MP SPEAKS | One of our biggest challenges in the war against the Covid-19 pandemic is how to accelerate the National Immunisation Programme (NIP) and shorten its 22-month programme to achieve herd immunity against Covid-19 to seven or even four months. For the past few days, both Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin

The foreign ministry of Malaysia has said it would summon China’s envoy to explain an “intrusion” by 16 air force planes into its airspace, after the south-east Asian country’s military detected “suspicious” activity over the South China Sea. Malaysia’s air force said it scrambled jets on Monday

KUALA LUMPUR: The public has been urged to undergo an immediate check-up if they have symptoms or have been in contact with a positive Covid-19 case, said Health director-general Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah(pix). He said if found positive either through the RT-PCR (Real-Time Reverse Transcription-Polymerase Chain Reaction)

The World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday it has approved a Covid-19 vaccine made by drugmaker Sinovac Biotech for emergency use listing, paving the way for a second Chinese shot to be used in poor countries. A WHO emergency listing is a signal to national regulators on a product’

PETALING JAYA: On the first day of the total lockdown, the confusion and difficulties in obtaining the necessary approvals to operate left many in a quandary, say business stakeholders. Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers president Tan Sri Soh Thian Lai said some companies, which are part of the manufacturing sector’s

PETALING JAYA: Wisma Putra has summoned the Chinese Ambassador to Malaysia Ouyang Yujing for an explanation after 16 Chinese military aircraft were detected near Malaysian airspace on Monday (May 31). Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein said Wisma Putra will also issue a diplomatic note of protest over the incident.

KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian air force said on Tuesday (Jun 1) that it scrambled its jets to conduct a visual confirmation, after Chinese military transport planes were detected heading towards its national airspace and threatened the country’s sovereignty.  In a statement, the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) said it

KUALA LUMPUR: Main roads in Malaysia fell silent on Tuesday (Jun 1) as the country began its third nationwide lockdown amid a surging third wave of COVID-19 that has hit record levels in recent weeks. Only essential businesses, such as supermarkets and medical clinics, are allowed to continue with business

SHAH ALAM: Vehicle movement on roads dropped by around 70 percent on the first day of the total lockdown that began today, Home Minister Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin said. He hoped the situation would continue as it would help the government in its efforts to flatten the curve of Covid-19

SHAH ALAM (Bernama): Vehicle movement on roads dropped by around 70% on the first day of the total lockdown that began Tuesday (June 1), says Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin. The Home Minister said he hoped the situation would continue as it would help the government in its efforts to flatten

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia is committed to winning the war against Covid-19 with other member states of the World Health Organisation (WHO) in the Western Pacific Region, says Health director-general Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah (pix). He said building on the success of previous public health measures in flattening the

PETALING JAYA: Pharmaniaga Bhd has received requests for a total of seven million CoronaVac Covid-19 vaccine doses from the private sector and state governments, says Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob. The Senior Minister said Pharmaniaga had expressed their desire to speed up the vaccination process by supplying the vaccine that

KUALA LUMPUR: There is still a Budget 2021 allocation of more than RM200 billion to be spent this year in addition to the economic stimulus packages, including Pemerkasa Plus to help Malaysians deal with Covid-19, as well as to drive economic recovery, finance minister Tengku Zafrul Aziz said today. Parliament

KUALA LUMPUR – The usually busy streets in and out of Kuala Lumpur were quiet, with malls and office buildings shuttered on Tuesday (June 1), on the first day of a two-week-long full lockdown in Malaysia. The full movement control order (FMCO) was imposed to flatten the infection curve after record

Based on the latest data, the Health Ministry believes that the Covid-19 variant B.1.351 is spreading fast in the community. Also known as the Beta variant, 89 such cases have been detected in nine states and one federal territory as of May 31. The variant, first detected in

SHAH ALAM (Bernama): The appeal by Armin Zaharin Ahmad Zambri, the ex-husband of famous singer Ziana Zain, to set aside his conviction and eight months’ jail sentence for caning his son will be heard on Sept 15. Deputy public prosecutor, Shukor Abu Bakar said the appeal would be heard before

Umno deputy president Mohamad Hasan paid the government of Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin a double-edged compliment, praising the move by ministers and their deputies to contribute three months of their salaries to the Covid-19 fight but questioning why their allowances were not included. “It should not just be their salaries,

PETALING JAYA: Civil servants will contribute to a special fund through deductions of fixed entertainment allowance (ITK) and the civil service fixed allowance (ITKA), says Tan Sri Mohd Zuki Ali (pic). The Chief Secretary to the Government said that contributions from 800,000 civil servants from grades 29 and above

KUALA LUMPUR: The government’s decision to implement a two-week total lockdown which begins today has been well-received by many who want to see a reduction in Covid-19 cases as the virus has claimed several Malaysian lives. In a survey conducted by Bernama involving 1,251 respondents, it was found

PETALING JAYA: Malaysians have given the idea of Covid-19 vaccinations trucks the thumbs up, although they are hoping that the national immunisation programme is ramped up with more action on the ground. Andy Tan said a comprehensive plan would be needed for a smooth rollout to cover as many people

One of the most important parliamentary reforms would be to strengthen and provide funding to parliamentary special select committees, Subang MP Wong Chen said. This is because, he said, the ‘real democracy’ takes place in the special select committees, not during the debates in the Dewan Rakyat or even the

KOTA KINABALU: Barter trade boats between Sabah and neighbouring southern Philippines and Indonesia will not be allowed to operate during the two-week lockdown that begins today. State Covid-19 spokesman Datuk Seri Masidi Manjun said that barter trade vessels (non-conventional ships) would not be able to leave or come to Sabah

KOTA KINABALU: Kadazan-Polish beauty Maya Hejnowska emerged as the Unduk Ngadau or Harvest Queen as Sabah’s month-long Kaamatan celebrations come to an end. The 21-year-old, who speaks her native Kadazandusun dialect fluently, will now become an “ambassador” for Sabah as well as promote the state’s products during her

Dewan Rakyat Deputy Speaker Azalina Othman Said said reopening the Parliament will actually help the government in its fight against the Covid-19 pandemic by increasing the rakyat’s understanding of pandemic-related policies as well as their trust in the government. “Actually, I made the suggestion to reopen Parliament even though

PENAMPANG: Maya Hejnowska (pix) has been named as the new Unduk Ngadau (harvest queen) in conjunction with the Kaamatan Festival 2021 celebrations, yesterday. The 20-year-old Kadazan-Polish beauty, representing the Api-Api state constituency, defeated 21 other finalists in a competition held at the Hongkod Koisaan KDCA Hall, in Penampang, yesterday. She