GTA: GE15 stories
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Meawhile, here's what you need to know today.
Key Highlights
GTA: GE15 stories
LCS fiasco
Dewan Rakyat recap
GTA: GE15 stories
GTA is coming to Malaysia. No, not the popular video game franchise Grand Theft Auto, but a new movement by Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
Gerakan Tanah Air is a loose coalition of Malay parties and NGOs that plan to take on Umno in 120 parliament seats in GE15.
Mahathir claims GTA will fight for all Malaysians, but that an monoethnic team was needed to convince Malays to ditch Umno.
The coalition consists of Mahathir's Pejuang, Ibrahim Ali's Putra, Islamist party Berjasa, and the National Indian Muslim Alliance Party (Iman).
Berjasa last won in an election in 1990, while the other parties have lost all their deposits in every poll they've contested.
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LCS fiasco
Eleven years ago, the Defence Ministry gave out an RM9 billion contract to buy six littoral combat ships (LCS).
The first ship was supposed to be delivered in 2019.
Today, zero ships have been delivered despite the government already having paid RM6 billion, and the project overrun cost is now RM1.4 billion.
The PAC detailed a laundry list of bad decisions and financial improprieties, including the government ignoring the Navy's views in choosing the design of the ships.
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Dewan Rakyat recap
The second meeting of Parliament this year ended yesterday.
There was a lot of drama, but also a lot of legislative work, including passing bills to:
Impose a 10 percent sales tax on cheap goods you buy online from foreign sellers.
Ban party hopping, with measures to protect party rebels.
Penalise sexual harassment with a broad definition that may include dressing sexily.
Set up a 'toothless' Independent Police Conduct Commission (IPCC) that can't take any action against bad cops.
Allow detention without trial under Sosma for another five years.
Give convicts community service instead of jail time.
Give housewives Socso coverage.
Make it harder to degazette permanent forest reserves
If Parliament is not dissolved by the time the next meeting begins in October, the Dewan Rakyat could debate:
The stalled 'Generational End Game' bill to stop smoking, which is being tweaked after backlash over its implementation.
A bill to criminalise stalking.
Regulating political financing.
The PM’s term limits
PAS' Act 355 amendments to enact stricter syariah punishments
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Views that matter
 | By P Gunasegaram |
 | By Mohamed Hanipa Maidin |
 | By Arfaeza A Aziz |
What else is happening?
Food delivery riders are on a nationwide strike which ends at midnight over an "unfair" payment scale. Grab said that on its end, low pays were a "technical glitch" which it had resolved.
A father throwing himself and his three children off a flyover has uncovered a tragic tale of depression and desperation among refugees in the country.
The Sabah government and MPs are fuming over plans to transfer cops allegedly involved in an extortion racket in Selangor to East Malaysia.
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