Utusan, oldest Malay newspaper, and Kosmo! to cease publication
Utusan, the oldest Malay newspaper, will be laid to rest on Wednesday (Aug 21), after a sustained period of financial uncertainty. All publications under the Utusan Group – Utusan Malaysia, Mingguan Malaysia, Kosmo!, and Kosmo! Ahad– will cease all print and online publications. Utusan Malaysia’s National Union of Journalists (NUJ) chief Taufek Razak said that executive chairman Datuk Abd Aziz Sheikh Fadzir admitted that the company is penniless. “We were told that the company has no money left to pay the staff or operate the business any longer,” said Taufek. The Utusan Group has not paid its staff any salaries since June. Even before this, it had repeatedly delayed salary payments. Utusan Malaysia was first published as Utusan Melayu in Jawi in 1939 in Singapore. Its office was relocated to Kuala Lumpur in 1959 and the romanised version of Utusan Melayu, Utusan Malaysia, first started printing on Sept 1, 1967. (The Star Online)

Moratorium suggested for land purchases in Pangkor Island
The Perak state government should put a moratorium for land purchases in Pangkor Island to avoid speculative buyers. The island — which will get its duty-free status in Jan 1, 2020 — is expected to see more new developments coming in the near future. Knight Frank Malaysia Sdn Bhd MD Sarkunan Subramaniam said “landbankers” are looking to purchase land in Pangkor and its surrounding areas. “Put restrictions on the land purchases to discourage speculators. For example, if the land is not developed within some period of time, the buyers will be penalised,” he said, adding that Pangkor is currently an underdeveloped island and there is so much to improve in the area to attract tourists, particularly the infrastructure. Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng announced in the Budget 2019 tabling last year that Pangkor will be made a duty-free island. The Pangkor Airport is also expected to be reopened on Oct 1, 2019, to boost tourism and business in the island. (The Malaysian Reserve)

(Source: UniKL MIMET)

Loke: Malaysia and Singapore have reached ‘an understanding’ on RTS Link
Transport Minister Anthony Loke Siew Fook has updated that Malaysia has reached “some sort of an understanding” with Singapore on the deferred Johor Bahru-Singapore Rapid Transit System (RTS). He said both governments are currently working “behind the scenes” to iron out the details of the arrangement. It was announced in May that the RTS project would be deferred for six months until a decision is made on Sept 30. During the period, the Malaysian government is to conduct a feasibility study on the project. Malaysia, which requested the deferment, would be required to pay Singapore RM2 million in abortive costs. (The Edge)

Govt estimates 45,000 housing units for Kg Baru re-development
The government is expecting 45,000 housing units after the Kampung Baru re-development project here is implemented, said Federal Territories Minister Khalid Abdul Samad. “One of the objectives of creating Kampung Baru was to increase the Malay population in the city … we have to develop this area,” he said. He added that ownership of these homes was only open to Malays and the units homes will be completed in stages. Khalid said the land owners or their families will be given the chance to ask questions and propose ideas during the town hall session scheduled for Sept 21. “There are areas where the traditional homes will be retained, some places will be for cultural zones, green areas and business centres … we want to make this Malay Bumiputera property the most valuable and highly-sought area,” he said. (The Sun Daily)

A Gojek driver rides his motorcycle through a business district street in Jakarta, June 9, 2015. (REUTERS/BEAWIHARTA)

Syed Saddiq wants to bring Go-Jek to Malaysia
Youth and Sports Minister Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman has expressed his intentions to introduce Indonesia’s motorcycle-based ride-hailing service Go-Jek to Malaysia. He said in an effort to help the motorcyclist group, it is not enough for the government to organise a one-off programme or to build race tracks. “They want to be defended, they need jobs. That is a more pressing issue, ” he said in a video. Syed Saddiq said he had managed to bring the founder of Go-Jek, Nadiem Makarim to meet with Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Transport Minister Anthony Loke yesterday. He said through the proposal, he wished to create hundreds of thousands of job opportunities for motorcyclists, as well as to help the businesses of small entrepreneurs. (The Star Online)