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


Key Highlights

  • Desperate stories from flood victims

  • Act 342 amendments postponed

  • Minister gives nod to Muda



Desperate stories from flood victims

Residents at Taman Sri Muda in Shah Alam related stories of desperation as they were stranded by roof-level floodwaters without food for two days due to disorganised rescue efforts, with some resorting to breaking into nearby grocery stores.

Volunteer rescuers were on the scene since Sunday, Dec 19, but authorities advised them not to conduct rescue efforts during the night due to safety concerns.

Systematic widespread mobilisation of the rescue efforts was only seen yesterday (Dec 20) while other residents emerged as the floodwaters began to recede.

The floods, triggered by intense rainfall brought about by Tropical Depression 29W, claimed at least eight lives in Selangor, including three men in Taman Sri Muda who were found drowned. Another 10 people are still missing.

Some 61,000 people were evacuated in Selangor and Pahang.

Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob also announced further assistance, including interest-free loans for business owners who have suffered losses and also an allocation for flood prevention and repair works.


HIGHLIGHTS

PM's son-in-law denies using govt heli to escape flood
'If you don't like me, just unfollow.'
Nurul Izzah's speech urging govt to plan for floods goes viral
MP had sounded the alarm bells in July.
In flood aftermath, veteran scribe hits out at 'D Class' minister
Minister has said Malaysia is not vulnerable to climate change.

 



Act 342 amendments postponed

The government finally agreed to postpone amendments to the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases Act 1988 (Act 342) which would, among others. increase the fine for individuals violating Covid-19 standard operating procedures (SOPs) from RM1,000 to RM50,000.

The government had initially hoped to pass the amendments during the extra day of the Dewan Rakyat sitting yesterday, which was specifically extended for this purpose.

The sitting was suspended shortly after it started and after an engagement session, Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin informed the House that the bill would be postponed to the next Parliament sitting in 2022.

The move was done on the advice of the bipartisan parliamentary special select committee on health, science and technology, which unanimously wanted it to be postponed.

The opposition had vowed to vote against the amendment bill in its current form, insisting that more details were needed to prevent arbitrary fines.



HIGHLIGHTS

Sri Johor Flats fire: RM40k in savings go up in smoke
'Decision of keeping cash will haunt me forever.'
Storms expected in northern Peninsular states
Members of the public are urged to be on alert.
Free replacement of personal documents for flood victims
This follows unprecedented floods.

 



Minister gives nod to Muda

The Home Ministry has finally agreed to register the Malaysian United Democratic Alliance (Muda) as a political party.

Muda had been engaged in a lengthy legal battle with the Home Ministry, which previously refused to register the party.

The High Court in Kuala Lumpur had on Dec 14 ordered the Home Ministry to register Muda within 14 days - and the legal battle could have been prolonged if the government had appealed.

However, Home Minister Hamzah Zainuddin said after a discussion with Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob and several party leaders, he agreed not to appeal the decision and would issue Muda its registration.



HIGHLIGHTS

Ramasamy's 'apology' is insincere: Zakir Naik
The Islamic preacher testified in his suit.
Sabah DAP withdraws from signing MOU with state govt
It says the state-level MOU is not necessary.
22-month Harapan rule a dead knot for Sarawak DAP in polls
David Wong also cites a split in the opposition.



A daily glance at Covid-19

  • 2,589 new cases yesterday (Dec 20), the first time cases dipped under 3,000 in seven months (since May 3).

  • 43 new fatalities put the death toll at 31,135.


New cases by states

Selangor (380)
Johor (355)
Kedah (277)
Kelantan (249)
Terengganu (232)
Penang (225)
Kuala Lumpur (186)
Pahang (168)
Sabah (122)
Perak (112)
Negeri Sembilan (101)
Malacca (88)
Sarawak (36)
Putrajaya (30)
Perlis (20)
Labuan (8)



What else is happening?

  • Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin cautioned that Covid-19 cases could see a resurgence due to the ongoing floods in various parts of the country, with tens of thousands of people being placed in temporary shelters.

  • The government has no plans to further reduce the ceiling price of RM19.90 for Covid-19 test kits as some retailers are already selling them for as low as under RM5.

  • The Works Ministry is targeting 60 percent of tolled road users to shift to using the Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) by the end of 2022, ahead of a plan to phase out the Touch n' Go and SmartTag lanes by the end of 2023.

HIGHLIGHTS

Perak assembly nominates two new senators
They replace two senators whose terms ended last Aug 12.
UM student union wants cooling-off period following floods
This is to allow those affected to deal with the disaster.
Tabung Haji appoints Azman Mokhtar as chairperson
He was the managing director of Khazanah.



What are people saying?

Why too much politics is unhealthy
By Francis Paul Siah
Hoisted by one's own petard
By R Nadeswaran
Forewarned but failed to prepare, again
By Hafiz Hassan

 


CARTOON KINI