Asean, the preferred choice

Busy minister: Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan, part of the Malaysian delegation accompanying Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim on his trip to Italy, being introduced to Italian leader Georgia Meloni. The working trip to Italy took place just days before Mohamad takes the reins of the Asean Foreign Ministers annual meeting in Kuala Lumpur, which begins on Tuesday. — Facebook/AnwarIbrahim

KUALA Lumpur has been experiencing hotter than usual weather in the last few weeks, with scattered rain showers hardly providing any relief for city dwellers. And with the new electricity tariff that kicked in on July 1, many are wondering how much higher their next bill will be with the expected increase in energy consumption to keep themselves cool.

This is not a weather report, neither is this column discussing how much your next electricity bill will be. For sure this week will see the temperature rising at the venue of the annual Asean foreign ministers meeting which Malaysia, as Asean Chair this year, is hosting.