Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim says hardcore poverty could be eradicated by March next year, citing aggressive government aid as the main driver. We speak to Niaz Asadullah, Adjunct Professor at the College of Population Studies, Chulalongkorn University, about whether the data supports the optimism and what structural barriers still remain. (Starts at 23:33)

• Families dispute police account of Durian Tunggal shooting: Police say the three men killed were armed-robbery suspects and that an officer fired in self-defense, but families have released audio suggesting otherwise. Lawyer N. Surendran of Lawyers for Liberty breaks down the inconsistencies and the limitations of current oversight mechanisms. (Starts at 18:14)

• Homes near transit have fewer parking lots?: Transport Minister Anthony Loke wants developers to build fewer parking bays for new projects near LRT and MRT stations, arguing that current requirements inflate housing prices and discourage transit use. We discuss how cities like Singapore, Tokyo, and Sydney tackled similar reforms and what this could mean for affordability and car-dependence in Malaysia. (Starts at 12:37)

• What Trump’s new National Security Strategy means for the world: The latest U.S. National Security Strategy reframes America’s priorities, shifting resources to the Western Hemisphere, adopting confrontational language toward Europe, and outlines a harder deterrence posture in the Indo-Pacific. Thomas Daniel, Director of Foreign Policy and Security Studies at ISIS Malaysia, analyses what’s new and what matters for Asia. (Starts at 6:02)

• FIFA’s 2026 World Cup draw becomes a Trump showcase: What should have been a straightforward World Cup draw turned surreal when FIFA President Gianni Infantino unveiled a brand-new Peace Prize and awarded its first-ever edition to Donald Trump. We unpack why the draw felt more like a political performance than a football event. (Starts at 0:24)

Image Credit: Shutterstock

Produced by: Sneha Harikannan, Sudais Ferhard, Dashran Yohan, Juliet Jacobs

Presented by: Sharaad Kuttan, Dashran Yohan

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Categories:  politics,  international,  government,  controversies,  Law/Activism

Tags:  madani economic policy,  melaka police,  fifa 2026,  fifa peace prize,  poverty eradication,  bukit aman,  mrt,  lrt,  public transportation,  us foreign policy,  world cup,  hardcore poverty,