Good morning, here's what you need to know today.

Key Highlights

• The Home Minister's boy
  
  
• MCO 3.0 for parts of Selangor
  
  
• AstraZeneca roll out begins
  
  

The Home Minister’s boy

Former inspector-general of police Abdul Hamid Bador has shed light on Home Minister Hamzah Zainudin’s purported attempt to appoint his “boy” to a key position in the police force.

Hamid said Hamzah wanted to replace Special Branch chief Mohamed Farid Abu Hassan with his own man after the police intelligence unit refused to conduct political operations for him.

Hamzah was purportedly enraged when the Special Branch reported him to the prime minister. Farid was asked to resign but was allowed to keep his job after the prime minister intervened.

Hamid’s revelation gives context to Hamzah’s admission that he was the person in a leaked audio recording that discussed appointing his “boy” and new state police chiefs.

The opposition lodged reports against Hamzah with the MACC and police.

Meanwhile, Iskandar Puteri MP Lim Kit Siang panned de facto Law Minister Takiyuddin Hassan for a “perverted” interpretation of the law in trying to defend Hamzah.

HIGHLIGHTS

	Shahrir: History shows DAP can't work with conservatives 'Secularist ideals face a lot of resistance'.
	Alleged Jho Low right-hand man ordered to pay RM67.9m This was for tax arrears.
	Melor by-election postponed - EC This is due to a state of emergency.

MCO 3.0 for parts of Selangor

Six out of nine districts in Selangor will be placed under a full movement control order (MCO) for the third time starting tomorrow (May 6).

It will be similar to MCO 2.0 where most industries are still operational compared to MCO 1.0 where most businesses were closed.

Some MCO 3.0 rules:

• No dine-in at eateries
• No inter-district travel except for work and emergency
• No social activities

Interestingly, Ramadan bazaars can continue to operate. Visiting for the first day of Hari Raya will also be allowed, subject to strict SOP.

A similar strategy was used for Kelantan when seven out of 10 districts were placed under MCO on April 16.

But that strategy was proven ineffective and by April 22, the entire state was under MCO.

Now, the Kelantan government is seeking tougher measures, urging Putrajaya to impose a stricter form of MCO, the same one during MCO 1.0 last year.

HIGHLIGHTS

	Govt deploys early Covid-19 warning system It will release a list of risky locations.
	Ramadan activities in mosques allowed for Kedah MCO areas Restrictions relaxed for the state.
	Alliance concerned over 'escalating repression' in M'sia They say authorities are fearful of dissent.

AstraZeneca rollout begins

The first dose of the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine will be administered today.

Those who have volunteered for the vaccine are advised to double-check their appointment time on the MySejahtera app amid some complaints that appointments were being retimed without proper notification.

The Health Ministry assured immediate treatment if blood clots, which are rare, occur. Recipients should monitor for symptoms between four to 30 days after the jab.

The second dose will be administered after 12 weeks from the first dose. This ensures the best efficacy (81.3 percent) compared to 55.1 percent if the shot is administered less than six weeks apart.

HIGHLIGHTS

	Radzi given list of schools allegedly involved in period spot checks He had asked for the schools to be named.
	Parents in rural Sarawak travel hours to nominate teacher This was for the Rise Educator Award 2021.
	Convent Bukit Nanas waiting for official n lease-extension It will decide on the future of its legal challenge.

 

A daily glance at Covid-19

• 3,120 new cases yesterday (May 4).
  
  
• 23 new deaths, the highest since the resurgence and the third-highest on record.
  
  
• At the height of the third wave in February, the highest number of patients in the ICU was 327 and those on ventilators was 145. Following the resurgence, as of yesterday, 338 people are in the ICU and 181 are on ventilators.
  
  
• For trends on daily cases, tests, hospital beds capacity, vaccination progress and more, follow our Covid-19 tracker.
  
  

What else is happening?

• Malaysians and their spouses are stranded in India following a ban on flights from the country. They are turning to the Foreign Ministry for help.
  
  
• Putrajaya suspended interstate tourism, which was previously allowed through registered tour agencies, amid rising Covid-19 cases.
  
  
• Former inspector-general of police Khalid Abu Bakar threatened to sue over ex-prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad's suggestion that the ex-top cop had foiled an attempt to arrest then prime minister Najib Abdul Razak over the 1MDB scandal.
  
  
• Celebrity Neelofa, who was previously fined for breaching Covid-19 travel restrictions and a crowded wedding, is in hot water again after being spotted at an out-of-state carpet shop.
  
  
• Disney's streaming service, which seeks to challenge Netflix's dominance, is set to launch in Malaysia on June 1.
  
  

HIGHLIGHTS

	Suaram records 8 deaths in custody last year 'Cases of power abuse by police not decreasing'
	Women MPs want sexual harassment policies reviewed This was amid sexual harassment complaints in schools.
	Sarawak youths take govt to court over Undi18 delay They want to compel its implementation by July.

What are people saying?

	Political interference will estrange cops from society By Karen Cheah
	Prioritise senior citizens in AstraZeneca rollout By Malaysiakini readers
	Can Asean step up to the Tatmadaw? By James Chin

CARTOON KINI