Bersatu and Pejuang reconciling?

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Key Highlights

• Bersatu and Pejuang reconciling?
  
  

• MySejahtera's post-Covid role
  
  

• Medical marijuana and mental healthcare in M'sia

Bersatu and Pejuang reconciling?

After a bitter break-up in 2020, Bersatu and Perjuang appear to be considering reconciliation.

Pejuang president Mukhriz Mahathir revealed that Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin had met his father Dr Mahathir Mohamad two weeks ago.

On the table, was an offer to work together in the next general election following both parties’ dismal showing at the ballot box.

Pejuang performed miserably during the Johor polls, with all its candidates losing their deposits, while Bersatu's Perikatan Nasional came in third place in the popular vote.

Mahathir has indicated that he still wants Pejuang to be a lone wolf that's willing to cooperate with other opposition parties.

However, Mukhriz appears to be more open to working with Bersatu, saying that the party is willing to bury the hatchet.

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MySejahtera's post-Covid role

You and I may soon have no regular use of the MySejahtera app if the government decides to cease check-in requirements.

But Putrajaya isn't planning to uninstall or shelve the app anytime soon.

Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said the app may be used as the basis for a fully digitised medical record system.

He said there may also be a need for MySejahtera if there is another pandemic in the future.

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Medical marijuana and mental healthcare in M'sia

Singer and composer Yasin Sulaiman's charges in court yesterday over possession of marijuana have brought issues regarding healthcare in Malaysia into the spotlight.

The first is the continued push by some groups to have medical marijuana legalised in the country.

Yasin told reporters outside court that Muda president Syed Saddiq Abdul Rahman should continue with his quest to establish medical marijuana.

Currently, there are no exemptions for medical marijuana under the law, although Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin has said that medical products containing cannabis can seek approval from the Drug Control Authority.

The second issue brought into the spotlight by Yasin when he was charged in court is the state of mental healthcare in Malaysia.

Yasin suffers from chronic bipolar disorder and is receiving treatment from hospitals. However, his lawyer claims that the singer has been denied access to treatment since he was arrested on March 24.

The court also denied bail to Yasin, who expressed concerns that he may suffer from a mental breakdown if he doesn't get treatment. His lawyer expressed concern that the singer may not get sufficient treatment for bipolar disorder while in prison.

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What else is happening

• Protests were launched outside CIMB branches in five states over the bank's alleged error in auctioning off a house belonging to school cleaner Tamil Selvi despite her having paid her loan off diligently.
  
  

• Former police officer Md Ali Amir Batcha lodged a report against former IGP Abdul Rahim Noor over wrongful detention from 1997 to 2000 following an alleged conspiracy where he was falsely accused of armed robbery. He had been cleared by a special tribunal.
  
  

• An Orang Asli woman in Cameron Highlands is feared dead after she was swept away in a river surge which also carried with it a deluge of mud, logs and smaller wood debris. The search for her remains will enter Day 4 today.
  
  

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What are people saying?

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