Category Archives: Economics

Government must take specific steps to ensure food security during the MCO ― Projek Wawasan Rakyat

This is something I drafted alongside several others (names below the article) for Projek Wawasan Rakyat, published in the Malay Mail on 26 March 2020. Also available here. MARCH 26 ― The extension of the movement control order (MCO) until … Continue reading

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The political economy that Perikatan Nasional inherits – and will have to tackle

This article was first published on New Mandala on 6 March 2020 here. As the dust settles on the political machinations from the top that threw Malaysia into unchartered territory – this was the first time since 1969 that the … Continue reading

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Malaysia’s New Perikatan Nasional Government: A Return of Barisan Nasional Policies?

This article was first published on FORSEA on 2 March 2020 here and republished on Malaysiakini on 3 March 2020 here. Malaysia’s Pakatan Harapan coalition will go down in history as the shortest-lived government in the country. Since its ‘stunning’ … Continue reading

Posted in Corruption, Economics, Elections, Ethno-Religious Politics, General Politics | Leave a comment

The Fall of the Corrupt

First published in theSun here, on 17 May 2018. IN Ayi Kwei Armah’s book, The Beautyful Ones are Not Yet Born, the protagonist is a civil servant who chooses not to take bribes for favours at the expense of his children’s education … Continue reading

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Notes on a New Nation, Day 7

Notes on a New Nation Day 7 Post GE-14 (16 May 2018) and Concluding Thoughts (for now) How apt it is to end the week with what most would consider to be sweet justice. Just seven short days following the … Continue reading

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Malaysia’s new leadership line-up strengthens Mahathir’s hand

First published on the Channel NewsAsia website on 14 May 2018, here. Mahathir Mohamad named three Cabinet ministers and announced the establishment of a Council of Elders on Saturday (May 12), in a move that strengthens his position within the … Continue reading

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Competition for better political and policy outcomes

First published in theSun on 26 April 2018 under the title “Competition for better outcomes”, here. GRAB, the Malaysian home-grown riding app, recently bought over Uber in several Southeast Asian countries. Some of us avid users have already noticed a … Continue reading

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In the contest for power, Malaysia’s resurgent states stake a claim

First published in New Mandala on 24 April 2018, here. The era of dominant federal government may be over as leading states push for greater autonomy, resisting a centre compromised by scandal and policy drift. Ahead of Malaysia’s 14th general election … Continue reading

Posted in Economics, Federalism, General Politics, Public Administration, Selangor, Transparency and Good Governance, Water | Leave a comment

Sustaining public healthcare

A version of this article first appeared in theSun here, on 18 January 2018. IT is said that you get what you pay for. The more expensive the product or service, conventional wisdom assumes that the quality of the product or … Continue reading

Posted in Healthcare, Public Administration, Reflections | Leave a comment

A wider asset declaration scheme

First appeared in theSun here, on 23 November 2017. IT is encouraging that 30 opposition parliamentarians recently agreed to declare their assets under a programme initiated by PKR body Invoke, many declarations of which can already be downloaded by the public … Continue reading

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