Additional RM942mil relief for domestic electricity users
The Government has announced an additional RM942mil in discounts and rebates for domestic users’ electricity bills. Energy and Natural Resources Minister Datuk Dr Shamsul Anuar Nasarah said the Bantuan Prihatin Elektrik Tambahan (BPE) is on top of the existing discounts on Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB) electricity bills announced during the government’s economic stimulus package earlier. Four million domestic consumers with electricity consumption of 300 kWh and below per month would enjoy free electricity for April, May and June 2020. Domestic consumers with consumption of more than 300 kWh per month over the same period would get a discount of RM77 per month. The rebates would be reflected in the July bill. Additionally, TNB also agreed to halt all electricity disconnection activity until Sept 30,2020. (The Star Online)
Mega projects in Penang to go ahead
Penang will go ahead with its mega projects under the RM46bil Penang Transport Master Plan (PTMP) and also the RM100mil Penang Hill cable car project even without funding from the Federal Government. State Works Committee chairman Zairil Khir Johari said everything was still on schedule and any delay was only because of the Covid-19 movement control order. “For the Bayan Lepas Light Rail Transit (LRT) project, the model has always been to pay for the infrastructure project via a land reclamation… Even for the cable car, there are always ways to do without federal funds. We are confident that all our projects will go on as planned, ” said Zairil. Some RM100mil was allocated by the Pakatan Harapan government during Budget 2020 last October for the proposed Penang Hill cable car project. However, Putrajaya announced early this month that it had cancelled the funding for the project after Perikatan Nasional took over the Federal Government. (The Star Online)
Malaysia seeks to open its borders to six ‘green’ countries
Malaysia has begun discussions with six “green” countries that it would like to open its borders to post-Covid-19. Health director-general Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said the six countries were Singapore, Brunei, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and South Korea. However, Dr Noor Hisham said any sort of agreement between Malaysia and those countries must be “mutual and reciprocal”, with proper SOP between the countries. “If we can do that, we can allow the business, education and tourism sectors to be opened up (between the countries),” he added. On whether it is wise to open up to Singapore considering the high number of Covid-19 cases in the country, Dr Noor Hisham said most of the cases involved foreign workers. We won’t allow their foreign workers to enter our country, but we probably can allow Singaporeans who have not travelled to other countries recently. This is the kind of discussion we must have with these countries, ” he said. (The Star Online)
Non-Muslim wedding ceremonies allowed with max 20 attendance
Wedding ceremonies for non-Muslims can now be held, Senior Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob announced. Ismail Sabri said the decision was applicable to wedding ceremonies for non-Muslims at houses of worship and non-Muslim religious associations that involve assistant registrar of marriages. Wedding ceremonies have to comply with the SOP set by the National Security Council and the Health Ministry. “Wedding reception events are still not allowed to be held,” he added. On June 3, Ismail Sabri had said non-Muslim couples were allowed to register their marriage since the conditional movement control order (CMCO) began on May 4, with only four people allowed to be present, namely the bride, groom and two witnesses. (Malay Mail)
Actor-director Stephen Chow mortgages his Hong Kong luxury mansion
Actor and director Stephen Chow has reportedly mortgaged his mansion in The Peak, the exclusive and expensive hill-top neighbourhood in Hong Kong, amid possible financial woes. It was reported that the 57-year-old bachelor had mortgaged his mansion at 12 Pollock’s Path, one of the world’s priciest streets, to JPMorgan Chase Bank in March – during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic in Asia. The report states that this is not Chow’s first time mortgaging his property. He also did it in 2011 and only took back possession last year. Media reports in Hong Kong and China also suspect that Chow may be mortgaging his property to fund his new movie as investments have run dry because of the pandemic. (The Star Online)
