Latest news with #RM53
Barnama
a day ago
- Business
- Barnama
Govt Allocates RM53,100 For Part-time Media Practioners' Welfare
KUALA LUMPUR, June 14 (Bernama) -- The government has allocated RM53,100 this year for two welfare initiatives for part-time media practitioners -- the extension of the Self-Employment Social Security Scheme (SKSPS) under the Social Security Organisation (Socso) and contributions to the i-Saraan scheme under the Employees Provident Fund (EPF). Communications Minister Datuk Fahmi Fadzil said that of the total amount, RM37,170 was allocated for the extension of SKSPS coverage, which benefited 531 part-time media practitioners for a period of one year last year, while the remaining RM15,930 was for i-Saraan EPF contributions. He said the initiative was implemented through the synergy between the Malaysian National News Agency (Bernama) and Socso.
Daily Express
21-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Express
Free-for-all likely: Joniston
Published on: Thursday, May 22, 2025 Published on: Thu, May 22, 2025 Text Size: Joniston (sixth right) officiating the newly-upgraded Poturidong – Tibabar road. Kota Kinabalu: The next Sabah state election could turn into a 'free-for-all' due to disagreements among parties trying to form alliances, said GRS information chief Datuk Joniston Bangkuai. The Kiulu assemblyman said his coalition must be prepared for any eventuality, including contesting independently, as indicated by Chief Minister and GRS chairman Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor. 'A free-for-all could be a blessing in disguise, as such a scenario would allow Sabahans to choose between a coalition of local parties and those led by Peninsular-based parties,' he said during a meet-the-people session in Kampung Tibabar here. GRS currently leads the state government in partnership with Sabah Pakatan Harapan, while Sabah Barisan Nasional has been in the opposition since withdrawing its support in early 2023. Recently, Hajiji said that GRS was ready and willing to contest the election on its own. This followed an announcement by PH and BN of their pact to work together in the upcoming election, a move many observers described as a deliberate snub to GRS. Bangkuai, who also serves as Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) information chief, said GRS has demonstrated that local-based coalitions are capable of delivering meaningful development while maintaining a close working relationship with the federal government. Advertisement He said the GRS-PH state government currently enjoys a cordial working relationship with Putrajaya under Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's leadership. He also pointed to the annual federal special grant, which he said increased from RM53 million when Warisan was in power to RM600 million under GRS. 'Another example is the signing of the Commercial Collaboration Agreement (CCA) between the GRS-led state government and Petronas, which has shored up the state's revenue,' Bangkuai stated. He reiterated that the current scenario has benefited Sabah, citing increased annual revenue of RM6.9 billion and state reserves close to RM8 billion.'We are not anti-federal, but we believe Sabah must lead itself, with leaders not bound by outside instructions,' he affirmed. 'GRS is proof that Sabah can work maturely with Putrajaya and still prioritise the people of Sabah above all.' * Follow us on our official WhatsApp channel and Telegram for breaking news alerts and key updates! * Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available. Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express's Telegram channel. Daily Express Malaysia
New Straits Times
21-05-2025
- Politics
- New Straits Times
Sabah likely facing a 'free-for-all' election, says GRS info chief
KOTA KINABALU: A free-for-all scenario in the upcoming Sabah state election is likely, says Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) information chief Datuk Joniston Bangkuai. He said the possibility arose from disagreements over seat allocations among parties seeking to form electoral alliances. As such, Joniston stressed that GRS must be prepared for all eventualities, including contesting independently, as stated by Chief Minister and GRS chairman, Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor. Hajiji had previously said that GRS was ready to go it alone following the declaration signed between Barisan Nasional (BN) and Pakatan Harapan (PH) to cooperate in the Sabah election — a move widely seen as a deliberate snub to GRS. However, Joniston, who is also Kiulu assemblyman, suggested that a multi-cornered contest could be a blessing in disguise. He said such a scenario would allow the people of Sabah to make a clear choice between locally-based coalitions and those led by parties headquartered in Peninsular Malaysia. Speaking at a meet-the-people session in Kampung Tibabar after officiating the upgraded Poturidong-Tibabar road, he said: "Sabahans could treat the upcoming state election as a referendum — to choose between GRS, which is locally rooted, and Peninsular-based parties like the Umno-led BN, PH, and Parti Warisan Plus. "This will be a definitive test of whether we prefer leadership from local-based parties or those answerable to parties in Kuala Lumpur." Joniston, who is also Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) information chief, said GRS had shown that locally-based coalitions were capable of delivering meaningful development while maintaining constructive relations with the federal government. He cited the cordial relationship between the GRS-led state administration and the federal government under Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim as an example. Joniston said that the annual federal special grant had increased significantly — from RM53 million during Warisan's administration to RM600 million under GRS. Another milestone, he said, was the signing of the Commercial Collaboration Agreement (CCA) between the Sabah government and Petronas, which brought tangible benefits and bolstered state revenue. He attributed Sabah's improved fiscal performance — including an increase in annual revenue to RM6.9 billion and state reserves nearing RM8 billion — to effective governance, a clear development strategy under the Sabah Maju Jaya initiative, and close collaboration with Putrajaya. "We are not anti-federal. But we believe Sabah should lead itself — with leaders not bound by external instructions. "GRS is proof that Sabah can engage maturely with Putrajaya while still placing the interests of its people first," he said. Joniston also addressed past political manoeuvres involving Umno-BN, Warisan, and Parti Kesejahteraan Demokratik Masyarakat (KDM), describing their collective attempt to unseat the Chief Minister in January 2023 as politically self-serving and destabilising. "It was never about leadership — it was about control and self-interest," he said. He urged voters to reflect on the attempted power grab and to choose stability over political gamesmanship. "We've seen the damage that reckless power plays can cause. Sabah needs steady leadership and genuine commitment. This election is our chance to move forward — not backwards," he said.
Borneo Post
21-05-2025
- Business
- Borneo Post
GRS warns of free-for-all in stare election
Joniston (sixth right) officiating the newly-upgraded Poturidong – Tibabar road. KIULU (May 21): Disagreement over the allocation of seats among parties intending to form alliances would likely lead to a free-for-all in the coming State election, said Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) information chief Datuk Joniston Bangkuai. With such a possibility, Joniston said GRS must be prepared to face any eventuality, including going solo as stated by the Chief Minister and GRS chairman, Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor. Hajiji had said that GRS is ready to go it alone after Barisan Nasional (BN) and Pakatan Harapan (PH) signed a declaration agreeing to work together in the Sabah election which many described as a deliberate snub to GRS. The Kiulu assemblyman said a free-for-all could be a blessing in disguise, as such a scenario would allow Sabahans to choose between a coalition of local parties and peninsular-based-led parties. He was speaking at a meet-the-people session in Kg Tibabar here after officiating the upgraded Poturidong-Tibabar road. 'Sabahans could well treat the upcoming state election as a referendum to choose between local-based GRS, Umno-led Barisan Nasional, Pakatan Harapan, and Parti Warisan plus,' said Joniston, who is also Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) information chief. 'This will be a clear test of whether we want to be led by leaders from locally based parties or by those who answer to parties headquartered in Kuala Lumpur.' He said that GRS has demonstrated that local-based coalitions are capable of delivering meaningful development while working closely with the federal government. Citing an example, Joniston reiterated that although the local-based GRS leads the State government, it enjoys a cordial working relationship with Putrajaya under the leadership of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim. Joniston also said that the annual federal special grant has been increased from RM53 million when Warisan was in power to RM600 million under GRS. Another example is the signing of the Commercial Collaboration Agreement (CCA) between the GRS-led State government and Petronas, which brought tangible benefits for Sabah and shored up the State's revenue. As a result of good governance and a focused development plan and strategy under the Sabah Maju Jaya initiative coupled with the good ties with Putrajaya, State annual revenue has increased to RM6.9 billion and State reserve close to RM8 billion. 'We are not anti-federal, but we believe Sabah must lead itself, with leaders not bound by outside instructions. 'GRS is proof that Sabah can work maturely with Putrajaya, and still prioritise the people of Sabah above all,' he added. Joniston also touched on past political manoeuvres involving Umno-BN, Warisan and Parti Kesejahteraan Demokratik Masyarakat (KDM), describing their combined attempt to topple the Chief Minister in January 2023 as politically ill-intended and damaging. 'It was never about leadership, it was about control and self-interest.' Joniston urged voters to reflect on the January 2023 attempted power-grab and choose stability over political gamesmanship. 'We've seen the damage caused by reckless power plays. Sabah needs steady hands and sincere leadership. This election is our opportunity to move forward, and not backwards,' he said.
