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The Malaysianist
When the band-aid comes off

When the band-aid comes off

PM Anwar seems like a man with a half-baked plan as fuel subsidy cuts loom.

May 06, 2024
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The Malaysianist
When the band-aid comes off
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You’re reading a subscriber-only post of The Malaysianist, the newsletter at the intersection of money and power by journalist Emmanuel Samarathisa. 

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Today’s brief covers:

⛽ PM Anwar’s plan or lack thereof as fuel subsidy cuts loom

🍗 QSR’s suspension of more than 100 KFC outlets

🏗 Mirzan Mahathir’s forays into South Sudan

🤖 Microsoft’s Malaysian rollercoaster

And in case you missed last week’s post 👇🏽

Phison's second chance

Phison's second chance

Emmanuel Samarathisa
·
May 1, 2024
Read full story

On Labour Day, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim announced a salary hike for civil servants of more than 13%

That was his May Day surprise for a group of people that make up the important cogs in the big bureaucratic machine that is Putrajaya and who also form an important voter base. 

While details will be released when Budget 2025 is tabled, Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil – who’s also the de facto government spokesperson – said the raise would be effective December and will cost RM10 billion. 

The hike is expected to be tiered with a higher percentage going to the bottom ranks of the service. 

National newswire Bernama is selling this as “the highest increase in the nation’s history”. 

Propaganda aside, there were two occasions in the past where salaries were raised.

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