KUALA TERENGGANU: The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) hopes to receive at least one offshore patrol vessel (OPV) this year to beef up patrols in the country’s waters. MMEA deputy director-general (logistics) Rear Admiral (M) Datuk Saiful Lizan Ibrahim said currently his agency has 70 vessels and 190 boats nationwide, but most of them were obsolete and not functioning well. Also present was Terengganu MMEA director Maritime Captain Muhammad Suffi Mohd Ramli. Meanwhile, he said throughout the 16 years of its establishment, the MMEA had handled 2,500 cases involving various incidents. "Of the total, 805 cases involved vessel and boat incidents; human beings (944 cases), asset assistance (525 cases); medical advisory services (19 cases) as well as providing support assistance and logistics services to other agencies (207 cases),” he said.

GEORGE TOWN: Tourists have been pouring into Penang lately, especially when there is a long weekend and it is no different over the past weekend with most roads filled with out-of-state vehicles. Pre-pandemic, I would visit Penang three times a year, so I am happy to be back here now. Engineer S. Jaya, 32, who lives in Kuala Lumpur, was back in Penang for the weekend to see her family. The popular cendol stall off Penang Road was packed with visitors.The long weekend was attributed to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong’s official birthday falling on June 6. Meanwhile, many Malaysians also made the most of the long weekend to explore other destinations such as Cameron Highlands, Pulau Batik in Perak and Melaka.

In pegging, the government announces an “official” fixed exchange rate against a major trading currency. So, pegged exchange rates would require capital controls if monetary independence is desired. Pegged exchange rates have the main advantage of providing exchange rate stability for the home currency against the pegged currency. A third key problem is the incentive pegged exchange rates provide for a free ride by way of arbitraging. Absent the risk of the exchange rate changing, even small interest rate differentials would be profitable to arbitrage.

There are concerns as to how Cypark could meet its debt obligation [given the delay in projects].”He points out that certain quarters had previously raised concerns that Cypark’s cash flow could be strangled by its floating solar projects. If these projects are really causing cash flow problems to Cypark, then the management needs to find ways to rectify the situation urgently. Furthermore, Cypark’s biogas plant in Kg Gajah, Perak, also successfully achieved its COD on Dec 31 last year. It is also worth noting that Cypark secured a solar project in Kuantan, Pahang, in June last year under the net energy metering scheme 3.0. Cypark adds that RAM Ratings’ rating assessment has also considered the extraordinary resolution notice that was circulated to the sukuk holders on May 23.

KUALA LUMPUR (June 7): Reservoir Link Energy Bhd has secured letters of award (LoAs) to develop two solar rooftops. Reservoir Link said that RL Sunseap Energy had also signed a rooftop solar supply agreement with PE Land (Penang) Sdn Bhd on May 25, 2022. Reservoir Link said to date it has successfully secured four contracts to provide rooftop solar PV systems totalling 10 Megawatts. Reservoir Link executive director Thien Chiet Chai said the recent wins are a testament of the strong synergy formed with RL Sunseap Energy. At the midday break, Reservoir Link shed 1.33% or 0.5 sen to 37 sen with 104,000 shares done.

IT HAS been alleged that the Education Ministry's recruitment of teachers through the Contract of Service (COS) 2021 was a scam, and lacked transparency with many not getting jobs as DG41 Education Services Officers. Is this claim true? VERDICT:FALSEIn a recent Facebook video on the Education Ministry's official account, its Minister Datuk Radzi Jidin denied the allegation, saying that those who hold degrees that specialise in education were considered first to fill the 18,702 empty teaching slots. The Education Minister said that this is because they are already trained to be teachers, adding that this includes an understanding of the pedagogies of education. He said that places would be opened up to degree-holders with non-education specialisations if there was an insufficient people with education degrees to fill all the vacancies.

THE National Museum, or Muzium Negara, is a landmark in Kuala Lumpur, with its unique and beautiful architecture but is it true that there was another museum at the site before it was constructed? VERDICT:TRUEYes, the National Museum was built at the site of the former Selangor Museum, which was partly destroyed during World War II. “During World War II, part of the Selangor Museum building was ruined as a result of the bombings by the Allied air force in World War II on March 10, 1945,” reads an excerpt on the Muzium Negara website. Later, the idea to build the national museum was sparked by Malaysia’s first prime minister Tunku Abdul Rahman. Work to build the National Museum, located at Jalan Damansara in Kuala Lumpur, began in 1959 and it was fully completed in August 1963.

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PARIS: President Emmanuel Macron aims to reform France’s pension system by the summer of 2023, he told French news outlets in his first extended interview since his re-election in April. Macron, who planned to reform the retirement system in 2020, had to postpone the change when the Covid-19 pandemic hit. Macron said he was “outraged” by the disorder around the stadium and backed compensation to families that could not reach their seats. Macron said there wouldn’t be any risk of power cuts next winter despite the shutdown of several nuclear reactors. Macron did not rule out travelling to Ukraine, where he hasn’t been since Russia’s military invaded in late February.

So, if I may put it bluntly, Covid-19 is just a dress rehearsal. Every year, we lose ecosystem services worth more than 10% of our global economic output. Planetary health: You reap what you sowThe term “planetary health” first appeared in medical journal in 2014, which called for a movement that recognised that the health of people, wildlife and domesticated animals, and natural ecosystems are all interconnected. The heavy toll on our lives and livelihoods have arisen from deforestation, environmental degradation and a warming Earth. If we don’t get our act together now, there is a 50% chance that global warming will exceed 1.5°C in the next two decades.

PUTRAJAYA (June 5): A senior executive of a government-linked company and his wife were detained by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) on Saturday (June 4), allegedly for soliciting and receiving bribes amounting to over RM600,000 for appointing a transport company for a product distribution job. According to an MACC source, the couple, in their fifties and forties, were arrested at about 7pm at a house in Petaling Jaya, Selangor. His wife, meanwhile, is believed to have colluded with him in committing the offence. The MACC source said the wife was also believed to have control over the debit card of the said transport company, whereby its owner was involved in the official duties of her husband. The commission’s senior investigation director Datuk Seri Hishamuddin Hashim when contacted, confirmed the couple’s arrest under Section 17(a) of the MACC Act 2009.

BEIJING: China’s second-hand housing market regained some lost ground last month as the country eases financing and restrictions for home buyers, according to a report by the Beike Research Institute. In May, the sales volume of previously-owned homes in 50 cities rose by about 14% from a month ago, according to the report. Meanwhile, some cities in Northeast China and the Yangtze River Delta region saw sales more than double, it noted. Prices of pre-owned homes, however, fell 0.9% from April in the 50 cities, widening from the 0.3% decline last month, it said. The report estimates sales volume to further expand and prices to stabilise in the second half of this year.

KUALA LUMPUR (June 5): Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah has urged the government and all parties, regardless of political beliefs, to formulate a long-term plan to bring the country back to the pinnacle of success in the post-pandemic era. Al-Sultan Abdullah said in order to face future challenges in the post-pandemic era, the country’s management needs to have a plan that covers various sectors and aspects of life. The country’s recovery requires a close symbiosis between the government and my subjects. Al-Sultan Abdullah said this in his royal address in conjunction with His Majesty’s official birthday celebration on Monday (June 6). According to Al-Sultan Abdullah, it is not an easy feat to steer the country out of the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.

PUTRAJAYA: A couple has been remanded to help in a bribery probe into claims that they received money totalling more than RM600,000 for the appointment of a transportation company for a government-linked company. The husband and wife, who are in their 50s and 40s respectively, were arrested at their home in Petaling Jaya at about 7pm on Saturday (June 4). It is learnt that the man, a senior executive in a GLC, had demanded for “monthly payment” of about RM20,000. It is learnt that the senior executive had been suspended from his duties at the company. Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) senior director of investigation Datuk Seri Hishamuddin Hashim confirmed the couple’s arrest.

GEORGE TOWN: Student Ain Husniza Saiful Nizam and her father, Saiful Nizam Ab Wahab, who filed a countersuit against a teacher and former headmistress, have objected to government lawyers representing the duo. In an affidavit, they said it was improper and irregular for a senior federal counsel to defend Ain's teacher and the headmistress, the defendants in the civil case. ALSO READ: Ain Husniza to countersue physical education teacher for RM5milThey said if government lawyers represent a public servant in a personal capacity, the Attorney General's Chambers must first issue a certificate allowing them to do so. The affidavit was confirmed by lawyer SN Nair, who submitted it on their behalf at the Klang Sessions Court recently. ALSO READ: Teacher sues Ain Husniza, father for alleged defamationKhairul Nizam Sanuddin, 43, a teacher at SMK Puncak Alam, sued Ain and her father for allegedly making defamatory remarks against him on social media and through press interviews.