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Key Highlights

  • Omicron sweeps Malaysia

  • Hadi meets Taliban

  • Touchy Johor negotiations



Omicron sweeps Malaysia

Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin acknowledged that the country is now facing a full-blown spread of the Omicron Covid-19 variant.

The infectivity rate stands at 1.20, the highest level since May last year that preceded the deadly Covid-19 wave involving the Delta variant.

Khairy said the Health Ministry expected daily cases to rise to 15,000 soon while Health Ministry director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said if the infectivity rate remained at 1.20, daily cases will hit 22,000 by late March.

The daily Covid-19 cases in recent days have increased steeply, breaking more than five digits yesterday, the first time since October last year.

In Sarawak, surveillance data showed that the Omicron has replaced Delta as the dominant variant.

Khairy urged the most vulnerable groups, particularly the elderly, to get their Covid-19 vaccine booster shot.



HIGHLIGHTS

Students worried about physical exams amid Omicron surge
They want them to be held online.
After Evian 'leak', Kepong MP wants govt to tighten belt
A leaked video showing PM served premium water.
SRC case judge Mohd Nazlan promoted to Court of Appeal
He presided over ex-PM Najib's case.

 



Hadi meets Taliban

PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang, who is also the Putrajaya's special envoy to the Middle East, raised eyebrows when he met with the Taliban in Doha, Qatar.

Hadi discussed with Taliban representatives on providing humanitarian and economic aid to Afghanistan.

Amanah deputy president Salahuddin Ayub criticised Hadi's move and accused him of exceeding his authority as the cabinet had yet to decide on the country's position on the Taliban.

The Taliban governed Afghanistan under a fundamentalist doctrine that among others prevented girls from going to school and banned women from appearing in public without being accompanied by a male relative.

It was ousted during the US invasion in 2001 but returned to power in 2021 following the US withdrawal. It had since promised to adopt a less hardline position towards women.



HIGHLIGHTS

Do not question PAS' loyalty to PN - Muhyiddin
He says PAS has been with PN since day one.
Zahid: Hadi should switch profession to zoologist
After the PAS president labelled Umno 'lame duck'.
'What does Bersatu mean by 'conditional support?'
Umno sec-gen wants Bersatu to explain.

 



Touchy Johor negotiations

With the Johor polls approaching, it is still unclear if the wider opposition can put up a united front.

Pakatan Harapan's modus operandi was to distribute the 56 state seats among themselves - which has been settled - and it will then be up to the respective component parties to negotiate and cede their allocated seats to non-Harapan opposition parties.

Among the non-Harapan opposition parties eyeing to contest in the Johor polls is Muda.

Muda president Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman indicated that negotiations have been going well, but they have not been free of gaffes.

Muda, which is eyeing the Tiram seat, visited the constituency and publicly bad-mouthed its incumbent, who is from PKR. This was while Muda was negotiating with PKR for seats.

Syed Saddiq was eventually forced to walk back on his comment and apologise.

Umno's Onn Hafiz Ghazi capitalised on the gaffe, describing the U-turn as "political hypocrisy at its finest".

PKR has been assigned 20 seats, Amanah 20 and DAP 16. Seats for which they do not announce a candidate will likely be ceded to other opposition parties. PKR is expected to announce its candidates this week.

Some Johor Bersatu leaders have also lobbied for some kind of cooperation with Harapan against Umno, but the coalition is unlikely to entertain the requests as Bersatu's role in bringing down the Harapan-led federal government remains a fresh wound.


HIGHLIGHTS

Govt moots more Smart tunnels to tackle floods
Also proposed were China-style 'sponge cities'.
Govt to prep M'sians for climate change with school classes
PM says climate change is a 'new norm'.
Kitingan seeks to discredit Al Jazeera carbon trading exposé
This comes as more press him for answers.

 


A daily glance at Covid-19

  • 10,089 new cases yesterday (Feb 6), the first time daily fresh infections were in the five digits since October 2 last year.

  • Nine new fatalities put the death toll at 32,034.

New cases by state

Selangor (2,549)
Johor (1,582)
Sabah (1,285)
Kedah (904)
Pahang (624)
Penang (542)
Kuala Lumpur (491)
Kelantan (471)
Negeri Sembilan (464)
Malacca (457)
Perak (321)
Terengganu (213)
Putrajaya (61)
Sarawak (58)
Perlis (44)
Labuan (23)



What else is happening?


  • Plantation Industries and Commodities Minister Zuraida Kamaruddin maintained that she will remain with Bersatu amid talks that she will be sacked for aiding Parti Bangsa Malaysia, which has recruited several former Bersatu leaders.

  • Malaysia's bid to resume the recruitment of Indonesian domestic workers was met with a setback as Malaysia and Indonesia won't be able to meet the deadline to sign a memorandum of understanding by this week.

  • Putrajaya will hold another round of consultation with MPs this week to hammer out the details on the creation of an anti-party hopping law.


HIGHLIGHTS

Filmmaker Linus Chung on family stories and his pet snake
Yasmin Ahmad devotee rediscovers himself during bad times.
Whistleblower ready to prove Azam’s shareholding
Lalitha says they're public information.
Anwar slams Zafrul over Genting HK’s demise
He also alludes to the finance minister’s possible involvement.

 


What are people saying?

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Publishing publicly available information is no crime
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