24-May-24 17:00

Onysha Boak, Programme Officer, Project Liber8

Today's countdown includes:

1. Make-a-Wish grants their thousandth wish to nine-year old Ayra Medina, who wished to be a mermaid princess. Irene Tan, CEO of Make-a-Wish Malaysia talks to us about what makes Ayra's wish special.

2. Phileo Damansara MRT is finally getting a proper pedestrian walkway, thanks to Petaling Jaya MP Lee Chean Chung and BCMY, a grassroots organisation of commuter cyclists and urbanists. Rajiv Rishyakaran, Bukit Gasing ADUN explains the who goes into designing a usable walkway.

3. With Malaysia's aspirations to become a regional data hub, should we open the door for more data centre projects? The answer, according to analysts and industry players, is yes! Associate Professor Dato' Husin Jazri, who is Director of the Global Centre for Cyber Safety from Taylor's University weighs in on whether Malaysia is ready to realise its aspirations to become a highly-sought after data hub.

2. UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak surprised Britain's political players and observers after calling for an early election. Some say the timing of the announcement is part of Sunak's election campaign strategy. Patrick Diamond, Associate Professor of Public Policy at Queen Mary University of London shed lights on what the sentiment is like in the UK, and issues that may come up during the campaign.

1. Our top story: Mala Vello, a Malaysian victim of human trafficking who has been trapped in Nepal for the past 12-years, is fighting to come back home to her family. We speak to Onysha Boak, a programme officer with Project Liber8, on Mala's situation, and what we can do to bring her home.

Image credit: Project Liber8