A proposal was presented by the Dewan Rakyat’s Standing Order’s committee to the House last week intending to convert the 10 existing Parliamentary Special Select Committees into permanent ones. But what impact will this have on Parliamentary process? We speak to parliamentary researcher Maha Balakrishnan on the existing gaps in the proposal that need to be addressed.

Other stories we covered:

• Bullying prevention in residential schools: It was recently reported that parents are resistant to sending their children to boarding schools due to bullying. Although Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek has disputed these claims, we reached out to Marscella Ling, a student leader from #endviolence as to whether measures being taken by the schools and the Ministry are enough. We also hear from lawyer Dato Vignesh Kumar on how the law can be improved to tackle bullying.
• Silambam excluded from Sukma: The ancient martial art from Tamil Nadu, India has been in consideration to become a legacy sport, but its recent removal from the upcoming Sukma Games has raised concerns regarding Malaysian and Indian representation in sports. We talk to Marimutthu Chinnathambi, deputy president of the Malaysia Silambam Association and Haresh Deol, sports journalist from Twentytwo-13 about the situation.
• Drought could push millions into worldwide starvation: This is based on a report published by the US National Drought Mitigation Centre and the UN Convention to Combat Desertification. We hear from Prof Dr Fatimah Mohamad Arshad, research fellow at Universiti Putra Malaysia’s Laboratory of Agricultural and Food Policy Studies on the ways droughts can impact regional food security and how we can prepare for it.
• Food influencers — a bridge between doctors and civilians?: While the Health Ministry seems to be all for the idea of engaging food influencers to promote healthier eating habits, experts seem to think otherwise. We talk about this and whether food influencers really have the credentials needed to lead the way into a healthier future.

Image Credit: Shutterstock

Produced by: Sneha Harikannan, Tee Shiao Eek, Alia Zefri, Lim Sue Ann

Presented by: Lee Chwi Lynn, Dashran Yohan

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Categories:  food,  international,  controversies,  sports,  education,  government,  politics,  Law/Activism,  environment

Tags:  silambam,  food,  influencer,  drought,  food security,  SUKMA,  school,  bullying,  dewan rakyat,  parliament,  select committees,