The Iskandarian October Issue by The Iskandarian-WAVES Lifestyle

KDN : PP19356/08/2018(034949) | Singapore MICA : MCI (P) 079/12/2019

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Iskandar Malaysia’s Official Newspaper is an effort by True Soul Media PLT & Iskandar Regional Development Authority (IRDA)

ISSUE 98

OCT 2020

UMLand Launches Topaz Residenz, Section 2 at Seri Alam Township

FEARLESS: Johor Southern Tiger Series Set to Roar on Screen Page 12

Page 25

Accumulating Wealth Opportunities in the Bubbles (Part 2) Page 17

Drug Abuse Among School Students in Johor 2020: Where Did We Go Wrong?

Drugs test conducted in 280 secondary schools statewide shows 3 digits number of students were positive of drugs use - Image for illustration only

An ongoing battle to save a generation from succumbing to substance addiction

he nation, especially the state was sent into a shock when the State Education, Information, Heritage and Culture Committee chairman Mazlan Bujang disclosed that a total of 177 secondary school students were tested positive for drugs-use through the National Anti-Drugs Association (AADK)’s urine test that was conducted statewide at 280 secondary schools. With massive anti-drugs campaign that was running in Malaysia since the 1990s, the numbers have seen a rapid decline ever since. However, to know that substance abuse among students are still going on over the mark of 100 is a concerning issue not only among parents but also the society as the

children are the nation’s human capital. “These students usually display symptoms that we can detect. Even if the numbers are not high or too worrying, we should nevertheless be aware and concerned. If possible, we want zero cases. As educators, that is our hope,” Mazlan told reporters after attending the Mind Transformation Programme: Involvement of Parents and the Community to Address Drug and Substance Abuse as well as Social Problems, at the Tan Sri Mohamed Rahmat Complex. Previously in April 2020, Haji Azman Adnan, the Director of Johor Education Department in his speech on vape and drug abuse among school students in a seminar that was attended by 400 teachers, councillors and headmasters in Johor Bahru, Kulai and Pasir Gudang said, “As of 2019, AADK has tested 5,000 students for drugs and 148 students were found positive in the first stage. Based on that test, the education department

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has carried out various interventions to ensure that our children are no longer involved with these sick trends”. Citing Malaysia Education Blueprint 2013-2025 on Shift 9 where the department starts partnering with parents, community, and private sectors at scale, Azman wishes for schools to make use of the supporting entities like Parents and Teachers Association (PIBG) actively on this particular issue apart from the department’s strategic partners made up of government bodies like the State Department of Health and NGOs like International Women’s Peace Group Malaysia (IGWP). In response to AADK’s disclosure of such high numbers of students involved, Johor Police Chief, Datuk Ayob Khan Mydin Pitchay said the state’s police will start investigating and it will be geared more towards tracking down drug pushers to students. - by Norfy Shafeq TI

Monthly Drill with Cheah HT, General Manager of Holiday Inn Page 5

RM8.545 Million Allocated for Food Bank

total of 86,000 people have benefitted from the state government’s food bank programme under the Ihsan Johor economic stimulus package. RM8.545 million was allocated for the said programme which was carried out in three phases. According to State Unity, Trade and Consumer Affairs committee chairman Dr Chong Fat Full, the programme was initially carried out to provide food for those in the B40 category, especially recipients of e-kasih and aid from Welfare Department as well as asnaf categories (eligible zakat recipients). “However, because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the programme was expanded to reach out to more people who are in need of assistance including those who had lost their jobs and small-business owners who couldn’t operate during the MCO period, “he added. Dr Chong also said that to ensure the programme ran smoothly, the state government had turned district offices into collection and distribution centres for the food bank programme. TI

Land Tax Rebate in Johor till 2022

ood news await Johorians as Johor Menteri Besar, Datuk Ir. Haji Hasni Mohammad, has announced that the state will offer 15% land tax rebate for the year 2020, 10% rebate for the year 2021 and 5% for the year 2022. Hasni announced the matter in the closing speech of the Ihsan Johor Economic Stimulus Package 2020 negotiations at the Johor State Assembly (DUN) sitting. The Johor Land Administration is in the process of updating the payment system to ensure that this land tax rebate can be implemented properly and in an orderly manner. Please visit http://ptj.johor.gov. my for further details. - by Priya Manikam TI

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THE ISKANDARIAN

ISSUE 98 | OCT 2020

NEWS

KPJ Bandar Dato’ Onn Provides Influenza Prevention for the Frontliners SEND LETTERs or inquiries to facebook.com/theiskandarian editor@theiskandarian.com www.theiskandarian.com

Our Friends

As pandemic hits, the new hospital vaccinate media practitioners to help safeguard the nation

PJ Bandar Dato Onn Specialist Hospital (KPBDO) hosted a complimentary Influenza vaccination and health checkup session for 14 media practitioners in Johor as a form of appreciation to the media frontliners during the fight of COVID-19 pandemic. The media practitioners were from BERNAMA, RTM, Berita Harian, Harian Metro, Malaysia Nanban, The Iskandarian and Best FM. KPJBDO’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Noor Haslina Harun said in her opening speech that

it is important for the hospital to strengthen the relationship between the one year young institution with the Johor media before officiating the programme. “The service and sacrifice of the media acting as the frontliners during this COVID-19 pandemic is just as important as hospital personnel, policemen, soldiers and other government agencies by committing to keep the nation updated with the latest information on the pandemic situation. Therefore, we feel that this programme is an appropriate gesture of appreciation for the media,” said Noor Haslina. A tour around the 26th KPJ hospital in Malaysia and the 6th and latest to open in Johor since 19th February 2019,

KPDNHEP Introduces MicroFranchisee Entry Package to Encourage Entrepreneurship

Gleneagles MEDINI

“In The Arms Of One Who Cares”

he Ministry of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs (KPDNHEP)’s Deputy Minister, Dato’ Rosol Wahid has announced the current efforts by the ministry to help reduce the number of unemployment by introducing the Micro-Franchisee Entry Package to encourage entrepreneurship as another alternative to job seeking. Officiating CoolBlog’s latest series of tea beverages ‘SawadeeCool’ in their outlet at Angsana Mall Johor Bahru, Rosol Wahid said that the ministry has currently partnered with the nation’s second largest franchisor in Malaysia, CoolBlog as the first phase of the package execution in which the company would alleviate RM150,000 of the starting capital for their franchisee plan. “Starting a franchise business involves a lot of preparations like preparing the kiosks and these parts would be covered by our partnering companies like CoolBlog in this entry package,” he said after the officiation ceremony, adding that another ministry would be of help in terms of capital and funding. “KPDNHEP is in full support for the franchisor to mentor future franchisees by offering below RM1K start-up fees or a 10% - 20% discount to kickstart their businesses,” he further added. The ministry is currently looking for more partnerships with brands that have proven track record for the entry package scheme. During the enforcement of Movement Control Order (MCO), CoolBlog has reached 60% of their sales despite the restriction by turning to the e-commerce platform for order and delivery. The franchisor has met half of its target to open new outlets, focusing on the suburban areas this year with the latest opened in the East Coast region. “RM150,000 is our standard package which includes machine, renovation - all in, depending on the size of the venue and location itself. It is considered an affordable capital to start a franchise business,” said Chief Operating Officer of CoolBlog, Priscilla Leaw. - by Norfy Shafeq TI

Dato’ Rosol Wahid officiating the new CoolBlog line of beverages

was conducted by Operation Manager, Nor Arfah Arshad, right after the said health checkup and vaccination session. The hospital introduced its physiotherapy department’s facility that was designed by their in-house physiotherapists themselves, as well as the cardiac department which is complete with observatory machine along with CT Scan and MRI machines that is also available for the patients. Previously, KPJBDO had introduced their paediatrics’ department by organising a complimentary mass circumcision programme for children of age as a part of their corporate social responsibility (CSR) effort. KPJBDO encourages the culture of less waste by going paperless and cashless. Interested

Participating journalists getting their influenza vaccination injection administered personally by Dr Rosman Surie parties could book appointments or any business related to KPJ Hospitals through their smartphone application, ‘KPJ Connect’ that was launched since 2018. - by Norfy Shafeq TI

Johor Tourism Welcomes the First Networking Session with Kedah State

ohor State through the department of tourism with Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (MATTA) Johor chapter had organised a networking session with Kedah state delegation made up of Tourism Kedah, MATTA Kedah and Perlis Chapter. Kedah State Chairman of Tourism, Arts and Culture, Youth and Sports, Mohd Firdaus Ahmad officiated the networking event that was attended by 62 travel agencies from Kedah and Johor. MATTA Johor Chapter Chairman, Kenny Ngi Chin Soon in his welcoming speech mentioned the need for more efforts to help rejuvenate the tourism industry that has received the biggest impact from the ongoing pandemic, and travel agencies are among the most affected. As an inception of Kedah and Johor state tourism direct cooperation, Mohd Firdaus said he believes that the pandemic has made the nation realise the need to collaborate domestically to rejuvenate the tourism industry, as it is one of the main sectors that

contributes to the economy. “As international borders nationwide remains closed for now, it is the right move to promote local tourism by having direct engagement of key industry players through states’ tourism departments,” he added. Afzan Haji Azhari, Deputy Director of Tourism Johor, said among the initiatives that Tourism Johor has taken to support the industry is releasing the ‘Johor Tourism Safety Standard’ certification of COVID-19 Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) guidelines compliance with the cooperation of Ministry of Health (MOH), Fire and Rescue Department of Malaysia (Bomba), Malaysian Association of Hotels (MAH) and MyBHA (Malaysian Budget Hotels Association). First phase of the certification was done in August with participating hotels attending the guidelines briefing conducted by MOH and Bomba. The hotels would be audited first before receiving their certificate and list of hotels with the certification would be placed on Tourism Johor’s website for easy reference. - by Norfy Shafeq TI

Published by True Soul Media PLT [No.51-B, Jalan Impian Emas 5/1, Taman Impian Emas, 81300 Johor Bahru] Printed by Percetakan Osacar Sdn Bhd [No. 16, Jalan IDA 1a, Industrial Desa Aman, Taman Desa Aman, Kepong, 52200 Kuala Lumpur] Copyright of articles, contributions and photos which are published by The Iskandarian is the property of True Soul Media PLT. The Iskandarian does its best to ensure the authenticity and accuracy of its contents, the publisher cannot accept any responsibilities for errors, mistakes and inaccuracies. The publisher reserves the rights of this product and no part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or by any means without the permission of the publisher.

THE ISKANDARIAN

ISSUE 98 | OCT 2020

NEWS

SUKMA XX Johor 2020 set for April 2021

he Sukan Malaysia (SUKMA) XX Johor 2020 Supreme Committee has decided for the PARA SUKMA Games to be held in March 2021 while SUKMA XX to go on in April 2021. The matter was decided in the SUKMA XX Johor 2020 Supreme Committee meeting, which was chaired by the Minister of Youth and Sports, Datuk Seri Reezal Merican Naina Merican at the Dato’ Jaafar Muhammad Building, Kota Iskandar, Johor. “After analysing what was presented by the Johor SUKMA Secretariat, the committee unanimously agreed that for the first time, PARA SUKMA will be organised first, from 8th to 13th March 2021, followed by SUKMA XX Johor which will be held from 2nd to 10th April next year. “This is taking into consideration the Malaysian Higher School Certificate (STPM) examination which will take place from 1st to 9th March that will involve 171 athletes. Also present at the meeting were the Chairman of the Johor State Tourism, Youth and Sports Committee, Datuk

Onn Hafiz Ghazi along with the Johor State Youth and Sports Exco Members, Ministry of Youth & Sports Chief Secretary, Datuk M Noor Azman Taib, Director General of the National Sports Council (NSC), Datuk Ahmad Shapawi Ismail, Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM) General Secretary, Dato’ Nazifuddin Najib, Chief Executive Officer of the National Sports Institute (ISN), Ahmad Faedzal Md Ramli as well as Directors of the State Sports Council. SUKMA XX Johor 2020 will be held in three districts, namely Johor Bahru, Muar and Kota Tinggi. A total of 28 sporting events will take place in the Johor Bahru district while the Muar district will host canoeing, weightlifting and silambam. The Kota Tinggi district will be the venue for sailing and road cycling. Meanwhile, a total of RM467.9 million has been spent to complete world-class facilities as well as upgrading existing facilities. A total of RM325.9 million has been spent by the state government while also receiving an allocation from the federal government amounting to RM142 million.

Among the upgraded venues include Taman Daya Hockey Stadium, Arena Larkin Aquatic Center, Pasir Gudang Municipal Council Indoor Stadium, Taman Johor Jaya Multipurpose Hall for Wushu, Johor Cricket Council Academy in Mutiara Rini and Sireh Park and Iskandar Puteri for MTB cycling. - by The Iskandarian TI

Youth and Sports Minister, Datuk Seri Reezal Merican Naina Merican (second from right), along with Chairman of the Johor Tourism, Youth and Sports Committee, Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi (most left), Johor State Finance Officer, Dato’ Haji Abdul Rahim Nin posing with the official mascot for SUKMA XX Johor 2020, Jimi

Family Care Brand, BZU BZU Donates Disposable Children’s Medical Masks to the Ministry of Education BZU BZU provided over 100,000 masks to be distributed to schools nationwide

ZU BZU, a family care brand, will be extending a helping hand to the Ministry of Education Malaysia (MOE) in the fight against COVID-19 as schools fully reopen since 22nd July 2020. The brand will be supplying the ministry with over 100,000 masks for distribution valued at over RM150,000 to schools in underprivileged areas to encourage maskwearing amongst students in school. This partnership came directly through active efforts from Dato Dr Mah Hang Soon, Deputy of Education Minister who personally secured the donation from BZU BZU’s management team. Schools across the country reopened on 24th June which involved all national and international schools with exam-going students. The MOE is doing its best to ensure

Edmund Chin, Regional Sales Director for Bzu Bzu (on the left) with Dato Dr Mah Hang Soon, Deputy of Education Minister (on the right) the safety of the student while encouraging the students to practice social distancing and complying with the set guidelines. “We would like to extend our gratitude to BZU BZU for their contribution to keeping our students safe as they returned to schools. As we are adapting to the

‘new normal’, it is important for students to understand the importance of social responsibility while following Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) set in place by the Ministry of Education. Social distancing and proper sanitation guidelines are being implemented” said Dato Dr Mah. BZU BZU will be partnering up with the MOE to ensure an equal allocation to selected schools in underserved areas as medical-grade face masks are harder to come by in these communities. “We hope to encourage mask-wearing as an important precautionary measure to prevent the spread of the virus that causes the disease COVID-19. BZU BZU’s kids’ medical masks are of medical-grade quality, CE certified, SGS tested with BPE ≥ 99%, PFE ≥ 90%, fluid and splash resistant and suitable for sensitive skin. We are working together with the MOE to make sure that students from lower-income families will also have access to quality face masks,” said Raphael Jiang, Chief Executive

Officer of BZU BZU Global. Apart from the distribution of face masks, the MOE will also be looking at various other avenues to better safeguard the students through collaborative efforts with relevant organisations and companies. The MOE is taking precautionary measures to evaluate the guidelines while also urging all parties to be socially responsible, taking into consideration every step needed to improve the “new” school environment. Keeping in line with their brand ethos “Blissful protection every child deserves”, BZU BZU strives to ensure that their products are made of natural & safe ingredients and yet affordable for all families as they believe every child deserves the best. The brand will be rolling out its complete range of sulfate-free, paraben-free, alcohol-free, artificial toxins-free and dermatologisttested products to stores nationwide soon and hope to set a footprint in the region as a leading family care brand. - by The Iskandarian TI

Johor’s First Female as Officer in-Charge Police District (OCPD) With 39 years under her belt, ACP Rupeah was entrusted by Johor Police Chief, Datuk Ayob Khan Mydin Pitchay to carry out duties

ACP Mohd Taib (Left) and ACP Rupeah Abd Wahid (right) during the handing over ceremony witnessed by Johor police chief, Datuk Ayob Khan Mydin Pitchay at Johor Bahru North district police headquarter (image courtesy of PDRM)

ohor police has appointed its first ever female Officer in-Charge Police District (OCPD) in history. ACP Rupeah Abd Wahid has also

been of service as a police escort to Her Majesty Johor Permaisuri Raja Zarith Sofiah Almarhum Sultan Idris Shah. Rupeah, 57, from Batu Pahat, Johor would

head the Johor Bahru North district upon appointment. Johor police chief, Datuk Ayob Khan Mydin Pitchay in his statement said that he believes Rupeah would be capable in carrying out her duties with years of experience she has on hand. “Many directors of intelligence agencies are women and the advantage of these women is that they are diligent,” he said, citing women in high

positions in foreign intelligence agencies like the United States’ Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) after acting as the witness to the handing over of duties ceremony between ACP Mohd Taib Ahmad and ACP Rupeah Abd Wahid at the Johor Bahru Utara district police headquarters. Rupeah told the media after the ceremony that her focus as the new OCPD would be ensuring the safety among the Johor Bahru people. “At the same time, I will obey and be loyal to the Johor police chief and follow every instruction given,” said Rupeah, who has been serving with the Royal Malaysia Police for 39 years.

The appointment of ACP Rupeah is consistent with Johor police’s appointment of their first female deputy chief, Datuk Aishah Mohammad in 2015. Aishah has served the police force for over 40 years prior to her retirement in 2016. Meanwhile, the Johor Police Chief at the same event has announced that the Johor police force will investigate the claims made by the National Anti-Drug Agency (AADK) on the 177 secondary school students that were involved in drug abuse in the state. The investigation is geared towards tracking down the drug dealers that has supplied to the minors. - by Norfy Shafeq TI

THE ISKANDARIAN

ISSUE 98 | OCT 2020

NEWS

LEGOLAND Malaysia Resort Unveils Frontliner Tribute Murals and 3,000 Park Access Tickets

EGOLAND Malaysia Resort has unveiled five life-size LEGO Frontliner Tribute Murals made of 150,000 pieces of Lego bricks depicting the many faces of real life heroes that have been relentlessly working to keep the COVID-19 pandemic at bay. The brainchild of the resort’s employees alongside the Malaysian Adult Fans of Lego Bricks were completed within 9 full days in the span of a month, depicting portraits of frontliners such as the doctors, medical practitioners, government officials, policemen and army as well as various essential workers from delivery riders to cleaners and media personnel. Officiated by the Johor Menteri Besar, Datuk Ir. Hasni Mohammad, the unveiling event was also attended by Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture, Dato’ Sri Hajah Nancy Shukri, Minister of Health Malaysia Dato’ Sri Dr Adham Baba

along with Johor state’s Health and Environment Committee Chairman R. Vidyananthan, Johor Tourism, Youth and Sports Committee Chairman Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi, Johor Police Chief, Dato’ Ayob Khan bin Mydin Pitchay, LEGOLAND Malaysia Resort Chairman Stephanie Saw and LEGOLAND Malaysia Resort Divisional Director, C.S. Lim. The resort extended a total of 3,000 park access tickets as a well-deserved break to the representatives of five departments’ frontliners that include Johor State Government, Royal Malaysian Police Johor, Malaysian Armed Forces, Fire and Rescue Department Johor and Johor State Health Department. Exclusive deals for other frontliners nationwide is also available which includes 50% off day passes and hotel stay at LEGOLAND Hotel in the effort to support the local tourism with Malaysian Association of Hotels Johor Chapter (MAH-JC) namely ‘Play in LEGOLAND, Stay in Johor’ package.

Grab is Reaching Rural Cities in Malaysia Aiming to enable and empower communities around the nation to grow in the digital economy with GrabCar, GrabFood and GrabMart

rab is kicking off its round of expansion exercise to more rural cities and townships in the Southern and Northern regions of Malaysia. Announced at the Desamall@Mersing, Johor launch and officiated by Minister of Rural Development, Datuk Dr. Hj. Abd Latiff Ahmad, the expansion includes Mersing and Segamat in Johor, Cameron Highlands, Pantai Remis and Baling. The expansion is part of homegrown Grab’s ongoing journey to help create further opportunities for gig workers and businesses to grow, and strike a balance to sustain the industry. It is part of Grab’s efforts to ensure no one is left behind in the digital economy especially in rural communities where median incomes are 41% less than median incomes of the urban population according to the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM). Part of the plan includes making GrabCar available in Mersing and Segamat by end of September 2020 onwards followed by GrapPay-powered GrabFood and GrabMart services slated to launch in the fourth quarter of this year. “As a proponent of the digital economy, we are proud to bring our technology to these communities to provide Malaysians with more safe, reliable and affordable solutions. At the same time, we are creating more income opportunities across our wide ecosystem of services that includes transport, food and mart especially in the rural areas. With this expansion, we also look forward to working with local councils and partners to further support the economic activities in these areas, so they are empowered to thrive in the digital economy” said Ben Chin, Head of Outer Cities, Grab Malaysia. Grab has also extended their “Pakej Pikul Bersama” initiative to include new driver-partners on the platform by providing a one-off reimbursement up to RM120 for their PSV licenses and RM70 for initial PUSPAKOM vehicle inspections. The “Pakej Pikul Bersama” initiative is designed to help driver-partners get through the regulations process when it was first announced by the Ministry of Transport in 2019. - by Norfy Shafeq TI

Datuk Dr. Abd Latiff Ahmad, Minister of Rural Development, Tuan Puan HJH Alwiyah Haji Taib at the Mersing@Desamall Launch Event

More information on the Lego Frontliner Tribute Murals and the Play in LEGOLAND, Stay in Johor Package, visit www. legoland.com my or their social media pages. - by Norfy Shafeq TI

Making Merdeka and Malaysia Day Celebrations Meaningful

3 years of being officially independent, Malaysia has advanced to becoming a developing nation with a long stretch of achievements recognised worldwide that every citizen can take pride of. In the effort of making this Merdeka and Malaysia Day special and inclusive, Care United Johor Bahru (CUJB) shared the celebratory spirit with underprivileged families at Projek Perumahan Rakyat (PPR) Melana Indah in Taman Perling and separately at SJK (T) Ladang Tebrau through their food aid. A total of 200 families received the aid following strict SOP guidelines due to the Recovery Movement Control Order (RMCO) in place that involved the recipients, CUJB members and the public to practise social distancing and

avoiding crowds to ensure safety for all. The recipients at PPR were mainly impoverished residents making up the majority (37%) followed by single mothers and other categories. Meanwhile, the aid for the other 100 underprivileged families was given through their children at SJK (T) Ladang Tebrau. During the event, CUJB’s President, Datuk Florence Goh and Vice President, Melanie Cheong led the team of members in distributing Food Aid to the families, while the disabled recipients had their hampers delivered directly to their homes by CUJB members. RM11,000 was allocated for both the food aid, and each hamper given to the recipient was valued at RM55.00 each containing everyday essentials such as rice, vermicelli noodles, canned sardines, evaporated

Care United Johor Bahru President, Datuk Florence Goh handing out the RM50 food aid hamper milk, cooking oil and beverages. CUJB welcomes any contributions from organisations and the public to ensure the needy could be continuously assisted. - by Norfy Shafeq TI

MAH Johor Chapter Introduces The Iskandarian Newspaper Online in Hotel Rooms

he Malaysian Association of Hotels (MAH) Johor Chapter and The Iskandarian Newspaper have recently collaborated to bring local news to hotel guests in the comfort of their rooms. “The Iskandarian newspaper is our very own home-grown newspaper catered only to the Iskandarian region and with news content that matters to both corporate and leisure travelers on what’s going on in Johor. There is no better way to let them know about us than to have it in the rooms where they stay while visiting Johor and which will definitely help promote local news, places of interests, leisure events that is happening and also investment opportunities,” said Ivan Teo, Chairman of MAH Johor Chapter. Providing news online is the way forward, providing easy access via a QR code that guests can scan on their mobile phones upon check in.

“To roll out the collaboration, those who scan and download The Iskandarian online will be able to win over RM10,000 worth of prizes. Subscription is free and subscribers will be able to receive regular updates of news, happenings and goings-on in Johor and in particular, the Iskandar region which is the hub of business and activity in Johor,” said Edey Suresh, the Editor in Chief

of The Iskandarian. Founded since 2011, The Iskandarian aspires to be the voice of the Iskandarian community bringing you the latest in News, Live, Play, Work, Invest, Lifestyle, Properties and more. Meanwhile, MAH Johor Chapter has a total of 102 hotels throughout the state and with a total of 18,970 rooms, ranging from Boutique to 5-star hotels. TI

MAH Johor Chapter committee led by Chairman Ivan Teo (second from left) holding The Iskandarian digital distribution QR code alongside Editor in Chief, Edey Suresh to kick off the partnership

ISSUE 98 | OCT 2020

THE ISKANDARIAN

NEWS

MONTHL

DRILL

Cheah HT General Manager Holiday Inn Johor Bahru City Centre With over 25 years of experience in the hospitality industry, Cheah Hooi Theng’s career began in finance department but gradually shifted to the front-line after appreciating the value of dealing with people. Having graduated from the University of New South Wales, Australia with a bachelor’s degree, it did not occur to Cheah to see himself invested in the hospitality industry as a front-liner. From being the financial controller at the Sunway Hotel in his home state of Penang to travelling across to neighbouring countries like Indonesia and Philippines, and slowly embracing hospitality as his passion, Cheah returned to Malaysia to take the helm of a upcoming hotel set to fill up the Johor Bahru City Centre skyline – the Holiday Inn Johor Bahru City Centre.

You are the new kid on the block! Tell us more about Holiday Inn Johor Bahru City Centre. Holiday Inn Johor Bahru City Centre (Holiday Inn JBCC) is one of the brands under the InterContinental Hotel Group or IHG that will be officially unveiled in October 2020. Located right at the centre of Johor Bahru City Centre, on top of a retail mall – KOMTAR JBCC, and within close proximity to the Customs, Immigrations and Quarantine (CIQ) Complex, Holiday Inn JBCC is the newest attraction in town, not forgetting it is a well-established brand name. We are targeting two major groups, namely families and also Singaporeans, after the borders are open, as this brand is quite a favourite among the people of the Lion City looking for a staycation. What is the most important element in running a hotel in the city centre? Whenever you say hotel, the next few words that comes to mind would revolve around hospitality and service. An important element to take note is that this is a peopleoriented business. We must take care of everyone – Not only our guests, but also our colleagues too. Happy employees yield a higher rate of efficiency that will in turn personalise and accentuate the human touch rendered in everyday tasks. Located directly above KOMTAR JBCC, how do you see this relationship between retail and hospitality pan out? Oh, I think it will be a great synergetic and dynamic relationship having a hotel above a retail mall. Our guests will be able to enjoy the ease of accessing the city centre as well. Currently, we are in discussion with KOMTAR JBCC to create attractive packages for hotel guests to enjoy during their stay. How does Holiday Inn JBCC plan to act as a catalyst or collaborate with other stakeholders to boost the local economy? I believe that in the past, Johor Bahru or Johor as a whole has always been labelled as a transit town, especially for local and international tourists going back and forth from Kuala Lumpur (KL), Melaka or to Singapore. Therefore, in order to change this perception, Holiday Inn JBCC looks to

attract more people to stay longer in Johor Bahru and experience the local culture and flavours here. This is actually a personal passion of mine because whenever I go to a new place, I try my best to embrace the local experience and cuisine, and get to know more about the identity of the destination. I’m already making a list of local food spots!

What do in your free time? I am a coffee and food lover. As I mentioned earlier, local food is what hits the spot. Thus, I enjoy asking my colleagues or even strangers for suggestions of local hawkers or eateries so I can indulge in the flavours. TI

Hotels vs Airbnb? What is your take if Airbnbs are regulated? Haha (laughs) this is a tricky one! Generally, there are differences of opinion at the current stage. Interesting part of your question is “if Airbnbs are regulated”? Honestly, I do not see an issue if it was regulated. That would actually fix things and make people more at ease. Sure, there are groups who prefer the competitive prices as well as cosy setting, but to compare an apple with an orange is not fair. Hotels are staffed with trained personnel who are at the guests’ disposal 24/7. That is a significant difference but at the end of the day, and it is a matter of preference. COVID-19? What do you think we should do? Of course, as you can observe in the news and surroundings, this COVID-19 is a serious matter. The solution is definitely simple and to some very trivial – personal hygiene. Just wash hands, wear masks, take preventive and corrective measures, as well as follow the instructions of the authorities. We will get through this, eventually. On a personal note, how and why did you choose to venture into the hospitality industry? It was by accident so to say. I am from finance and accounting background, initially graduating from University of New South Wales in Commerce. I initially joined the finance department at Sunway Hotel in Penang, but slowly, I ventured further into the Front of House operations, and it rather grew on me. It was not really love at first sight, but I learnt to admire and appreciate the activities, operations and interactions when it comes to people-oriented jobs. That’s how it all began.

Cheah HT

06 06

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EL V RA Be

mesmerised at Batu- Batu Island, Johor

The Iskandarian | WAVES Lifestyle

M u s i c U p d at e s

editor’s note

OCT 2020 | Page 2

SuperM Unleashes New Single and Video, “Tiger Inside” By Universal Music Singapore

Priya Manikam waves.lifestyle@gmail.com

ove K-Pop? Check out SuperM’s new single and video, “Tiger Inside” where this Korean sensation shows off their cool moves, beat and vocals. Unfortunately, Sony Pictures had to postpone their release for the animation Connected that I was looking forward to. Instead, we bring you two book reviews which may be worth your while to check them out. Founded by Dato Lawrence Liew and Datin Nancy Liew, Marrybrown chain of restaurants had its humble beginnings at a small shoplot in Wong Ah Fook Street, Johor Bahru in 1981 to 20 outlets abroad with the latest in Sweden. Flip over the pages to discover Marrybrown’s new juicy S.O.S BBQ Menu that’s sure to tantalise your tastebuds. From ‘Jom Pusing Selangor’ dulu, we now turn to local luxury stay at our very own Maldives – Batu-Batu Island in Pulau Tengah, located in the Malaysian Johor Marine Park, about 20min by boat from Mersing, Johor. Read what Moe has to say about his wonderful vacation there and you may want to bookmark it as your next travel destination. As always, for those wishing to share their fashion collection, travel tales, or like us to review your restaurant/hotel for a staycation, drop me an e-mail at waves.lifestyle@gmail. com and be featured. For more news, do access www.theiskandarian.com and https:// waves-lifestyle.com/ The Iskandarian wishes all celebrants a Happy Mooncake Festival!

Priya

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uperM’s The Tiger Inside track is from the chart-topping K-pop supergroup’s first full-length album, Super One, released on 25th September. Like the big cat that it’s named for, “Tiger Inside” is kinetic, visceral and galvanising, exuding strength and confidence as the septet seamlessly trade off powerful vocals and traverse musical styles. Synths conjure up the grumbling noise of a tiger alongside powerful 808 bass with distortion, creating an Asian-themed track made for the dancefloor. “Bring it on,” SuperM urges, sending a message about overcoming hardships and challenges by bringing out the inner tiger (passion) hidden within us all. The accompanying music video features distinctive choreography, inspired by the movements of a tiger.

“Tiger Inside” is the follow-up to SuperM’s “100,” which Rolling Stone hailed as “three and a half minutes of frenetic, high-energy fun.” Praising the band’s “high-octane performance” of “100” on “Good Morning America,” Billboard said, “Videoing in directly from Seoul, the idols blasted through their performance, nailing energetic choreography in all-white outfits.” SuperM’s performance utilized the same cutting edge AR (Augmented Reality) technology that fueled their Beyond LIVE virtual show. Prior to the show, SuperM did an Instagram Live interview with host Ginger Zee on the @goodmorningamerica account – and set a record for the most live viewers on an IG Live in the show’s history. Forbes said, “’100’ is a shot of adrenaline…[SuperM] does a fantastic job of blending rapped verses into

pre-choruses and other parts of the verse performed by singers, making the entire song feel like one continuous hook.” Teen Vogue hailed the song as “…a bombastic celebration of SuperM’s electric, high-energy concept dialed up to a hundred.” E! observed, “[100] makes it clear these guys are not messing around. They’re coming for the crown.” The official video for “100” has amassed nearly 15 million views. SuperM brings together seven outstanding artists: SHINee’s Taemin, EXO’s Baekhyun and Kai, NCT 127’s Taeyong and Mark, and WayV’s Lucas and Ten. With the October 2019 release of The 1st Mini Album ‘SuperM’ EP, SuperM made history as the first Asian artist to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard 200. The EP also topped the Artist 100, Top Album Sales, Digital Album, World Album, Top Current Album, Internet Album and World Digital Song Sales charts. In early 2020, the Los Angeles Times observed, “‘The Avengers of K-pop’ comparisons come up often, but maybe instead think of the 1992 U.S. Olympic basketball ‘Dream Team,’ with seven-part harmonies and twohour sets of impeccable choreography.” Listen to “Tiger Inside” - https://lnk. to/SuperM_TI and watch their music video -https://www.youtube.com/ SuperM TI

Spotlight on Local Artists! First-ever JOOX Malaysia Top Music Awards (Mid-Year 2020)

he hottest and brightest Malaysian music stars continue to shine brighter t h a n e ve r a l o n g s i d e international artists as JOOX, Asia’s most dedicated streaming platform, proudly announced the winners of the first-ever 2020 JOOX Malaysia Top Music Awards (Mid-Year 2020)! With nearly 100,000 JOOX users casting their votes for their favourite songs and artists – amounting to a total of almost 1.5 million votes, the best of Malaysian pop took centre stage alongside global music sensations to get their much-deserved industry recognition. The new awardgiving event coincides with the High5JOOX campaign to celebrate the streaming platform’s 5th anniversary in the country. Malaysian music fans chose their local favourites across various genres from hip-hop to rock and pop ballads, putting YonnyBoii, Dato’ Sri Siti

By Waves Lifestyle Nurhaliza, Zynakal, Naim Daniel and Floor 88 in the “Top 5 Artist: Local” slots. Music lovers all over the country also chose their “Top 5 Hits: Local”, with Nabila Razali’s ‘Peluang Kedua,’ Naim Daniel and Man Keedal’s ‘Sembah,’ YonnyBoii’s ‘Biar,’ Sufian Suhaimi’s ‘Janji’ and Floor 88’s ‘Yang Benar’

emerging as Malaysia’s biggest tunes for the first half of 2020. Among these explosive winners, fans hand-picked songstress Dato’ Sri Siti Nurhaliza as the “Most Popular Artist: Local”, and Naim Daniel’s gripping and emotional ‘Sembah’ featuring Man Keedal as the country’s “Most Popular: Local”. TI

OCT 2020 | Page 3

The Iskandarian | WAVES Lifestyle

B o O K R EV I EW

Books…Poems… Little Stickman Ushers Readers on a Journey of Finding Self-Love and Healing Through Poetry ‘by the shoreline: for the soul that craves the peace within’ released

ffering words of inspiration through poetic verses and lines, author little stickman releases her poetry book titled “by the shoreline: for the soul that craves the peace within” (published by Partridge Singapore). This collection of heartfelt poems are written throughout the author’s experiences, observations, stories and heartbreaks. Here, readers witness her story of survival told in rhythm and rhyme. Each poem reflects the musings and wanderings of a soul that observes a soul that numbs and a soul that loves. Each poem is inspired by real life events and struggles faced by teens, youth and young adults at this time such as social relationships, self-esteem and courage. The book allows targeted readers to immerse into the meanings behind the poems and, in the end, feel a sense of companionship. “As globalisation persists to proceed, many young people may find it a difficult time to catch up while balancing a quality work-life balance. From here, we can say that people tend to face problems alone,” the author says. “This book allows readers to take a step back and pace themselves in this challenging time and let them take time to rediscover themselves”, she adds.

A snippet from the poem “curtains at sunrise” reads: The smell of fresh air has rose The welcoming of new beginnings Driving my inner veins insane The tingling of warmth Trickle happily Causing my whole soul Experiencing a vent of transform “by the shoreline: for the soul that craves the peace within” By little stickman Softcover | 5.5 x 8.5in | 80 pages | ISBN 9781543757071 E-Book | 80 pages | ISBN 9781543757088 Available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble A soul who craves peace within, little stickman writes what she feels. She writes what she hears and experiences. As she goes through relapses, challenges and sweet moments that inspire her, she immediately typed them down in poems – making each of them genuine. TI

Walking through Emotional Thought Process with Sarifah’s ‘A Party To Remember’

t 6, my niece was eager when she saw the illustration of a birthday party scene on Sarifah’s ‘A Party To Remember’ book, where there are friends, cakes, gifts and balloons. She got even more excited to have me read it when she leafed through the 24 pages of the book and saw

every page of words were paired with even more illustrations. The story about a meaningful party from the view of a child, who has less, opened a new world to her that day. Characters in the story were vivid and she understood well about the attitude unkind and whom she should follow. I was expecting confusion but the story had churned the complex emotions to the simplest for children to evoke empathy. A discussion somehow took place later with her 8 year old cousin who took over my job of reading the book. While they decided who were the bad guys and good thanks to an adult’s intervention, they mellowed to the idea of forgiveness. When they reached the end of the story, they start hugging and vowing to stay kind to each other. Witnessing this tender moment that shall become their solid fundamentals growing up, I feel the lessons learnt from this book should be shared to every household with small children. Sarifah’s ‘A Party To Remember’ is an easy read published by Partridge Singapore, and is made available at Amazon and Barnes & Nobles. - by Norfy Shafeq TI

Saving our Children (Part 2) Recognising the silent threat and unspoken danger Not all crimes against children appear to be aggressive at the beginning. Take paedophiles for instance – instead of being verbally aggressive, they stalk their victims and gather information about them first. Paedophiles then communicate with their victims in a charming and persuasive way. It is essential to educate our children to notice intention and silent threat. Expose them to certain words that may look good on the surface, but their body would feel weak or even painful when mentioning it. Teach them to notice repetitive words that are spoken to them. Build their sense of alertness towards words and intention. Information protection Our children live in the era of the internet. Discuss with them about the information they share on the internet. Give them guidelines about what they can share and what they can’t. Personal information such as photos, home address, daily schedules, and what they are wearing shouldn’t be part of the conversation between them and others. Our children need to know that they have the right to protect their information especially their photos, and that it should not be shared without their consent or their parents’ consent. Children’s feelings and experience matters Emotions are one of children’s most powerful innate intelligence. How much do we trust our children when they share their experiences and feelings? Do we hear them, or we avoid them? Most parents may not take their children’s feelings seriously. Whenever children experience threat whether physical or emotional, they either get into a rage or they hide their emotions. Hiding their feelings can be damaging to their psychology and selfesteem. Therefore, it’s important to hear what they are saying emotionally. Teach them martial arts and survival skills It is beneficial for children to be engaged in martial arts as it would help them build their strength at an early age. Teach them survival skills as well because practical and skilful knowledge can help our children adapt in this changing world. TI

Rose Osman is a Certified Human Design Professional. She’s a guide for Living Your Design Workshop and coaches others on self healing for anxiety via E-courses and group workshops yourpersonalmotivator BucketOfRoses www.roselifecoach.com Discover your True Self, Inner Power, Potentials and Purpose with Human Design. Visit Facebook Page : Human Design Malaysia for more info.

OCT 2020 | Page 4

The Iskandarian | WAVES Lifestyle

travel

Take your next island vacation at Batu-Batu Island, Pulau Tengah You don’t need to leave Malaysia to experience a world class island getaway By Moazan Emran waves.lifestyle@gmail.com

discover are rainbow fishes, clown fishes or stingrays. You might be lucky enough

One of the many beaches and chalet’s overlooking the ocean

veryone dreams on going to the Maldives, Bora-Bora, Bali, or Mexico for their beautiful beach getaways. But did you know that people from around the world come all the way to Malaysia for world class islands and resorts? More specifically Batu-Batu, an Eco Island Resort located right here off the coast of Johor on Pulau Tengah, Mersing a 15-minute boat ride from the mainland. Batu-Batu is a private island resort that thrives between lush greenery and rocky outcrops. The rocky outcrop is the reason for the name Batu-Batu; meaning rocks or stones. The resort boasts a number of secluded white sandy beaches accompanied by clear blue water, perfect for snorkelling or diving. The resort itself was built by a local carpentry team to emulate the style of a traditional “Kampung”, made to blend into the environment. It has 22 chalets with a variety of beautiful views with some of them overlooking the sea where you can view the sunrise and ocean breeze. Batu-Batu is friendly for families of all ages as they have a variety of activities for people of all ages. Those include Diving, Snorkelling, Paddle Boarding, Kayaking, Hiking, Star Gazing and beach activities. During a snorkelling session you might be lucky to see all kinds of sea creatures, some of the ones you might

of the sea. Their desserts are excellent with a lot of home-made breads, mousses and ice-creams and sorbets. My personal favourites are the Teh-Tarik ice cream and Dragon Fruit Sorbet! On some nights, if you’re lucky, you’ll be able to see the Milky Way at night where you can just lay on the jetty and look up. Perfect for a romantic date if you’ve brought your significant other to the island! Speaking of activities, Batu-Batu being an Eco friendly resort focuses a lot on conservation through their partnership with Tengah Island Conservation (TIC). Their efforts have gotten them a number of awards over the years, most recently the silver award in “Best at Wildlife & Nature Conservation” category for Malaysian island resort and its home-grown biodiversity management initiatives. TIC employs four full-time conservation

Infinity Pool where you can sit back and relax with some drinks to even see reef sharks. If you still need something more for kids to do, the island comes with a playroom fitted with DVDs, books and some toys. The restaurant also screens shows at night for the kids to enjoy watching. Speaking of the restaurant, it’s consulted by Audra Morrice, a culinary consultant who is also a judge on MasterChef Asia. The meals are a major highlight at Batu-Batu with a daily changing menu board where you can choose from a selection of starters, mains, and desserts. They feature high quality ingredients made for both Malaysian and Western palates. The restaurant is a spacious pavilion with 270-degree view

Aerial view of the jetty and snorkelling area scientists to help with the research, rehabilitation and regeneration of the environment around Pulau Tengah. To date, TIC has released over 17,500 critically endangered sea turtle hatchlings, patrols the 21,000 acres daily to prevent poaching, removed over 18 tonnes of marine debris as well as mapping and surveying over 1,000,000 m2 of coral reef. Room rates start at about RM1000 per room per night. Meals, drinks and boat transfers are on a separate charge. You can get in touch with them at their official website www.batubatu.com.my or one of the many online booking websites available. TI

You get a perfect view of the ocean with a sunrise

The Iskandarian ISSUE 98 | OCT 2020 Advertisement

THE ISKANDARIAN

ISSUE 98 | OCT 2020

NEWS

FEARLESS: Johor Southern Tiger Series Set to Roar on Screen Premium docuseries about the six-time champion of Malaysian Super League – Johor Darul Ta’zim FC success story

“

FEARLESS: Rise of the Johor Southern Tigers”, a five-part documentary series featuring the Southeast Asian football team, Johor Darul Ta’zim FC (JDT FC) will be showcasing the establishment of JDT FC’s worldclass infrastructure; from its top training facilities and the stunning new Sultan Ibrahim Stadium, to their progressive youth academy programme, that helps next generation of footballers whilst globalising Johoreans and the

Malaysian society. Owner of JDT FC and Crown Prince of Johor, HRH Major General Tunku Ismail Ibni Sultan Ibrahim comments, “Some ridiculed our dreams but this exclusive, behindthe-scenes series shows what the Johor football project – Johor Darul Ta’zim FC is really all about and how we have become a force to be reckoned with. “FEARLESS features neverbefore-seen footages of how the Southern Tigers have become an empire, the struggles and success, how the club is managed away from the public eyes and the drive behind our endless pursuit for success on and off the pitch,” he added. Filmed during the 2019/20 season, the documentary

highlights their passionate superfans – the ‘Boys of Straits’, the boardroom politics and the footballers’ struggles both on and off the pitch, and how the team built its legacy to stake an enduring claim on the world of football. The series is co-directed by Leon Tan and Tony Pietra Arjuna and produced by the Kuala Lumpur-based, Supernova Media and will have 22-minutes duration per episode, narrated and subtitled in English. 108 Media, a Global IP investment, production and licensing firm Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Abhi Rastogi said, “We are immensely impressed with the scale of FEARLESS’s production values, its inspiration and narrative

Crown Prince of Johor, HRH Major General Tunku Ismail Ibni Sultan Ibrahim, owner of JDT FC value surrounding the sport and its ability to unite an entire region. 108 Media is excited to bring this series to audiences around the world and showcase the electric characters within JDT FC and Asian

“Hello. Cannot. Kam” – A Laugh-line During This Trying Times! extremely gracious and agreed to an interview with us: Q: What prompted you to start stand-up comedy? A: At that point of time, I needed a job man! It was actually by chance because initially I wanted to be an actress; I was invited by Kumar to work with him at Haw Par Villa in Singapore and it seemed that I have a knack for playing funny characters! Eventually, I auditioned at Boom Boom Room and they found me to be very funny, so they offered me a job as a comedian. Q: From where do you draw inspirations?

nitially incepted by the amazingly witty #GSCAdmin team as a valiant effort in normalising the new norms of post-MCO and posed itself as a snarky reminder for all cinema-goers to adhere to SOPs — “Hello. Cannot.” with the addition of Joanne “Kam” has transcended into a comedy show ladened with risqué content and relatable localised parodies. “Hello. Cannot. Kam.” was spearheaded by Malaysia’s Queen of Comedy, Joanne Kam Poh Poh and King of Parody, Steven Bones. The sophisticated Jin Gastrobar in Aurum Theatre was filled with guffaws that night as the stellar duo delivered their comical antics and shenanigans that tickled our funny bone (some say their third leg too)! Kam is notoriously known for her distinct style of acid tongue humour and kinky anecdotes which have earned her the title of Kuala Lumpur’s risqué mistress. Her allure as a woman comedian is further accentuated by her glamorous divaesque fashion sense. Aside from dominating the comedy scene in Malaysia with her cabaret comedy and constantly selling out her shows, she is also a versatile woman of many talents. Steven Bones too is a man of many talents — vocalist, entertainer, voiceover artist, the man with a 1000 voice (Malaysia’s Michael Winslow) and, the purveyor of gut-busting parodies. His Youtube channel, “Steven Bones Everything” is a treasure trove filled with comical spoofs augmented with localised contents. Despite her tight schedule and her non-existent wardrobe woes (looking glam as always), Kam was

A: When we started comedy back in Singapore, jokes on Internet was not a thing like nowadays. We had to scavenge through seriously tasteless joke books (father-in-law jokes, uncle jokes and recently trending, dad jokes) from volume 1 to 10 and turn them into something personal yet relatable for the audience. As the comedy scene starts to revolutionise here in KL, I started writing my own jokes based on my life experiences because I was not going to lose out! Q: Who are the iconic figures that inspire you? A: Whoopie Goldberg, Bette Midler, Wanda Sykes, and Margaret Cho. Q: What do you think of the comedy scene here in Malaysia? A: It’s definitely growing, and we certainly have the most comedy performances here in Malaysia as opposed to the whole of Asia. We have all these up and coming open mikers and OGs like Harith, Douglas, and me among many others. Though there are definitely challenges in certain regions but mostly, it’s great! For instance, Penang is an amazing crowd and Kuching is hungry for humour! Q: To all the aspiring comedians in Malaysia, do you have any advice for them? A: Don’t do comedy guys, just work at GSC! All jokes aside, if you’re keen, have passion for comedy and you think you’re funny, go to the comedy club and watch the open mikers. Be involved in the scene, get to know your audience, put in the effort, and do open mikes. If you want your foot in comedy, you pay your dues. Comedy club is just like the gym, it’s where you flex your comedy muscle! - by Izzbil TI

football.” From their international offices in North America, Asia and Europe, 108 Media have already begun sales on the docuseries. - by Norfy Shafeq TI

Virtual Run to Provide Education Supplies for Underprivileged Single Mothers’ Children

egency Specialist Hospital (Regency) and its sister hospital, Mahkota Medical Centre (Mahkota) is inviting Malaysian of all ages to participate in the BERSAMA VIRTUAL CHARITY RUN 2020. The registration is now open till 10th October 2020 or till 2,500 slots are fully subscribed. All proceeds raised will go exclusively towards the provision of educational supplies to benefit underprivileged single mothers’ children. Bersama Virtual Charity Run 2020 rallies community support for a worthy cause to help the children of single mothers to do well at school. The hospitals are aiming to raise RM70,000. The funds raised is for the provision of a good quality back-support schoolbag, a sturdy pair of school shoes and a full-set of new school uniform in preparation for a new school year. Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, life has been more challenging for the underprivileged society – especially for financially unstable single mothers who are unable to afford education supplies for their children, apart from basic sustenance. “The inaugural Bersama Virtual Charity Run 2020 is a healthy and safe way to unite the community virtually while furthering a good cause. I fully support and urge the community to register and participate in the run. Each of us can make a positive difference if we commit ourselves to do it. Together, let’s build a brighter and healthier society,” said Serena Yong, Chief Executive Officer of Regency Specialist Hospital. “Through social assistance, we hope to ease the financial burden of single mothers while at the same time empowering them to rebuild their lives,” said Stanley Lam, Chief Executive Officer of Mahkota Medical Centre. There is no age limit to participate in the Bersama Virtual Charity Run 2020. The available running categories are 5KM, 10KM, 42KM and 227KM. Each participant may register for either one of the option or a combination of the four. The participation fees are RM35 per category. Upon successful registration and payment, participants may start to run from 16th September 2020 till 30th October 2020 in any location and pace of choice provided that it is within the stipulated timeframe. Any light exercises such as walking steps, going up and down stairs are also accepted. Participants may upload their running records at https://hmi.com.sg/bersamavcr/login/ and participants who successfully completed the run with verified records will receive an exclusive runner-kit through post or to be collected at the respective hospital which consists of a medal and a bandana. by The Iskandarian TI

THE ISKANDARIAN

ISSUE 98 | OCT 2020

LIVE

Greater Father Involvement in Infant Parenting is Beneficial for Paternal Mental Health By Dr Olajide N. Bamishigbin Psychology Department, California State University, Long Beach, USA obamishigbin@gmail.com

athers who are more involved in the parenting of an infant are less likely to experience depressive symptoms during the first year of parenthood. Time spent with the infant, parenting self-efficacy and material support predicts depressive symptoms, and parenting self-efficacy predicts risk of clinical depression. These results have important implications fo r d e ve l o p m e nt o f interventions to assist fathers in parenting and improve paternal mental health, as well and for the implementation of policies like paid paternal leave. A father’s involvement in the parenting of an infant is associated to a lower risk of experiencing paternal depressive symptoms during the first year of the child’s life, according to a study published in the open-access journal Frontiers in Psychiatry.

The investigators in the larger study conducted home interviews with 881 low-income ethnically and racially diverse fathers from 5 different sites in the US, one month after the birth of a child and controlling for social and demographic variables, they examined the three parenting indicators: father time spent with the infant, parenting self-efficacy and material support for the infant. They also assessed paternal depressive symptoms at regular intervals (1, 6 and 12 months after birth) using the Edinburgh Postpartum Depression Scale. The authors found that all three indicators – greater amount of time fathers spent with their new born, parenting selfefficacy and ability to provide material support, predicted lower rates of depressive symptoms in the fathers during the following year. The authors

also found that only parenting self-efficacy was associated to a higher risk of clinical depression, with the percentage of fathers with symptoms indicating clinical depression being 10% after 1 month, 15% after 6 months and 12% after 12 months. “We found that fathers who were more involved with their infants shortly after their birth were less likely to be depressed a year later,” says Dr Olajide N. Bamishigbin Jr., Assistant Professor of Psychology at California State University, Long Beach, USA, and first author of the paper. “In our paper, we suggest a few reasons that greater father involvement in parenting would lead to less depression in fathers. For example, fathers who are more involved during infancy may feel more competent as parents and be more satisfied in their role as parents over time,

and this could contribute to lower depressive symptoms.” The present study is one of the first to focus on a larger community sample of low-income fathers from diverse racial/ethnic backgrounds and is paving the way for more research into specifically paternal well-being after the birth of a child. “Family researchers are recognising the more vital roles fathers play in the lives of their children and the functioning of the entire family unit,” said Bamishigbin. The findings of this study have important implications for future research on the contributors to fathers’ involvement, the effects of early involvement, the link between parental self-efficacy and depression and the relationship between paternal and maternal depression. The authors emphasise that

a deeper understanding of these and related variables might be helpful in designing interventions for expecting fathers and shaping public policies. “In our study, greater early involvement was related to less depression later on. This is very important because, it suggests that, if fathers are involved with their

of the entire family unit, may fare better,” said Bamishigbin. “This is why we suggest that paid paternal leave policies which can allow fathers the opportunity to be more involved with their kids and gain confidence as a parent early on in their lives, without having to worry about their economic security.” **Original research may be found via https://www.frontiersin. org/articles/10.3389/ fpsyt.2020.578688/abstract TI

infants early and often, their m e n t a l health, and the health

Luidia sp. – The Many-Armed Sea Star

his sea star goes beyond the usual expectations and can have between 5 to 9 arms as we usually spot them on the seagrass meadows of Mukim Tanjung Kupang with 6 or 8 arms. They seem to be seasonal creatures and are not always there. But when they appear, it’s a bevy of limbs!

The species has not yet been evaluated under the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) Red List of Threatened species and is deemed quite common across the Indo-Pacific, usually living on sandy substrates or coral rubble, and in seagrass

meadows. While most sea stars usually have feet with tiny suckers on them, Luidia sea stars’ feet are pointy. They do not evert their stomachs to feed like other sea stars, but instead swallow their prey whole. They are quite a big species, and carnivorous – they eat crustaceans, molluscs and other sea stars buried in the sand. They reproduce by regrowth from detached limbs, but in spite of their size and fierce appearance, their arms can break off when disturbed or stressed. These creatures can move quite quickly across the seabed, but do get stranded at the lowest tides. They usually bury themselves in the sand to await

the rising tide, but can also be spotted staying cool in the shallows. Kelab Alami conducts seagrass habitat walks in the seagrass meadows at the lowest tides; if you are lucky, you might be able to spot this species. Log

on to kelabalami.weebly.com for more information. TI

Serina Rahman Serina Rahman is the co-founder of Kelab Alami and a Visiting Fellow at the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute, Singapore. She is also a winner of the Iskandar Malaysia Social Hero Awards (IMSHA)

ISSUE 98 | OCT 2020

THE ISKANDARIAN

FEATURE

Putting the Buffer in Between Urban Development and Natural Heritage Forest City published its ecological development action plan and launched Forest City Eco Museum Phase 1 Exhibition Hall sedimentation, shoreline, air quality and noise control during the construction. All contractors are enforced to comply with the management plan accordingly and the environmental management budget will be accounted into project cost, providing financial assurance for sustainable development. Forest City Environmental Measures Urban Operations

As an important supporting facility of the city, the Eco Museum will serve as a knowledge exchange platform for the residents, local community and other environmental volunteers

020 has been a year of transformation for Forest City. From construction development, urban operation and management, to city cultural formation, Forest City is making its way to become a prime model of future cities with industrial integration and great livability. As a city operator, Forest City recently published the Forest City Ecological Development Action Plan in lieu with the launch of their Eco Museum Phase 1 Exhibition Hall. The plan includes the mission of Forest City ecological development, and it clearly defines the goals and targets of eco city development, operation and management from the start of project development in 2014 towards the future. Forest City will carry out green infrastructure development as a foundation, leveraging on high-tech industries to enhance urban economic development, and eventually become a green and vibrant city with diversified industries and cultures. Forest City Ecological Development Action Plan encompasses three phases that were executed from 2014 until 2023 and beyond, right from development to integration and setting up futuristic urban development plans.

as reclamation and further invested over RM20 million to set up a double-layer sand prevention net during the land reclamation process to minimise the environmental impact. Since 2014, Forest City has been continuously cooperating with professional environmental consultant AES, hydrological consultant DHI, Universiti Putra Malaysia and other research institutions to monitor the surrounding ecology, hydrology, seagrass, and improve the surrounding marine ecosystem. Forest City uses satellite remote sensing technology to monitor the mangrove’s conditions and a special mangrove protection task force was formed in 2017 which has effectively stopped 5 illegal logging cases as of end of 2019. The combination of satellite remote sensing and ground field patrol and inspections by the taskforce has ensured the mangroves to be well-conserved with care. In February 2020, the Forest City Construction Environmental Management Plan was implemented, with detailed management measures like monitoring water quality, sediment quality, ecological,

As an advocate of Sponge City, Forest City strives to build a low-impact development rainwater system, which absorbs, stores, seeps, and purifies water when it rains, and “releases” the stored water when needed. In practice, large areas of green space and permeable materials reduce rainwater runoff and collect and stores rainwater in artificial lakes for irrigation, and effectively utilises rainwater resources to reduce environmental impact. At the same time, all sewage from Forest City is collected for centralised treatment. After an advanced ecological sewage treatment system and a wetland treatment, the effluent water quality is able to meet CLASS II B standard, higher than the Malaysia discharge standard. The effluent will then be used for irrigation of roof gardens, vertical greenery, outdoor landscapes, as well as public toilets flushing, etc. Wastewater recycling has significant environmental and economic benefits. Rubbish classification and recycling has been widely adopted by the municipal and property management teams. Since 2017, Forest City has deployed hundreds of rubbish classification and recycling devices all over the island. Forest City’s Industrial Development Forest City has already laid a solid foundation of the green industry in its initiation, with the launch of leading IBS plant, golf resort and some other related industries while also trying to promote the integration of industry, education and research, working with scientific research institutions in the field of

Forest City Green Culture Formation The launch of Forest City Eco Museum is yet another milestone in this process. As an important supporting facility of the city, the Eco Museum will serve as a knowledge exchange platform for the residents, local community and other environmental volunteers. The completion of Phase 1 and upcoming Phase 2 and 3 of the Eco Museum shows that it will surely become a gathering point for public cultural exchanges, providing support for both hardware and heart-ware to promote the integration of multi-cultural integration

A special mangrove protection taskforce was formed in 2017, and it has effectively encountered 5 illegal logging cases and put it to an end

and CSR. “Love Nature, Love Forest City”—“Go Green” project was launched in 2019, and has spearheaded multiple environmental activities to-date. “Go Green” is an iconic programme among Forest City’s residents, the local community, NGOs, and its surrounding school premises on green initiatives garnering support from various end of volunteers to participate and explore the balance between urban development and natural heritage. Forest City’s green movement is widely recognised by the industry

Phase 1 (2014 to 2019): Urban green ecosystem development, applying environmental concepts throughout the urban planning, development, construction, and city operations.

Forest City’s green movement in phase 1 has been widely recognised by the public and the society and since 2016, Forest City has won more than 10 international and national environmental awards:

Forest City Environmental Measures in Construction and Development Forest City has a strong belief in sustainable development and always finds the balance in between urban construction and the natural environment – then implementing the green development plan of the city step by step. Before the start of the project, Forest City has generated a comprehensive environmental impact assessment report for large-scale engineering projects such

green development and environmental protection. A long-term cooperative relationship with a number of local universities and institutions such as UPM, AES, and UMT has been established since then.

2016

An advanced ecological sewage treatment system enables Class II B effluent water to be recycle and reuse

1. 5th May Forest City won the Merit Award for Landscape Analysis and Planning. As the first city adopting vertical greening, Forest City is the only real estate project in Malaysia that has won international recognition by virtue of its unique environment protection and architectural concept. 2. 5th August Forest City Sales

ISSUE 98 | OCT 2020

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Gallery won the gold level pre-certification under LEED-CS that has the most advanced and pragmatic scoring system in green building certification – considered to be the most complete and influential in the evaluation of green buildings and building sustainability. 3. 17th October Forest City won the Global Human Settlements Award on Planning and Design. Subordinated to SCAHSA (Sustainable Cities and Human Settlements Award) known as “the Oscar Award in Human Settlements”, it received strong support and high recognition from UN organisations such as UNEP (United Nations Environment Programme).

In the city culture building, Forest City will continue to promote environmental protection and multi-cultural integration. The “GO GREEN” project initiated by the residents and employees will reach out to the audience beyond Forest City and inculcate the environmental mindset in a wider community. Phase 3 (2023 and beyond): Building a harmonised urban ecosystem with the co-existence of city development and natural heritage

2017 1. 31st October Forest City won the Sustainable Cities and Human Settlements Award (SCAHSA) again, clinched the title of Global Model of Green Building Industrial Park (IBS Park). 2. 24th November Forest City was awarded 2017’s Best Sustainable Development (South Malaysia). Known as the “Oscar Awards” in Malaysia’s real estate industry, the award granted in Best Sustainable Development aims at commending the real estate projects which showcases environment-friendly elements in its planning, design and construction processes, and encourages environmental sustainability as a way of life. 2018 1. 18th September Forest City championed the Star Property Award, named as the Most Iconic International City Planner & Sustainable Smart City

The combination of satellite remote sensing and ground field patrol and inspections by the taskforce ensures the mangroves to be well taken care and safeguarded

(IBS), and committed in Green & Smart construction, creating over hundreds local job positions. 2. 6th September Global Green Smart City, being the fourth time for Forest City to receive the international award and is the only Malaysian project to receive this award in 2019. 3. 29th November Forest City won the 2019 Asian Townscape Jury’s Award and Asian Townscape Design Award - Innovative Design Award. Forest City’s “Feather of the Sea” International Business Complex won these 2 awards by virtue of its comprehensive planning and application of a smart city as well as protection measures for the ecological environment.

Love Nature, Love Forest City”—“Go Green” project was launched in 2019, and it has spearheaded multiple environmental activities to-date. “Go Green” has now become an iconic programme of Forest City connecting the residents, local community, NGOs, and surrounding school premises on green initiatives

Developer. 2. 22nd November Forest City Island 1 and Shattuck-St. Mary’s Forest City International School Multi Use Centre received GreenRE Sustainable Design Award 2018 Gold Certification respectively. GreenRE is one of Malaysia’s most influential assessment and certification institutions for green buildings. The award for the Sustainable Design Gold Certification is a recognition of the green development of Forest City by Malaysia’s industry. 2019 1. 15th March Forest City won ASEAN Property Award for Best Sustainable Green Development. Forest City has a leading industrialised building system

FEATURE

incentives, focusing on the development of e-commerce centres, high-tech industries and green and smart industries. In terms of urban development and operation, a 4km eco corridor, with multiple interesting hot spots such as the green plant maze, ecological base, seagrass conservation area, a wedding square, tree house Café, and an open-air cinema will be built along the way to create an immersive eco experience. The eco corridor will form one of the main components of the Forest City, Open Eco Museum phase 2. Completed eco projects will become a popular ecotourism place in Johor Bahru, Malaysia and will further develop multiple themed ecotourism routes, such as the golf resort route, ecological health route, environmental education and experience route to attract tourists locally and from all over the world and elevate the local tourism industry. Forest City envisions itself as a centre for eco-tourism cultural exchange, environmental education, health care and leisure. In addition, the phase 2 exhibition hall of Forest City Eco Museum will leverage high-technology like VR immersive experience, LIVE recording of seahorse and seagrass conservation to provide visitors with a new natural ecosystem experience while also serving as an environmental education hub and a communication platform for the local community and the environmentalists.

As a prime model of future cities, Forest City will continue to create the buffer point in between urban development and natural heritage, hoping to create a better society and will become a perfect “sponge city” to better manage the rain water and achieve zero discharge of sewage via the robust water recycling system. I ndustrial development-wise,

2019 Global Green Smart City

under the guidance of the ecological development plan, Forest City will continue to develop industries of Tourism & MICE, Healthcare, Education & Training, Regional Headquarters and Nearshore Finance to achieve industry-city integration, industryeducation-research integration and a coordinated order of city functions. Putting people first, Forest City aims to establish and enrich the green and diversified city culture, and to create a future city with a harmonious coexistence of city and nature. - by The Iskandarian TI

Phase 2 (2020-2023): To gradually achieve the goal of industry-city integration and empower Forest City development with leading industries In order to realise the integrated development of industry and city, Forest City takes “Green” and “Smart” as the key focuses in phase 2 ecological development. It is committed to developing Industrialisation 4.0 and bringing in hightech industries like robotics to empower the green development, making Forest City truly a prime model of future cities that is livable with industrial integration. According to the plan of “IndustryCity Integration” in phase 2, Forest City will work on infrastructure development, supporting facilities and government

In phase 1, Forest City has already laid a solid foundation of the green industry, with the launch of IBS plant

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ISSUE 98 | OCT 2020

WORK

Would a Carefully Crafted Force Majeure Clause Protect Employers?

hen the COVID-19 virus forced the whole nation to go under lockdown, employers and businesses knew they will not have any income while overhead costs persist. Many quickly searched for remedial measures and one of the most popular question asked was, ‘Can the Company terminate employment by relying on force majeure clause?’ This article shall discuss on the application of such clauses and whether companies now should take a proactive action to include it in its current and future contracts. Force majeure can generally be defined as the inability to perform a contract due to an unforeseeable event at the fault of neither contracting parties. As it is not enunciated in any Malaysian statute, it cannot be automatically imposed or implied in any situation. Instead, the most important rule of Force Majeure is that it must be explicitly included in an individual’s contract

and be wide enough to cover the current crisis in order to enable it to be applicable. The Courts will not amend, include or imply force majeure clause into a particular contract. There is an absence of written guidelines in drafting and applying the clause. It is therefore, up to the parties on how the clause is to be drafted as the final product shall be the governing terms that will dictate the usage of the clause. Some crucial elements required to be included are: I. Whether the force majeure clause applies only in the event a contract is delayed, temporarily or entirely unable to be performed? II. Will force majeure allow the contract to be completely dissolved or temporarily suspended? III. Is crisis present under the force majeure clause? IV. W h a t are the procedures applicable in invoking the clause?

How to Brand Yourself before Others Do First impression goes a long way and there is always a way to handle such situations

‘

Don’t Judge a Book by Its Cover’ is a popular English idiom to portray the need to look past the shell or facade of someone or an object to see their truest form or nature. Yet, in reality it can be tricky and we are often being put in a situation where the first impression of people on us could be the break or make of us. Being stamped a ‘brand’ by another individual or group of people that we are not acquainted with is expected and a norm even in our daily lives. However, there is a way to tackle this. As shared by Rotary Club’s Past District Governor, Andre Suharto during the ‘Brand Yourself Before Others Brand You’ virtual meeting hosted by Rotary Club of Puteri Lagoon Johor Bahru. Below is the rundown of

what he has shared. Know the person you are engaging with Determining whom you are talking to or getting in touch with is important. Different people have different nerves and that requires a certain approach. So getting to know them first is a good start.

As the clause is only enforceable on particular occurrences of crisis enunciated, it is important to cast the net as wide as possible. It can be acts of God, acts of government or events beyond the control of the contracting parties amongst others. Ewan McKendrick, Force Majeure and Frustration of Contract (Lloyd’s of London Press Ltd, 2nd Ed, 1995) at page 36 states that: “It is, therefore, extremely difficult, if not impossible, to draft a force majeure clause which shuts out the doctrine of frustration completely, because even the widest of clauses may be held not to cover a particular catastrophic event [such as in Metropolitan Water Board]…” Looking at the matter from the general perspective of employers, it is important to note that even though you might be able to immediately discharge employees from your payroll, the possibility of a claim under s.20 IRA 1967 being made is still present.

miscommunications or clash of values in the time of acquaintance and while it is inevitable, there is always room for improvements. Now that we know what these acquaintances are not in favour of, avoid it and find a better way to communicate with them. Be aware of any feedback you get Feedback or in other words - criticism is important. Bear in mind to not take it personally

This shall cause the claim of force majeure to be dissected by the judiciary. At the same time, the sudden upturn of business might require the business to employ manpower in a short period of time. Once force majeure is invoked, the employees no longer have the obligation to return and start work as normal. Employers thus have to halt operations or spend a significant amount to recruit and rehire new employees. To ensure the clause works to businesses’ advantage, it is highly advisable to draft it with the company’s nature in mind. For example, when the company is situated in a country with frequent earthquake, force majeure clause would not be of much help as it is highly anticipated. Same goes to COVID-19 as it has emerged for almost 9 months. In conclusion, a force majeure clause is a good term to be included in all contracts as we can never know what tomorrow holds. Nevertheless,

as these people do not know you in person, and they are taking whatever they see or experience initially which is less than 30% of who you are. Take it in and then adjust on how to make the next experience with them better. Keeping all these simple points in mind would help you in the long run for any type of relationships you are trying to keep tabs on whether for work, community, organisations, and so on.

Alya Ariffin Legal Adviser MECA South Sdn Bhd alya@meca.com.my

it is important to ensure it is put in writing and to be as wide as possible as to not limit the organisation in any way. But do not be so quick to activate such a clause as there are still potential risks available. TI

Besides, these are basically modern twists from old proverbs for an example, “Action speaks louder than words”. Doing it is better proof than simply talking about it. Remember to “Walk the talk” and “Don’t put off until tomorrow what you can do today” because these people whom we are acquainting with could definitely tell if we are making an effort in keeping a good relationship. - by Norfy Shafeq TI

Engaging regularly with quality input or take out Engaging with people regularly is great to make them understand that we are keeping them in mind. It does not have to be frequent, just regular enough with sensible input that is of their interest. Another way is to have them depart from prior engagement with a good take out, like good information or connection. Improve the experience of the people you are engaging with After quite some time, there is bound to be some

Rotary Club’s Past District Governor, Andre Suharto promotional poster by Rotary Club of Puteri Lagoon JB

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ISSUE 98 | OCT 2020

INVEST

Accumulating Wealth Tips & Tricks

Opportunities in the Bubbles (Part 2)

fter going through a steady uptrend for a few months, the U.S. stocks have finally corrected in September. Luckily, the fall was around 10%, and interestingly, crude oil and gold have both retraced in harmony with the stock market. This is not a bad sign because the market had anticipated a healthy pullback earlier. The US Federal Reserve Chairman on 16th September 2020 stated it was planning to hold interest rates at nearly zero until at least 2024. This message shows that the US economy is far from recovery, but also exerts sense of comfort to the stock market. In Malaysia, the Bank Negara has decided to keep Overnight Policy Rate (OPR) unchanged at 1.75%. It also indicated that the labour conditions, household spending and trade activity are improving. While the Malaysia Composite Index has corrected below 1500, it managed to climb back to this critical level in a few days. As you can see, in either macro or domestic view, the market is finding new catalysts to move forward, whether it’s vaccine, positive economy data, recovering pandemic condition or any beneficial sectors. A new phenomenon though, is that you can see the market sentiment is now susceptible to the gloves sector performance. For instance,

when there are good news for vaccine development, glove stock prices would tank and the whole market sentiment turns negative. To be more defensive, you may look at sectors and counters with lower valuation. Given a stabilised US stock market, I believe this strategy offers higher chances to win.

Opportunities in the Bubbles With high indexes – the higher the risk scenario and you may want to consider adopting a cautious strategy in stock selection. For instance, Businesses with huge cash reserves

The companies or strategies mentioned in this article are meant for study purpose only. It doesn’t constitute any ‘buy’ or ‘sell’ recommendation. Please consult your financial professional if you want to make any decision. (Source: www.investing.com) Before we look into that, let us see if the US stock market is doing fine. Based on the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) chart on 15th September 2020, the latest candles are still standing above the pink (MA50) and golden (MA200) line. It means the uptrend remains intact. Its immediate resistance is 28000 followed by 29000. Barring unforeseen circumstances, I believe the probability of breaking 30000 remains high.

Such as Lotte Chemical Titan Holding Berhad (LCtitan), (code: 5284) LCtitan is the largest integrated producer of olefins and polyolefins, and one of the largest polyolefins producers in Southeast Asia. Simply put, it produces resins, which is the raw material to produce plastic packaging, facemasks, shields, gloves and so on. The raw material of resins is naphtha, which has been going down due to the low crude oil price. On the

other hand, the recent Hurricane Laura that made landfall in the US has caused disruption among the chemical plants, which led to price hike for chemical products such as PP and PE. With lower material cost and higher selling price for LCtitan’s products, it paints a brighter picture for its coming quarter ’s bottom line. In addition, the company has showed attractiveness in its balance sheet, valuation and cash flow. The followings are a few highlights: 1) LCtitan’s net asset per share stands at RM5.34, in comparison to its current price of RM1.85. 2) The company has zero debt and a net cash reserve of RM3.8 billion. This translated into cash per share of RM1.65, which is 90% of the price! 3) LCtitan has generated operating cash flow of 242 million in quarter 2 and 512 million as at 30th June 2020. 4) The company has a dividend policy of 50% of its profit, and has been paying yearly dividend since listed in 2017. If the company makes the profit as year 2019, its dividend would be 17 cents per share, which translates to a dividend yield of 9% based on current price. 5) Higher profits in the future is likely, given LCtitan’s operating rate has jumped

Tey Bin Yuen Binyuen is the founder of BY Enrich Resources and the author of ‘Life beyond the Comfort Zone’ and ‘Profit from Share Investment’. His books are available in the National Libraries in Malaysia and Singapore or online via http://www.teybinyuen.com/ profitfromshareinvestment 20% to 86% during the quarter with the completion of plant turnaround activities and subsequent ramping up of production. 6) Technically, LCtitan’s chart has showed that the candles moved above the MA50 line. It means mid to long term investors have started accumulating. At the time of writing, its price is RM1.85, which has gone up by only 10% from the recent low. Conclusion With the above example, it shows that opportunities are still around. Therefore, do not only look at the high indexes but instead, let us return to the company’s fundamentals. TI

APEC Should Open Doors to OBOR Opportunities

s scheduled, Malaysia would be hosting the APEC in November this year. This is encouraging despite the uncertainty as COVID-19 pandemic has returned to some Asian countries going by the name second wave or maybe even third. The theme for APEC 2020 is “Optimising Human Potential Towards a Future of Shared Prosperity”. In brief, Malaysia, the host country, would focus on bringing APEC closer to the people with an aim to create a balanced and fair cooperation among economies, which is towards a more inclusive and sustainable development in the Asia-Pacific region. The objective is clear and achievable. A fair collaboration amongst the membership countries and is expected whilst a fair collaboration with non-membership countries are foreseeable and desirable.

All players and stakeholders participate in a fair game to achieve sustainability. Apart from fair play and sustainability, two key elements of the year are, respectively, “Shared Prosperity” and “Human Capital”. Malaysia targets to seek a balance between the developing and developed economy through fair and genuine cooperation for a more inclusive development in the region. Regional integration and economic cooperation may accelerate developing economies by leveraging the dynamism of the more advanced, developed countries. The Belt and Road Initiatives may also integrate and cooperate with APEC countries by exploring mutually beneficial opportunities. Initiated by China in 2014, the Belt and Road Initiatives (sometimes known as the One Belt One Road (“OBOR”)) is an alliance of countries bringing together goods and services in

accordance with membership countries’ strength. The shared prosperity pool talents and resources from different sectors, in exchange of the hosted country’s other development. The genuine cooperation speeds up the modernisation of developing economies and making further advancement to the established, developed countries. The potential collaboration may cross most industries, say from energy to infrastructure, from supply chain to Greentech, from logistics management to maritime and aviation. The fusion, combination and cross-over of the various industries in the Belt and Road Initiatives may enhance the sustainability and also cope with the APEC’s theme. The current membership states include countries from various regions, including the East Asia, South-East Asia, Central Asia, Middle East, East Europe,

Western Europe, Africa, etc. The list of membership expands continuously as new recruits join the OBOR alliance via input and participation at different stages. APEC should open door to OBOR and even consider formal joint partnership with OBOR to achieve a win-win situation. In fact, some countries have dual membership of both APEC and OBOR; opening themselves to opportunities and wealth. APEC shares innovative values and likewise, OBOR drives creative and sustainability. Both APEC and OBOR have similar visions such as the inclusive economic participation through digital economy and technology, as well as the improvement of the narrative of trade and investment. The relationship of APEC and OBOR should be a form of allies, forming formal and informal ties and connections. The two international giants

Chu Kar-kin PhD Candidate Veteran policy commentator, Hong Kong may also ink joint-MOU for collaborations. The 21st Century is a period when a formula of inclusive economic participation is worked out through cooperation. This is not surprising, and synergy benefits all parties. We look forward to hearing the leadership of both the APEC and OBOR to reach amicable and meaningful collaborations. TI

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ISSUE 98 | OCT 2020

Long-Awaited PUBG Mobile 1.0 Update - New Erangel Map now in Bahasa Malaysia

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new era has come in PUBG MOBILE, and players around the globe are invited to witness expansive improvements in the world’s most popular mobile game with the launch of the long-awaited PUBG MOBILE version 1.0 update and the New Erangle map. Especially for those in Malaysia, the update also means that the players can now opt to play in Bahasa Malaysia (BM). Beginning with changes and additions to classic gameplay and expanding to user experience improvements and enhanced visuals throughout the battlefield, the PUBG MOBILE 1.0 update is available now for free on the Apple App Store and Google Play. The massive list of updates includes a New Erangel map, new improvements for the Livik map, introduction of new firearm M1014, updates to Cheer Park, as well as improvements to the game’s graphics and user experience. There are also security enhancements and an upcoming mysterious surprise set to be revealed soon. Additionally, PUBG MOBILE is now available at 90 frames per second on all compatible devices.

As part of the comprehensive upgrade, Erangel now also comes in BM to accommodate players and fans in Malaysia, which is a very important market for PUBG MOBILE. Players who prefer to have their interface in BM can switch to the language in the settings option. Special events and rewards also await players in Malaysia, including exciting awards which they can earn by logging in consistently for seven days, or through playing in-app games. Rewards also await those ranked in the top 5, top 10 and top 20. Iconic resource-points, such as military bases and Mansion have been renewed, and all new elements of trenches, wooden barricades, abandoned tanks and bunkers have also been added to the map, improving combat experience on Erangel and providing richer rural tactical options. In addition to the New Erangel map, PUBG MOBILE’s much-loved small-scale high intensity newest battlefield Livik also got a facelift. The M1014 is an all-new semiautomatic shotgun that only appears in Livik on the Classic Battle Royale Map and Arena, along with other shotguns. With up to 7 rounds that can be manually reloaded at a time, this new feature is an outstanding one for close-quarters combat. The M1014 supports shotgun muzzle and ammo belt attachments and is the most effective of the currently available shotguns. Livik also received various visual effects improvements, balance adjustments and bug fixes.- by The Iskandarian TI

Marrybrown S.O.S BBQ Set Menu to Tantalise Your Taste Buds The new set menu is like a barbecue night food in a box – ready to be enjoyed anytime

Marrybrown S.O.S (Sensasi Ohsem Smokey) BBQ comes in 3 different sets

ar r ybrown, the Johor born Halal fast-food chain was signaling SOS for their new menu recently and it turns out it was an acronym for “Sensasi, Ohsem, Smokey”

which means “Sensational Awesome Smokey” for their latest offering of charcoal bun burger with a huge deep-fried, crispy chicken patty, slathered with sweet, smokey and spicy barbecue sauce that is sure to

satisfy every Malaysians’ taste buds! Not wanting to be left out from this experience, Marrybrown Plaza Angsana hosted me and my team to try this sensational offering. This outlet is spacious enough for my wariness of social distancing in this pandemic period and I was glad that all SOPs were in place so that I could eat in peace. There are three different ways to enjoy this new menu, either the S.O.S BBQ Burger combo meal or the mouthwatering S.O.S BBQ Drumette combo meal. Both are paired with a bunch of soft, hot Potato Wedges and crispy Onion Rings. If you are up to trying everything at once, the S.O.S BBQ Box is the one you would like to pick up. You will get an S.O.S BBQ Burger, S.O.S BBQ Drumettes with the classic MB Crispy Chicken, and Potato Wedges. All three combo meals are served with a cup of CocaCola and priced from RM15.90,

RM16.90 to RM22.60 respectively. The portion is pretty huge and knowing very well the locals’ love for spicy sauce, Marrybrown restaurant manager, Faisal Sepdi has informed me that customers can always ask for extra sauce upon ordering – both for dinein and delivery. The new menu is available from 21st August until 5th October 2020. We enjoyed the meal so much that was bursting with flavours, so hurry and get your set laden with this awesome sauce today at your nearest

The S.O.S BBQ New Menu is available at all Marrybrown outlets nationwide

Marrybrown restaurant! For more information on Marrybrown, check out their Facebook page, and delivery service via http://mbdelivery.com. my. - by Norfy Shafeq TI

The charcoal bun, steamed fresh for every order, served with big chunk of patty and generous amount of smokey barbecue sauce would set your heart on fire

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PROPERTY

Kulai Iskandar Data Exchange (Kidex) to Attract RM17.5 Billion Investments jobs in information technology on top of

Kidex is seen as a catalyst of the semi-skilled and support workers for Johor’s economic post-pandemic the centre while mentioning that Kidex once it is fully operational by 2023 is a part of the country’s development in

PM Technopark Sdn Bhd (TPM Technopark), a subsidiary under the Johor Corporation (JCorp) is said to attract RM17.5 billion worth of investments upon its operation starting by the first quarter of 2021. Under the full support of Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC), Malaysian cyber and digital authority, Kidex’s close proximity and dark fibre connection to Singapore would make them an alternative Data Hub for the South-East Asia region. Johor Menteri Besar Datuk Ir. Haji Hasni Mohammad said the 301-hectare project would also offer 1,600 job opportunities, which would cover skilled

data hub; 2,950 hectares Kulai Industrial Park (KIP). “This project (Kidex) can catalyse the growth of the data industry and make Sedenak, Johor a regional data hub in the future. During my visit to Kidex recently, I was informed that the investors eyed those in cloud computing,” he said in a statement, saying that Kidex had attracted interests from local and foreign investors from China, the United Kingdom and Japan. Hasni relayed that Iskandar Regional Development Authority (IRDA) had briefed him that Kidex is one of IRDA’s initiatives under the Smart City Iskandar Malaysia (BPIM) that covers six dimensions which are smart governance, smart people,

CIMB Becomes the First and Only Bank Branch in Forest City The agreement inked between CIMB and Forest City to further serve Port of Tanjung Pelepas, Forest City Golf Resort, Medini and southern part of Iskandar Malaysia

orest City has announced that it has inked an agreement with CIMB Bank Berhad (CIMB) to open a CIMB branch in Forest City, Gelang Patah, Johor and will be the first and only banking branch in the Forest City development upon its launch. Scheduled to be opened by year-end of 2020, the Forest City CIMB branch will be located at the commercial street of Forest City which will provide customers with comprehensive banking services in order to serve the banking needs of the surrounding businesses and communities. Forest City, adjacent to Singapore and situated in the Iskandar Special Zone of Johor Bahru, is currently the largest overseas project of the Country Garden Group (Country Garden). “In keeping up with industry developments, the company is now evolving from its role as a real estate developer into a City Operator. One of the main components in the city operator role is industry development and economic enhancement. We highly welcome CIMB, one of ASEAN’s leading banks. Its establishment in Forest City will definitely contribute to greater economic vitality for the

region and create a stable and healthy city development,” said Shawn Luo, the Chief Finance Officer of Country Garden Malaysia-Singapore Region. Under the master plan of Forest City, eight promoted industries have been identified to support the longterm development of Forest City, namely Tourism, Healthcare, NearShore Finance, Education and Training, Regional Headquarters, Emerging Technology, E-commerce, Green and Smart Industry. “By having a CIMB branch here in Forest City, it is in line with our vision in developing near-shore finance; one of the identified core industries. CIMB’s network will provide comprehensive financial services to the house owners, staff, retailers and even companies surrounding Forest City. Furthermore, financial services are essential for us to attract more industries to come and set up their businesses in Forest City”, Shawn added. CIMB has worked with Country Garden since 2013 to support their banking needs and the opening of this branch represents an extension of the collaboration between both parties over the years. - by Norfy Shafeq TI

smart mobility, smart environment, smart economy, and smart living. “A robust and stable data communication infrastructure would benefit all stakeholders in the Iskandar Malaysia economic corridor — the government, the business sector and the people,”

“According to IRDA, these efforts would not only help Iskandar Malaysia achieve its vision to be a sustainable international standard metropolis but also promote the Digital Johor agenda at the state level and the National Fiberisation and Connectivity Plan at the national level,” he added.- by Norfy Shafeq TI

iProperty.com.my Unveils i360 and Great Property Deals to Assist Malaysians in Finding their Dream Homes

i Forest City to have the first and only bank in its development

Johor Menteri Besar Datuk Ir. Haji Hasni Mohammad during his visit at Kidex in Kulai Industrial park (image courtesy of TPM Technopark website)

Property.com.my recently unveiled i360, a virtual showroom platform for new property launches by prominent property developers. The aim of i360 is to provide an immersive virtual tour for property seekers to view their preferred properties at their own convenience. Due to the unprecedented situation caused by COVID-19, i360 provides a great opportunity for property seekers to view properties from the comfort of their own homes. At the same time, iProperty.com.my also announced Great Property Deals, a special campaign for property seekers to discover new property deals and find their preferred property offer and submit enquiries in one convenient place. The featured properties on Great Property Deals include discounts on various new projects starting from RM266,000 and in diverse locations such as Puchong, KL City, Subang Jaya, Kota Kemuning and more.

Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, many Malaysian homebuyers are looking at virtual showrooms to adapt to the new normal of property viewing and to help them with their property buying decisions. In a recent iProperty.com.my consumer survey, 89% of property seekers are receptive to the idea of virtual viewings. 75% state that it will help them decide whether or not to view a property in person while the remaining 14% says it is enough for them to decide whether to buy a property. This technological innovation provides a panoramic vir tual walk-through for property seekers to view their dream homes. Featured property types include service residence, condominium, terrace/ link house, residential land, bungalow and villa. For more information on i360, visit: www.iproper ty.com.my/360-vir tual-tourfor-property - by The Iskandarian TI

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ISSUE 98 | OCT 2020

Johor Bahru City Square’s 20th Anniversary Lucky Draw Winner Wins Big

Mohd Hazwan Ali with his family said they chose Seri Austin to send their child to a private school near the neighbourhood

nited Malaya Land Bhd (UMLand) handed a RM491,800 worth of luxur y apar tment, D’Lagoon in Seri Austin to the Grand Prize winner of Johor Bahru City Square’s (JBCS) 20th Anniversary Exclusive Lucky Draw on 22nd September 2020 at Seri Austin Gallery. Mohd Hazwan Ali, 32, a pharmacist, initially purchased Camellia Residence also in Seri Austin and that made him eligible for the lucky draw entry that was running from 1st April 2019 to 31st January 2020. He was not

aware of his winning until he got a phone call from the organiser at work. “I was shocked and my first response was questioning the legitimacy of such a call,” he said. Hazwan was informed that his name was drawn on JBCS’s Facebook live broadcast on 29th August 2020 and he checked the recorded video with his colleague to ensure it is real. H a z w a n’s s p o u s e, Nursyafreena Atan, 33, UTM senior lecturer said they bought Camellia Residence as a surprise for Hazwan’s parents and they got an

even better surprise now. Currently residing at their own house in Gelang Patah, Johor the family planned to stay in Seri Austin as the neighbourhood is nearer to a choice of school they wanted their son to attend in Senai. The first ever cohosted event by UMLand Seri Austin and JBCS saw a total of 13,000 entries and, 13 lucky draw prizes were offered to those who spent a minimum of RM200 at any outlets in JBCS and to all UMLand’s house buyers. Handing over the mock key house was KK Wong, UMLand CEO Seri Austin cum Group Director of Townships with UMLand Group Director of Sales and Marketing Koh Boon Teng, JBCS Exco Delegate, Martin Rozario and JBCS Marketing Manager, Azlina Ideris. KK Wong said Seri Austin will be launching their last landed housing, double storey terrace houses by end of 2020. by Norfy Shafeq TI

PROPERTY

Ame Propels Jstar Motion’s Expansion with Fourth Plant in i-Park@Indahpura Linear motion system and smart technologies provider invests over RM100 million for land and buildings complementing China and US plants

ntegrated industrial space solutions provider AME Elite Consortium Berhad (AME Group) is propelling the expansion of Jstar Motion Sdn Bhd (Jstar Motion) by building its fourth manufacturing facility in i-Park@Indahpura, to cater to increasing demand for smart technologies used in equipment and appliances in offices, medical facilities, industrial and homes. AME had completed Jstar Motion’s two plants in i-Park@Indahpura in the first half of 2020, and is completing a third plant in the same industrial park in the first quarter of 2021. The fourth plant has 137,629 sq ft built-up area, and targeted to commence construction in November 2020 and be completed in May 2021. Jstar Motion’s investments for land and buildings in i-Park@Indahpura amounts to over RM100 million, and its total manufacturing builtup area would stand at about 467,800 sq ft upon the completion of the fourth plant. Jstar Motion is a subsidiary of China based Zhejiang Jiecang Linear Motion Technology Co.,Ltd (Jiecang), a leading provider of linear motion system for intelligent and ergonomic products that are supplied to prominent corporations and brands worldwide. Jiecang’s products

include linear actuators, frames, smart controls, and accessories, with wide applications in fields like smart office, medical care, home care and intelligent industries. “AME’s i-Parks continue to attract Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) from high-valued industries globally, a testament to our capabilities in delivering comprehensive industrial space solutions increasingly in demand by multinational corporations, said Kelvin Lee Chai, Group Managing Director, AME Elite Consortium Berhad. i-Park@Indahpura, launched in 2011, is an award-winning, gated and guarded full-service industrial park in Johor spanning 205 acres. It is home to numerous Malaysian and international companies across various industries. AME is developing its two integrated industrial parks in Johor; i-Park@Indahpura (Phase 3) and i-Park@Senai Airport City (Phases 1, 2 and 3) which is also the recipient of Best Industrial Development under the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards 2020. - by Priya Manikam TI

KPRJ Officiates SAKJ Bandar Putra 2 with Modern and Conducive Design Over 1,000 students and staffs will benefit from proper classrooms and facilities replacing the shophouse that was a temporary substitution

umpulan Prasarana Rakyat Johor Sdn Bhd (KPRJ) has launched a full fledge school, SAKJ Bandar Putra 2 in Kulai, Johor after its completion and admissions in 2019. Officiated by Johor Menteri Besar Datuk Ir. Hasni Mohammad who is also the chairman of KPRJ, the launch event was attended by Johor Financial Officer, Datuk A Rahim Nin, State Chairman of Islamic Religious Affairs Committee, Dato’ Haji Tosrin Jarvanthi and KPRJ CEO, Dato’ Haji Mohd Noorazam. The District Action Council (JKTD) has counselled KPRJ after a meeting on 3rd October in 2016 to build the school and KPRJ has arranged the construction through KPRJ’s

subsidiary, KPRJ Builders Sdn Bhd (KBSB). Johor Religious Affair Department (MAINJ) during the time of the school construction rented 3 shop houses in Jalan Merbau, Bandar Putra Kulai, Johor which has a limitation of 10 classrooms, as a temporary substitute from 2014 until 2019. Built on a 1.08 acre land, SAKJ Bandar Putra 2 includes open halls, library, classrooms, main hall, canteen, teachers room, preschool, guard house, waste disposal house, bicycle

Hasni having a small chat with one of the secondary school students during his officiation

shed and bus stop, as well as home to 1,674 students which include 500 students from SAKJ Bandar Putra 1, 164 special degree students (Darjah Khas), 20 Johor religious preschool students and 27 teachers. The officiation event also saw the MB handing over a symbolic plaque to 3 latest SAKJ schools under KPRJ to MAINJ’s Sekolah Agama Ibnu Sina (Phase 5), Sekolah Agama Senai Jaya (Phase 5) and Sekolah Agama Bandar Putra 2 during the Open Day of Religious Affair held at Putra City Hall, Bandar Putra Kulai, Johor. SAK J Bandar Putra 2 headmaster, Noridah Mudiar said that since the school was located right in front of the residential area, the school has discussed with the mosque next to them to share the parking area where students can embark and disembark from school bus or parents’ transportation safely. KPRJ CEO Dato’ Haji Mohd Noorazam Haji Osman said, “As the main contractor for

Hasni extending a plaque of SAKJ Bandar Putra 2 to the headmaster, Noridah Mudiar (green scarf) witnessed by (first, left) Johor Financial Officer, Datuk A Rahim Nin, KPRJ CEO, Dato’ Haji Mohd Noorazam and State Chairman of Islamic Religious Affairs Committee, Dato’ Haji Tosrin Jarvanthi SAKJ Development Project, we have always ensured that the quality, design refurbishment and facilities to be our primary focus,” citing that KPRJ vowed to continue shouldering the state’s trust in developing SAKJ’s projects with the best of interest

at heart and in mind. He also said that KPRJ would be committed to contributing to involving SAKJs’ beyond the scope of works under the conglomerate’s very own Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programme known as KPRJHOPE. - by Norfy Shafeq TI

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THE ISKANDARIAN

ISSUE 98 | OCT 2020

PROPERTY

Iskandar Malaysia’s GAIA Recognises 5 More Green Buildings in Johor

(From left) Sunway Iskandar’s Southern Region Assistant General Manager, Allan Tay representative of Sunway Big Box Retail Park, receiving the highest GAIA award for Commercial category from Chairman of Johor State Health and Environment Committee, Vidyananthan Ramanadhan and Datuk Ismail Ibrahim, Chief Executive of IRDA

skandar Malaysia heightened its low carbon agenda with recognition of Green Accord Initiative Award (GAIA) 2019/2020 to five more buildings in the region. The award ceremony was officiated by Chairman of Johor State Health and Environment Committee, Vidyananthan Ramanadhan. The highest awards were given to Menara Majlis Bandaraya Johor Bahru (MBJB) at Bukit Senyum and Sunway Big Box Retail Park, as the greenest buildings under the respective of Individual Property and Commercial categories for the 2019/2020 GAIA awards. Three other Special Mention recipients in the GAIA Individual Property and Commercial

First-ever virtual PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards (Malaysia) Gala Introduces Pioneering Winners’ Circle

he first-ever virtual gala of the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards (Malaysia), now in its seventh year, premiered on 15th September 2020, with an immersive, interactive event that drew property seekers, real estate agents, overseas developers, and industry stakeholders alike. Malaysia’s prestigious real estate awards platform presented 35 award categories to the outstanding builders of the country’s skylines and spaces via a multi-streamed event viewed worldwide via asiapropertyawards. com/en/newsroom, and the official channels on YouTube and Facebook. Viewers were able to participate in an exclusive live chat on the official Awards website during the live broadcast. Tropicana Corporation Berhad received the title of Best Developer,

boosted by 10 wins including the coveted trophy of Best Condo Development (Malaysia) for Tropicana Grandhill. Fieldman Construction Sdn Bhd, one of several Special Recognition for CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) recipients was named Best Boutique Developer. Meanwhile, Matrix Concepts Group, Mah Sing Group Berhad, AME Development Sdn. Bhd., and Ideal Property Group earned the newly introduced titles of Best Mega Township Developer, Best Lifestyle Developer, Best Industrial Developer, and Best Affordable Homes Developer, respectively. UMLand has also won three Special Recognition Awards under Environmental, Social, Governance category, and for CSR and Building Communities as well as the Best Condo/Apartment Development (Southern) for

Amber Heights (UMLand Seri Alam). i-Park@Senai Airport City by iPark Development Sdn Bhd won for the Best Industrial Development. Some 25 companies in Malaysian property development took part in the virtual celebrations and accepted their prizes via remote video. These included the Thai-Malaysian venture of Minor International and Themed Attractions Resorts & Hotels, which won the plum prize of Best Luxury and Landed Development (Malaysia) for Anantara Desaru Coast Residences. In a milestone for the programme, the Malaysia Real Estate Personality of the Year title was presented to Sarena Cheah, Managing Director of Sunway Berhad’s property division. She is the first woman to receive this honour in Malaysia.

categories are Fairway Suites, Horizon Hills; Majlis Perbandaran Kulai and i-Stay @ Senai Airport City, a hostel facility with green features to cater to outstation and foreign workers. GAIA has awarded a total of six prestigious awards and nine special mention awards, recognising a total of 15 green buildings since 2016. Commercial categor y ’s winner, Sunway Big Box Retail Park was officially opened in the last quarter of 2019 and is highly equipped with green features like large-scale solar panels (3MV) on rooftops to supply affordable and clean energy to the park which resulted to lower rental rates to retailers that allows them to offer

“Every day, the team at Sunway Property takes on the most pressing challenges of our time and that is to build sustainable cities and communities in alignment with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals that are practiced across the world. This is because we see urban cities as the world’s biggest challenge; but at the same time, that is potentially also our greatest solution,” said Cheah. PropertyGuru’s Asia Property Awards, established in 2005, are the region’s most exclusive and prestigious real estate awards

lower price to consumers. Allan Tay, Assistant General Manager of Sunway Iskandar said, this is a part of Sunway Group’s efforts towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Special Mention’s recipient i-Stay @ Senai Airport City, a subsidiary of AME Elite Consortium Berhad, Operation Director, Pu Wah Jian said one of their green effort is enforcing paperless method to inform the hostel’s residents by using social media instead of the widely-used information board in their facility. He said they would cut waste further by providing reusable cutleries and food containers for them to pack food to and from home. - by Norfy Shafeq TI

programme. In 2020, the Awards series is open to 15 property markets around the region, presented in a mix of virtual galas, which is open to the consumers and real estate agents, and exclusive gala dinners hosting up to 500 senior industry leaders to recognise excellence within each Asian market, each local awards culminate in the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards Grand Final, which takes place alongside the PropertyGuru Asia Real Estate Summit in Bangkok in December 2020. - by Priya Manikam TI

Some of the recipients in the coveted virtual awards

UMLand Launches Topaz Residenz, Section 2 at Seri Alam Township

Finally, Topaz Residenz Section 2 is launched!

nited Malayan Land Berhad (UMLand) had launched Topaz Residenz Section 2, their latest project at Seri Alam Township in a whole new experience – a virtual launching through Facebook live. The event was the first launch by the group for the year 2020. This project is estimated to be completed in May 2022

with 150 units of double storey terrace houses to offer. With strategic location allowing easy accessibility via the Southern Link Highway and Eastern Dispersal Link, travelling is now made easy for future residents. Topaz comes with two variants; Type A or Type B with a built-up area ranging from 2,152 sqft to 2,177 sft respectively. “UMLand has track records of more than two decades. Bandar Seri Alam was launched in 1992 with 3762 acres, and now about 1000 acres are left. We are proud to say that UMLand’s development in Bandar Seri Alam and Bandar Seri Austin has won many recognitions and awards,” said KK Wong, Group Director of Townships UMLand in his opening speech. “Now is the best time to buy because of the price, the best packages, and also the loan rate which is a very low rate,” he added. “Future buyers can also benefit from the reintroduction of Home Ownership Campaign by the government due to the COVID-19 pandemic,” continued Wong also citing

that the take up rate for Topaz Section 2 is currently at nearly 30%. The price for Topaz Residenz Section 2 starts from RM744,800 for Type A and RM752,800 for Type B. UMLand also offers RM30,000 rebates for early birds besides the Free Legal fees and other special incentives. UMLand is expecting to launch their next project, Dahlia, in Bandar Seri Austin around November this year which will offer nearly 200 double storey terraces. They are also looking forward for another launch in Bandar Seri Alam for a lower end double storey terrace around February/March next year. Bandar Seri Alam has recently been awarded The Best Condo Apartment Development in the Southern Region through its Amber Heights Apartment. In addition to the award, UMLand has also won three Special Recognition Awards; Building Communities, Corporate Social Responsibility and Environment, Social and Governance by the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards 2020. - by Nurfarahin Zahiridin TI

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