Pakatan Harapan retained its Kuala Kubu Bharu state seat at the by-elections which took place over the weekend. Before the elections, many pundits predicted that this would likely be an incredibly tough battle in which either side would win by the slimmest of majorities. Interestingly, Pakatan Harapan’s Pang Sock Tao from the DAP increased their vote share and won relatively comfortably with 57% of the popular vote, while PN’s Khairul Azhari Saut garnered 41% of the vote.

So, what does the KKB by-election result tell us?



Image Credit: DAP Website

Pakatan Harapan retained its Kuala Kubu Bharu state seat at the by-elections which took place over the weekend. Before the elections, many pundits predicted that this would likely be an incredibly tough battle in which either side would win by the slimmest of majorities. Interestingly, Pakatan Harapan’s Pang Sock Tao from the DAP increased their vote share and won relatively comfortably with 57% of the popular vote, while PN’s Khairul Azhari Saut garnered 41% of the vote.So, what does the KKB by-election result tell us?Image Credit: DAP Website

As they say, democracy doesn't begin and end at the ballot box. 
On Beyond the Ballot Box, we have in-depth conversations about political economy and human rights in Malaysia, Southeast Asia, and around the globe through a class prism.

As they say, democracy doesn't begin and end at the ballot box. On Beyond the Ballot Box, we have in-depth conversations about political economy and human rights in Malaysia, Southeast Asia, and around the globe through a class prism.

Beyond the Ballot Box

As they say, democracy doesn't begin and end at the ballot box. On Beyond the Ballot Box, we speak to politicians and analysts and explore burning issues and questions surrounding our fluid and ever-changing political scene.

As they say, democracy doesn't begin and end at the ballot box. On Beyond the Ballot Box, we speak to politicians and analysts and explore burning issues and questions surrounding our fluid and ever-changing political scene.

KKB Post-Election Analysis: Unity Government Becoming More Popular?

The mainstream narrative over the past several decades suggests that inequality is not a significant concern; That so long as the material conditions are going up on average, inequality doesn’t matter; That as long as you’re raising the income ceiling and the floor, the gap between the rich and the poor, the haves and the have nots does not matter. 

But here’s the thing: It does matter!

Understanding inequality is incredibly important, not just to make sense of the economy as a whole but to make sense of political trends, as well. 

Robert Reich is the former US Secretary of Labour, and has spent many, many years studying inequality. He is a Chancellor's Professor of Public Policy at the University of California at Berkeley. He co-founded inequality media and is the author of books such as ‘The System: Who Rigged It, How We Fix It’ and ‘The Common Good’. 

We speak to Robert Reich on why inequality matters. 



Robert Reich will be a speaker at the International Social Wellbeing Conference 2024 organised by KWSP happening on the 4-5 of June. 



Image Credit: Shutterstock

The mainstream narrative over the past several decades suggests that inequality is not a significant concern; That so long as the material conditions are going up on average, inequality doesn’t matter; That as long as you’re raising the income ceiling and the floor, the gap between the rich and the poor, the haves and the have nots does not matter. But here’s the thing: It does matter!Understanding inequality is incredibly important, not just to make sense of the economy as a whole but to make sense of political trends, as well. Robert Reich is the former US Secretary of Labour, and has spent many, many years studying inequality. He is a Chancellor's Professor of Public Policy at the University of California at Berkeley. He co-founded inequality media and is the author of books such as ‘The System: Who Rigged It, How We Fix It’ and ‘The Common Good’. We speak to Robert Reich on why inequality matters. Robert Reich will be a speaker at the <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://iswc.kwsp.gov.my/event/4c64502f-f476-440a-953d-03f8eb33aae9/websitePage:41fdb02f-1a71-4412-a1b9-098c9800cb9f">International Social Wellbeing Conference 2024</a> organised by KWSP happening on the 4-5 of June. Image Credit: Shutterstock

Understanding Inequality is Key to Understanding Politics

About 1 million Palestinians who fled the main city of Gaza due to Israel’s bombardment and acts of genocide are currently seeking refuge in Rafah. Rafah was supposed to be a safe zone. It was declared a safe zone by Israel. But guess what? The Zionist regime, currently led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has invaded Rafah and is continuing its ethnic cleansing. 

Just about a day ago, Israeli forces bombed a camp housing displaced Palestinians, killing 45 people.

Our guest in this episode is Eman Abdelhadi who’s of Palestinian heritage. She’s a Professor at the University of Chicago, an activist and the co-author of the book ‘Everything For Everyone.’

We speak to her about the Nakba, what’s happening in Rafah and Joe Biden’s chances of getting reelected at the end of this year.



Image Credit: Shutterstock

About 1 million Palestinians who fled the main city of Gaza due to Israel’s bombardment and acts of genocide are currently seeking refuge in Rafah. Rafah was supposed to be a safe zone. It was declared a safe zone by Israel. But guess what? The Zionist regime, currently led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has invaded Rafah and is continuing its ethnic cleansing.&nbsp;Just about a day ago, Israeli forces bombed a camp housing displaced Palestinians, killing 45 people.Our guest in this episode is Eman Abdelhadi who’s of Palestinian heritage. She’s a Professor at the University of Chicago, an activist and the co-author of the book <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.commonnotions.org/everything-for-everyone">‘Everything For Everyone.’</a>We speak to her about the Nakba, what’s happening in Rafah and Joe Biden’s chances of getting reelected at the end of this year.Image Credit: Shutterstock

The Nakba Never Ended, the Coloniser Lied

We are all part of a global capitalist system dominated by US hegemony – an imperialist force. This is especially true since the end of the cold war and the fall of the Berlin Wall. It was such a monumental moment that American political scientist Francis Fukuyama wrote a book called The End of History, in 1992. 

Clearly, he was wrong. Fukuyama himself has admitted so.

Today, China’s rise among many other factors has challenged the global dominance of American imperialism and neoliberalism. However, some experts say an empire in decline is at its most dangerous. So, how do we make sense of this changing global political economy?


Our guest in this episode is Vijay Prashad. Vijay is an Indian historian, journalist, commentator, and prominent intellectual. He’s written numerous books, including Red Star Over the Third World, On Cuba and The Withdrawal, the latter two he wrote with Noam Chomsky. And he’s the director of the Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research, which recently published a paper titled Hyper-Imperialism: A Dangerous Decadent New Stage.

We are all part of a global capitalist system dominated by US hegemony – an imperialist force. This is especially true since the end of the cold war and the fall of the Berlin Wall. It was such a monumental moment that American political scientist Francis Fukuyama wrote a book called <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_End_of_History_and_the_Last_Man">The End of History</a>, in 1992.&nbsp;Clearly, he was wrong. Fukuyama himself has admitted so.Today, China’s rise among many other factors has challenged the global dominance of American imperialism and neoliberalism. However, some experts say an empire in decline is at its most dangerous. So, how do we make sense of this changing global political economy? Our guest in this episode is Vijay Prashad. Vijay is an Indian historian, journalist, commentator, and prominent intellectual. He’s written numerous books, including Red Star Over the Third World, On Cuba and The Withdrawal, the latter two he wrote with Noam Chomsky. And he’s the director of the Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research, which recently published a paper titled <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://thetricontinental.org/studies-on-contemporary-dilemmas-4-hyper-imperialism/">Hyper-Imperialism: A Dangerous Decadent New Stage</a>.

KKB Post-Election Analysis: Unity Government Becoming More Popular?

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