Good morning. Here are our picks for today.
Key Highlights
Football and religion
No! PM rejects another EPF withdrawal
Proposed port may harm archaeological site
Football and religion
Parents of a Form Three student have accused his class teacher of encouraging their son to embrace Islam.
According to them, the teacher said that converting would boost the 15-year-old’s chances of becoming a national footballer.
They have since met with the school’s principal and district education officers over the allegations.
Former sports and youth minister Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman, who expressed disgust, said ”sports is for everyone”.
Cheras District police chief Zam Halim Jamaluddin said an investigation is being conducted under Section 298A of the Penal Code, which covers causing disharmony or feelings of enmity or ill-will on religious grounds.
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No! PM rejects another EPF withdrawal
Anwar Ibrahim has put his foot down. There will not be another round of withdrawal from the Employees Provident Fund (EPF).
If given the green light, he said, the move would have an adverse impact on contributors who are retiring soon. He pointed out that there are many who only have a small sum in their accounts.
However, the prime minister assured that Putrajaya is looking at other means to ease the people's financial burden without compromising their post-retirement survival.
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Proposed port may harm archaeological site
The proposed site for the Malacca Far East deep-sea port overlaps with a protected underwater heritage zone.
There is concern that its construction could harm the archaeological site.
However, the developer, Far East Melaka, had only incorporated excerpts from the heritage impact assessment (HIA) report in its environmental impact assessment (EIA) report.
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Views that matter
 | By S Thayaparan |
 | By P Gunasegaram |
 | By Dr Amar Singh-HSS et al |
Other news that matter
Muda is not pleased with being left out of the coalition government’s first secretariat meeting.
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim responded by saying that the meeting was only meant for parties that founded the government - which Muda insists it is one of.
Former 1MDB CEO Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi was removed as one of the moderators for an electric vehicle (EV) conference following a backlash.
Shahrol, who is president and co-founder of the Malaysian EV Owners Club, was replaced by Malaysia Productivity Corporation deputy director-general Mazrina Mohamed Ibramsah.
The government will table a White Paper in Parliament on the procurement of Covid-19 vaccines after discovering improprieties in the process.
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said there were also issues related to compliance, management and approval, which did not follow procedures, as well as matters involving the cost and amount of vaccines.
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