Nurul Izzah resigns as PKR vice president and state chairman
Nurul Izzah Anwar dropped a bombshell yesterday, announcing her resignation as PKR vice-president as well as relinquishing her post as Penang PKR chairman. Nurul Izzah, who is the daughter of PKR president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, also announced that she would no longer be serving the Federal government in any capacity. The only position she would be holding on to is as Permatang Pauh member of parliament, as well as a member of the parliament backbench committee for reforms. Nurul Izzah did not specify any reason for her shock decision, but said she should have made the announcement sooner. (NST Online)
Malaysia files criminal charges against Goldman Sachs over 1MDB
Malaysia on Monday filed criminal charges against three subsidiaries of Goldman Sachs Inc over their handling of bonds totalling US$6.5 billion issued by 1MDB. While it has in the past paid hefty fines in several countries over wrongdoings and employees have been charged criminally, this is possibly the first time that any country has filed criminal charges against the US investment banking giant. Malaysian prosecutors also filed charges against fugitive Malaysian businessman Jho Low and ex-1MDB general counsel Jasmine Loo Ai Swan, as well as former Goldman executive Timothy Leissner for abetting Goldman Sachs International. (The Edge Markets)
Gamuda IBS to aid in affordable housing plan
Gamuda Bhd, which now has two Industrialised Building System (IBS) factories to produce 10,000 housing units a year, is well-positioned to help the government meet its target of 200,000 affordable housing units by 2020, as outlined in the 11th Malaysia Plan. The first Gamuda digital IBS factory in Sepang is currently operating at maximum capacity producing 3,000 housing units annually. Gamuda Industrial Building System Sdn Bhd general manager Tan Ek Khai said to meet the needs from anticipated growing demand in the housing sector, it will be opening its second digital IBS factory on a 27-hectare site in Banting. Apart from design flexibility, and strong and sturdy buildings, IBS-optimised homes have high ceiling, spacious layout and smoother finishing. House buyers also need not worry about leakages, which are commonly found in bathrooms. (The Sun Daily)
From Jan 1, non-Malaysians and non-Singaporeans can rent HDB flats for maximum 2 years
The maximum tenancy period for people who are neither Malaysia nor Singapore citizens renting a Housing Board flat or bedroom in Singapore is set to increase. The current maximum period is one and a half years, but from Jan 1 it will be increased to two years. The revised tenancy period only applies to flat owners whose applications in this category reach HDB on or after Jan 1. For cases where all tenants are Singapore citizens, Malaysians, or both, the maximum tenancy period remains unchanged at three years. “This revision will give flat owners greater flexibility to secure a longer tenancy period with non-citizen tenants who may have work or immigration passes that are valid for a longer period of two years,” HDB said in a statement. (Business Times)
DPM: Malaysia lost RM47bil in GDP value to corruption last year
Malaysia lost RM47 billion in GDP value to corruption last year alone, said Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail. She said a similar amount, of about 4% of GDP, was lost to corruption annually since 2013, according to Transparency International Malaysia. “What can we do with RM47 billion? It is more than we spend on education and is almost double the amount spent on healthcare in 2017,” she said. Dr Wan Azizah said that contrary to popular belief, corruption does not only occur at the highest levels of government. (Malay Mail Online)
