The Breakfast Grille

Tan Keng Liang, Gerakan Youth Chief and Vice President, explains why and how Gerakan is still relevant in today's political landscape despite the heavy losses it received in the previous two general elections.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ahead of the opening ceremony of the Rio 2016 Olympics, we take a trip down memory lane to the last Summer Olympics, the London Games in 2012. Lord Sebastian Coe, Chairman of the London Organising Committee for the 2012 Olympic Games, shares with the Breakfast Grille the challenges a host country faces in organising an international sporting event, the economic multiplier effect of hosting the Olympics, and the future of the Games. Lord Coe was in KL last October, as a featured speaker at the Global Transformation Forum, organised by Pemandu.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Out-of-home advertising media company, Big Tree Outdoor, is set to gain more advertising space on RapidKL's new LRT extension lines. BFM speaks to Jeff Cheah, CEO of Big Tree to find out more about the challenges of the advertising industry and Big Tree's current and future business plans.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Gary Brown, CEO of 7-Eleven Malaysia Holdings Berhad, is excited about the future of convenience despite weak conditions and a shrinking ringgit, thanks to its reach, product variety and yes, convenience.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Based in Singapore, Kapital Boost is a crowdfunding platform which hopes to address the lack of financing option for SMEs, whilst allowing members to invest in accordance to Syariah principles. Erly Witoyo, Managing Partner of Kapital Boost shares his views on new frontiers of crowdfunding within the Islamic finance space.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

SMEs are usually the heartbeat of a country's economy. However, funding them proves challenging since they carry different risk profiles compared to corporate customers. Funding Societies aims to solve this problem through P2P lending. Listen to Kelvin Teo, Funding Societies CEO, on how they intend to capture a burgeorning niche market.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Listed on NASDAQ in 1996, Monster.com was one of the first public online job search platforms. However, Monster.com had lost more than 90% of its market capitalisation between 2007 and 2014, during the tenure of its then CEO Sal Ianuzzi. Has the company fully recovered from its lows? We ask Sanjay Modi, Managing Director APAC & Middle East for Monster.com.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With an agency force of below 1,000 currently, RHB Asset Management plans to beef up the number to something that is closer to its competitors which range from thousands to tens of thousands. The selling of financial products will see an interesting confluence of traditional agency models and the incipient fintech methods.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Syed Nabil Aljefri, Secretary General of the ASEAN Business Council, discusses economic integration among the bloc's ten countries and the challenges and opportunities therein.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

E-Commerce giant, Lazada is flush from a US$ 1 billion investment from Alibaba. We speak to Lazada Malaysia CEO, Hans-Peter Ressel on how Lazada intends to leverage this new relationship to scale their business to greater heights.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Malaysians are very familiar with GSK's products - Panadol, Horlicks and Eno. Today, we cover a myriad of topics with Ramil Burden, General Manager of GSK Malaysia & Brunei as we ask him about the Pharmaceutical Bill, GSK's ability to make sales post-patent protection, and also on their FMCG business.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

CIMB Islamic was once the world's fastest growing Islamic Banks. However, after years of enjoying unbridled growth, they now have to face reality, operating in a more established world of Islamic finance. Listen to Rafe Haneef, CEO of CIMB Islamic Bank Berhad explain how their Shariah compliant bank intends to push growth forward.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Manipal Group is a household name in India and Malaysia. The Manipal Institute of Technology is a globally recognised and respected educational institution. A substantial portion of Malaysian doctors is also alumni of the Manipal University in India. In this breakfast grille we get an update on Manipal's hospital in Klang as well as the expensive new campus of Manipal International University in Nilai. Dr Arun also shares his opinion on testy issues like the TPPA and the proposed dispensary separation.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Homegrown digital payments firm Soft Space has developed a device that works with smartphones to accept credit card payments. CEO Chang Chew Soon shares why Soft Space had to go overseas to get their start, and his dreams of Malaysia becoming a "cashless society". See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The slogan 1Malaysia was inaugurated in 2009 during Najib Razak’s debut Budget speech as Prime Minister. The slew of measures announced were designed to mark of his Administration from that of his predecessor. The speech started with the slogan “1Malaysia, People First, Performance Now” and ended with “1Malaysia, Together We Prosper”. In between there were references to 1Malaysia Clinic, 1Malaysia Sukuk, 1Malaysia Retirement Scheme and 1United, Innovative Malaysia. In that same speech Najib spoke about his trip to Saudi Arabia and the sovereign 1MDB which has come to taint the Administration despite protestations of innocence. Chandra Muzaffar is best known as a public intellectual, founding the Aliran movement and magazine, and heading organisations such as JUST World Trust. He is a social scientist by training, and a long time observer of Malaysian politics. Yayasan 1Malaysia was established a few months before the Budget 2010 speech and just celebrated its 7th anniversary.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Malaysia has more graduates now more than ever, but does this make Malaysia a better nation that before? We ask the Minister of Higher Education on what this means for the future of Malaysia, and much more   In Malaysia, university enrollment rates are increasingly higher in 2016, almost 40% of those eligible to enrol in universities do enrol in university. This number was actually a far cry just about 40 years ago. In 1979, only 4% of total Malaysians available to apply for universities actually enrol in universities. Because of this importance in the role of tertiary institutions in Malaysia, the government has set up a special ministry called the Ministry of Higher Education to look into this. In the studio with me this morning is Dato’ Seri Idris Jusoh, he is the Minister of Higher Education and he is here to tells us how the ministry has been doing, particularly when it was just shy of 2 years ago you were here, Dato. First of all, thank you for your commitment in coming back and defending your track record as the Minister of Higher Education. If you have any questions for Dato’ Seri Idris, you can text us 0162019000 or you can tweet us @bfmradio. Dato’ Seri, let me start off with Selamat Hari Raya and let’s start with the notion of universities getting lesser funds in Malaysia right now. Based on the budget presentation as well as the supplementary budget presentation by the Prime Minister, the Higher Education Ministry is getting less funding this year than it would had last year and this trend will continue on considering the government is getting less in terms of revenue.   Interview Transcript Do you think that the diminishing budget allocation from the government is going to pose a problem for the Higher Education Ministry? You have to look at our blueprint. Whatever we do at the moment in the ministry is based on our blueprint. Blueprint is based on our consultation, the memorandum that we read, the communication, the open halls that we have with people, focus group, our consultation with UNESCO, World Bank and it’s a global matter. It’s not just an issue. So when we look at the financial sustainability of our universities, we are 80%-90% dependent on the government which is not sustainable. But this budget has been trimmed by RM2.4 billion. Some of the universities, in fact, 19 out of 20 universities will face cuts as much as 20%. So while we understand that we can’t be over reliant on the government and we never should be over reliant on the government, can these universities cope with these cuts? Do they have lead time to actually find other sources of revenue? As I said, it’s based on the blueprint has been agreed upon, they understand why it’s being done and from what I see, of course there’s going to be pain here and there. But this is a pain we have to go through to ensure that universities are going to be financially sustainable in the long run. I was quoting to you, I was telling that our Thammasat is only 30% dependent on the government. We’re not saying that it has got to be 30% but we’re saying that we cannot be 80-90% dependent on the government. So you’re speaking on the pain, that these little bits and pieces of pain that people have to go through, actually is quite serious because, I’m quoting The Sun Daily news here, that over 150 contract professors between the ages of 61-70, they claim and the word that they use is, ‘termination of contracts’ of professors because of budget’s tax cut. Do you think that these professors being terminated is a direct repercussion of the budget allocation being cut to the ministry? You have to understand that this is not termination, okay. Those professors are above 60 years old so their contract expires when they are 60. So those who are unneeded by universities are going to be continued on contract basis. So it’s not termination, it’s not being  continued because they have completed their contract and again I said, the dean, the senate of the university will look into those whom they think are required to universities and will continue giving them contract to serve universities. Some of these professors, even though they are quite senior in age, some of them are heavily specialised in their training, particularly professors in the medical field, where you’re gonna see doctors that have specialised in that particular field of medicine for over 40 years. Isn’t it a shame to let them go because of bureaucratic processes? No, I won’t say it’s bureaucratic. I say again, we give money to give funds to the universities and I said the dean of that particular university or the senate of that particular university will choose whom they think is still fit to teach and they need as a contract professor in the universities. But I do throw a challenge before, if you think there is any particular,as what you s

The world is preoccupied with size as a competitive factor and Islamic banking is no different. How does an entity like Hong Leong Islamic Bank survey the Islamic competitive landscape especially given that half of their customers are non-Muslims. Fintech can also assail a small bank at the other end of the size spectrum with their disruptive intentions.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Telecoms tower firm Edotco is fast expanding in Asia, leveraging on increasing demand for data and connectivity in the region. Suresh Sidhu, CEO, shares more about the company's steady expansion in in Myanmar as well as its relationship with its parent company Axiata.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Putra Business School, formerly the Graduate School Management at Universiti Putra Malaysia, sees the need for the principles of human governance to be taught in B-school programmes. Professor Arfah Salleh, Founding President and CEO  of Putra Business School explains why.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This year, business school INSEAD topped the rankings of the Financial Times' annual Global MBA Rankings for the first time - dislodging the previous year’s leader, Harvard Business School. It is also the first time a business school with a one-year MBA programme made it to the top of the list. We speak to Professor Ilian Mihov, the Dean of INSEAD on how INSEAD is adapting to a changing business education landscape.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

ADUN for Sungai Pinang, a member of the Selangor state government Executive Committee as well as chairman for the Standing Committees for Investment, Industry & Commerce, SMEs, and Transportation, Dato’ Teng speaks to is about the push for increased investments in the state. We ask him what impact government initiatives like the Bio Council, the Aerospace Council as well as dozen of trips overseas, have had on investment levels in view of the Ministry of International Trade and Industries move to streamline Investment Promotional Agencies.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the age of digital communication, postal services around the world are trying to evolve to keep up with the changing times. Datuk Mohd Shukrie Salleh, Group CEO of Pos Malaysia joins us on the Breakfast Grille to discuss the group's push to transform into an integrated logistics player.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Malaysian Global Innovation & Creativity Centre (MaGIC) aims to nurture a vibrant entrepreneurial hub in Malaysia, while creating an ecosystem that provides the necessary support for the development of entrepreneurs. We ask MaGIC's new CEO Ashran Ghazi how he plans to achieve this.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brexit has shocked markets around the globe. Malaysian asset management firms will be under pressure to relook at their asset allocation and restructure asset classes within their portfolio. Listen to Teng Chee Wai, MD of Affin Hwang Asset Management discuss how they will perform under such climate.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Bank Negara wants consumers to get a better deal out of insurance products. The liberalisation of insurance pricing, called 'detariffication' in industry speak, has taken a long time to materialise but will be implemented in the next few years. We find out how this will impact the general insurance industry.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Two years ago, Lay Hong Berhad, the public-listed integrated poultry player and the producers of the Nutriplus brand of eggs, was the target of an unsuccessful hostile takeover by QL Resources. The company is now moving on from the corporate saga by rolling out new plans to boost market share. Yap Chor How, Group Executive Director shares these plans with us on the Breakfast Grille.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Damco Asia, a unit of Maersk Group, is a logistics and supply chain company. Delivering robust results for 2016 will be an ongoing challenge for them. Listen to Thomas Knudsen describe to us how they plan to navigate the stormy conditions to ensure growth can be delivered.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Motorola has undergone a business restructuring from mobile phones to focusing on mission critical and public safety communication. While new growth can come from the travel sector, we also discuss whether their strong position can be disrupted by cheaper alternatives.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Reports of Rohingyas arriving in boats and being turned away from Malaysian shores have put the country in the international spotlight. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) have strongly condemned the move to turn the refugees away, but what exactly is the role of the UN in helping to resolve the crisis? In conjunction with World Refugee Day, we sit down with Richard Towle, UNHCR's Malaysian Representative, for an in-depth look at the complexities of the refugee crisis in the region.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Parliament recently passed the Companies Bill 2015 , a much needed update. But what does it mean for companies, shareholders and directors? Today, our panel consists of Gilbert Gan, Executive Partner at Zaid Ibrahim & Co (a member of ZICO Law) and Dr. Veerinderjeet Singh, Executive Chairman of Axcel-asia. They discuss the nature of the bill and whether it can truly improve ease of doing business as well as achieving greater corporate governance.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Public-listed Seacera Group started out in the tile manufacturing industry, but has since diversified into the property and construction sector. Now it's testing the waters of the medical equipment business through its purchase of a controlling stake in Proligen. What synergy does this have with tiles and property? We ask Zulkarnin Ariffin, Group Managing Director of Seacera Group, on the Breakfast Grille.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How strategic is the shipping industry? Do we need to bail out another industry?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Perlis, the smallest state in Malaysia, aims to punch above its weight. It is revamping itself to achieve developed status by 2030. Listen to Menteri Besar YAB Dato' Seri Azlan Bin Man explain what the state plans to do to achieve that.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

TA has come a long way from its stockbroking days to now an international investor in global property assets. A better share price performance will be a mark of a more successful transition for its young new CEO, the son of TA's founder,  Datuk Tony Tiah.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After a career spanning 40 years with Polis DiRaja Malaysia, Musa Hassan lead the force as the Inspector-General of Police from 2006 to 2010. In 2005, a Royal Commission on the force was constituted which had as one of its central assumptions the acknowledgement that force is "generally viewed as inefficient, uncaring, unable to prevent or check crime, [that] infringements of human rights are extensive and PDRM is not seen as being transparent or accountable to the public”. Now in retirement he continues to promote issues concerning crime and security.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The saga of the unfavourable viral post is a reflection of greater competitive pressures within the telco sector. The 2 new players added to the 3 incumbents will benefit consumers while at the same time challenge the industry. The other challenge is the online revolution and how a leader like Maxis will respond to it.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Danajamin was born out of the 2008 financial crisis to help boost the grade of corporates raising funds in the PDS market. Their CEO, Mohamed Nazri Omar, helps us understand the support role they play in the Malaysian corporate bond market as well as their continued relevance.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chairman of Barisan Nasional's Backbencher Club and UMNO stalwart, Tan Sri Shahrir Abdul Samad, earlier this year announced this will be his last term in politics, after a career spanning close to five decades. Listen to his story as he examines how UMNO today has changed from the days of Tun Dr. Ismail and Tun Abdul Razak.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Norway's Telenor Group is one of the world's largest telecommunications company, with operations spanning across Europe and Asia. It also holds a 49% stake in Digi.Com. Telenor's CEO Sigve Brekke is on the Breakfast Grille to discuss the challenges and opportunities in Asia, as well as Telenor's transformation into a digital service provider.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

One of the themes of the World Economic Forum on Asean is “mastering the Fourth Industrial Revolution” together with sustainable growth and social inclusion, as well as regional integration. Bringing together leaders, politicians and captains of industry, to level up on a whole range of conversations from the necessity of human rights to the transformative power of digitisation.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Amnesty International is one of the world's most established human rights NGO's, having been founded in 1961. As co-chair of the World Economic Forum on ASEAN being held in Kuala Lumpur this year, Shetty challenges the conventional wisdom and "false choices" governments in the region often give their citizens when framing human rights debates.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

While Islamic finance might be known to many, the life and minds of the Shariah scholars of Islamic finance have been shrouded in mystery. Listen to Datuk Dr. Daud Bakar, author of Shariah Minds In Islamic Finance as he tells us about the role Shariah scholars play in Islamic Finance and how they come about to make certain decisions.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

EthisCrowd.com claims to be the world’s first ethical and Shariah-compliant real estate crowdfunding platform, which allows investors to invest in socially responsible projects. Umar Munshi, founder of EthisCrowd.com discusses the group's affordable housing projects in Indonesia -- a market with a lot of potential but also many challenges.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The newly-launched Malaysia Aerospace Industry Association aims to promote and develop Malaysia as the aerospace hub of choice in Asia. Pro-tem President Naguib Mohd Nor joins us on the Breakfast Grille to discuss how the association plans to achieve this goal.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is the Grille that ties up a series of previous grilles. UDA Holdings is a well known name. It has business relationships with previous firms that we've interviewed, including the Kg. Bharu Development Corp, MIDA, BBCC and more. Listen to Datuk Ahmad Ahmad Abu Bakar, CEO of UDA Holdings Berhad defend how this company helps the Bumiputra agenda of the country using property development as a tool of the New Economic Policy.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sasbadi is a household name in the education publishing sector. We pose some tough questions to co-founder and Managing Director, Law King Hui, and ask him how Sasbadi plans to stay relevant in the digital age.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It is challenging for a big company like Petronas Chemicals to deliver high growth as the company has become entrenched in the olefins and fertilisers divisions. PChem's share price is at about the same level over the last 5 years save for oil and currency related volatility. Projects like SAMUR and Rapid give the company some hope.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The volatile business environment has not only affected corporate Malaysia and large conglomerates. Smaller businesses are also feeling the pinch. These include coffee-shops and mamak stalls - a staple and big part of Malaysian food culture. Post-GST, operators are also having to cope with increased costs from foreign worker levies, reduced subsidies and weak consumer sentiment. We discuss how these operators are managing cost inflationary pressures and if that glass of teh tarik costs way more than it should.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Inaugurated with the Lima Declaration - promoting the free circulation of goods, services and people - the Pacific Alliance is a Latin American trade bloc which comprises Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru with Costa Rica and Panama in the process applying for membership. With over 40 countries with Observer status, and 3 out of 4 of in the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement, the bloc is claiming an importance rivalling the more established Mercosur (Common Marker of the South) anchored by Brazil. Mexico as the cornerstone of the bloc which has 37% of Latin America’s population, 35% of its total GDP, 46% of its exports and 50% of its imports. This morning we ask how Malaysia fits into a bloc that seeks actively to engage with Asia.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dato' Ilyas Mohamed, Chairman of Koperasi Amanah Pelaburan Berhad (KAPB), explains how KAPB intends to transform this sleepy organization into a force to be reckoned with in the world of investment funds.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.