Category: General

The city government of Surigao is conducting a weeklong tourism campaign to highlight its cultural heritage, local creative industries, and economic potential. The 2024 National Tourism Week and Creative Industries Month in Sept. 23 to 27 will showcase local craftsmanship, foods, and goods from the city and nearby municipalities in Surigao del Norte. ‘The weeklong activity will also highlight creative festival performances and exhibits of our local artists,’ the city government said in a statement on Tuesday. City Tourism Officer Roselyn Merlin said the activities will promote Surigao City’s local creative industries to attract more tourists. The ‘Lunsod-Lunsad’ program, in

PETALING JAYA, Bollywood singer Udit Narayan, known as the “King of Melodies”, is set to mesmerise his Malaysian fans at the Mega Star Arena, Kuala Lumpur, on Dec 28. The concert, organised by VVST Digital Creation and scheduled to begin at 7.30pm, will take Hindi music enthusiasts on a nostalgic journey through Bollywood’s golden era, featuring hits from the 1990s to the present day. With a career spanning over three decades, Udit has sung more than 25,000 songs in 36 languages. He is renowned for lending his voice to the “Three Kings of Bollywood” – Datuk Shah Rukh Khan, Salman

KUALA LUMPUR, An overall healthcare allocation increase for the upcoming Budget 2025 is needed to allow more meaningful improvements and reforms in the healthcare system, said the Malaysian Medical Association (MMA). Its president Datuk Dr Kalwinder Singh Khaira said the Health White Paper (HWP) goal of increasing the health budget to five per cent of the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) should be met sooner, as over 70 per cent of Malaysians rely on public healthcare services for their healthcare needs. He said the association has proposed several suggestions for the upcoming budget, including creating Khas Untuk Penyandang (KUP) Gred

KUALA LUMPUR, The Federal Territories Islamic Religious Council (MAIWP) must prioritise integrity management to enhance societal values and support the Malaysia MADANI development agenda, said Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Religious Affairs) Datuk Dr Mohd Na’im Mokhtar. He called for an end to the ‘old stigma’ surrounding inefficient management and stressed that the agency responsible for Islamic affairs should not be perceived as lagging behind the mainstream. He also highlighted the importance of MAIWP focusing on economic empowerment programmes for the community, addressing welfare, protection, economy, healthcare, education and development for the underprivileged and the poor. ‘As public servants,

KUCHING, Tragedy often strikes without warning. Such was the case for Sarawak’s lawn bowls gold medallist Ahmad Bashirun Ismail, who was confined to a wheelchair after falling from a coconut tree 11 years ago, leaving him partially paralysed. Even more heartbreaking is that his climb up the three-metre tree was an act of kindness, as he intended to help an unknown woman who craved coconut water due to her thirst in a remote village here. “I had just returned from fishing in the village when I met a woman who was thirsty and craving coconut water. At first, I didn’t