Danger zone: A JKR personel inspecting the cave-in in Jalan Lembah Permai. — ZAINUDIN AHAD/The Star
The abandon squatter house.
GEORGE TOWN: A cracked underground drain caused rainwater to flood the earth beneath a road in Tanjung Bungah, causing a retaining wall to burst open and creating a 10m-wide “cavern” beneath the road.
Residents along Lembah Permai woke up last Friday and found part of their street had caved in.
An abandoned house on lower grounds next to the street is teetering on the brink of collapse after water washed away the earth beneath the house’s foundation.
Where the opening of the 40cm-in-diameter underground drain used to be is now a maw around 10m across, with chunks of the wall lying down the slope.
The minor landslide brought back fearful memories for residents because it is less than 1km from the Tanjung Bungah landslide that happened in October 2017, which killed 11 construction workers.
“It was raining so much last week. The water from this drain comes from most of the roadside drains in hillside and it was gushing almost all day and night.
“Luckily, no one lives in that house now. It was abandoned many years ago,” said neighbour Teh Choon Pin.
When the southwest monsoon began on May 6, it was raining almost continuously for five days in Penang and this retaining wall burst open on the fifth day.
Resident Zuhaimi Che Mat, who lives just about 30m from the wall, said it was the first time this has happened in the 50 years she lived there.
R“The water from the drain flows into the stream heading out to sea. When it rains heavily, water from the hills comes gushing down the stream and out of the drain,” she said.
State Works Committee chairman Zairil Khir Johari, who is also Tanjung Bungah assemblyman, said the state approved an emergency fund of RM220,000 and a contractor has been appointed to start repair works.
“The underground drain had cracked and water was seeping into the soil and weakening the road foundation.
“We knew there were problems and the Public Works Department was in the process of calling for a tender before the wall burst open,” he said.
He said the hassle was that there were many utility cables and pipes running under the road that went down too.
“There is an 11kV electricity cable, water pipes, telephone cables and others. So many agencies will be involved in the repairs,” Zairil added.
Duties show Beijing unfazed by Washington’s pressure
China on Monday struck back at US tariffs on Chinese goods, announcing duties of between 5 percent to 25 percent on more than 5,100 products from the US worth tens of billions of dollars.
The measured but firm response from Chinese officials highlighted China's defiance toward maximum pressure from US officials amid a fresh escalation in the trade war, while also seeking to avoid a full-fledged trade war with the US, analysts said.
China will impose an additional tariff of 25 percent on 2,493 items such as liquefied natural gas and 20 percent on 1,078 items, including fruits and chemicals, starting June 1, the Customs Tariff Commission under the State Council, China's cabinet, said in a statement Monday night.
China will also impose an additional tariff of 10 percent on 974 items, such as vegetables and seafood, and 5 percent on 595 items, including smaller planes, according to the statement. In total, the tariffs cover 5,140 US products worth $60 billion.
The statement said that China's measures were in response to the US' decision to raise tariffs on $200 billion in Chinese goods.
"The aforementioned US action has led to an escalation in China-US trade frictions and is against a consensus reached by the two sides to address trade differences through consultations," it said, adding it hurts both sides' interests.
Following China's tariffs, US stocks tumbled on Monday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average losing 2.17 percent shortly after market opening. Shares of major US companies which rely on Chinese markets also nosedived, with machinery maker Caterpillar stocks down 4.54 percent and aircraftmaker Boeing shares down 3.38 percent.
Firm response
"I think the response is firm but measured," said Huo Jianguo, vice chairman of the China Society for World Trade Organization Studies in Beijing, pointing out that the measures were specifically aimed at responding to the US action.
The US on Friday raised duties on $200 billion in Chinese goods to 25 percent from the 10 percent imposed since September 2018, to which China responded with tariffs on $60 billion in US goods.
"While the Chinese tariffs cover less US products than the US tariffs do on Chinese goods, it is sufficient to show that China is not going to back down from pressure," Huo said.
China's response comes about an hour after US President Donald Trump warned China against retaliating on Monday. "China should not retaliate - will only get worse!" Trump tweeted, while repeating false accusations against China.
The Chinese tariffs also followed fresh threats from US officials to impose tariffs on $325 billion in Chinese goods with details expected to be announced on Monday US time.
"Since the US has resumed the trade war, we should hit back hard… to show the Americans that they will not gain anything from their tough approach," He Weiwen, a former senior Chinese trade official, told the Global Times. "But we should also not close the door to talks."
Door open
Though China was forced to impose the tariffs, it also did so in a way that avoided a further escalation and left room for negotiations, said Song Guoyou, director of Fudan University's Center for Economic Diplomacy.
"The country still left some room in the hope that bilateral trade tensions would not further escalate, and that there would be possible future talks with the US," Song said.
Chinese and US officials concluded the 11th round of negotiations in Washington on Friday without reaching any deal. There were no plans for future talks as of press time on Monday.
But in light of the drastic turn of events in the trade talks, China has prepared for all scenarios, officials and analysts said.
"The Chinese side will never succumb to external pressure and we have the resolve and ability to safeguard our legitimate rights and interests," Geng Shuang, a spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, told a routine press briefing on Monday.
"Again, we hope the US side could work with China and meet China halfway to address each other's reasonable concerns based on mutual respect and equal terms," he said.
But if the US wants to further escalate the trade war, China will respond in kind and there are many other tools it could take to inflict pain on the US economy, including targeting US financial markets, analyst noted.
Stay focused
However, while fighting back is necessary, it is also equally important for China not to lose focus in carrying out stated reform and opening-up efforts aimed at ensuring long-term growth for the Chinese economy, analysts said.
"We need to commit to our policies because we must keep things at home in good shape. That goes without saying," Huo said, noting that China should continue its reform and opening-up efforts.
Continuing reform and opening-up measures will not only help cope with pressure from the US, but could also ensure long-term growth for the Chinese economy, analysts said.
In the short term, though, China needs to properly evaluate the potential damage of the trade war on Chinese companies and workers and take necessary measures to help them weather the impact.
Yu Yongding, a senior research fellow at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said that given China's deep role in the global value chain, it is hard to evaluate the impact on the Chinese economy, but China needs to prepare for the worst.
"In any case, the Chinese economy will be able to withstand the impact, and China's monetary and fiscal policies still have room," he said at a seminar in Beijing on Saturday.
World markets plunged further on Tuesday following heavy losses on Wall Street after China delivered a swift rebuff to Donald Trump by imposing retaliatory tariffs on $60bn of US imports. Beijing ignored warnings from Trump about the dangers of escalating the trade conflict and ..
The Chinese side is obviously more realistic while the US
is falsifying. This will, to a large extent, influence how the two
countries digest the trade war impacts.
Source: Global Times
China's stance is clear-cut. It is willing to reach a
deal but will never make concessions on issues of principle, nor trade
its core interests. In contrast, the US' attitude is swaying. Driven by
unrealistic anticipation, it has drifted between expressing optimism
that exceeds the actual situation and arbitrarily waving the tariff
stick. China has clarified its stance and will try to push the situation
in a good direction. If the US is to play a roller coaster-style
thriller game, it will bear the consequences.
Source: Global Times
US-based software company Oracle attracted a lot of
attention in recent days after firing hundreds of employees, mainly
engineers, from its China team.
Source: Global Times
NASIR Ahmad’s father, Ahmad Ismail or better known by his pseudonym Ahmady Asmara, was a legendary journalist and a sasterawan (man of letters). He used to work for publications like Saudara, Warta Ahad, Majlis and Utusan Zaman back in the 50s and 60s. Among his protege was the late Tan Sri Zainuddin Maidin (Zam).
Like his father, Nasir joined the press. In 1973, he started as a reporter with the Utusan Melayu group. Eighteen years later, he joined Berita Harian.
Upon reaching 55, Nasir worked on a contract basis from 2011 to 2017. He has no major financial commitments and all except one of his four children are married.
In December 2017, he was diagnosed with colon cancer. It was devastating news to him and his family. He survived but his life was never the same again.
His close shave with death taught him many valuable lessons. For one, he can’t remain idle. He gets restless not doing anything.
He joined Grab service last August. It was more like an experiment for him initially. He was hooked. He has been driving ever since. In fact, he is one of Grab’s prized drivers, attaining 5-star ratings many times over. He starts around 10 in the morning and finishes around 9 at night, stopping only for prayers and lunch or quick bites.
Nasir is not alone. On May 2, this newspaper highlighted a growing number of Malaysians working well after 60.
For those who have their pension, they can afford to sit back and enjoy what’s left of their life. But things are not easy for others. They have mouths to feed. In most cases, adult children have their own commitments and parents seldom want to bother them over financial matters.
However, it is not easy to join the job market at that age even with experience and the necessary expertise. Nasir was a journalist; driving for Grab was a totally new experience.
As highlighted by this newspaper, based on a report published by the Institute of Labour Market Information and Analysis (Ilma), the supply of workers of Nasir’s age and above currently outstrips the demand for them.
According to the report, by 2030, the number of aged workers in Malaysia would be about 1.2 million but the demand for such workers would be just slightly a third of that.
If you are at Changi Airport, Singapore, most likely the first people you meet after the immigration officers are the ushers to guide you to the taxis. At most food courts, the elderly are employed to clear the trays or clean the floors.
There are certain jobs young people are not interested in. We see less of them here because the foreigners are doing the job for us.
Singapore, understandably, is giving a lot of attention to senior citizens. The republic is seriously looking into what it “needs to do differently in the coming years” as its population ages. In fact, it is considered one of the most urgent challenges for the government today.
The world population is ageing. According to the latest United Nations’ data, the number of those above 60 years globally is expected to more than double by 2050 and triple by 2100.
In 2017, there were 962 million of them, there will be 2.1 billion in 2050 and 3.1 billion in 2100. Shockingly too, according to the data, people aged 60 or above is growing faster than all younger age groups!
This is not just a problem in advanced countries. Most countries in the world have substantial numbers of ageing population. With better healthcare, humans are living longer.
There are loads of other issues pertaining to people of 60 and above. Moreover, living in the 21st century has its challenges.
There are issues about acceptability and competition with the younger generation, and certainly the need for respectability and dignity. But more importantly is coping with the demands at workplaces.
It is the question of how governments are coping with an ageing population.
One way is to make people work longer. We have done that, raising the retirement age to 60. Should we raise that to 65?
It is not a popular policy especially when younger people believe they will be deprived of the chance to climb up the ladder in public service or in the private sector.
The Global Age Watch Index Report shows high-income countries fare better in managing their ageing population. The enabling environment too for ageing people is much better in richer countries.
Like it or not, people of Nasir’s age are transforming society of today and the future. Just like the UN report on ageing says, ageing population is poised to become one of the most dramatic and significant transformations of the 21st century.
Never take Nasir and people his age for granted!
Johan Jaaffar was a journalist, editor and for some years, chairman of a media company, and is passionate about all things literature and the arts. The views expressed here are entirely his own.
