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Key Highlights
A tale of forgetfulness
‘Bangladesh drops labour probe after KL meet’
13MP: Anwar vows inclusive growth
A tale of forgetfulness
Since being shown the door by Dr Mahathir Mohamad in 1998, Anwar Ibrahim has crisscrossed Malaysia and even gone international, accusing his once mentor-turned-foe of corruption, cronyism, abuse of power, and nepotism.
But according to Mahathir’s son, Mukhriz, there was a curious bout of selective amnesia within Pakatan Harapan not too long ago.
Mukhriz, now president of Pejuang, recalled the time when Anwar and his coalition had no issues hitching a ride on Mahathir’s coattails all the way to Putrajaya in the bid to oust Najib Abdul Razak. Suddenly, Mahathir’s alleged sins were forgiven - at least long enough to form a government.
Mukhriz launched a series of pointed questions at Anwar and Harapan, highlighting their seeming comfort in serving under the man they now brand as corrupt again.
However, in this tale of forgetfulness, Mahathir wasn’t exactly a model of consistency either. He too conveniently overlooked Anwar’s past scandals and cosied up to DAP - a party he once labelled “Chinese chauvinists”.
As history would have it, the alliance came crashing down in February 2020. And now, the political chessboard has been reset: Mahathir is back to being “corrupt”, Anwar is back to being scandalous, and DAP and Mahathir are once again locked in their favourite pastime - calling each other racists.
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‘Bangladesh drops labour probe after KL meet’
Bangladesh is halting its investigation into a powerful syndicate allegedly preying on its migrant workers bound for Malaysia - a move that raises serious questions about political will and accountability.
A senior Bangladeshi government official told Malaysiakini that the decision was made following a closed-door meeting in Kuala Lumpur two weeks ago between Bangladeshi officials and Malaysia’s Human Resources Ministry.
“The order came from the top,” the official said, hinting at possible pressure or backroom agreements that led to the controversial decision.
“Two officials - a special envoy and a special assistant - to the chief adviser to the Bangladeshi government visited Malaysia two weeks ago and held a meeting with the ministry officials.
“In the meeting, the Bangladeshi representatives agreed to discontinue the investigations so that Malaysia can resume recruiting Bangladeshi workers,” the official said.
Malaysiakini was informed that the meeting was held after the Malaysian government sent a letter to Bangladesh, calling for the investigations to be halted, claiming it was baseless.
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13MP: Anwar vows inclusive growth
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has tabled the 13th Malaysia Plan (13MP), outlining a continued commitment to the bumiputera economic agenda while introducing targeted initiatives to uplift low-income Chinese and Indian communities.
Under the plan’s ninth initiative, the government is adopting a more inclusive Madani approach to ensure that all layers of society benefit from Malaysia’s development.
Anwar emphasised that no group should be left behind as the nation progresses.
"We want to move away from the race-based solution approach to a concept where we provide solutions based on (the rakyat's) actual needs,” he said when tabling the proposal at the Dewan Rakyat.
Anwar announced targeted efforts to uplift low-income Chinese and Indian communities.
The plan includes support for education, entrepreneurship, and housing. Chinese new villages will benefit from business financing under the new “Kampung Baru Development Master Plan”.
For the Indian community, 13MP will introduce more initiatives in education and talent development to boost long-term socio-economic progress.
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Views that matter
 | By Afif Bahardin |
 | By Bridget Welsh |
 | By David Dass |
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