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1. Former PM Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi dies aged 85
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1. Former PM Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi dies aged 85
#AWANIEnglish #AWANINews
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00:00Good evening, you're watching Awani tonight with me, Fahna Sheh.
00:11Former Prime Minister Tun Abdullah Mabadawi has died at the age of 85.
00:17His son-in-law and former Health Minister Keri Jamaluddin
00:20confirms his passing at the National Heart Institute at 7.10pm.
00:24Tun Abdullah, who was fondly known as Pak Lah, served as Malaysia's fifth Prime Minister from 2003
00:32after Tun Dr Mahdi Mohamad stepped down.
00:35He held the role for six years until 2009
00:38and earned the title as Malaysia's Father of Human Capital Development
00:43after introducing the National Human Capital Policy during his tenure.
00:47Tun Abdullah was also the Kepala Batas MP for eight consecutive terms from 1978 to 2013.
00:56He is survived by his wife Tun Jain Abdullah and four children.
01:00We have with us Dr. Wee San to look back at some of the legacies left by our former Prime Minister
01:21Tun Abdullah Mabadawi.
01:23Thank you so much for joining us, Owee, Doctor.
01:25Now, Doctor, how would you describe Tun Abdullah's legacy?
01:30What do you think was his greatest contribution to Malaysia,
01:33not just as a politician, but as his statements as well?
01:37Well, you mentioned Tun Abdullah as the father of human capital development.
01:42To me personally, perhaps I will address him as the father of democratization of Malaysia.
01:51Sure, of course, we are always a democratic country,
01:54but I still remember I started as a political commentator
02:00during, indeed, Abdullah Badawi's premiership,
02:05and I saw the gradual opening up of rooms for criticism of government,
02:13rooms for constructive suggestions to the government
02:16as to how to better develop this country and so on
02:20under Tun Abdullah's leadership.
02:23So, to me, for example,
02:25I would indeed call him the father of democratization for Malaysia,
02:32and I hope his example would live on in this country.
02:37Right, Doctor. I think that's rightly put.
02:40Now, he came into office on the heels of Tun Dr. Mahdi Mohamad.
02:44How did his leadership style differ, and how was it received at the time?
02:48I mean, he was often described as soft-spoken and mild-mannered.
02:52Was that his strength?
02:54Well, indeed, soft-spokenness and mild-mannered
02:58was Abdullah Badawi's, shall we say,
03:01Tun Abdullah Badawi's secret weapon.
03:05He might look to be a bit soft, frankly speaking,
03:09but when he wants to be tough, I think he could do so as well.
03:16But, you know, when he took over from Tun Dr. Mahdi Mohamad,
03:20it was after more than two decades of, shall we say,
03:26a bit more of the hard time of rule in Malaysia.
03:30So people breathed a fresh air of more liberalization,
03:36both in terms of society, in politics, in media, and so on.
03:41And I think that, in a sense, revitalized Malaysia's national spirit.
03:47So also, for example, he was able to reach out to different communities,
03:54to different political parties, and so on.
04:00It is no secret, for example, that later on,
04:04Tun Mahathir did not get along with Tun Abdullah.
04:08But, well, Tun Abdullah was willing to meet up with Tun Mahathir.
04:12I still remember that very iconic photo of the two of them,
04:16like a four-eyes meeting.
04:18And I think it makes our politics to be, in a sense,
04:23a more consultative one.
04:25And people, in a sense, restore confidence in Malaysian politics.
04:31Right. I mean, I think the term of endearment,
04:33we call him Paklah, that truly describes, you know,
04:37his leadership style and how easily approachable he was.
04:41Now, Doctor, if I may ask,
04:43what do you think Tun Abdullah's passing symbolizes for Malaysia?
04:48How do you think history will remember him,
04:50especially at a time now where the country
04:52is navigating its own political evolution?
04:56Well, you see, now our country, domestically,
05:00we have this huge confrontation, right,
05:02between the ruling coalition and the opposition.
05:06And externally, we are facing a very uncertain
05:10international socioeconomic situation.
05:14So Tun Abdullah's calm and steady hand
05:17you know, mild mannered on the surface.
05:21But as you say, still water runs deep, right?
05:25Be able to reach out to different stakeholders.
05:29I think that gives us a lot of lessons,
05:32both for the ruling government of the day,
05:35as well as for the opposition,
05:37that it is possible to sit down together,
05:40to plan for our nation,
05:42and hopefully bringing our country forward here.
05:46Right.
05:46Still water runs deep.
05:47I like how you put it.
05:48Thank you so much, Doctor, for your time.
05:51Right.
05:53Now we move on to...
05:55Right.
06:03Now we move on to the next news,
06:05which is Chinese President Xi Jinping
06:07that is set for a three-day state visit to Malaysia
06:10from April 15th to 17th
06:13at the invitation of the young Departuan Agong,
06:15Sultan Ibrahim.
06:16Accompanied by cabinet ministers
06:18and senior Chinese officials,
06:19Xi's visit will begin with an official state welcome
06:22and a courtesy visit to Sultan Ibrahim
06:25at the Istana Negara.
06:28He is also scheduled to meet
06:30Prime Minister Datuk Sri Anwar Ibrahim
06:32to discuss bilateral cooperation,
06:34as well as regional and global issues
06:36of mutual interest.
06:38Both leaders will also witness
06:40the exchange of memorandum of understanding
06:42and agreements between Malaysia and China
06:45to strengthen strategic cooperation.
06:47This marks Xi's first series of state visits
06:50in 2025,
06:52which also includes stops in Vietnam and Cambodia.
06:55His last state visit to Malaysia was in 2013,
06:58during which both countries elevated their ties
07:01to a comprehensive strategic partnership.
07:04Malaysia and China established diplomatic relations
07:06on May 31st, 1974
07:08and celebrated the 50th anniversary
07:10of their bilateral ties last year.
07:13Meanwhile, the Kuala Lumpur International Airport
07:18KLA-E Terminal 2 will be temporarily inaccessible
07:21to road users during road closures
07:23starting Tuesday 15th and Thursday 17th April
07:26following the Chinese President Xi Jinping's
07:29three-day state visit to Malaysia.
07:31Full road closures will be implemented
07:33from 6pm to 7pm on Tuesday, April 15th
07:36and from 8.50am to 9.50am on Thursday, April 17th
07:42involving Leboh KLA-E, Elite Expressway,
07:45Lingkaran Puterjaya, Leboh Puterjaya Dengkel,
07:48Pesiaran Selatan, Leboh Gemilang and Jalan P5.
07:51There will be no access to KLA-E Terminal 2 departures,
07:54arrivals and parking areas during this period.
07:57Malaysia Airport Holdings Berhad, MHP,
08:00informed that KLA-E's Terminal 2 is accessible
08:02only via KLA-E Transit from Terminal 1,
08:06reminding passengers to make alternative travel arrangements.
08:11US President Donald Trump says he doesn't think
08:14a foreign company should control US steel.
08:17This is a reiteration of the comment he made last week
08:20that dimmed hopes for a green light
08:23of a US$14 billion bid by Japan's Nippon Steel
08:27to buy the US firm.
08:28I think that the United States steel,
08:35one of the great companies of the world,
08:38US steel, should remain in our country.
08:42But the tariffs will be in place
08:44in the not distant future because, as you know,
08:47like we did with steel, like we did with automobiles,
08:50like we did with aluminum, which are now fully on,
08:53we'll be doing that with semiconductors,
08:55with chips and numerous other things.
08:59And that'll take place in the very near future.
09:02Trump said on Wednesday he did not want to see
09:05the US steel go to Japan,
09:08sending its shares down 7%.
09:10The two companies later said they were working closely
09:13with the Trump administration
09:15to secure a significant investment.
09:18On Sunday, Trump said he would be announcing
09:20the tariff rate on imported semiconductors
09:22over the next week, adding that there would be flexibility
09:25on some companies in the sector.
09:30South Korea former President Yoon Sook-yul
09:33faced criminal court in Seoul this morning
09:36for charges of leading an insurrection
09:38following martial law decree last year.
09:41Yoon stresses to the court that his six-hour martial law
09:44move in December was not a coup d'etat,
09:47but a peaceful message aimed to the public
09:51of what he called a dangerous political obstruction
09:54by the opposition.
09:58Prosecutors say Yoon acted illegally,
10:01paralyzing key institutions and ordering troops
10:03to confront lawmakers.
10:05Yoon claimed military officers had overstepped,
10:08but one commander testified he was told
10:11to drag lawmakers out, an accusation Yoon rejects.
10:15The constitutional court has already removed Yoon from office,
10:19calling his actions unconstitutional and destabilizing.
10:23The charge of insurrection is punishable
10:25by life imprisonment or even the death penalty.
10:29South Korea, however, has not carried out executions in decades.
10:33The country is set to hold a snap election on June 3.
10:36Meanwhile, Bangladesh has restored the phrase
10:44accept Israel on its passports,
10:46effectively banning citizens from travelling to the Jewish states.
10:50The whole ministry reportedly issued a directive
10:53for the Passport and Immigration Department
10:55to reinstate the clause.
10:57The phrase valid for all countries except Israel
11:02had been printed on Bangladeshi passports for decades.
11:06However, it was removed in 2021
11:08during the tenure of former Prime Minister Shehaz Sina,
11:11who was ousted last year.
11:13Israel remains a flashpoint issue
11:16in Muslim-majority Bangladesh,
11:18which does not recognize the state.
11:20Bangladesh's support for an independent Palestinian state
11:23was also visible over the weekend,
11:25when around 100,000 people gathered in Dhaka
11:27to stand in solidarity with Gaza.
11:30At least 1,574 Palestinians have been killed
11:34since January's ceasefire between Israel and Hamas fell apart,
11:38bringing the overall death toll of the war in Gaza
11:41to nearly 51,000.
11:45That wraps up the show.
11:47On behalf of Awani tonight,
11:49we share our condolences for the passing
11:51of former Prime Minister Tun Abdullah Maddawi.
11:54Next up is Consider This with Hafiz Marzouki
11:58for more on this.
11:58Thank you for backseat.
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12:06Now let's find out as a church.
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