Category: Entertainment

PUTRAJAYA, Oct 27 — The Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry (MDTCA) has listed 11 items under the Festive Season Maximum Price Control Scheme (SHMMP) to be enforced from Nov 1 to 7 in conjunction with Deepavali which will be celebrated next week.

Its minister, Datuk Seri Alexander Nanta Linggi said the 11 items are live chicken, standard chicken, super, imported mutton ; grade A, B and C chicken egg; red chilli, tomato; coconut and grated coconut.

“The price of these items is controlled to stabilise their price and supply,” he said at the virtual launch of the Deepavali SHMMP 2021 today.

He said the maximum price scheme of the items is applicable in 91 districts in Peninsular Malaysia, 27 districts in Sabah and the Federal Territory of Labuan.

For Sarawak, implementation of the scheme only involved four districts, namely Kuching, Sibu, Miri and Bintulu, he added.

Meanwhile, Nanta said the ministry would work with the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Industry to ensure adequate supply of goods and the price remained reasonable during the festive period.

Enforcement officers from the ministry will also be at shopping locations such as markets, farmers’ markets and supermarkets to conduct inspections and monitoring, he added.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

PUTRAJAYA, Oct 25 — The Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture (MOTAC) is organising the Malaysian Culture Week (MBM) 2021 themed ‘Bangkit Asal’ to uplift or revive the country’s arts, culture and heritage, in a hybrid manner from today (Oct 25) until Oct 30.

MOTAC in a statement today said the Malaysian Culture Week is the ministry’s ‘signature programme’ as a platform to showcase the diversity of arts, culture and heritage in Malaysia by providing space to express cultural diversity.

The programme involves ten departments or agencies under MOTAC which have their respective signature products, it said.

The agencies involved are the National Department for Culture and Arts, Museum Department, National Heritage Department, National Archives, National Library, Istana Budaya, Malaysian Handicraft Development Corporation, National Art Gallery, National Academy of Arts Culture and Heritage (Aswara) and Tourism Malaysia.

Various interesting activities have been lined up by each agency to fill in through the MOTAC Facebook platform as well as the website www.mbm2021.com, from 2 pm to 6 pm from Oct 25 to 30.

The activities that will be presented are related to archiving, cultural arts and heritage education, performing arts, visual arts, selected manuscript content, arts and culture based on Malaysian cultural roots.

There will also be videos recognised by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), artifacts and national history, as well as the branding of Malaysia as ‘Top of The Mind Ecotourism Destination of the World’.

MOTAC Minister Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri said the implementation of the programme was in line with the strategic planning in the MOTAC Tourism Recovery Plan to expand the promotional aspect to attract tourists when the border gates open.

“With a programme like this, it is hoped that it can revive the country’s tourism and cultural industry under the new norms,” she said.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

KUCHING, Oct 23 — The story of Princess Santubong and Princess Sejinjang is a local myth that encompasses a perfect recipe for a successful modern prime time soap opera or drama.

The bitter rivalry and jealousy between the two ‘kayangan’ princesses over the love of a prince became the main theme of the story which eventually ended up with Santubong being cursed into Mount Santubong.

The folklore which has been passed down through generations in Sarawak has become synonymous with the Damai peninsula, which is located about 35 km from Sarawak’s capital city of Kuching.

The peninsula, where the 810-metre high Mount Santubong is located is blessed with picturesque sandy beach and tropical rainforest, making it one of Sarawak’s famous tourist destinations.

These potentials have prompted the state government to further invest in developing the peninsula with a plan to build a massive resort city dubbed the Damai Resort City project, which will transform the popular seaside area.

The project will include new resorts, jungle trails and trekking facilities, wellness and health enclaves, marina and commercial as well as residential properties that will be built under the auspices of the Sarawak Economic Development Corporation (SEDC).

SEDC chairman Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Husain explained that this was a long term plan and at the moment the state-owned agency was preparing a comprehensive study for the development of the peninsula which would encompass all aspects including the environmental impact.

“We already have consultants comprising local and foreign experts. This study is expected to take a year and we will have the report ready by early 2022. If all is well we will implement the project,” he told Bernama.

Apart from planning to build new facilities, SEDC which is responsible for leading the development of tourism products in the state is also looking at upgrading its existing facilities in Damai such as the Damai Lagoon Resort.

The renovation will involve maintaining and upgrading work of current rooms and facilities as well as constructing a new Glamping and Rock Chalet Village at the resort.

“This is our vision and we are also looking to have a train or Light Rail Transit (LRT) coming to Damai from Kuching. It will be easier if those arriving at the airport (in Kuching) can take a train straight to Damai,” said Abdul Aziz.

The rich culture of Sarawak is also one of its main tourist attractions and in its tourism drive, the state government also looks to improve the Sarawak Cultural Village (SCV) in Damai. The 6.8-hectare SCV showcases local culture and lifestyles of the various ethnic groups in Sarawak as well as replica buildings of the Bidayuh, Iban, Orang Ulu, Penan, Melanau, Malay and Chinese.

According to Abdul Aziz, SEDC was also looking to include a herb garden at the village where local spices and vegetables would be planted and used for food preparations before being served to tourists.

The promotion of local culture has also received a significant boost through the support of the federal government when it announced a RM20 million allocation under Budget 2021 to improve infrastructure and step up promotions of cultural village products, particularly those located in Terengganu, Sarawak and Negeri Sembilan.

The story of Princess Santubong will also soon come to life with a special play to be performed at the village’s own theatre where it will feature local actors and actresses.

“The play will be performed in series and we also plan to showcase the performance live. (At the moment) everything is ready including the script and actors, but due to the emergency proclamation and the COVID-19 situation, the play has been postponed,” said Abdul Aziz.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

KUCHING, Oct 22 — The Communications and Multimedia Ministry (KKMM) wants the people to make digitalisation a lifestyle, not only for communications but also to cover all aspects of daily life.

Its minister, Tan Sri Annuar Musa said KKMM has launched the Gerakan #SayaDigital programme nationwide by combining various facilities available via the programme operated by the Malaysian Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC).

“The ministry has implemented the Malaysian Digital Economy Blueprint, MyDIGITAL, whereby we have not only enhanced facilities (for connectivity) nationwide but from the aspect of the people’s participation in Digital Economy, e-commerce and so on that will be able to generate more income and change their standard of living.

“In Sarawak, this is something that is important because we know this state has lots of potential, products, skills and advantages that we can offer globally and not just for the domestic market,” he told reporters after the Jelajah #SayaDigital @Sarawak MDEC dialogue session at Dewan Kampung Malaysia Jaya here.

The Gerakan #SayaDigital movement is an initiative to improve digital skills among the people by creating awareness and empowering the people from digital beginners with digital economy initiatives.

Based on the MDEC statement distributed at the event, the key message under the #MyDigital Movement is digital to make life easier, increase income, expand businesses and empower future careers.

According to the statement, a total of 163 Geng #SayaDigital have been appointed throughout Malaysia to teach basic digital skills training courses to local communities.

“As of Oct 17, a total of 6,992 Malaysians have registered on the #SayaDigital portal which was launched in December 2020, with 938 participants trained in basic digital skills training which includes three modules namely Digital Communication, Digital Transactions and Digital Applications,” the statement said.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 20 — The 33rd Li Bai Poetry Festival was recently opened at the Jiangtun Bay Square of Riverside Park in Ma’anshan City, which has become a shining city culture card, according to the Publicity Department of Ma’anshan City.

Li Bai Poetry Festival firstly attached great importance to a principle line of ‘culture of Yangtze River’, and focused on the indissoluble relationship between the poet Li Bai and Ma’anshan City, according to a statement.

This festival included a variety of recreational activities including artistic performances, Yangtze River Culture Forum, and national poetry collection, which fully demonstrated the unique status and special charm of Ma’anshan City in the ‘Yangtze River culture’.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 12 — Monsta’s latest animated series, Mechamato has grabbed the attention of local and international fans despite not yet been aired on television.

Monsta, in a statement today, said that Mechamato received the TOP 5 nomination at the 34th Berita Harian’s Popular Star Awards (ABPBH) for the ‘Popular Animated Character 2021’ category recently.

Internationally, media portal C21Media from London, United Kingdom has listed the animated series among the 50 most anticipated television series worldwide for this year.

Monsta’s Head of International Brand and Sales, Faiz Zainal Aabidin in the same statement also thanked the audience and fans for their support of the Monsta animated series.

“We are very proud and hope that the fans will continue to give their full support to these two animations. Do vote for Mechamato and BoBoiBoy at the awards (ABPBH),” he said.

Monsta said that the Mechamato Series will begin airing throughout Asia Pacific, including in Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand on Dec 4, and in Japan in March 2022 via the Cartoon Network channel.

It said Cartoon Network channel subscribers can watch a special ‘sneak peek’ episode a month earlier, on Nov 6.

“This series is currently in the process of dubbing into various languages including Korean and Japanese in preparation for the international market,” it said.

‘Mechamato The Animated Series’ is distributed by the world’s second-leading distributor, Jetpack Distribution from Europe as Monsta’s official distributor outside the Asia Pacific.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 5 — It is important to make disaster preparedness a Keluarga Malaysia (Malaysian Family) culture, said Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Special Functions) Datuk Dr Abdul Latiff Ahmad.

He said this was due to the frequent occurrence of various forms of disasters of late.

He explained that the culture of being prepared should not only be practised in October, in conjunction with the launch of the National Preparedness Month (BKN), but should be the norm until the country achieved community resilience.

He added that, as emphasised in the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030, the responsibility of disaster risk reduction should be a concerted effort.

“All Malaysians must make an effort to maximise their level of disaster preparedness to ensure the safety of lives is prioritised and minimise damage to infrastructure and reduce losses to society, industry, government and countryD,” he said in a statement today.

This year’s BKN 2021, with the theme “Keluarga Malaysia Siaga Bencana” (Malaysian Family Prepared for Disaster), was officiated by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob at the Putrajaya Corporation Complex here today.

The event was held in line with the International Disaster Day, which is celebrated on Oct 13 every year.

Abdul Latiff said that the BKN, which is celebrated in Malaysia every October, was aimed at enhancing awareness and preparedness of various parties in times of disaster, especially during the monsoon season, such as floods, mudflows and landslides.

He also said that throughout the month, 36 programmes and activities had been lined up by the National Disaster Management Agency (NADMA) with the cooperation of various departments, agencies and non-governmental organisations (NGOs).

Among the activities are the Community Based Disaster-Risk Management, Webinar: Identifying the Hazards and Disasters in and around Malaysia and the National Climate Forum-Northeast Monsoon 2021/2022.

He hoped that all parties would give a high-level of commitment to the programme so that it is in line with the government’s aim to make disaster risk reduction an important national agenda.

“The government always ensures that the coordination of disaster management can be handled more efficiently and effectively so that disaster victims will get protection and assistance from all parties,” he said.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency