Huat Zai

KUALA LUMPUR: Despite an export ban that took effect on Jun 1, prices of chicken at Malaysian markets have not shown any reductions over the past few days. Checks by CNA at several wet markets over the week showed that prices have not come down, with standard whole chickens being sold at above the ceiling price of RM8.90 (US$2.03) per kg. Mr N Rajaratnam, a chicken trader at the Jalan Othman market in Petaling Jaya, said he added a service charge of RM1.50 per kg for cutting and cleaning. With the extra fee, Mr Rajaratnam sells his chickens at RM10.50 per kg. “We also have to earn a living. Maybe after Hari Raya Haji (in July), the prices will come down. We can survive by selling chickens at RM10.50 to RM11 per kg,” he said. Showing messages from his supplier about recent price hikes of chicken, Mr Rajaratnam said this price has gone up several times by 10 or 20 sen in May alone, adding that he now buys whole live chickens at about RM7.30 per kg. He said he has to rent another place to slaughter the chickens before bringing them to the market because the state government has forbidden slaughtering activities at the markets since the COVID-19 pandemic. Factoring in the rent, his cost is about RM9 per kg, he added. “If we are allowed to slaughter chicken at the market like previously, we can reduce our prices for sure,” Mr Rajaratnam said. Chicken supply has been affected lately by disease infection, weather conditions and rising chicken feed prices, according to breeders. On Jun 1, Malaysia halted the export of up to 3.6 million chickens per month to resolve the supply and pricing issues. “The government’s priority is our own people,” Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob said on May 23 when he announced the ban. Chicken traders have complained that the increased costs have cut into their profit margin, especially when a price ceiling is enforced. The price control mechanism has been in place since November last year. The government had lowered the price ceiling for whole standard chickens a few times, from RM9.50 per kg to the current RM8.90 per kg, while offering a subsidy of 60 sen per kg to breeders in February this year. Whole standard chickens are processed and sold with head, feet and organs, while whole “super” chickens, with a ceiling price of RM9.90 per kg, refer to poultry that has been processed, weighed and sold without their head, feet or organs. "THE PROBLEM IS THE PRICE CEILING" Mr Tan Keng Hui, who owns a chicken stall at the Larkin Market in Johor Bahru, said they were hoping that the price ceiling would be lifted on Jun 5, but it was extended until the end of June instead. “The truth is we haven't been able to earn enough. We have families to feed, and the costs of everything have gone up - petrol, food - but our profits have not gone up,” he told CNA. He currently purchases the chickens at RM9.50 per kg. “Each whole chicken we sell is at a loss. The only way is for us to charge a processing fee, so we sell at 8.90 per kg and charge RM1.70 extra to cut and clean the chicken. Our profit is only RM1 per kg,” he said. He said they cannot blame the suppliers as the cost of chicken feed has gone up again. “The problem is the price ceiling; we cannot really operate if this continues. Larkin Market supplies mostly to the local population in Johor, and we are really the cheapest place to buy in town. But it cannot be to the point we don’t earn enough for our own families," he said. Another trader at the Jalan Othman market, who only wanted to be known only as Mdm Lili, said she purchased cleaned chickens at RM9.40 per kg and sells them for RM11 per kg to her customers. For those buying in bulk such as restaurants, Mdm Lili said she sells the chickens for RM10.50 per kg. “What can we do? Does it make sense to sell it for a cheaper price than we purchased it for?” said Mdm Lili, who has been selling chicken for a few decades. PRICES NOT COMING DOWN ANYTIME SOON, SAY TRADERS Department of Veterinary Services director-general Norlizan Mohd Noor said on Saturday (Jun 4) that the country’s chicken supply shortage is expected to be resolved in a month. He said there will be enough supplies to meet the demand for Hari Raya Haji celebrations next month and that inter-agency engagement sessions have been held with industry players to find out the issues affecting supply. Chicken traders interviewed by CNA said they estimated that the prices would only go up further in the coming weeks. A trader at a morning market in Taman Pelangi, JB, who only wanted to be known as Ms Than Than, said prices are unlikely to reduce in the near future. “People still buy the chicken. We help them cut and clean too. I don’t see the price dropping anytime soon. It’s only going up. If the feed and petrol prices all go up, chicken prices will remain high too,” she said. She sells her chickens for RM13.50 per kg and they are usually sold out by 10am. She added that she knows the ceiling price is RM8.90 per kg but selling it at that price would only mean losses for her. Trader Wan Rohaini, who has been selling chicken for about 30 years at the Jalan Othman market, currently sells her chickens for RM11 per kg. She purchases them from her supplier at RM9.60 per kg. She said that prices have gone up after the Hari Raya celebrations in May instead of decreasing. “I am afraid prices will go up further because of the whole situation. They have been going up over the last few months. I have had no choice but to explain to my customers the situation. “I feel for them also because not everyone can afford the rise in prices. But if I have to sell at a loss, I might as well just sit at home,” she said. https://www.channelnewsasia.com/asia/malaysia-chicken-export-ban-one-week-prices-yet-fall-markets-2732166

Not so easy oh, did IT in logistics before, the pain of keeping inventory, storage, etc etc. There's actually a lot of potential in this market if someone is willing to pour time and money into it.

Let's just say if you know the right people, you can get anything for the right price.

Not easy for an elderly person to make that transition, plus he will be fighting with Amazon, Book Depository, Carousell, etc

Wtf, how irresponsible

HONG KONG: Hong Kong's largest national security case was sent to trial on Tuesday (Jun 7), after lingering 15 months in pre-trial procedures during which most of the 47 defendants were denied bail. Under the security law, which Beijing imposed in 2020 following huge, sometimes violent democracy protests, the pro-democracy figures are charged with "conspiracy to subversion" for organising an unofficial primary election. Subversion is one of the four major crimes under the security law and can carry a punishment of up to life in prison. The defendants, aged between 24 and 66, include democratically elected lawmakers and district councillors, as well as unionists, academics and others, whose political stances range from modest reformists to radical localists. The case was first brought to court in March 2021, when most of the 47 were denied bail after a four-day marathon hearing before a judge handpicked by the government to try national security cases. Most of the pre-trial hearings over the past 15 months, though held in an open court, have been subject to reporting restrictions - with the court repeatedly refusing applications from defendants and journalists for them to be lifted. Family members and legal representatives have told AFP that the opaqueness has made the defendants "frustrated and depleted", and allowed the prosecution to "move the goalposts". After a three-and-half-day hearing that began Wednesday and Thursday last week and finished Tuesday, all but one of the 47 defendants were committed to a senior court by Principal Magistrate Peter Law, one of the national security judges. Last Wednesday, Law announced that seventeen defendants had been committed for trial. They included veteran activists "Long Hair" Leung Kwok-hung, barrister Lawrence Lau, and journalist-turned-activist Gwyneth Ho. Twenty-nine others - including legal scholar Benny Tai, who was also one of the leaders of the "Occupy Central" movement in 2014 - were committed on Monday and Tuesday. Defendants who submit a non-guilty plea are committed for trial, and those who plead guilty committed for sentencing, according to the Magistrates Ordinance. The one outstanding defendant will join the cohort later after further proceedings before the magistrate. Hong Kong faces scrutiny over whether its legal system can maintain its independence as China cracks down on dissent with the security law. More than 180 people have been arrested over the past two years since the security law came into force - the bulk of them activists, unionists and journalists - and 115 have been prosecuted. Three men have been convicted and sentenced to jail for 43 months to nine years. One of them sought to appeal his 69-month sentence on Tuesday, with the court reserving judgement until early September. The 47 defendants form the largest group in one single case under the law. Authorities say the security law has successfully returned stability to the financial hub, which was upended for seven straight months by large and sometimes violent protests in 2019. But critics say it has eviscerated civil liberties and the political plurality the city used to enjoy. https://www.channelnewsasia.com/asia/hong-kong-pro-democracy-figures-set-largest-national-security-trial-2731426

Oh Ow Kee, also fondly known as Orchard Road's "Beads Uncle", passed away on June 5, 2022. He was 80. Passed away age 80 According to an obituary published in The Straits Times on June 7, he leaves behind a wife, a son, two daughters and grandchildren. Oh was a regular busker along Orchard Road during pre-Covid times. His public performances involved swinging chains of beads around his neck and waist. He would also lay out his different sets of beads on the ground. In January 2021, rumours circulated on TikTok claiming that Oh had passed away. However, Jonathan Goh, the co-chair of Buskers' Association Singapore, debunked the claims and said Oh was alive and well. Goh previously shared that Oh had been unable to perform at Orchard Road due to Covid-19 restrictions. Went back to busking After busking was allowed again on Apr. 2, 2022, Oh reappeared on the streets to showcase his craft again. Here's a video of Oh back in action again: Though, the YouTube user did note that Oh performed with just one chain of beads instead of the usual two, attributing it to his age. https://mothership.sg/2022/06/beads-uncle-pass-away/

A two-year-old boy in Florida shot and killed his father by accident after a loaded gun was left unattended, authorities there said on June 6. This is the latest in a string of high-profile mass and accidental shootings reported over the past several days. The child's mother, Marie Ayala, was conducting cardiopulmonary resuscitation on her husband, Reggie Mabry, when police officers arrived at the victim's home near Orlando on May 26. The authorities were alerted after a 911 call was made. The man died shortly afterwards in the hospital. Eldest child told police younger brother pulled trigger Orange County Sheriff John Mina said at a news conference that law enforcement initially believed the 26-year-old man had shot himself. But the eldest of the couple's three children subsequently told investigators that his two-year-old brother pulled the trigger. The weapon was a Glock 19 pistol, according to The New York Times. Gun left in bag on the floor The father had reportedly left the gun in a bag on the ground, and the child came across it. The man was shot in the back while playing a video game on a computer. Five family members, including a five-month-old girl, were in the same room when the shot was fired. The mother was in bed when she heard a shot go off and got up, NYT reported what the arrest report stated. Both parents had run-ins with law The sheriff said both parents were on parole at the time after multiple offences of child neglect and drug use. Both father and mother were convicted felons and were not allowed by law to own guns. Mother charged The mother, 28, was charged with manslaughter on Monday, NBC News reported. She was charged with manslaughter, culpable negligence and possession of a firearm by a felon and could face up to 15 years in prison if convicted of manslaughter. The arrest report stated that as the woman's husband was taken to a hospital, she asked her five-year-old child how the two-year-old had managed to “get” the gun, according to NYT. The child could not explain how he had gotten the gun and replied that his younger sibling had just “shot papi”. When investigators asked the mother where they kept their gun, “her answers changed frequently”, the arrest report stated. She first said in a purple bag on the floor, then that it was in a compartment, and then that it was in a box in a closet or a broken safe. Lost both parents "Gun owners that do not properly secure their firearms are just one split second away from one of these tragedies happening in their homes," Sheriff Mina said. "Now, these young children have effectively lost both of their parents. Their father is dead, their mother is in jail, and a young child has to live his life knowing that he shot his father," he added. In August 2021, another two-year-old child found a gun that had been left in a Paw Patrol backpack and fatally shot his mother in the head while she was taking part in a videoconference. https://mothership.sg/2022/06/florida-boy-shoots-father/

https://www.facebook.com/reel/1046935336237192

https://www.facebook.com/reel/1300647703799923

Police officers are not life guards, if you're an idiot who thinks you can swim away from the cops and drowns while you're doing it, they are not required to save you.

Just like their democracy

In a statement released in late May, Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor declared that the government has no intention to invest in the tourist attraction, which has proven costly to repair and maintain. “We have clearly indicated that the government has no plans to invest money in the operation of the restaurant as we are not good at running such premises,” the chief executive, who will finish her term on June 30, said. “We won’t force through an unfeasible proposal or one that requires a large amount of public money for implementation simply because it has been raised in the policy address,” she added. “I find this situation to be of no problem at all.” In early 2020, the establishment closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Its owner has reported losses totaling more than 100 million Hong Kong dollars (approximately $12.75 million). Jumbo Kingdom, which includes Jumbo Floating Restaurant and the adjoining Tai Pak Floating Restaurant, is operated by Aberdeen Restaurant Enterprises. The parent company reportedly tried and failed to donate Jumbo Floating Restaurant to a company or organization that could take over its daily operations. “Over the past year, [the company] has had discussions with more than a dozen companies and organizations regarding its unconditional offer to donate the Jumbo Floating Restaurant,” the company, a subsidiary of Melco International Development, said in a statement. “However there was no taker, with all parties citing high operating costs.” Hong Kong authorities received a report on May 31 that Jumbo Floating Restaurant’s kitchen barge capsized at the Aberdeen Typhoon Shelter, days after Aberdeen Restaurant Enterprises announced its plans to move the floating restaurant to a new location in June. No injuries or deaths in connection to the incident were reported. Jumbo Floating Restaurant became an iconic landmark after the late Macau casino tycoon Stanley Ho Hung-sun opened its doors in 1976. The three-story-high restaurant spanning 76 meters (249 feet) has reportedly served over 30 billion customers since its opening day, including royals such as Queen Elizabeth, Hollywood stars Gwyneth Paltrow and Tom Cruise and Hong Kong actor Chow Yun-fat. The tourist attraction has also been featured in several movies, including James Bond film “The Man With the Golden Gun” (1974), Jackie Chan film “The Protector” (1985) and medical thriller “Contagion” (2011). “Jumbo was a must for tourists. Everybody loved it, men and women, young and old,” Choi Pat-tai, an 86-year-old veteran tour guide, told South China Morning Post. “Jumbo is a treasure for Hong Kong, giving visitors an exceptional taste of the special Chinese culture. The city’s officials should resort to every means to conserve and invigorate it.” “How can I bear to let it go? This is a landmark which has helped boost Hong Kong’s economy, from tourism and catering to the hotel industry,” 63-year-old sampan operator Thomas Lai was quoted as saying. “Without a landmark, how do you attract tourists to Hong Kong? They can go to other countries to look for a distinctive experience.” Reverend Peter Koon and six other lawmakers have launched a petition asking the government to create a plan to revitalize the iconic Hong Kong landmark. “Without Jumbo, part of the project such as water tourism in Southern district will be in vain. If it can be preserved in Hong Kong, it can create a synergy effect with Ocean Park,” Southern district councilor Jonathan Leung Chun said. https://nextshark.com/jumbo-floating-restaurant-sinking/

Waited so long for this, hope they don't mess this up like Lucifer