RM140bn Bandar Malaysia, TikTok TikTok the Clock is Ticking — Thoughts for the Day
RM140bn Bandar Malaysia
The kickstart of Bandar Malaysia will boost business across all sectors as it will be a hub to local and international fronts, says Finance Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz. With a gross development value of RM140 billion, it will be the biggest development of its kind in our country. Under the agreement, which marks the kickstart of Bandar Malaysia, IWH-CREC will take up a 60% stake in Bandar Malaysia Sdn Bhd, the project’s master developer, from TRX City, with the remaining 40% held by TRX City. — The Edge (Link)
I guess this will “boost” the Malaysian Economy? Right? My opinion is that mega-projects are just a way to “ Hey, look, we are building things, we are trying to benefit the people on the ground by giving contracts to our local players and also bring about development to Malaysians”. Let’s face it, do we need more offices, shoplots, shopping complexes etc in this day and age. Go around to all the “retail” and “mixed” developments around KL and Selangor, most of them are empty. Average occupancy rates of offices in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor has been on a decline since 2016, with less and less tenants.
Building Bandar Malaysia will just exacerbate the oversupply problem. I think Malaysia needs to move away from this “mega projects” and “property development” mindset as it is doing more harm than good. The need for space will always be there, and I understand that but our population growth has been moderating since the 1990s, and does not justify the continued expansion of building activities.
TikTok TikTok the Clock is Ticking
ByteDance’s proposal for US software firm Oracle Corp to become a technology partner in its TikTok app will ultimately need approval from both Chinese and US officials, the company said today. The proposal, submitted to the Trump administration over the weekend, envisages Oracle becoming a “trusted” technology partner and making TikTok Global a US-headquartered company. US President Donald Trump has ordered ByteDance to divest TikTok amid US concerns user data could be passed to China’s Communist Party government. He has said he would ban TikTok in the United States as early as Sept 20 if ByteDance does not comply. — The Edge (Link)
I envision Trump doing this to the proposal. Here’s the meme.
Whether he will ban TikTok by 20 Sep 2020, hmmmmm I am not really sure. He has a tendency to flip flop around to make himself “unpredictable”. But its election season, and he does the craziest things to ensure he gets re-elected. If the backlash from the TikTok community is big enough, maybe he will backtrack but I highly doubt so. After all, we are talking about Trump supporters here, where it is a CULT for Trump.
