HEADLINES Malaysiakini compares the key news and views in major newspapers. What is today's agenda for the newspapers?

Front Page

Chinese newspapers

Nanyang Siang Pau headlined a report quoting sources that the government will not increase the price of RON95 petrol for the time being. However a price hike for electricity is expected to be announced on May 25.

The report says the government fears a RON95 petrol price hike will prompt greater disgruntlement, therefore it may choose to increase the electricity tariff first.

The impact of an electricity tariff hike would be smaller than a hike in the RON95 petrol price, hence it is a better choice for the government, sources from the cabinet tell the newspaper.

The report also said that the government had approved the hike and had scheduled to announce it last Thursday, but it was postponed after the announcement of a sugar price hike in the same week, to avoid public anger.

However, industrial consumers are expected to face the brunt of the new electricity tariff structure, with the impact on household consumers not likely to be significant.

Oriental Daily , China Press and Sin Chew Daily front-paged the mismatch of JPA scholarships. Deputy Education Minister Wee Ka Siong complained that the best scholars had been offered only scholarships in local universities.

English newspapers

New Straits Times highlighted Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak's statement that Malaysia would attract RM9 billion in new capital flows after the nation is upgraded to an "advanced emerging market" by FTSE Group next month.

Star highlighted the announcement by Najib at the Global Science and Innovation Advisory Council (GSIAC) inaugural meeting that a Digital Malaysia Masterplan is in the offing for the country to harvest key opportunities arising from the global shift from analogue to digital.

Malay newspapers

Utusan Malaysia headlined the four challenges issued by former PKR youth chief Ezam Mond Noor to PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim, president Wan Azizah Wan Ismail and vice-president Nurul Izzah Anwar to clear their names.

The challenges are: Swear on the Quran that Anwar is not the person in the sex video, undergo a polygraph test to prove they did not lie, sue Shazrly Eskay Abdullah who exposed the video and accuse Shazryl as a liar.

Berita Harian led with the report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and warned all nations to be prepared for raising sea levels as a result of global warming.

Sinar Harian front-paged the statement by PAS deputy president Nasharuddin Mat Isa that he has never felt threatened facing the coming party polls which is likely to see him being challenged again by Mohamad Sabu who was defeated by him in the last party polls.

Editorial

New Straits Times urged the Football Association of Malaysia and other authorities to take action against the scourge of match-fixing after the allegation of Malaysians' involvement in a match-fixing Asian syndicate had surfaced.

Utusan Malaysia commended the set-up of the Global Science and Innovation Advisory Council (GSIAC) in New York to advise Malaysia in moving towards an advanced nation.

Sin Chew Daily seconded the government's move to rationalise subsidies and urged the public to gradually reduce their dependency on government subsidies, starting with the review of the RON95 petrol price.

Nanyang Siang Pau urged the government to increase the price of RON95 petrol price at a gradual pace, to ensure that the public is not overly burdened.

China Press urged the government to distribute the JPA scholarships in a fair, transparent and systematic manner, putting a stop to the repeated cases of best scholars failing to secure scholarships.