BENEFITS OF DATES JUICE : FROM IMPROVING BONE HEALTH TO PROMOTING BEAUTIFUL SKIN.

 

Satisfy sweet cravings with date juice concentrate rather than with white sugar.

Sometimes we all just want something a little sweet. We know that white sugar is bad for us but that doesn’t stop us from wanting something to satisfy our cravings.

Date juice concentrate can be easily stored and quickly made into a tasty drink or added to other food to make it sweeter, but in a healthy way. Also, because concentrate is diluted according to taste, drinks can be made exactly how the person likes them.

Dates juice is safe for children to drink and has a very low risk of allergies so it is an excellent alternative to typical concentrated drinks which have a very low fruit content and high sugar. -food.ndtv.com

As usual, we remind you to take your Memo Plus Gold daily. It will help to keep you alert and mentally sharp. For more information or to order for Memo Plus Gold, please visit : https://oze.my

Christians roast Zahirah MacWilson for linking Easter with “satanic/demonic Halloween celebration”

 

MALAYSIAN Christians have swamped the cyberspace to admonish ‘still soul-searching’ actress Zahirah MacWilson for equating Easter which is deemed the most important and foundational festival in the Christian calendar with “weirdo” Halloween which boasts a form of satanic/demonic worshipping.

They contended that while mentioning Halloween alone might be acceptable given Christians rarely regard Halloween as a religious festival, Easter (and Christmas for the matter) are meaningful celebrations of their faith and not just about dressing up, candy or supernatural characters.

Editor’s Note: Easter a.k.a. Resurrection Sunday celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ on the third day after his crucifixion while Christmas commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ.

“You’ve lived abroad for nearly 20 years yet you still don’t grasp the difference. Oh, wait, I forgot; it took you nearly 35 years just to start wearing a hijab!” jibed pious Sarawakian Christian Threader ᠻꫀꪶⅈᥴⅈꪖ ꫀꪜꫀ (@ felllllllevrtt) who was one of the earliest critics.

“And even then, you’ve only been wearing it for about three months. So, what now? Do you think you’re all that great? Does that give you the right to insult other religions?”

Added self-proclaimed coffee lover Nette Jean (@j_yntte):

I think what makes it particularly upsetting is that you’re not just expressing that you personally don’t celebrate Christmas or Easter. You’re making statements that can come across as belittling other people’s faith, traditions and cultural practices.

And honestly, you don’t have to agree with someone else’s religion to show them basic respect. Especially when you’re a public figure.

Imagine someone making the same remarks about your religious celebrations, traditions and beliefs. Imagine them calling them ridiculous, associating them with something satanic or belittling the way u celebrate. How would you feel?

Would you find it acceptable? Wouldn’t you expect the same respect you demand for yourself? And honestly, the audacity of travelling to another country and making such remarks about its people’s traditions and celebrations.

Editor’s Note: 31-year-old Zahirah who is both an actress and model of British and Malay descent is the daughter of former TV3 news presenter Zainol Johari MacWilson.

She is married to actor Aiman Hakim Ridza in 2020 with whom she shares two children (Isaac Raees and Inara Raisa).

Her reaction came at a time when Malaysian Muslims were ticking off their brethren for participating/embracing the Halloween tradition as their action is deemed as haram.

Despite having deleted her post and issued a public apology by stressing that she had no intention of insulting anyone’s beliefs given she herself is still in the process of learning about different religions and cultures, the very fact that her digital footprint has gone viral has somehow made her apology tantamount to “sorry no cure”.

“@zahirahmacwilson has somehow apologised but the last part of what she said is kind of funny. Doesn’t Islam also teach you to wear the hijab properly?” mocked one Chora (@soarism_) in a somehow tit-for-tat rebuttal to the applause of her Christian brethren.

“Did you do so? Because I can still see your sideburns with all the hijab that you wear. Anyway, Lord Jesus said that if someone slaps your right cheek, offer them your left cheek, too – but in your case, I hope you just focus on your own faith. Practice what you preach.”

Sadly enough, many a Christian still find it a bitter pill to swallow despite Zahirah’s apology of her earlier disparaging remarks:

“Dah minta maaf kan? (I’ve already apologised already, right?)”

But I wonder, if the tables were turned and someone made the same kind of hurtful remark about your religion, would the reaction be the same?

Respect should go both ways. An apology matters but so do the feelings of those who were hurt. Every faith deserves the same kindness, understanding and respect.

It’s not just your religion that deserves to be held in high esteem, @zahirahmacwilson. Spent 20 years overseas yet still behave like a frog under a coconut shell. 

 - Focus Malaysia

Firms paying TVET grads same wages as foreign workers, says Johari

 Minister says some employers continue to pay local TVET-qualified workers migrant worker rates despite the RM1,700 minimum wage.

Investment, trade and industry minister Johari Ghani said companies that have been operating in Malaysia for 10 to 20 years continue to rely on foreign labour despite the country producing more than 400,000 TVET students and graduates who could take up these jobs. (Bernama pic)

PETALING JAYA:

Some companies are paying local technical and vocational education and training (TVET) graduates the same wages as foreign workers, undermining efforts to encourage more Malaysians to take up jobs currently held by migrant workers, says Johari Ghani.

The investment, trade and industry minister said some companies were also placing local workers in accommodation designated for foreign workers, forcing the graduates to pay rent to live outside the designated areas.

He said Malaysia had 2.6 million foreign workers and had yet to reduce that number as envisaged under the 13th Malaysia Plan.

Johari said this was partly because companies that had been operating in Malaysia for 10 to 20 years continued to rely on foreign labour, despite the country producing more than 400,000 TVET students and graduates who could take up these jobs.

“Unfortunately, some of these companies want to pay TVET graduates the same wages as foreign workers,” he said in the Dewan Rakyat.

He said even the increase in minimum wage to RM1,700 had made little difference as some employers continued to pay local TVET-qualified workers the same rates as foreign workers.

Johari said the problem stemmed partly from government policies, which he felt had been too flexible.

He said the government would no longer allow new licences for businesses seeking to establish operations similar to those of existing companies if they intended to hire foreign workers.

“If we continue allowing companies to hire foreign workers, the number will keep increasing,” he said.

Adding that the government was placing greater emphasis on TVET, he said his ministry and the Malaysian Investment Development Authority would explain the government’s policy to industries seeking to hire foreign workers.

“They can hire foreign workers, but only on the condition that those workers are employed for 3D (dirty, dangerous and difficult) jobs,” he said. - FMT

Malaysian manufacturing roars back but rising costs could hit your wallet soon

 

A general view of shipping containers is seen at Westports Pulau Indah in Klang on September 27, 2024. — Picture by Firdaus Latif

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 2 — Malaysian factories are wrestling with mounting transport and material bills, passing these higher overheads directly to buyers as factory-gate inflation matches rising production costs.

According to the latest S&P Global Malaysia Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI), input expenses and selling charges rose at identical, accelerated rates in October. Survey respondents pinned the surge in freight and raw material expenses partly on ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

Despite intensifying cost burdens, overall sector performance returned to expansion territory. The headline PMI climbed to 51.0 in October from 49.9 in September, crossing the 50-point threshold separating contraction from growth to mark its strongest showing since April.

New orders surged at one of the fastest paces seen in four and a half years, driven by robust export sales and renewed demand from existing domestic clients. That rebound prompted factories to lift output for the first time in three months and expand headcount for a third consecutive month.

“New orders returned to growth, supported in part by stronger demand for AI-related products, and underpinned a fresh rise in output,” S&P Global economist Maryam Baluch said in the report.

Supply snags and port congestion persist

Operational bottlenecks continue to restrain the sector's recovery. Delivery schedules for manufacturing inputs deteriorated for an eleventh straight month, with chronic port congestion singled out as a recurring headache, even though delays eased marginally compared to September.

To keep pace with rising order books, several factories tapped into existing stockpiles, drawing down finished goods inventories for a sixth consecutive month.

Yet the turnaround in orders and output did little to lift long-term sentiment. Business confidence slumped to its lowest level since April, a mood the survey characterised as historically subdued. Manufacturers cited escalating expenses alongside broad geopolitical and macroeconomic volatility as reasons for caution.

Baluch noted that external headwinds remain “a key threat to the economy’s current resilience.”

Downstream pressure on consumer prices

While the PMI measures factory-gate prices rather than retail shop tags, the rapid pass-through of expenses from manufacturers to intermediate buyers signals potential inflationary pressure downstream that could eventually filter through to consumers.

The survey reflects responses collected between October 12 and 26 from purchasing managers across approximately 400 manufacturing operations in Malaysia. - malaymail

Why Malaysia should have national long-term care insurance and how it can be funded

 

Socso deputy CEO Edmund Cheong Peck Huang said Malaysia needs a long-term care insurance that does not only cover those who cannot live independently due to illness or injury before age 60, as people tend to become invalid after 60. — Picture by Sayuti Zainudin

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 2 — If Malaysia introduces a new nationwide insurance to cover the cost of long-term care of older persons, who would be paying for it? 

The government via tax revenue? All Malaysians through a monthly contribution? Or a mix of both? Or some other method?

But wait, just what is long-term care insurance?

Unlike a medical card or medical insurance which covers hospital bills, long-term care insurance covers the care and support that a person — including older persons — needs outside of hospitals. 

For example, if a person is unable to feed or dress himself/herself due to a stroke or other illnesses.

Social Security Organisation (Socso) Deputy CEO (Strategy and Corporate), Edmund Cheong Peck Huang said Socso or Perkeso already covers long-term care for Malaysian workers by giving them a lifelong monthly “invalidity pension” — but only if they become invalid before age 60.

“The irony of Perkeso being able to provide pension, being able to provide rehabilitation, medical benefits until the person dies is that you have to be sick or injured before 60. Then you would have proper long-term care protection.

“But the thing is that when we talk about long-term care, invalidity or sickness comes after 60. When it comes after 60, who protects you?” the social protection expert said recently at the National Long-Term Care Financing Dialogue 2026.

Cheong said this has led to a “moral hazard” where Malaysians lie and try to claim for this Socso monthly payout before they turn 60, even when they are actually not invalid.

“And to be honest, we are seeing trends of people applying for Perkeso’s invalidity pension at the ages of 55 to 60. 

“Basically not because they are invalid, but basically they are trying their luck. Hoping for that lottery that Perkeso says that you are invalid and you get pension for life, you get rehabilitation for life,” he said, adding that the spouse and children would also continue to get a pension as this person’s dependants.

“People are lying so that they get protection. So, we need to have a much more sustainable model for it.”

Edmund Cheong said mandatory contributions by all Malaysians would make long-term care insurance much cheaper, highlighting that everyone grows old and may need long-term care in the future. — Picture by Choo Choy May

‘Solidarity’: Paying for another Malaysian’s care now; getting paid when you become old in the future too

To introduce long-term care insurance for all Malaysians, Cheong proposed making it mandatory for every Malaysian to contribute to it.

“My one answer to it is one word — solidarity. Are we ready for solidarity? Because when we talk about long-term care insurance, it is a social insurance programme. When it is a social insurance programme, it is a mandatory contribution,” he said.

He pointed out that the monthly premium would be very affordable if it is a mandatory scheme involving all Malaysians, compared to a voluntary insurance scheme where the monthly premium would be very high as there would only be a small pool of contributors.

He cautioned Malaysians against being “individualistic” by viewing the contributions as “my savings”, noting that even the most prudent person would not be able to save enough for long-term care in their old age.

Cheong pointed out that everyone grows old, and that paying into this national insurance would eventually end up benefitting us when we need long-term care in the future.

“So that’s where you have to educate, today I’m paying for someone else’s grandfather, but one day, that some random Malaysian will be paying for me,” he said.

He added that a long-lasting organisation with a proper track record and proper infrastructure should be given the trust to run this national insurance scheme, as a person who has contributed for decades to the insurance can then hope to rely on it one day.

Cheong also indicated that long-term care insurance could be funded through existing social protection contributions, pointing out that the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) currently already allows EPF withdrawals via i-Lindung to buy life and critical illness insurance.

“But why can’t we just be brave enough and say, ‘Hey, let’s restructure it’,” he said, noting that social protection organisations such as Socso’s counterparts have also evolved over time to also cover employment injury and invalidity in line with changing needs and social risks.

One example that Cheong cited was Singapore’s national long-term care insurance CareShield Life, which is managed under the country’s Central Provident Fund (CPF) — the equivalent of Malaysia’s EPF. 

Syarikat Takaful Malaysia Keluarga Berhad’s Group CEO Nor Azman Zainal said there is a lack of willingness among Malaysians to pay for retirement-related insurance products if it is voluntary. — Picture by Sayuti Zainudin

Why long-term care insurance may fail in Malaysia if it’s not mandatory 

Syarikat Takaful Malaysia Keluarga Berhad’s Group CEO Nor Azman Zainal, who has 30 years’ experience in the insurance and takaful sector, indicated that the real challenge was convincing Malaysians that they need retirement-related insurance products. 

“From an insurance perspective, I can tell you, based on my observation and our own experience, long-term care is least on the minds of our customers,” he said at the same panel.

Nor Azman pointed to the insurance and takaful sector’s unsuccessful attempts in Malaysia to introduce insurance for Malaysians in their old age, which he said shows it would be tough to introduce new products.

This included life annuity products in the late 1990s and early 2000s that were designed to be funded through EPF, and another new retirement product about 10 to 15 years ago which also failed.

He said the problem with a voluntary long-term care insurance would be “nobody wants to pay for it”, and that it would only work in Malaysia if it is a mandatory nationwide scheme with the government’s involvement similar to that in Singapore or Japan. 

“So I think that’s the way forward, but if you leave it entirely to the insurance sector or the takaful sector, we are going to fail once again,” he said. 

He said another challenge in Malaysia is the lack of relevant data, which is required by actuaries for cost predictions when designing a long-term care insurance product.

“So I think, in short, it’s going to be tough, but it’s doable,” he said.

ProtectHealth Corporation’s Head of Healthcare (Sustainability and Assurance) Dr Muhammed Anis Abd Wahab said government funding for healthcare and long-term care needs to be increased. — Picture by Sayuti Zainudin

Government needs to fund long-term care in Malaysia too, advocates say

At the same panel, ProtectHealth Corporation’s Head of Healthcare (Sustainability and Assurance) Dr Muhammed Anis Abd Wahab agreed that there needs to be solidarity or shared risk in a single pool for long-term care.

While healthcare and long-term care should be a shared responsibility that also involves Malaysians, Dr Anis said the government has to “predominantly fund most” of those costs and advocated for an increase in government funding for these. 

Fellow panellist and Malaysia Caregivers Association (Kendana) chairman Rashidi Yahaya stopped short of advocating for Socso to step up and handle a national long-term care scheme, but said it was capable of doing so.

Rashidi proposed a four-tier approach to financing long-term care in Malaysia, starting with prevention; having a social protection element that is tax-funded; a mandatory contributory fund with contributions from both employers and employees; and then a voluntary private top-up through insurance.

He indicated that Malaysians’ EPF funds could be tapped for long-term care: “We don’t have to go and tell the government tomorrow, ‘let’s start a new legislation, let’s start a new tax fund’, because the money is already there.”

In Singapore, Singaporeans must pay the premiums (typically using their CPF savings) for their mandatory long-term care insurance CareShield Life, but the government also gives premium subsidies for lower-income and middle-income households.

In Japan, funding for its mandatory national long-term care insurance is shared, with half being premiums paid by citizens and half being tax-funded.

The dialogue was part of the National Conference on Ageing 2026 (NCA 2026), which was organised by Universiti Putra Malaysia’s Malaysian Research Institute on Ageing (MyAgeing) together with Retirement Fund Inc (KWAP), the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and Kendana. - malaymail