The Dilemma of National Service Training Program By Dr Chua Soi LekFriday, May 16, 2008 Every time there is a death among the participants of the National Service (NS) program, it generates a lot of publicity, sympathy and anxiety among parents. The issue should be viewed more rationally. Last year, a comparison was made between … Read more
Using fieldwork data from Taiwanese-owned factories in Malaysia and Vietnam, the authors argue that the labour regime based on ethnic division of labour is a function of the degree of proletarianization, which depends on the state’s policies and one’s social capital. State policy protects native Malay and Vietnamese, and excludes the rights of migrant workers, … Read more
This article examines efforts to create binding international rules regulating public procurement and considers, in particular, the failure to reach a WTO agreement on transparency in government procurement. The particular focus of the discussion is the approach taken by Malaysia to these international procurement rules and to the negotiation of an agreement on transparency. Rules … Read more
Of the countries hit by the Asian economic crisis in 1997, Malaysia was the least hurt. The government was thus initially able to reject neo-liberal prescriptions, instead administering capital controls and corporate bailouts. However, despite short-term success, different kinds of foreign investors, top politicians and business elites, and mass-level constituencies gradually forced wide policy swings. … Read more
Source Democratization, Vol.13, No.3, June 2006, pp.421–441. Abstract: This study uses the history of Malaysian democracy to explore questions about the relationship between changing social structures and Islamic discourses in shaping the prospects for further democratization in the Muslim world. Social and historical factors have created incentives for a less authoritarian and more economically successful … Read more
The Malaysian government must take a cautious approach when negotiating the USMFTA. Furthermore, the government must consult all relevant parties, especially Parliament and the workers before making any decisions.Publication: MIERScan, 29 January 2007. Download
The existing fiscal structure in Malaysia is antiquated and in need of reform. One objection to the present fiscal structure rests on the fact that the federal government has undue control over fiscal policy and relegates the demands of state governments to a subsidiary position. Another objection with the existing fiscal structure rests on the … Read more
Despite the healthy economic growth, persistent remarks on the rise in the cost of living are heard. The difficult part is that there is elusive, scarce and incomplete info on the cost of living at the national level, since spending is also based on personal priorities. Publication: MIERScan, 14 May 2007. Download
The government can hasten the achievement of the National Integrity Plan through the immediate implementation of transparency as a core principle at all government levels. Publication: MIERScan, 26 February 2007. Download
The government should consider wholesale reforms of the paddy sub-sector to address problems of chronic inefficiency and persistent poverty. Sequenced liberalisation of the paddy sub-sector together with complimentary strategies should be a foremost consideration to address these issues and to improve national competitiveness. Publication:MIERScan, 25 June 2007. Download