These are the top stories making the front pages of major newspapers from across Southeast Asia today.
Get up to speed with what’s happening in the fastest growing region in the world.
Najib's case dropped as 'former PM had no knowledge of wrongdoings'
A former deputy public prosecutor (DPP) today said no further action (NFA) was taken in the RM2.6 billion donation to Datuk Seri Najib Razak and SRC International Bhd cases as investigations up to 2016 showed the former prime minister had no knowledge of any wrongdoings.
Tan Sri Dzulkifli Ahmad, who ended his career in the civil service as the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief commissioner in 2018, said he was part of a team of DPPs ordered to go through MACC investigation papers on the two cases at that time.
He said former Attorney General (AG) Tan Sri Mohamed Apandi Ali had assigned him to do so and one of the key issues that was looked into was whether Najib had any knowledge of funds from SRC going into his accounts and if he had directed anyone to do so. – The New Straits Times
400bn booster shot given nod
The cabinet has given the green light to a stimulus package expected to inject 400 billion baht into the economy to reduce the impact of the Covid-19 epidemic.
The package was proposed at a meeting of economic ministers. – Bangkok Post
All citizens, foreigners living in Vietnam to provide health declarations
From Tuesday, Vietnamese citizens and foreigners living in Vietnam will be able to declare their health status via smartphone-based apps co-developed by the Ministry of Health (MoH), Ministry of Information and Communications (MIC) and domestic IT companies.
The two apps – NCOVI for Vietnamese nationals and Vietnam Health Declaration for foreigners in Vietnam – launched on Monday afternoon are now available on Android's Google Play Store and pending approval on the Apple's App Store. – Viet Nam News
Outbreak shuts down 19 tourism companies
More than 300 workers of 19 tourism-related establishments have lost their jobs since February due to the coronavirus outbreak that has curtailed air travel, particularly from China, one of the country’s biggest tourist markets, the Department of Labor and Employment said on Tuesday.
At the same time, 47 companies with 4,416 workers have implemented flexible work arrangements, including shorter hours, reduced working days or forced leaves, according to Assistant Labor Secretary Dominique Rubia-Tutay. – Philippine Daily Inquirer
Government pledges $2billion fund for economy
The government has announced they have prepared an emergency reserve fund of between $800million and $2billion to aid the Kingdom’s economic recovery in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak.
The fund amount is set to be used in separate scenarios, depending on how long the virus continues to spread, said Prime Minister Hun Sen, speaking in Phnom Penh on Tuesday. – Khmer Times