olympiacos - Arsenal
conversations with (Juan) Riquelme.
Roma - Shakhtar
“I know that he would like to play and be
close to his country, so that we could be closer to
RISE OF MILAN: Italian giants face him.” – The Independent
former Champions League rivals
Manchester Utd as they mount new
challenge for both European and
domestic silverware, 10 years after
last Serie A title

Sources: UEFA, Gracenote *12 matches remaining © GRAPHIC NEWS

Swansea miss chance
to go second
SWANSEA squandered the chance to
move back into the Championship
automatic promotion places as they
were held to a 1-1 draw by Blackburn at
Royal rumble
M
Ewood Park yesterday. The Welsh outfit
now sit behind second-placed Watford
on goal difference, but with a game in
ANCHESTER UNITED and AC
Milan meet in the Europa League
Man Utd face AC Milan in
hand. Norwich remain 10 points clear at
the top of the table as they bid for an
last 16 tomorrow (1.55am
Malaysian time) in a battle of
Europa League battle of
immediate return to the Premier League. European royalty, with both clubs showing recovering giants
Steven Cooper's Swans fell behind to signs of revival.
Bradley Dack's 37th-minute goal, but With 10 Champions League titles between Champions League since 2014.
levelled four minutes before the break as them, United and Milan were once feared Milan’s gradual improvement under boss
Andre Ayew netted a penalty to score for across Europe for their swashbuckling play and Stefano Pioli has taken them to second in Serie
the 15th time this season. That would financial muscle. A this term.
prove to be the only shot on target that But both clubs have lost their lustre in recent The seven-time European champions are
Swansea – bidding to return to the top years, making their first meeting since 2010 an six points behind leaders Inter Milan – a 3-0
flight for the first time since their intriguing affair. defeat against their city rivals in February was a
relegation in 2017-18 – could manage as In a sign of the drop in standards at Old significant blow to their title aspirations.
Blackburn were unlucky not to find a Trafford and the San Siro, the 11th encounter Trying to restore their domestic dominance
winner. Elsewhere, QPR beat Wycombe between two of the world’s most historic teams is the first goal for United and Milan on a long
1-0 to leave the Chairboys rooted to the will be their first outside the Champions League journey they hope will eventually lead them
foot of the table, 12 points from safety. knockout stages. back to the Champions League summit as well.
United, 20-time English champions, have Winning the Europa League would be
not won the Premier League since Alex another welcome sign of better days to come.
RESULTS & STANDINGS Ferguson’s last season in charge in 2013. Milan have never reached the final of the
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side are unlikely to competition but their striker Zlatan
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE (Last 16, second end that drought this season as they trail Ibrahimovic was a United player when the
legs): Borussia Dortmund 2 (Haaland 35, leaders Manchester City by 11 points with 10 English giants won the Europa League in 2017.
54-pen) Sevilla 2 (En-Nesyri 69-pen, 90+6) games left. Ibrahimovic has missed Milan’s past two
– Dortmund win 5-4 on agg; Juventus Sunday’s impressive 2-0 win at City was a games due to a muscle injury, but Pioli hopes
3 (Chiesa 49, 63, Rabiot 117) Porto 2
(Oliveira 19-pen, 115) aet – 4-4 draw on sign United are at least heading in the right the 39-year-old Swede will be fit for an Old
agg, Porto win on away goals. direction at last after losing their way under Trafford return.
several of Ferguson’s successors. “He is better… he will have another
CHAMPIONSHIP: Blackburn 1 Swansea Calling for United to build on that success, examination to see how his recovery is going,
1, QPR 1 Wycombe 0, Luton vs Solskjaer praised his side’s energy levels. we hope he can recover by Thursday,” Pioli said.
Rotherham – postponed. “We are going to do everything we can to United will face another familiar face in
keep the performance levels up every day,” he fullback Diogo Dalot, who is on loan at Milan,
TOP 10 P W D L F A Pts said. with UEFA rules allowing players to face their
Norwich 35 23 7 5 51 25 76 “I feel we are a better team to 12, 16, 18 parent clubs.
Watford 35 19 9 7 46 24 66 months ago. We have improved massively. We Old Trafford holds happy memories for
Swansea 34 19 9 6 44 25 66 are more robust, resilient and there is more Milan, who beat Juventus there in the 2003
Brentford 34 18 9 7 61 36 63 personality in the team. That is what I like.” Champions League final, but their record in
Reading 35 18 6 11 49 37 60 The most recent of Milan’s 18 Serie A titles England against English hosts shows just one
Barnsley 34 17 6 11 42 37 57 came in 2011, with a sixth-place finish last term win in 17 matches.
Bournemouth 35 15 11 9 50 34 56 earning a return to Europe after a one-season While United’s Milan showdown is the tie of
Cardiff 35 15 9 11 53 35 54 absence. the round, there are several teams in action
Mid’boro 35 14 8 13 41 38 50 That was a small step in the right direction elsewhere who also harbour genuine hopes of
Stoke 35 12 12 11 41 39 48 for Milan, who have not played in the winning the tournament. – AFP

Bale explains move back to Spurs

GARETH BALE has started to hit some form
during his loan spell at Tottenham Hotspur, and
he has made clear that he left Real Madrid
because he wanted to play football more
regularly.
The 31-year-old explained the reasons
behind why he wanted to head back to Spurs.
“I think everyone knows how much I love
Tottenham and what a good time I had here
before I went to Real Madrid,” Bale said during a
video from Tottenham’s official Twitch account
ahead of tomorrow’s (4am Malaysian time)
Europa League match against Dinamo Zagreb.
“I wanted to play football, I wanted to help
the team in whatever way I could and coming
back to a place that I knew loved me, would
show me that love, made it a very easy decision
to come back.
“Obviously I know a lot of people here, so it
was easy for me to settle in; I knew that
wouldn’t’ be a problem.
“I was able to get my head down, play
football and try to do my best for Tottenham to
help them out.”
Bale has played with some wonderful
players in his career, but who stands out above
the rest?
“I’d have to say Cristiano Ronaldo,” Bale said.
“I think, for me, just the amount of goals he’s
scored and the titles we won together.
“He’s arguably one of the best to have ever
played football, so I’d have to say him.” –
Agencies

THURSDAY • MARCH 11, 2021
Gerrard insists ‘Liverpool fans don’t want me as manager’
RANGERS manager Steven Gerrard said it is his dream to
take charge of Liverpool one day but has no intention of
replacing Jurgen Klopp, who has come under pressure
amid a stunning slump in form.
Gerrard took the helm at Rangers in 2018 and guided
them to their first Scottish Premiership title since 2011
this season, denying Celtic a 10th successive crown in the
process.
His success has seen him tipped to take over from
Klopp, whose side waltzed to the Premier League title last
season but have lost eight times in the League since
January and dropped to eighth in the current campaign.
“The Liverpool fans don’t want me to be the
manager,” Gerrard told ITV News.
“They want Klopp to continue to be the Liverpool
manager – and I’m totally with them. We shouldn’t talk
about this. We have one of the best managers leading
our club at the minute.
“I’ve got a job here. I don’t think it’s helpful to talk
about this and I hope Jurgen stays at Liverpool for many
years.”
Gerrard, 40, spent 17 seasons at Liverpool as a player
Poetic justice
Juve’s grand plan to win the Champions
League with Ronaldo backfires
I
F Juventus president Andrea Agnelli
wants to re-order European football to
ensure his club don’t lose so much, he
should perhaps start with what the
game and his job are supposed to be about:
building a proper team in the first place.
The Italian champions have very
quickly gone from one of the best run clubs
in Europe to one of the worst examples of
legacy entitlement, incapable of delivering
the Champions League and so desperate to
change it.
The signing of Ronaldo has backfired
spectacularly. His contribution to Porto’s
final fateful goal encapsulated this and
offered such fitting symbolism, as he
turned his back on Sergio Oliveira’s freekick
to let it go through his leg.
It capped Juve turning their back on
football logic. That’s what the basic
rationale behind the signing represented.
It was almost as if the thinking was that
Juve were just short of winning the
competition, so signed its most frequent
champion to push them over the line.
Ronaldo’s time at Juventus has seen
them go out to Ajax, Lyon and Porto – either
second-tier teams or teams from second-
tier leagues. So much for Agnelli’s idea of
the elite.
The Portuguese superstar, along with
Adrien Rabiot, jumped and turned their
backs on Oliveira’s free-kick in extra-time,
with the ball zipping underneath the wall
and past Wojciech Szczesny to clinch
victory on aggregate and progress on away
goals with the tie level at 4-4.
The defeat leaves the Old Lady on the
verge of a catastrophic season with Inter
Milan primed to break their nine-year
streak of titles in Serie A.
Manager Andrea Pirlo attempted to
explain the situation surrounding Oliveira’s
second goal of the night in Turin.
“We choose the players to go in the
wall,” Pirlo told Sky Sport Italia. “It had
never happened before that they’d turn
theSun is published and printed by Sun Media Corporation Sdn Bhd (221220-K) of Lot 6, Jalan 51/217, 46050 Petaling Jaya, Selangor. Tel: 03-7784 6688 Fax: 03-7783 7435 • Tel (Editorial): 03-7784 6688 Fax: 03-7785 2624/5 Email: newsdesk@thesundaily.com • Tel (Advertising): 03-7784 8888 Fax: 03-7784 4424 Email: advertise@thesundaily.com
QUOTE OF THE DAY
I think everyone knows how much I love
Tottenham and what a good time I had here
before I went to Real Madrid. I wanted to play football, I
wanted to help the team in whatever way I could and
coming back to a place that I knew loved me, would show
me that love, made it a very easy decision to come back.”
Tottenham Hotspur forward Gareth Bale
and won the Champions League title in 2005. He also
worked for the Merseyside club as a youth coach before Potential candidates to replace Loew
taking charge of Rangers.
“Liverpool is my club. I had a great journey. Is it a HANSI FLICK ideal candidate.
dream for me to one day be Liverpool manager? Yes, it is, The Bayern Munich boss is the logical “He is available. He is someone who
but not yet and who’s to say I’ll ever be good enough.” choice having been Loew’s assistant can build something,” Matthaeus, 59, told
Klopp has been mentioned as a possible replacement coach when Germany won the 2014 Sky yesterday.
for Joachim Low when he steps down as Germany boss World Cup.
after the European Championship in June-July, though The 56-year-old knows the German JULIAN NAGELSMANN
the Liverpool manager said yesterday he would not be FA inside out, having spent three years as The vacancy has probably come too
available. sports director from 2014 until 2017, soon for the 33-year-old RB Leipzig
“I have three years left at Liverpool, that’s a simple before joining the coaching staff at manager who is regarded as one of
statement, a simple situation,” he said. Bayern two years later. Germany’s brightest rising star coaches.
“You sign a contract and you normally try to stick to
that contract don’t you? I had a contract in Mainz where I RALF RANGNICK STEFAN KUNTZ
stuck with them even though there was interest from The 62-year-old is the architect of RB The 58-year-old is head coach of the
other Bundesliga teams with more money. Leipzig’s stunning rise from the fifth tier national Under-21 side and highly
“It is just timing and if it doesn’t work out you don’t of German football. regarded by the German FA.
have to lose any sleep over it. Someone else will do the Lothar Matthaeus, who captained According to Loew, Kuntz does
job and I am pretty sure with the amount of really good West Germany to the 1990 World Cup “excellent work” and has “a very good
German managers at the moment the German FA will triumph, sees Rangnick as the approach to the team”.
find a good solution.” – Reuters
around, maybe they felt it was so far out
that they didn’t sense the danger. It was a
mistake, it usually doesn’t happen, the
players didn’t feel it was a dangerous
situation and conceded a goal.”
Former Juve boss Fabio Capello was
astounded over the “unforgivable” actions
by the players and appeared to tear into
Ronaldo by claiming he was “scared of the
ball”.
“That was an unforgivable error. In my
day, you chose the players who went into
the wall and they couldn’t be someone
afraid of the ball,” he said.
“They were scared of the ball and
jumped away from it, turning their backs.
That’s unforgivable.”
Juventus went into yesterday’s home leg
2-1 down after the opening match in
Portugal and Oliveira’s first-half penalty put
the visitors even further ahead of aggregate.
But Juventus showed steel to come back
and level the tie on aggregate thanks to two
second-half goals from 23-year-old winger
Federico Chiesa which forced the game
into an extra 30 minutes.
The reigning Serie A champions pushed
for a winner with Alvaro Morata seeing an
injury-time goal disallowed and Juan
Cuadrado hitting the bar as well – but were
stunned by Oliveira’s long-range freekick
which meant Juventus needed two goals in
the final five minutes of extra-time.
Rabiot pulled one back with three
minutes to go but time ran out for Juventus.
Capello blamed the more experienced
players for not turning up to the occasion as
the Old Lady’s younger players – such as
Chiesa and Rabiot – were the ones to
impress on the night.
“You see only the youngest players
actually stepped in and showed their face
during the tough moments,” Capello said. FC Porto’s Pepe (left) and
“In this team, there are some veterans Juventus’ Aaron Ramsey go for
who turn up when they win to take the a header during their UEFA
credit, then are nowhere to be seen when Champions League round of 16
they lose.” – The Independent second leg match in Turin
yesterday. – AFPPIX