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.
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Man sentenced to three weeks’ jail for shooting ball bearings at bridal cars in Woodlands
A 53-year-old man was sentenced to three weeks’ jail after admitting on Wednesday (Sept 9) to shooting ball bearings at bridal cars in Woodlands in 2017. Singaporean Samuel Tan Joo Soon had pleaded guilty to committing a rash act. According to court documents, Tan used a wooden catapult to shoot metal ball bearings. He did this from his daughter's bedroom window on the fifth storey of Block 764A Woodlands Circle at around 7.15am on July 1, 2017. The Straits Times ran a report of the incident on July 19 quoting witnesses. A group of wedding revellers were playing "gate-crashing" games on the ground floor when one of the bridesmaids heard a sound like shots being fired. A groomsman then noticed that two of the cars in their entourage were damaged. Police later seized a number of items including two packets of ball bearings, a catapult and a packet of slingshot bands. Tan will surrender himself on Sept 23 to begin serving his sentence. For committing a rash act, an offender can be jailed for up to six months and fined up to $2,500. – The Straits Times
Sabah polls: LDP keeps mum on candidates until Nomination Day
Unlike other political parties, Sabah Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) has chosen not to make any announcement of its candidates before the polling days. Its president Datuk Chin Su Phin said the party decided not to emulate other parties in revealing their candidates for the state election. "However, LDP will still contest for the state polls and to field 46 candidates," he told the New Straits Times, adding that the media could ask the party's life honorary president Tan Sri Chong Kah Kiat about the decision after Nomination Day this Saturday. Tomorrow will be a hectic day for political parties and the media as most parties are expected to make their announcement at about the same time. Parti Warisan Sabah and its allies - Upko, Pakatan Harapan and Amanah - will be revealing their choices at Sabah International Convention Centre at 9.30am. Meanwhile, announcements by Barisan Nasional and Parti Pribumi Bersatu Sabah will be held at Magellan Sutera Harbour at 10am. As for Parti Cinta Sabah, its deputy president Datuk Pang Yuk Ming said the announcement is also likely to be held tomorrow depending on final discussion on seats and candidates. Yesterday, SAPP former deputy president Melanie Chia had also announced that there will be five candidates including herself to contest in seats located within the state capital under Sabah Independent Candidate Alliance. Chia will go for Likas, Sim Sie Hong for Api-Api, Michelle Chin for Luyang, Jan Chow for Tanjung Aru and Achmad Noorasyrul Noortaip for Inanam. The state polls, which will begin this Saturday, will see political parties and independents contesting in the 73 state seats. – New Straits Times
B10bn for charter rewrite
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha on Tuesday warned that the cost of a constitutional amendment could reach 10 billion baht, as the cabinet approved a bill to pave the way for national referendums on the rewrite of the charter. Gen Prayut said on Tuesday that each referendum on constitutional amendments would require about 4 to 5 billion baht, with costs that include spending on Covid-19 prevention measures. Gen Prayut said the cabinet approved, in principle, the bill which was proposed by the Election Commission (EC). The EC explained to the cabinet that at least two referendums are required -- one on the amendment of the charter change process to set up a charter drafting body, and another on the new charter, Gen Prayut said. According to political analysts, in the first referendum, voters would decide whether they agree with the proposal to establish a charter drafting assembly to write a new charter. Citing an estimate by the EC, Gen Prayut said that normally a referendum costs about 3 billion baht to hold, but with the Covid-19 pandemic, another 1 billion baht would be needed to arrange more polling stations than usual so as to ensure each station is not overcrowded. – Bangkok Post
Low-income patients will get COVID-19 vaccines for free, govt says
Up to 98 million low-income patients whose healthcare premiums are fully funded by the state through the Health Care and Social Security Agency (BPJS Kesehatan) will get the COVID-19 vaccine for free, Research and Technology Minister Bambang Brodjonegoro has said. “Between 97 and 98 million PBI participants of the BPJS Kesehatan will get the vaccine for free. Of course, the government and the Health Ministry will see how it is for the non-PBI participants" he said in a hearing with House of Representatives Commission VII overseeing research and technology on Tuesday. Bambang, who also heads the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) and is the person-in-charge of the national team to accelerate the development of a possible COVID-19 vaccine, said that the government was currently calculating the total cost of the vaccine. The government has allocated Rp 280 billion (US$18.8 million) in 2021 for the development of the locally produced Merah Putih (Red and White) vaccine. However, Presidential Decree No. 18/2020 on the national team for the acceleration of COVID-19 vaccine development opens the possibility of other sources of funding for the program beyond the state budget. The potential vaccine is currently being developed by a national consortium under the Research and Technology Ministry, led by the Eijkman Institute for Molecular Biology. – The Jakarta Post
DOH: Critical care utilization rate must reach below 30 % to flatten COVID-19 curve
Among factors that would help the Philippines flatten its COVID-19 curve is for critical care utilization rate nationwide to reach less than 30 percent, the Department of Health (DOH) said Wednesday. “The ideal number would be that the utilization is less than 30 percent because if you say that we are, for example, the Philippines right now is at 46 percent, meaning, 46 percent of all of these critical care components of the system is being utilized so you only have 54 percent available for the rest of the citizens,” DOH spokesperson Ma. Rosario Vergeire said in an interview over ABS-CBN News Channel. “If you have less than 30 percent of these critical care components being utilized, you can say that the health care system is being able to manage the situation,” she added.
A continuous dip in the number of cases is also an indicator that the country has flattened its COVID-19 curve, Vergeire added. “Maybe when we reach that part where we already have lowered down the critical care utilization, our health systems being able to accommodate patients, the utilization is lower than warning zone already, maybe if the number of cases continues to decrease and the growth rate of cases continue to decrease for two incubation periods and that is 28 days for the whole country, and then we can say, that is the point where we can say that we have reached that objective of flattening the curve,” she explained. While the situation is improving, the DOH has said there is no certainty if the country’s epidemic curve of COVID-19 has already flattened and warned the public against complacency. – INQUIRER.net
Viet Nam urged to improve infrastructure to attract more FDI
Viet Nam needed to improve its infrastructure in order to attract more FDI, a webinar heard on Monday. Themed “Capitalising on Vietnam’s Investment Opportunities Post COVID-19”, the webinar drew senior leaders from businesses and organisations across Asia, Europe and the US. Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyễn Chí Dũng said that trade conflicts among major economies had forced international corporations and enterprises to relocate to avoid high taxes. The COVID-19 pandemic and its consequences had made countries, international corporations and businesses speed up their investment restructuring plans to avoid dependence on one country or partner. Many countries had already issued preferential policies and support packages to retain as well as attract foreign investors. Dũng said Viet Nam had been taking drastic measures to meet investors’ requirements such as preparing land funds, factories, energy facilities and incentive packages for large projects that applied advanced technology. The country had also created conditions for Vietnamese businesses to join the global value chain. “With its existing competitive advantages, strong reforms of the investment environment and increasing international position, and positive and effective anti-COVID-19 measures, Viet Nam has been highly appreciated by the world community, becoming an attractive and safe investment destination for foreign investors,” he added. – Viet Nam News
Garment workers petition EU for intervention over legal compensation
More than 250 garment workers from Violet Apparel (Cambodia) Co Ltd who claim to represent 1,284 others gathered on Monday in front of the EU offices to request intervention on legal compensation from the shuttered factory. In their petition submitted to the EU, the workers said operations at Violet Apparel in O’Bek Ka’am commune, in Phnom Penh’s Sen Sok district, were suspended in May and June. The factory was completely shut down on July 1 without workers being paid as required by the labour law. “We hope the EU in Cambodia can help find justice for the factory workers by asking the company to pay us. We also request the company to pay pregnant workers 50 per cent for three months of maternity leave,” said the petition. The protesters said they want the EU to ask the company to also pay for five days of the recent rescheduled New Year holiday and ask the Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training to refer the dispute to the Arbitration Council. EU press officer Pok Poun could not be reached for comment. – The Phnom Penh Post