Nothing to do with meddling, rights group tells home minister on deportation of refugees

Rights group Lawyers for Liberty (LFL) today took the home minister to task for telling the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) and other rights bodies not to interfere in Malaysia’s affairs over the deportation of Myanmar nationals, saying Hamzah Zainudin had “entirely ignored” the real concerns at hand.
LFL director Zaid Malek said that UNHCR, as a body tasked with the protection of asylum seekers and refugees, would intervene in the event of actions taken by governments that would cause them serious harm.
“It is not an act of intervening in local affairs or limiting the powers of the government to protect its borders, as the home minister has claimed,” he said.
Adding that UNHCR had raised the matter specific to the deportation of asylum seekers from Myanmar, he said it was “shocking” that Hamzah had failed to grasp the basic concept that asylum seekers and refugees are those who escape their home countries for fear of persecution, human rights violations, or genocide by their own governments.
“They do not do so willingly but rather from desperation based on a very real threat of harm to their well-being,” he said.
Hamzah had on Oct 27 told UNHCR not to interfere in Malaysia’s affairs following calls by the New York-based Human Rights Watch for the government to stop repatriating political asylum seekers as this would put their lives in danger.
He said the detention of foreigners and their deportation to their home countries meant that they had violated Malaysian laws.
"Not just Myanmar or any particular country, but anyone from anywhere in the world who comes here and breaks our laws, we will send them back... when it’s time to send them back, we will.
"So, UNHCR, the United Nations, or anyone at all – if the people we detain entered the country legally but then violate our laws, we will send them back. No need for outsiders to interfere," he said.
He also said that “in terms of humanity”, the government would not send back people who might “disappear” in their country of origin.
“We will not do things that can cause cruelty to individuals who are sent back," he said.
But Zaid said there had been no evidence of any checking process to ensure that asylum seekers and refugees are not deported to their home countries.
“In fact, past conduct would indicate that there is no such system in place, as evidenced by the debacle of the mass deportation of over 1,000 Myanmar nationals back to their country despite the ongoing coup at the time which put them in extreme danger,” he said.
He added that the government was bound by international law through the principle of non-refoulement to ensure that asylum seekers are not deported if there is a risk of persecution or inhumane treatment.
“The government should take heed when bodies such as UNHCR raises such concerns as it is in fact in the interest of our country to not violate international laws which may bring about adverse consequences to us,” he said.


Investigators may name more suspects in MH17 downing

International investigators probing the 2014 downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 over eastern Ukraine are set to present new findings on Wednesday, including possibly naming additional suspects.
In November a Dutch court convicted two former Russian intelligence agents and a Ukrainian separatist leader of murder for helping arrange the Russian missile system that was used to shoot the plane down, killing 298 passengers and crew. The three men, who were tried in absentia, remain at large.
Investigators have continued assembling evidence about the plane's destruction, and could identify either the crew that manned the missile system, or higher-up Russian military or political officials who approved its transfer in and out of Ukraine.
It would be up to a separate prosecution team to attempt to press charges.
Russia has denied any responsibility for MH17's destruction.
MH17 was shot down as it flew over eastern Ukraine from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur on July 17, 2014, killing all aboard, including 196 Dutch citizens.
In the wake of the plane's destruction, the Netherlands, Australia, Belgium, Ukraine and Malaysia set up a joint investigation team to assemble evidence for criminal prosecutions.
The team has scheduled a press conference for 1pm local time (1200 GMT). Victims' families are due to be informed about the findings immediately before the news conference.
At the time the plane was shot down, Ukrainian forces were fighting with pro-Russia separatists in eastern Ukraine' Donetsk province.
While Russia had annexed Crimea in March 2014, it denied military involvement in fighting in Donetsk at that time.
But as part of the conviction of the three men in November, the Dutch court ruled that Russia had in fact had "overall control" of separatist forces in Donetsk starting from May 2014.
Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022 in what it terms a "special military operation" and in September said it had annexed Donetsk.


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40 BN MPs behind Muhyiddin

Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin has been assured of support from at least 40 Barisan Nasional (BN) MPs despite calls for his resignation led by Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and PKR chief Anwar Ibrahim.Deputy Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob said this following a meeting with the MPs, in the wake of a statement from Istana Negara claiming that Putrajaya had not followed the constitution in announcing the repeal of the emergency ordinances.Ismail said the MPs during the meeting upheld the palace statement, as well as the Agong’s call for MPs to prioritise the people’s welfare.“Barisan Nasional MPs unanimously support the government led by Muhyiddin,” he said in a statement.BN MPs comprise those from Umno, MCA and MIC.Earlier this week, Umno’s Gua Musang MP Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah indicated that he was revoking support for Muhyiddin when he applied to change his seating position in the Dewan Rakyat.The decision of the BN MPs came even as Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi urged MPs from his party to revoke support for Muhyiddin, a call endorsed by former prime minister Najib Razak.


Daily caseload at 3,400 as 9 more deaths reported

Another 3,429 Covid-19 cases were recorded yesterday, taking total confirmed infections in the country to 4,741,413.
There were 4,882 recoveries, taking total recoveries to 4,664,570.
There are now 40,741 active cases, of which 39,062 or 95.9% are undergoing home quarantine.
Meanwhile, 32 (0.1%) are at quarantine centres while 1,563 (3.8%) have been hospitalised.
A total of 84 are in ICU with 58 in need of respiratory assistance. ICU utilisation throughout the country stands at 64.3%, with Covid ICU utilisation at 22.6%.
Another nine deaths were reported, including one who was brought in dead. Total deaths now stand at 36,102.


Hackers embarrass corporate bigshots into paying to get their hijacked porn collections back

Cyber-security companies are warning about the rise of “extortionware” through which hackers embarrass victims into paying a ransom.Experts say the trend towards ransoming sensitive private information could affect companies not just operationally but through damaging their reputation, the BBC reports.The warning comes as hackers bragged online about how they had cracked their way into an IT company director’s secret porn collection.In its darknet blog post about the hack last month, the cyber-criminal gang named the IT director whose work computer allegedly contained the saucy files.It also posted a screen grab of the computer’s file library which included more than a dozen folders catalogued under the names of porn stars and porn websites.The hacker group gloated: “Thanks God for [named IT Director]. While he was [masturbating] we downloaded several hundred gigabytes of private information about his company’s customers. God bless his hairy palms, Amen!”The blog post has now been deleted, which experts say usually indicates that the extortion attempt worked and the hackers have been paid to restore the data and not publish any more details.The targeted firm has not publicly acknowledged that it was hacked.The same hacker group is currently trying to pressure another US utility company into paying a ransom by posting an employee’s username and password for a members-only porn website.In another case, hackers claim to have found an email trail showing evidence of insurance fraud at a Canadian agriculture company.Another example of this was seen in December 2020, when the cosmetic surgery chain The Hospital Group was held to ransom with the threat of publication of “before and after” images of patients.Brett Callow, a threat analyst at cyber-security company Emsisoft, says the trend points to an evolution of ransomware hacking.“This is the new norm. Hackers are now actually searching illegally acquired data for information that can be weaponised. If they find anything that is incriminating or embarrassing, they’ll use it to leverage a larger pay-out.“These incidents are no longer simply cyber-attacks about data, they are full-out extortion attempts.”


Covax cuts North Korea’s Covid vaccine allotment after no deliveries accepted

The Covax global Covid-19 vaccine-sharing programme has scaled back the number of doses allocated for North Korea, international aid organisations said, as the country has so far failed to arrange for any shipments.A website dashboard maintained by the United Nations children’s agency, Unicef, shows the number of doses earmarked for North Korea now stands at 1.54 million, down from as many as 8.11 million last year.This year, Covax is moving to needs-based vaccine allocations, so the accumulation of previously allocated doses to North Korea is no longer relevant, said a spokesperson for Gavi, the charity that helps operate the vaccine sharing programme.“Vaccines were allocated to (North Korea) on technical considerations to enable the country to catch up with international immunisation targets in 2022 in case the government decides to introduce Covid-19 immunisations as part of the national pandemic response,” the spokesperson said in a statement to Reuters on Thursday.North Korea is not known to have imported any Covid-19 vaccines, though media reports have suggested at least some key people, such as border control officials, may have been vaccinated.Last year North Korea rejected planned shipments of AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 vaccine that were being organised under Covax due to concerns over side effects, a South Korean think-tank said at the time.Pyongyang also turned down an offer of 3 million Covid-19 vaccine doses of China’s Sinovac Biotech, Unicef said last year.“Gavi and Covax are continuing the dialogue with (North Korea) to operationalise the Covid-19 immunization program,” the Gavi spokesperson said.North Korea has not officially confirmed a single coronavirus infection, though officials in South Korea and the United States have cast doubts on that the country is Covid-free.It was one of the first countries to close its borders as the pandemic began to spread in 2020, and only last month began to allow a few trains across its border with China.North Korea’s parliament approved a 33.3% increase in spending to tackle the pandemic this year, state media reported on Tuesday.“The emergency epidemic prevention work will be made the top priority of the state affairs and the epidemic prevention walls will be further intensified,” premier Kim Tok Hun said in a speech.


Prosecution withdraws letter asking court to prioritise Zahid's case over Najib's

The prosecution in Ahmad Zahid Hamidi's corruption case has withdrawn a letter to the trial judge, Collin Lawrence Sequerah, asking for the case to be prioritised over that of Najib Razak regarding state investment fund 1MDB.
Deputy public prosecutor Abdul Malik Ayob told the court that as the letter had been withdrawn, the matter was now considered over.
"As such, there is no such application before the court. Thus, let us proceed with this case," he said before the commencement of today’s proceedings.
At this point, Sequerah said no one could dictate what case should be given priority in his court.
Zahid’s counsel, Hisyam Teh Poh Teik, then said that the letter could be construed as applying pressure on the court. "We hope this trial will be conducted according to the rule of law," he said.
Sequerah is also the trial judge in Najib’s 1MDB case where the former prime minister is charged with four counts of using his position to obtain bribes totalling RM2.3 billion from 1MDB funds and 21 charges of money laundering involving the same amount.
The letter to Sequerah was sent to his secretary yesterday afternoon.
According to Malik, he was instructed to give priority to Zahid's case which was at the defence stage, and a copy of the letter was extended to the Umno president's defence team.
The letter has been making the rounds on social media since yesterday evening, with some questioning its authenticity.
Today, the trial continues with Zahid being re-examined by another of his lawyers, Hamidi Mohd Noh.
Zahid faces 47 charges: 12 of criminal breach of trust, eight of corruption and 27 of money laundering, involving tens of millions of ringgit belonging to Yayasan Akalbudi.


Whereabouts of Anwar, family members set to grab attention ahead of sexual assault suit

The detailed whereabouts of Anwar Ibrahim as well as his daughter and grandchildren on the day that a former staff claimed he was sexually assaulted by the PKR leader three years ago is likely to become the focus of an upcoming suit.This comes as Muhammed Yusoff Rawther, who in July filed a suit containing shocking and explicit details of an incident at Anwar’s Bukit Segambut residence, strongly denies several claims by the politician in the latter’s defence against the allegations.In a reply to Anwar’s defence filed yesterday, Yusoff challenged suggestions by Anwar that his family members including his daughter and her children were also at the bungalow at the time of the alleged incident.Yusoff in his statement of claim said he had arrived at the Bukit Segambut house at around 3pm on Oct 2, 2018, after he was instructed to personally hand over the draft of a speech to be presented by Anwar for a memorial event on Mahatma Gandhi later that evening.Yusoff claimed that moments after he entered the library section of the house, the politician attempted to commit several sexual acts against him.In his defence to the claims filed last month, Anwar dismissed the allegations, saying he was busy entertaining his second daughter Nurul Nuha and her children as well as friends between 2pm and 6pm at his house, soon after arriving from Port Dickson where he was campaigning as a Pakatan Harapan candidate for a by-election there.Yusoff in his reply said with the exception that Anwar was scheduled to be in Port Dickson that morning, the rest of the claims must be proven.In his suit, Yusoff, 28, is seeking a court declaration that the PKR leader had committed the sexual assault, as well as general, exemplary and aggravated damages for suffering trauma as well as physical, psychological and sociological disturbances as a result of the alleged incident.Yusoff first made the allegation against Anwar in a statutory declaration in November 2019. A police report was subsequently lodged, followed by weeks of investigation by Bukit Aman under Section 354 of the Penal Code which deals with criminal force to outrage modesty.During investigations, the police subjected Yusoff to a four-hour polygraph test at Bukit Aman. Anwar meanwhile refused to take the test.Anwar in his defence accused Yusoff of working with “unknown” individuals to smear him ahead of a promised transition of power from Dr Mahathir Mohamad.He further said that Yusoff’s suit filed in July was timed to thwart his chances of becoming prime minister, as a political vacuum loomed with the resignation of Muhyiddin Yassin.Anwar also suggested that Yusoff had disciplinary issues and had misappropriated funds from a senior staff, claims which Yusoff dismissed as “utterly ludicrous, unsubstantiated, fabricated and false”.Yusoff further said that his suit was neither politically motivated nor “intentionally timed and orchestrated” to wreck Anwar’s career.“The political landscape in Malaysia has in recent years been volatile, with specific reference to internal party jostling and change of leadership.“The plaintiff cannot be expected to twiddle his thumb and wait for the so-called perfect opportunity to file his action,” he said, adding that he had no contact or connection with any person accused of blocking Anwar’s political ascent.Yusoff also questioned Anwar’s failure to follow up on a threat in January 2020 to sue him for defamation over the sexual assault claims.“The defendant had every opportunity to sue the plaintiff prior to the filing of the plaintiff’s suit against the defendant herein but was afraid to do so and/or failed to do so,” he said.


Water-poor Indians turn to apps in dry season

Before Riki Emiyo scrolls through social media, he checks his smartphone for progess on water conservation projects – less fun, but of far more use as winter descends on his parched Indian village.“Every year, when the monsoon rain stops, all the water disappears,” said Emiyo from Kairang village in the Jaintia hills of Meghalaya state in northeast India.“So every day in winter, people travel a few kilometres to fill cans of water to see them through the dry winter months. We simply do not have water storage facilities and were clueless till the app simplified things for us.”The app is Clart. First launched in 2014, the updated app now helps thousands of water-poor Indians like Emiyo take greater charge of conservation close to home.Free and open source, it has enabled rural communities in 19 states across India to design measures that help recharge ground water or augment the amount of usable surface water.India is one of 17 countries facing extremely high water stress, according to a 2019 report by the World Resources Institute.With a growing population, rising demand from farming and industry, and increasingly erratic monsoon rains, nearly 600 million people face “high to extreme water stress”, according to government think tank Niti Aayog.Data shows groundwater is used faster than it is replenished in most parts of India – a formula known as “recharge” whether the water is topped up by nature or design.“Recharge is a function of many things and it is essential that conservation methods are driven by science,” said Vimal Mishra, associate professor at the Water and Climate Lab in the Indian Institute of Technology in Gandhinagar.“Technology can help to identify the best sites to create structures that will help store water and recharge. Building a pond or a check dam just anywhere will not work.”RechargeGovernment data from last year shows more than 60% of monitored wells had registered a drop in groundwater levels.Less rain, more farming, greater pollution from mining and mass urbanisation were all to blame, according to researchers.Climate change has also altered rain patterns in Amravati in the western state of Maharashtra, meaning tankers now deliver drinking water and farmers rely on Clart for water management for irrigation.“Erratic rainfall has directly impacted their farming,” said Vivek Deshmukh of the charity CottonConnect, which encourages farmers to try their hand at sustainable farming.“Amravati is known for cotton and oranges and in both cases, change in rainfall patterns due to climate change has meant losses for farmers. They need better sources of water and the app is helping create that infrastructure.”Across 1,200 villages in the district, the app helps farmers plan the best ways to recharge their groundwater and top sites for ponds, dams, tanks and water harvesting.Clart lets locals take charge, whatever their circumstances.“The app works both online and offline and is colour-coded, making it user friendly for semi-literate village communities,” said Chiranjit Guha of non-profit Foundation for Ecological Security, which developed the app. “The idea is to support local knowledge with technical input.”ChangemakersWankit Kupar Swer, general manager of the Meghalaya Basin Management Agency, is spearheading efforts to help villagers like Emiyo manage the shortages yet live sustainably.“Meghalaya is perceived as a state with beautiful forests and plenty of rain,” Swer said.“But the sad reality is that we now have only 3% of dense forests, reduced months of rainfall, increased flash floods and mining that has affected water quality downstream, far away from the actual mining site.”Emiyo’s village has faced water shortage for about a decade but is only now grasping at solutions, in part due to Clart and the autonomy it offers.“Clart is for the first time helping communities make intelligent decisions without waiting for engineers to come and assess their needs,” Swer told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.“A person just has to go to a location, turn on the app and it tells them what can be done and what cannot on that terrain. It has decentralised the decision making, which is key to the success of these projects.”For Emiyo, taking charge has bred resilience.“We are feeling more confident with our ideas and also are able to question engineers who work with us,” he said. “Many people in my village are more clued into the problem now and willing to work together to find the solution.”


New cases inch up to 6,300

Another 6,380 Covid-19 cases were recorded today, taking total confirmed infections in the country to 2,569,533.Another 5,760 patients recovered, bringing total recoveries to 2,472,283.Meanwhile 541 are in the ICU, including 452 confirmed Covid-19 patients.A total of 263 are in need of respiratory assistance including 169 confirmed Covid-19 cases.Of the 6,380 cases reported today, 98 (1.5%) are in Category Three and above. The remaining 6,282 (98.5%) are in Category One and Two.


Business as usual for civil servants despite ongoing political drama

At one o'clock on the dot, crowds of civil servants spill out of their offices near Presint 3, Putrajaya.
It's time for lunch. Chatting and laughing, they have their meal and then return to their posts where they continue serving customers at ministry counters, apparently oblivious to the tension gripping much of the country as the uncertainty from the inconclusive election results goes on.
For days now, they have been waiting to learn who will become the next prime minister and occupy the top office in the administrative capital.
Amelia, who works at the office of the registrar general of the Federal Court, said she was not perturbed by the political drama unfolding in Kuala Lumpur.
She and her colleagues follow each new twist and turn, but they see no reason for the uncertainty to distract them from doing their job.
And Amelia, who has worked there for 11 years, says this is not her first election anyway.
Speaking to MalaysiaNow, she said the negotiations should take as long as they need to.
"Don't be in a rush, continue talking and negotiating until a solution is found," she said.
"Meanwhile, we will continue to work as usual. The important thing is for the talks to end well, so that the same issue does not crop up again over the next few years. That would make things difficult for us.
"Talk it over properly and settle it. We can wait."
Amelia added that she is prepared to work under whatever administration is formed as long as it is in line with the Federal Constitution.
The general election on Nov 19 concluded with no single coalition or party winning the simple majority needed to form the government on its own.
The days that followed saw a flurry of activity as political leaders and party representatives were called to meet with the king in order to determine which MP has the support of the majority to be appointed as prime minister.
Yet Parliament remains hung, even as the king meets with the Malay rulers on the matter at a special gathering at Istana Negara today.
Fasha, a photographer at RTM Angkasapuri, agreed with Amelia.
"We will continue working as usual, and leave it to the Agong to make the best decision for everyone," she said.
She said voters had fulfilled their responsibility at the polls, and that it was now up to the future government to continue making good policies for the sake of the people and country.
But Taqif, a doctor at Hospital Putrajaya, is less relaxed about the political situation.
His concern is that an ongoing political crisis could affect his career which only recently began.
"I have been waiting since Saturday to learn who will form the next government," he said.
"The longer it takes, the more anxious I get because I'm afraid it will go on for a long time.
"All sorts of thoughts come to mind – is my job secure? Will I be stuck as a contract doctor forever?"
He tries his best to put aside his fears and to continue doing a good job at work. Even there, he jokes, many of his patients are civil servants who love nothing more than to exchange views about the political situation.
Speaking to MalaysiaNow, he said they would tell him to stay calm and to accept all the "drama" as it only happens during election season.
"Sometimes, their chatter helps us forget about our stress and keep laughing while we work," he said.


UK police arrest murder suspect after 3 found dead in Nottingham

British police said a man had been arrested on suspicion of murder after three people were found dead on the street in the central English city of Nottingham and three others were in hospital after an attempt to run them over with a van.
Police said two people had been found dead on one road in the centre of the city just after 4am (0300 GMT) before officers were alerted to another incident not far away where someone driving a van had tried to run over three people.
They are being treated in hospital.
Another man was also found dead in a road just outside the city centre.
"This is an horrific and tragic incident which has claimed the lives of three people," chief constable Kate Meynell said.
"We believe these three incidents are all linked and we have a man in custody. This investigation is at its early stages and a team of detectives is working to establish exactly what has happened."
A 31-year-old was arrested on suspicion of murder and was in police custody.
Several roads were closed and the Nottingham tram network was suspended. Members of the emergency services were visible across the city.
Meynell said roads would remain closed while the investigation continued.
"Awful news for our city to wake up to today," Alex Norris, a lawmaker for Nottingham, said on Twitter. "Our community’s thoughts and prayers are with all those affected."


In fresh bid for power, Anwar faces less-than-complimentary Western media

Anwar Ibrahim may find influential Western media once sympathetic towards him to be less complimentary this time around, as supporters of the PKR leader stick to his claim of having secured the backing of MPs to assume the country’s top job.At least two influential media outlets, seen as hallmarks of Western public opinion, recently issued scathing analyses of his latest bid to occupy the prime minister’s seat.The Economist magazine slammed the move as a “naked power grab”, while a prominent columnist for the Nikkei Asian Review called him “Mr Yesterday”.On Sept 23, Anwar called for an urgent press conference at a hotel in Kuala Lumpur, declaring that Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin’s government had fallen and claiming to have a “formidable” majority of MPs behind him.London-based financial journal The Economist, in its opinion column on Oct 3, called Anwar “the perennial prime minister-in-waiting”.“How would more upheaval help contain the pandemic, revive the battered economy, or improve the country’s dismal politics of patronage and race? Mr Anwar had once cared about policy. This seemed a naked power-grab,” the magazine said in its Banyan column which focuses on Asian politics.The column was a far cry from the glowing reports by prominent news outlets more than two decades ago, when Anwar appeared on the cover of influential magazines such as Time and Newsweek.Just a year before his sacking, Time magazine famously ran a cover story titled “Anwar and the future of Asia”, while others hailed him as among “Asia’s fastest-rising political stars”.It was his fall from grace in 1998 that turned him into an icon for reforms in the West, which was already riled up by Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s speeches at global forums.But such endorsement from powerful media outlets is apparently no longer the case for Anwar.Conversations with several key figures who worked for the politician two decades ago, at a time when he was portrayed as a villain by domestic media, revealed that he might no longer enjoy such coverage.They point to Anwar’s “fading charisma” compared to his status as the face of Asian democracy, among descriptions used in editorials and opinion columns by influential media outlets when he was dramatically sacked from Mahathir’s Cabinet 22 years ago.This was followed by his mobilisation of the Malaysian public who took to the streets of Kuala Lumpur with his “reformasi” battle cry.“To Western journalists, Anwar at that time represented the elusive utopian personality the West had been looking for, one born in the Islamic incubator and yet friendly to the West’s agenda for reforms in the Muslim world,” a former adviser for Anwar, now based in London, told MalaysiaNow.He said Anwar then had the benefit of being portrayed a Muslim “reformist and democrat”.“So while the local media was busy spinning news about Anwar the ‘troublemaker’, he faced no such problems abroad as he had already built a wide network of friends close to Western opinion makers,” the British businessman said.After his release in 2004, Anwar wasted no time reconnecting with his network in the West, securing speaking engagements at prominent universities in the US to speak on topics such as Islam and democracy.But with improvements in his personal and political fortunes, especially in the wake of electoral gains in 2008, came increasing scrutiny of his brand of politics.“His image as a political victim who spent years in jail was slowly replaced with that of another Asian politician eyeing the top job,” said a Kuala Lumpur-based businessman who was tasked with campaigning for Anwar’s release from jail in the late 1990s.A former journalist who had been part of his team of writers said Anwar might find it more difficult today to get positive coverage from influential international media outlets.“Twenty or 30 years ago, the Western press would embrace anyone standing on the platform of reforms and democracy.“They have become more scrutinising now – ask Aung San Suu Kyi of Burma. She is a good example of how a much-loved democrat quickly turned into a villain,” the 68-year-old told MalaysiaNow.A recent scathing attack on Anwar by William Pesek, the Tokyo-based columnist for the Nikkei Asian Review, may illustrate the point.The award-winning journalist wrote that Anwar had changed from a reformer who captured the world’s imagination to a “Mr Yesterday” out on a “blatant power grab”.“Anwar’s New Malaysia is more vanity project than policy shift,” Pesek wrote late last month.“Prior to the last few years of political chaos, Umno spent six decades in power looking after Malaysia’s dominant ethnic and religious group. Yet so hungry is Anwar for power that he seems willing to rehash the retrograde ideas he fought against in the 90s.”


New cases drop to 21,800 as another 52 deaths reported

Another 21,839 Covid-19 cases were recorded yesterday, taking total confirmed infections in the country to 4,101,081.There are now 247,065 active cases, of which 239,798 or 97.1% are undergoing home quarantine.Meanwhile, 1,266 (0.5%) are at quarantine centres while 5,710 (2.3%) have been hospitalised.A total of 291 are in ICU with 188 in need of respiratory assistance. ICU utilisation throughout the country stands at 57.2%, with Covid ICU utilisation at 33.0%.Another 52 deaths were reported, including 15 who were brought in dead. Total deaths now stand at 34,717.


Lahad Datu MP quits Warisan

Lahad Datu MP Mohamaddin Ketapi today announced that he had quit Warisan, becoming an independent representative in the Dewan Rakyat.Mohamaddin, the former tourism, arts and culture minister, is the second Warisan leader to have left the party this month following the departure of Sindumin assemblyman Yusof Yacob.His move leaves Warisan two seats down as he is also the assemblyman for Segama.Warisan won 23 seats in the state election last year.It is now left with 19, following the departures of Mohamaddin and Yusof.Bugaya assemblyman Manis Muka Mohd Darah died in November last year and Sebatik assemblyman Hassan A Gani Pg Amir quit the party in February.


At least 3 dead, 8 wounded after another mass shooting in US

At least three people were killed and eight wounded in a mass shooting in Fort Worth, Texas, after a local festival, officials said on Tuesday, in the latest incident of gun violence around the Fourth of July holiday.
The shooting took place just before midnight on Monday in a parking lot, police confirmed on Tuesday.
One person was pronounced dead at the scene and two others died in the hospital, while an additional eight people were hospitalised but their conditions were not known, CBS News reported. An ABC News affiliate said 10 of the victims were adults and one was a juvenile.
The shooting occurred in the Como section of Fort Worth hours after the end of the neighbourhood's annual ComoFest. The festival is a celebration of the Fourth of July holiday on which the US celebrates its independence.
The motive for the shooting and the number of suspects involved were not immediately clear. No arrests have been made.
"We don't know if this is domestic-related, if it is gang-related. It is too early to tell at this point," said Shawn Murray, a senior official with the Fort Worth Police Department.
The US has been struggling with a large number of mass shootings and incidents of gun violence. There have been over 340 mass shootings so far in 2023 in the country, according to data collected by the Gun Violence Archive, which defines a mass shooting as an incident in which at least four people are shot, excluding the shooter.
In a separate shooting incident on Monday night, five people were killed and two were injured in Philadelphia, and a suspect was taken into custody, according to local police.
The Monday night shootings came a day after two people were shot dead and 28 others injured, about half of them children, in a hail of gunfire at an outdoor neighborhood block party in Baltimore, Maryland. Police said they were seeking multiple suspects in that shooting.


Singapore set to hang another Malaysian diagnosed with low IQ

A Malaysian diagnosed with a low IQ is one of two persons sentenced to death for a drug offence in Singapore more than a decade ago to be executed on Feb 16, in a move set to draw attention to the city-state once more after the global outrage sparked by its last attempt to execute a prisoner with similar intellectual disabiilties last year.The families of Sabahan Pausi Jefridin and Singaporean Roslan Bakar were shocked when they were given notice on Feb 9 of their execution day.“This is even though Pausi’s family are from Sabah, and have had to rush to make travel arrangements,” said vocal Singaporean anti-death penalty activist Kirsten Han.Han also said that all tickets under the Singapore-Malaysia Vaccinated Travel Lane have been sold out.“This is grotesque cruelty,” she added.The men, who were charged with trafficking 96.07g of diamorphine and 76.37g of methamphetamine in 2008, were convicted in 2010.They failed in an appeal in 2017 to commute their death sentence to life imprisonment, despite lawyers citing medical reports on their intellectual capabilities which would render their execution illegal under Singapore laws as well as international treaties.Nagaenthran having delusions of coming home as new date set in fight to stay aliveLong letter from Singapore fails to convince billionaire Branson about executing NagaenthranWisma Putra in frantic but ‘tactful’ appeal for Singapore to spare Nagaenthran’s lifeNagaenthran’s appeal hearing around the corner as execution loomsPlease save my son: A letter from Nagaenthran’s mother to Singapore presidentThe judge had dismissed expert findings on Pausi’s IQ level, which said he was suffering from a “retarded development of mind as a result of his exceptionally low and restricted education”.Leading Singapore clinical psychologist Dr Danny Ng who assessed Pausi also said he had an IQ level of 67, which is below the threshold of 70 for declaring a person as intellectually disabled.Roslan’s lawyer meanwhile said his client was found by experts to have “limited capacity for judgment and decision-making due to underlying cognitive defects”, according to the 2017 judgment sighted by MalaysiaNow.But the judge, despite admitting that both men had low scores, maintained their death sentence.“A low IQ level alone is not evidence of an abnormality of mind,” said judge Choo Han Teck.“For the purposes of Section 33B(3), the court cannot ignore the functionality of the mind of an accused person in question. In this case, I find that despite a low score, both applicants had displayed competence and comprehension of what they were doing when they carried out their act of trafficking in the drugs,” he said.Under Section 33B(3) of Singapore’s Misuse of Drugs Act, the death sentence should not be meted out to persons who suffer from retarded development of mind that would impair their mental responsibility for their actions.Pausi and Roslan’s case is similar to that of Nagaenthran K Dharmalingam, a Malaysian diagnosed with an IQ of 69 who was to have been executed in November last year.He was granted a stay of execution after a diagnosis of Covid-19 just before the court was due to hear a last-ditch appeal to save his life.His hearing is believed to have been set for this month.Nagaenthran’s plight drew public outrage, with pleas for leniency coming from Yang di-Pertuan Agong Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah and Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob.It also moved British aviation magnate Richard Branson to pen a letter to the Singapore president pleading for Nagaenthran’s life.The Singapore government has often cited its tough laws as a deterrent against drug crimes.But critics have pointed out that many of those convicted are drug mules from poor families, while the drug kingpins who employed them often go unpunished, a view stressed by Branson in his open letter to Singapore President Halimah Yacob.


Ride-hailing giant Didi taken off China’s app stores by cyber regulator

The ride-hailing app Didi Chuxing has been ordered off China’s app stores, just days after the Chinese tech giant launched its shares in New York.China’s cyberspace regulator ordered its removal after accusing it of violating laws on collecting users’ personal data.The firm said the app would continue to operate, but said it could not now register new users.Beijing has recently begun to tighten controls on the country’s large tech firms.Didi, a platform similar to Uber and Grab, provides more than 20 million rides in China every day. Founded in 2012, it is particularly popular in China’s crowded cities.The company’s founder Cheng Wei has said he had the idea to launch a ride-hailing platform in 2012 after he struggled to book a taxi on a freezing night in Beijing.It now operates beyond China in 15 other markets across Asia, Australia, and Latin America.Last week it raised US$4.4 billion through an initial public offering in New York, making it the largest share launch since Chinese online retailer Alibaba’s in 2014.Just a day after shares began trading in New York, the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) announced it was investigating the firm to protect “national security and the public interest”, prompting its shares to drop 5.3%.Didi gathers vast amounts of real-time mobility data every day. It uses some of the data for autonomous driving technologies and traffic analysis.The CAC said: “After checks and verification, the Didi Chuxing app was found to be in serious violation of regulations in its collection and use of personal information.”This investigation follows regulatory crackdowns on other tech firms, from Alibaba to food delivery service Meituan.In June this year, it was reported that Didi was being probed by China’s market watchdog.The State Administration for Market Regulation was investigating whether it had unfairly squeezing out smaller rivals, according to Reuters.Beijing regulators have been getting tough with the country’s technology giants, including Alibaba and Tencent.Japan’s SoftBank is Didi’s largest single investor with a stake of more than 20%. It is also backed by Chinese technology giants Alibaba and Tencent.Uber owns 12% of the firm as a result of Didi taking over Uber China in 2016.


Zahid denies making ex-aide a scapegoat in graft case

Ahmad Zahid Hamidi yesterday denied in the High Court that he had pointed the finger at his former executive secretary Maj Mazlina Mazlan @ Ramly over the settlement of his personal credit card bills using Yayasan Akalbudi cheques in order to absolve himself.Zahid, 69, also denied that his testimony in court that he did not know Mazlina had made credit card payments using the foundation’s cheques was a lie.He said this when questioned by deputy public prosecutor Raja Rozela Raja Toran during his defence proceedings for 47 charges: 12 of criminal breach of trust, eight of corruption and 27 of money laundering involving tens of millions of ringgit in funds from Yayasan Akalbudi.Raja Rozela: I suggest that Datuk Seri did not say a single word (to deny this) to the recording officer of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) when the statement was recorded because you yourself had allowed Major Mazlina Mazlan @ Ramly to use the Yayasan Akalbudi cheques to pay for the credit card.Zahid: I do not agree.Zahid also disagreed with Raja Rozela’s suggestion that he had had the opportunity to provide an explanation to the MACC and deny his involvement in the payments for his personal credit card.Raja Rozela: Nevermind, I suggest that whether the original cheque or image was shown to you, it did not prevent you from giving an explanation to MACC.Zahid: I was under duress (at the time) because the statement was taken until 10pm.The Bagan Datuk MP also disagreed with the prosecution that his testimony in court was false because it was not the same as the statement recorded with MACC.Raja Rozela: This is your statement (to the MACC), so are you saying that the statement made (previously) was not true?Zahid: Your Honour, when you are under duress and the statement is prepared, what choice do you have?During the morning proceedings, Zahid asserted that Yayasan Akalbudi’s decision to invest RM10 million in Armada Holdings Sdn Bhd was not recorded in the foundation’s resolution due to a mistake by the company secretary.Zahid said before the resolution on the investment was prepared, he had held discussions about it with two of the foundation’s trustees.Raja Rozela: If it is true to say that the RM10 million was an investment, why was there no black and white agreement between Yayasan Akalbudi and Armada Holdings?Zahid: No (there wasn’t), it was just verbal agreement.He agreed with Raja Rozela that RM10 million was not a small amount and that the original purpose of the establishment of Yayasan Akalbudi was to help “asnaf” (zakat recipients) and the poor.Raja Rozela: But Datuk Seri decided to invest RM10 million in Armada Holdings, which does not belong to the poor.Zahid: True, Armada Holdings is not an asnaf. But it (RM10 million given to Armada Holdings) was a form of investment that would get a return on investment.The trial before judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah continues on July 4.


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MySejahtera check-ins may be scrapped, says Khairy

The requirement for using the MySejahtera application as an SOP for check-ins may be scrapped, Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin says.He said a decision on whether to continue with this or not will be made based on the Covid-19 infection trend as well as the mobility data of residents and travellers when the country’s borders reopen on April 1.“A decision on this matter will take almost a month because we need to look at this trend.“If there are not many changes to the infection trend, we may drop the check-in function,” he told reporters after officiating the closing ceremony of an event in Putrajaya yesterday.Khairy said this when asked to comment on a statement by the Malaysian Medical Association that it was time to scrap the practice of having to scan the MySejahtera application for check-ins as the country transitions into the endemic phase from April 1.The government dropped the SOP for temperature checks and the manual recording of personal particulars for entry into premises on Feb 11.On the issue of the MySejahtera application ownership, Khairy said the health ministry expects to finalise negotiations with the company that operates the application software platform in about a month’s time.“The negotiation process is ongoing. But it is taking some time because it is quite technical,” he said, adding that he would provide an explanation on the matter at the Dewan Negara.The negotiations are being held after the health ministry set up a price negotiation committee last year aimed as negotiating the procurement price and management of MySejahtera application services with the company for a period of two years, in line with the government’s procurement procedures, he said.He said the finance ministry had agreed to the procurement on Feb 28 and the negotiation process had started to ensure due diligence is carried out, as well as to protect the government’s interests.Khairy earlier stressed that the government had never sold the MySejahtera application to any private company, adding that it is owned by the government.


Rosmah’s graft trial postponed after lawyer tests positive for Covid-19

The Kuala Lumpur High Court today postponed Rosmah Mansor’s corruption trial on the solar energy project for 369 rural schools in Sarawak after her counsel, Akberdin Abdul Kader, tested positive for Covid-19.Senior deputy public prosecutor Gopal Sri Ram informed judge Mohamed Zaini Mazlan that two others in Rosmah’s defence team – Jagjit Singh and Azrul Zulkifli Stork – were close contacts to Akberdin and needed to be quarantined.Zaini said the court had also been notified of the matter by Jagjit’s law firm.“I understand that he (Akberdin) was diagnosed on Feb 12. It is unfortunate to hear that. I wish him well,” he said.Zaini then adjourned today’s proceedings and fixed Feb 23 for the trial to resume.Today was initially fixed for the last day to hear the defence trial where former special officer to former prime minister Najib Razak, Siti Azizah Sheikh Abod, was supposed to be cross-examined by the prosecution.Meanwhile, Sri Ram told the court that an application had been filed for a star witness in the case, former Jepak Holdings managing director Saidi Abang Samsudin, to be recalled to testify.On Feb 18 last year, the High Court ordered Rosmah to defend herself on all three corruption charges involving the solar hybrid project for 369 rural schools in Sarawak after finding that the prosecution had succeeded in proving a prima facie case against her.Rosmah, 70, faces one charge of soliciting RM187.5 million and two charges of accepting bribes amounting to RM6.5 million from Saidi.The bribes were allegedly received through her former special officer Rizal Mansor, as a reward to help Jepak Holdings obtain the integrated solar photovoltaic hybrid system project as well as the genset/siesel maintenance and operation for 369 schools worth RM1.25 billion through direct negotiations from the education ministry.


Johnson faces UK parliament for first time since no-confidence vote

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson faces a boisterous parliament Wednesday in his first appearance before lawmakers since narrowly fending off a damaging no-confidence vote from his own Conservative MPs.His backers are likely to stage a noisy show of support when he steps up for his weekly Prime Minister’s Questions.Critics, however, have warned the political crisis is not over for the embattled prime minister after more than 40% of his own MPs voted against him in Monday’s no-confidence vote.Johnson, who called the 211-148 vote a “convincing result”, has vowed to plough on, saying it was time to “draw a line” under questions about his leadership and the “partygate” controversy over lockdown-breaking events at Downing Street.The prime minister’s team has tried to regain the offensive by pointing to a setpiece speech expected in the coming days on new economic support measures, as Britons struggle with a cost-of-living crisis.But many question whether Johnson can recover voters’ trust, as the party braces for two Westminster by-elections this month and an upcoming investigation by MPs into whether he lied to parliament over “partygate”.Even without any obvious candidate to succeed him, former Tory party leader William Hague this week argued that Johnson should now “look for an honourable exit”.Comparing Monday’s margin to votes that ultimately toppled Johnson predecessors Margaret Thatcher and Theresa May, Hague said it showed “a greater level of rejection than any Tory leader has ever endured and survived”.“Deep inside, he should recognise that, and turn his mind to getting out in a way that spares party and country such agonies and uncertainties,” Hague wrote in The Times.‘War of attrition’The Guardian reported Wednesday that rebel Conservative MPs were drawing up plans for “vote strikes” to paralyse the government’s legislative agenda, as happened at the end of May’s stint in office.The i newspaper also said the prime minister now faces a “war of attrition”, with the rebels pushing to remove him despite his narrow victory in the no-confidence vote.Johnson, 57, needed the backing of 180 of the 359 Conservatives MPs to survive the vote.Most of Johnson’s cabinet publicly backed him in the secret ballot. But more than 40% of the parliamentary party did not.The scale of the revolt “constitutes a crisis for Downing Street”, King’s College London politics professor Anand Menon said.“I think there’s very little doubt that the vulnerability of the prime minister is going to be the single greatest factor shaping what this government does for the foreseeable future,” Menon told AFP.Under current Tory rules, the prime minister cannot be challenged again for a year, which leaves little time for any new leader to emerge before the next general election due by 2024.But the party’s “1922 committee” of MPs, tasked with overseeing leadership challenges, says it could easily change the rules if a majority backs it.The Liberal Democrats are now pushing for a parliamentary no-confidence vote after Johnson survived the Tory revolt.“Liberal Democrats are tabling a motion of no confidence in the prime minister so Parliament can finally put an end to this sorry mess,” party leader Ed Davey said.“Every Conservative MP with a shred of decency must back our motion and give Boris Johnson the sack.”If the government lost a no-confidence motion in the House of Commons it would have to call a snap general election.That appears unlikely at present given the Conservative majority, but Johnson could face a challenging period in the months ahead.Senior backbencher Tobias Ellwood, who voted against Johnson, said the prime minister was living on borrowed time.“I think we’re talking a matter of months, up to party conference (in October),” he told Sky News.


Govt should honour GE14 ‘wage contract’ with workers

The Labour Law Reform Coalition calls on the government to increase the minimum wage to RM1,400 in February 2022, and RM1,500 in February 2023.Given that both Pakatan Harapan (PH) and Barisan Nasional (BN) made promises in their 14th general election manifestos to increase the minimum wage to RM1,500 by the end of the five-year term, the Perikatan Nasional government, which consists of former component parties of PH and BN, should materialise the election promises.We see the election promise as a “wage contract” between the political parties and Malaysian workers in the 14th general election. They voted for political parties with the hope that the proposed minimum wage would be implemented. Therefore, politicians should honour their promises and announce the new minimum wage order in accordance with their manifesto text.In addition, the government should not delay the implementation of the new minimum wage, which should come into force on Feb 1, 2022. The previous minimum wage rate took effect on Feb 1, 2020.It is important to note that Act 732 does not prohibit the council from reviewing the order before the two-year period. The government can actually announce the new minimum wage order every year.According to Article 25 of the National Wages Consultative Council Act 2011 (Act 732), the council shall, at least once every two years, review the minimum wage order. It is the responsibility of the Cabinet to conclude and announce the new minimum wage before the two-year expiration of the previous minimum rate.Previously, Malaysian workers were short-changed because the government failed to strictly observe the two-year review period, particularly from 2013 to 2018. We urge the government to insert a new section in Act 732, requiring the government to announce the revised minimum wage order at least every two years.That means, the council should conduct the studies much earlier in order for the government to announce the new order before the expiration of the two-year period. The proposed reform could close the loophole that gives the government leeway to delay the implementation of new minimum orders without accountability.Moreover, the average statutory minimum wage increment in the past eight years has been only RM37.5 per year for 56 council and municipal areas, and only RM25 per year for non-council and municipal areas.The minimum wage in rural areas has been stagnant since January 2019, which is unfair because the people in rural areas also suffer from inflation. Thus, the new minimum wage rate should be standardised across Malaysia.N Gopal Kishnam & Irene Xavier are co-chairmen of the Labour Law Reform Coalition.The views expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the position of MalaysiaNow.


AstraZeneca jabs less effective against South African strain, study finds

The Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine fails to prevent mild and moderate cases of the South African coronavirus strain, researchers said Sunday.The University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, which conducted the trial, said in a statement that the vaccine “provides minimal protection against mild-moderate Covid-19 infection” from the variant.But in a full paper due to be published on Monday, AstraZeneca said that none of the 2,000 participants developed serious symptoms.That could mean it will still have an effect on severe disease, although there is not yet enough data to make a definitive judgement.The data, which has not yet undergone peer review, “appear to confirm the theoretical observation that mutations in the virus seen in South Africa will allow ongoing transmission of the virus in vaccinated populations”, it said.“Protection against moderate-severe disease, hospitalisation or death could not be assessed in this study as the target population were at low risk.”But the vaccine developers in Britain said informally the results offered some hope that the vaccine could prevent deaths from the variant.“We may not be reducing the total number of cases but there is still protection against deaths, hospitalisations and severe disease,” said Sarah Gilbert, who led the development of the vaccine with the Oxford Vaccine Group.It could also be “some time” before they determine its effectiveness for older people in fighting the strain, which is a growing presence in Britain, she told BBC television.“We might have to put it together from a number of studies,” she said.Researchers are currently working to update the vaccine, and “have a version with the South African spike sequence in the works” that they would “very much like” to be ready for the autumn, she added.UK vaccines minister Nadhim Zahawi said the government’s strategy to combat the spread of the strain was to continue with its mass vaccination programme “as rapidly as possible” as well as “hyper-local surge testing” where it is detected.Britain is in the midst of a massive vaccination drive, which it sees as its way out of one of the worst outbreaks in the world that has seen more than 112,000 fatalities among those testing positive for the virus.It has so far vaccinated more than 11 million people using either the Pfizer/BioNTech or Oxford/AstraZeneca shots.The AstraZeneca vaccine has been the source of an ugly row with the European Union, which is angry that the Anglo-Swedish firm was unable to meet the delivery target agreed with Brussels.France, Germany and Switzerland are also among countries to recommend the vaccine not be used for the elderly due to a lack of data.


Tackle development based on regions, Sarawak CM urges Putrajaya

Sarawak Chief Minister Abang Johari Openg today urged Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob to tackle development under the 12th Malaysia Plan, the government’s blueprint for the next five years, according to regional territory.Speaking to reporters, he said this would be in line with the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63).“We need to shift our approach in laying out economic development plans,” he said.“Planning should be according to region – Sabah, Sarawak and Malaya – and not based on state to state.”Adding that this was an old approach, he said an action plan based on regional factors would help ensure successful development.“Sarawak is large and the economic structure is different from that of the peninsula,” he said, adding that the state’s economy is based on its unique resources.“The economic approach should be based on our treaty, MA63,” he said.“The treaty states that Malaysia consists of three regions: Malaya, Sabah and Sarawak.”He also reiterated that a state-to-state approach would not work given the sheer size of Sarawak.“Just look at the Baram area – it’s as big as Pahang,” he said.


Covid cases on the rise as North America leads uptick

North America led an uptick in cases of Covid-19 around the world this week, recording the most new cases and deaths.Here is the global state of play according to a specialised AFP database.Cases on the upThe number of new daily cases around the world increased by 2% to 656,800, according to an AFP tally to Thursday.The pandemic has gained ground since mid-June fanned by the highly contagious Delta variant which has become predominant in most countries.The confirmed cases only reflect a fraction of the actual number of infections, with varying counting practices and levels of testing in different countries.Flare-up in North AmericaThis week the situation continued to worsen in the US and Canada, which saw a 12% increase in new daily cases. The situation also deteriorated in Oceania where cases increased by 20%.The number of new cases increased by 4% in Europe but was unchanged in Africa, with a 1% decrease in Asia and a 7% decrease in the Middle East.Biggest spikeOn a country basis, Ethiopia saw the biggest increase, with 62% more cases. Germany followed with a 50% increase, while Serbia had 49% more, Sri Lanka 41% more and Bulgaria 35% more.Biggest dropsIndonesia saw the biggest drop in the number of cases, with a 27% plunge, followed by Morocco with -26%, Botswana -24%, Libya -24% and Nepal -23%.US bears the bruntThe US remained by far the country with the most new cases with 155,300 on average every day, an increase of 12%. Iran followed with 35,100, a decrease of 8% and the UK 33,800, an increase of 11%.On a per capita basis the country that recorded the most new cases this week was Kosovo with 783 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, followed by Georgia with 774, and Montenegro 699.US most deathsThe US mourned the most deaths with 1,192 per day this week, followed by Indonesia (1,078) and Russia (792).At a global level the number of daily deaths increased by 3% to 10,069.VaccinationsPanama led the vaccination race this week, among countries with more than one million inhabitants, jabbing 1.58% of its population each day.South Korea followed with 1.56%, New Zealand 1.40%, Malaysia 1.39%, Ecuador 1.32%, Israel 1.16% – mainly booster shots – Norway 1.14%, Australia 1.06%, Salvador 1.06% and Japan 0.99%.While they are vaccinating more slowly, among the countries with the most advanced vaccination drives are the United Arab Emirates with 181 first and second doses administered per 100 inhabitants, Israel (153), Singapore (147), Denmark (145), Chile (141), Canada (140), Portugal (140) and China (139).


Selangor govt attempting to demolish service centre after failed eviction, Gombak Setia rep claims

Gombak Setia assemblyman Muhammad Hilman Idham today claimed that the Selangor government was trying to demolish his service centre following a foiled eviction order.
Hilman said that at 3.58pm yesterday, enforcement officers from the Gombak land and district office as well as the Selayang municipal council arrived and served a notice for unlawful occupation under Sections 425 and 426A(1)(c) of the National Land Code.
"The state government has realised that it was unreasonable to force me to vacate the premises in question just because the state assembly had been dissolved.
"So they intend to take action by tearing down the Gombak Setia service centre that was built in 2008," he said in a Facebook post.
Hilman however said he will not succumb to such pressure and intimidation, adding that he will continue to serve his constituents until the polling day.
On June 28, Hilman blasted the state government after officers from the Gombak land and district office arrived to force him to vacate the service centre.
Hilman asserted that the reason given, that no state government authorisation was given to set up the service centre on the land, was "foolish and does not make sense".
He said the service centre has been operating on that land for the past five years with the knowledge of the state government.
He also said that the eviction notice was not signed by the district officer but instead by the deputy district officer in charge of enforcement.
"This desperate move is an abuse of power, a threat and a political vendetta by the Selangor government," he said, calling the action a sign that the Pakatan Harapan administration is fearful of Perikatan Nasional in the lead-up to the state elections.


Activists fined for wearing ‘burkini’ swimsuits in French public pool

Several female activists have been fined in France for wearing what have become known as “burkinis” in a public swimming pool.Five women entered the Grenoble city pool to swim on Wednesday, causing the pool to be evacuated at the request of officials, French police said.Grenoble city hall said the activists had blocked access to the pool to other swimmers, and so were removed and banned from entering the facility for two months.The incident comes after a tense debate between the Grenoble mayor, Éric Piolle, and the government over full-body swimming costumes.“Burkinis” – a swimsuit that covers the whole body except the face – have been outlawed by several French municipalities since 2016, arguing the costumes violate the country’s secular values.But activists have argued that the ban is rooted in Islamophobia.The Citizen’s Alliance stated on Twitter that seven of its activists “demand the right to choose their swimming costume: full coverage, long-sleeved, short-sleeved or even topless”.The organisation says the current regulations are “discriminatory” and vowed to keep fighting for access to the swimming pool.Annabelle Bretton, deputy mayor of Grenoble, said the protest and removal of activists by authorities had been done “calmly” and “without violence”.The demonstrators were later met at Grenoble city hall after they had been handed a fine by police.In June 2019, a dozen women supported by the Citizens’ Alliance carried out a similar action in the same pool in Grenoble in an “act of civil disobedience”.Last year, the city’s mayor, in a letter to French Prime Minister Jean Castex, asked the government to decide at the national level whether or not to ban burkinis.Muslim swimwear has proved to be controversial not just over matters of modesty but over forming a potential health and safety hazard to wearers and other swimmers, says Global Sport Matters.Traditional Islamic attire requires men to cover from their belly button to their knees and women to cover everything except their hands and faces.Because these attire guidelines include swimwear, many Muslim women don burkinis when swimming.A burkini meets modesty requirements, although some Muslim authorities disagree, while being made of a light material that is suitable for swimming.However, Muslim women wearing the burkini have been harassed and kicked off beaches in Europe and the US.The harassment, or the fear of it, keeps many Muslim women away from public pools and beaches and denies them the health benefits of swimming.The harassment and fear is not limited to Muslim women in any one country. Several places have banned the burkini at public swimming areas.A few years ago, numerous French towns banned the swimwear in light of IS terror attacks in France.


Perlis religious council allowed to intervene in custody order granted to single mum

The Court of Appeal today allowed the appeal by the Perlis Islamic Religious and Malay Customs Council (MAIPs) to intervene in the custody order granted to single mother Loh Siew Hong, whose three children were converted to Islam by her Muslim-convert ex-husband.
The decision was delivered by a three-member bench comprising justices Has Zanah Mehat, See Mee Chun and Mohd Nazlan Ghazali.
In delivering the court's decision, Has Zanah said that based on the reading of two provisions – Order 15 Rule 6 of the Rules of Court 2012 and Section 96 of the Law Reform (Marriage and Divorce) Act 1976 – it would confer MAIPs a legal right to intervene.
She said the present issue before the court was whether MAIPs had the right to intervene to vary the custody order granted by the High Court.
"Therefore, there is no necessity for us to dwell on the legality or otherwise of the conversion of the children," she said in allowing MAIPs' appeal to set aside the decision of the High Court.
On June 15 last year, High Court judge Evrol Mariette Peters dismissed MAIPs' application to intervene after finding that MAIPs had failed to show that it was an interested party in relation to the children.
MAIPs counsel Mohamed Haniff Khatri Abdullah said following today's court decision, the religious council would file an application in the High Court in Kuala Lumpur to vary the custody order in the divorce petition between Loh and her ex-husband Muhammad Nagahswaran Muniandy.
In the divorce petition, Loh, 35, was granted sole custody, care and control over her three children, a pair of 15-year-old twin girls and an 11-year-old boy.
MAIPs filed the application to intervene on March 7 last year, to give the religious authority the locus standi to apply to vary the terms of the custody order granted to Loh.
On Feb 21 last year, the three siblings, who were placed under the care of the Social Welfare Department, were released to Loh after the High Court allowed her habeas corpus application. Loh also filed a judicial review application to challenge her children's conversion to Islam which she claimed was done by her ex-husband without her consent. The High Court is scheduled to hear her judicial review application on March 21.
In the court proceedings today, Haniff submitted that MAIPs had the statutory duty to look after the well-being, education and guidance of Muslim converts and to offer financial assistance from tithe funds.
Loh's lawyer A Srimurugan, however, argued that MAIPs should not be allowed to intervene as there was nothing on record to suggest that Loh would act contrary to her children’s faith or try to convert them out, or that she was in need of financial help.


Cabinet agrees to implement MRT3, improve flood mitigation projects

The Cabinet today agreed to implement the Mass Rapid Transit Line 3 (MRT3) and improve the implementation of the Sabah-Sarawak Pan Borneo Highway (PBH) and flood mitigation projects.Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob said priority would be given to local contractors, especially Bumiputeras.He said this was also to create business and job opportunities for the Malaysian Family, driving the country’s economic development and growth.“The implementation of high-impact infrastructure projects in the peninsula, Sabah and Sarawak, including the construction of integrated rail lines and highways as well as flood mitigation projects, will catalyse economic development and contribute to the country’s competitiveness and the well-being of the people.“The decision to implement those projects reflects the government’s concern about providing opportunities and strengthening the momentum of the country’s economic recovery,” he said in a statement today.Ismail said the nod to the implementation of the MRT3 project was to complete the existing public transport infrastructure in the Klang Valley by providing integrated, affordable and seamless services.The MRT3 project was suspended by the Pakatan Harapan administration before the new Cabinet under the leadership of Muhyiddin Yassin agreed to resume the project last year.Meanwhile, Ismail said the government had also agreed to proceed with the implementation of 19 additional work packages for the Sabah LPB covering a distance of 367km and a construction period of five years.He said the first phase of the Sabah LPB, which encompasses 15 packages, had seen 52% progress and was expected to be fully completed by October 2024, while the work progress of the first phase of Sarawak LPB involving a 786km alignment had reached 78%.“To complement the Sarawak LPB, the government has also agreed to implement the Sarawak-Sabah Link Road project and the Trans-Borneo Highway project,” he said.Apart from that, he said the Cabinet also agreed to increase and expedite the implementation of flood mitigation projects with an additional allocation of RM15 billion for 2023 to 2030, after taking into account the last northeast monsoon surge for 2021/2022 which resulted in the loss of lives and damage to property.The government currently provides a development budget of RM1 billion under the 12th Malaysia Plan.


Tears flow as Rosmah slams ‘cruel’ charges against her

Rosmah Mansor today broke into tears when giving her testimony at the High Court, describing her corruption charges as a cruel act against her and her family.Rosmah, 69, burst into tears as she was reading out the last two pages of her witness statement on the second day of proceeding of her defence trial on three charges of corruption involving a hybrid solar project worth RM1.25 billion for 369 rural schools in Sarawak.She said the prosecution had closed both eyes to the errors and irregularities in the process of awarding the tender to Jepak Holdings Sdn Bhd.She also claimed it was masterminded by then education minister Mahdzir Khalid and then secretary-general of the education ministry Madinah Mohamed and her successor Alias Ahmad, all of whom are prosecution witnesses in the case.“Although Mahdzir, Madinah, Alias, the then managing director of Jepak Holdings Sdn Bhd, Saidi Abang Samsuddin (SP17) and Rizal Mansor (SP21) should have had action taken against them for the offences committed, the prosecution preferred to have them as witnesses with no charges made against them.“This was done so that they, too, could point their fingers at me, someone with no position in the government and no authority to approve any government project whatsoever, to cover up their wrongdoings which are now exposed to the public.“This is a cruel and heinous act against me and my family. This is also malicious and selective prosecution against me,” she said as she sobbed.This prompted judge Mohamed Zaini Mazlan to ask her if she was alright.Rosmah, who testified from the witness stand, replied, “I’m sorry Your Honour, I’ve gone through a lot.” She then continued with her testimony after wiping her tears.She said the prosecution knew that the charges against her were baseless on account of Rizal’s willingness to become the crown witness and conspire with the prosecution to give false evidence in court to enable the charges against him to be withdrawn.Rosmah told the court that she had never received RM6.5 million from Saidi, allegedly sent to her in Jalan Langgak Duta and Seri Perdana, to help expedite the process of awarding the hybrid solar project to his company.She said Rizal’s claim that the RM6.5 million was placed in four bags, allegedly sent separately to the prime minister’s official residence in Seri Perdana on Dec 20, 2016, and his house in Langgak Duta on Sept 7, 2017, was a lie.“I never received RM5 million in two bags allegedly given by Saidi through Rizal to me in Seri Perdana, and Rizal’s claim that the two bags were handed over to two butlers and then handed over to me is not true,” she added.She also said that the prosecution had deliberately not called the butler as a witness as they knew the incident had never happened.“If it is true what Rizal said that I allegedly instructed the butler to carry the two black bags with orange stripes to my room, the prosecution would have certainly called the butler as their important witness during the prosecution case,” she added.On Feb 18, the High Court ordered Rosmah to enter her defence on the three corruption charges after finding that the prosecution had succeeded in proving a prima facie case against her.Rosmah was charged with one count of soliciting RM187.5 million and two counts of receiving bribes of RM6.5 million from Saidi through Rizal.It was allegedly an inducement to help the company (Jepak Holdings) to secure the hybrid photovoltaic solar system integrated project and maintenance and operation of genset/diesel for 369 rural schools in Sarawak worth RM1.25 billion through direct negotiation from the education ministry.The offence was allegedly committed at Lygon Cafe, Sunway Putra Mall, Jalan Putra; her residence at Jalan Langgak Duta, Taman Duta; and at Seri Perdana, Persiaran Seri Perdana, Presint 10, Putrajaya, between January 2016 and September 2017.The hearing continues tomorrow.


New infections at 1,800 as another 2 deaths logged

Another 1,809 Covid-19 cases were recorded yesterday, taking total confirmed infections in the country to 4,508,319.There were 1,911 recoveries, taking total recoveries to 4,449,593.There are now 23,048 active cases, of which 22,052 or 95.7% are undergoing home quarantine.Meanwhile, 25 (0.1%) are at quarantine centres while 945 (4.1%) have been hospitalised.A total of 26 are in ICU with 16 in need of respiratory assistance. ICU utilisation throughout the country stands at 60.0%, with Covid ICU utilisation at 5.6%.Another two deaths were reported, including one who was brought in dead. Total deaths now stand at 35,678.


Whopping 39 deaths as new cases top 4,700

Another 4,765 Covid-19 cases were recorded today, taking total confirmed infections in the country to 453,222.Selangor recorded 2,082 cases followed by Kuala Lumpur (540), Sarawak (405), Johor (348), Kelantan (297), Penang (259), Kedah (226), Perak (172), Negeri Sembilan (122) and Melaka (110).Sabah recorded 70 cases, Pahang 63, Terengganu 60, Labuan six, Putrajaya four and Perlis one.Active cases stand at 40,101 with 469 in the ICU and 244 in need of respiratory assistance.Twenty new clusters were detected:1. Tapak Bina Persiaran Tanjung (Sepang in Selangor; 173 screened, 53 positive)2. Persimpangan Batu Arang (Gombak and Hulu Selangor in Selangor; 577 screened, 163 positive)3. Tapak Bina Bukit Semenyih 2 (Hulu Langat and Kuala Langat in Selangor; 169 screened, 105 positive)4. Industri Jalan Emas (Kuala Langat and Klang in Selangor; 1,588 screened, 31 positive)5. Persiaran Masjid Lima (Petaling, Klang, Kuala Langat and Kuala Selangor in Selangor; 212 screened, 26 positive)6. Persiaran Satu (Cheras in Kuala Lumpur; 91 screened, 27 positive)7. Tapak Bina Batu Lima (Lembah Pantai in Kuala Lumpur; 372 screened, 20 positive)8. Jalan Segambut Pusat (Kepong and Gombak in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor; 23 screened, nine positive)9. Jalan Tembaha Industri (Johor Bahru and Kota Tinggi in Johor; 258 screened, 24 positive)10. Jalan Gangsa Industri (Johor Bahru in Johor; 83 screened, 15 positive)11. Jalan Terbilang (Seberang Perai Utara and Tengah in Penang; 43 screened, 43 positive)12. Telipot (Kota Bharu, Tumpat, Tanah Merah, Machang, Bachok and Pasir Puteh in Kelantan; 188 screened, 46 positive)13. Nanga Skrang (Sri Aman in Sarawak; 66 screened, 27 positive)14. Skim Penempatan Stapok (Kuching and Bau in Sarawak; 117 screened, 26 positive)15. Kampung Tok Sangkut (Pasir Mas in Kelantan; 43 screened, 10 positive)16. Kahang Timur (Kluang in Johor; 122 screened, 42 positive)17. Tanjung Kapor (Semporna in Sabah; nine screened, eight positive)18. Lorong Taman Ipoh Dua (Kinta and Kuala Kangsar in Perak; 50 screened, 21 positive)19. Jalan Muafakat (Johor Bahru in Johor; 163 screened, 39 positive)20. Kebagu (Kota Kinabalu and Papar in Sabah; 281 screened, 15 positive)There are currently 462 active clusters across the country.Another 3,124 patients were discharged, bringing total recoveries to 411,360.However, 39 more deaths were reported, pushing the virus toll to 1,761.


Sarawak family of 11, most of them blind, struggle with pandemic life

In a small wooden house in a village in Sarawak, not far from the capital city, lives a family of 11, more of whom have visual impairments than not.Siti Zaharah Abdullah and her husband Faizal Puini used to work as massage therapists. They also sold snacks at Medan Satok, a market in Petrajaya, where they rented a small space for RM300 a month.It was a hard life which became even harder after the Covid-19 pandemic hit.Both Faizal and Siti Zaharah are visually impaired and struggle each day to put food on the table for themselves and their two children.Should the authorities impose another lockdown, they are unsure how they will survive.With their small business out of commission due to the pandemic, they are currently relying on the various forms of relief they receive in order to make ends meet. They still take bookings but these are few and far in between.Should the authorities impose another lockdown, they are unsure how they will survive.“Visually impaired people like us are hardly hired because of our disability,” Siti Zaharah, 29, told MalaysiaNow.“We have been living on a shoestring budget since before the pandemic. There’s nothing much we can do.”She and her family now live with her in-laws in their house in Kampung Gita Lama, Petrajaya, about 6km away from the city centre.Faizal’s five siblings also stay there, bringing the total number of people living in the house to 11.Of these, Siti Zaharah and Faizal, along with his mother and four of his siblings, are visually impaired.Siti Zaharah’s mother-in-law became blind due to diabetes when she was 17.Faizal’s father, Puini Jaiman, and three of his brothers earn what they can collecting tin cans. His two youngest sisters face mental challenges of various degrees.When the first lockdown was imposed in March last year, Faizal and Siti Zaharah had zero income.“Apart from the Covid-19 special financial aid, we had to rely on the RM250 we got each month from the state welfare department,” Siti Zaharah said.She recalled the sinking feeling of despair that she would experience each time there was no money to buy essentials, including food supplies.She also worries a lot about her children, especially her daughter who is six years old.“I worry about whether she can cope with her learning sessions,” she said. “The school closures mean that she has to learn remotely from home.”Even the prospect of having to print out the learning materials is daunting as the family cannot afford a printer.“We can’t even afford to buy food,” Siti Zaharah said. “To print out her learning material, we would have to take public transport to go to a printing shop.”The small house in Petrajaya, Sarawak, which the 11 of them call home.Since the start of the pandemic, what little income they have has been earned selling packets of tissue on the streets.“There are days when we don’t have enough to eat after feeding our children,” she said. Little luxuries like milk are distant dreams.The family survives by sharing what food they have. In the same way, they pool their money to pay for electricity and water.“Everyone has to chip in,” Siti Zaharah said.They also share their sleeping space, which is the tiny living room.“We are fortunate to live in a community,” she said, adding that her neighbours often shared their food with them during the lockdown periods.But even so, she is under no delusions about her family’s situation.“I don’t think we can afford to face another movement control order.”


Court allows Zahid’s bid for return of passport to seek treatment in Germany

The Shah Alam High Court today allowed the application by Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, who is facing 40 charges of corruption involving the extension of contract to Ultra Kirana Sdn Bhd (UKSB) to operate the foreign visa system (VLN), for the temporary return of his passport to enable him to go to Germany for treatment.His lawyer Ahmad Zaidi Zainal said the application was made at the Shah Alam High Court before judge Mohd Yazid Mustafa.The application was similar to the one made at the Kuala Lumpur High Court last week, he said when met by reporters today.He said the temporary release of the passport would not affect Zahid’s next trial date, which is on Oct 22.On Oct 7, lawyer Hamidi Mohd Noh, also representing Zahid, said his client had applied to the Kuala Lumpur High Court for his passport to be released on Oct 26 and that it would be returned on Nov 21.Hamidi informed High Court judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah that his client was suffering from back and neck pain and needed to get treatment from a leading specialist in Munich.Zahid is facing 33 charges of receiving bribes amounting to S$13.56 million (RM42 million) from Ultra Kirana Sdn Bhd as an inducement for himself in his capacity as a civil servant and home minister at the time to extend the contract of the company as the operator of the one-stop centre in China and the VLN system as well as to maintain the agreement to supply VLN integrated system paraphernalia to the same company by the home ministry.In another seven charges, Zahid is accused as then home minister of accepting S$1,150,000, RM3,000,000, €15,000 (RM75,663) and US$15,000 (RM62,115) in cash from the same company which he knew had a connection with his function as minister.


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Beyond marketing gimmicks in buying health supplements

A pharmacist has urged consumers to be on the lookout for unscrupulous marketing tactics and fake testimonies about supplements in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, which saw a jump in intake of dietary supplements in tandem with concerns over public health.Munaver Ahmad Nazir Ahmad, a senior clinical community pharmacist in Sungai Buloh, warned consumers against making promotions and discounts the main deciding factor when purchasing supplements.“These are mere marketing tools that retailers use to prompt users to buy,” he said.His comments follow a survey by Japanese firm Rakuten Insight which found that Malaysians aged 16 to 44 increased their intake of dietary supplements in July last year, following the outbreak of Covid-19 in the country.The prospect of maintaining good health and boosting immunity against viruses and other ailments is enough to lure many into forking out large amounts of money, particularly if it involves promotions and discounts promising them a good deal.But Munaver said a number of factors should be taken into account before would-be buyers shell out the big bucks.Malaysians aged 16 to 44 increased their intake of dietary supplements in July last year, following the outbreak of Covid-19 in the country.For starters, he said, consumers should always check the registration number and authenticity of the product under consideration.Registration of supplements in Malaysia is governed by the National Pharmaceutical Registration Agency or NPRA. Products given the green light by the NPRA are issued a registration code beginning with “MAL”, followed by eight digits and ending with the letter “N”.“There are many products that are only registered as food supplements and do not have product code registration numbers,” Munaver told MalaysiaNow.Buyers can also check the authenticity of a product by entering its particulars in the Quest3+ application on the NPRA’s website.A quick way to determine whether a supplement has passed inspection is to look for the hologram sticker issued by the health ministry. But Munaver warned that some retailers abuse this and other important logos including the halal symbol, the Good Manufacturing Practice logo and the ministry’s MeSTI logo.He said a better way is to check if the product complies with the requirements of the Medicines Advertisement Board, which in accordance with the Medicines (Advertisement & Sales) Act 1956 bars products for some 20 diseases from advertisement by retailers and manufacturers.At the end of the day, he said, it is always best to consult professionals to avoid making uninformed decisions due to impulse buying or doubts over physical well-being.Most people may not even need supplements as daily vitamin and mineral requirements can be found in a healthy and balanced diet.He said community pharmacists are trained to identify signs and symptoms of nutrient deficiency and will be able to provide advice on how best to overcome the problem.“Community pharmacists are able to use their technical judgment and expertise to provide well-informed decisions on whether the supplements are needed or not to best suit consumers’ current health conditions.”In any case, he said, most people may not even need supplements as daily vitamin and mineral requirements can be found in a healthy and balanced diet.“Nutrient deficiencies can be corrected by supplements, but the gold standard is to have a healthy balanced diet,” he said.He also warned of side effects from some supplements which, if taken beyond the recommended dosage, could lead to toxicity.Supplements may also cause reactions due to diets or disease, he said.Given the hectic pace of lifestyle for many these days, maintaining a balanced diet may be easier said than done.And if supplements are ultimately necessary, Munaver’s advice is the same: take them based on the word of health experts, not marketing campaigns


Khairy needs 'deep pockets' for political comeback, says analyst

As debate and speculation continue to swirl about the post-Umno future of one-time youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin, a veteran analyst says that at the very least, the former Rembau MP will need significant financial support in order to make a political comeback.
Shamsul Amri Baharuddin of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia said Khairy would need sponsors to provide him with the much-needed funds.
Without this, he said, Khairy would go nowhere.
"Before he can enter any political party, he needs financiers," Shamsul said. "If he has no capital, his influence will be limited."
Speaking to MalaysiaNow, Shamsul said the matter of "deep pockets" or political financing had long been a part of any analysis of Malaysia's political situation.
Citing the example of Dr Mahathir Mohamad, he said the former prime minister had had three billionaires behind him, allowing him to finance his party Pejuang within a very short period of time despite ultimately failing to win public support.
"Khairy must find his political investors," Shamsul said. "After that, everything else will come."
Khairy, who held the health, science, technology and innovation, and youth and sports portfolios in various Cabinets, was sacked from Umno last month in what was seen as a purge of those critical of the top leadership.
He later said that he was open to all options although he was still holding to his ambition of becoming the prime minister – a goal first announced during his campaign for the Sungai Buloh constituency last November.
Khairy eventually lost the race for Sungai Buloh, as well as his place in Parliament.
Both Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin and PKR chief Anwar Ibrahim said after Khairy's sacking that they were open to considering applications by those given the boot by Umno.
In a later statement, however, Anwar hinted that the door might be closed to Khairy in the interest of keeping the peace in his coalition government.
Khairy had been vocal against Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, including on the recent decision at the party's annual general assembly to block off any contest for the top two posts.
Zahid was instrumental in gathering the support of Barisan Nasional MPs for the coalition government led by Anwar and Pakatan Harapan following the inconclusive results of the November election.
He also played a significant role in obtaining the support of Gabungan Parti Sarawak and Gabungan Rakyat Sabah.
Political analyst Mazlan Che Soh said Khairy did not appear particularly interested in offers from either Bersatu or PKR.
He told MalaysiaNow that Khairy had already rejected these, albeit in a diplomatic manner.
But he also played down the odds of Khairy joining Islamist party PAS, saying it was more likely that he would take a political hiatus.
Mazlan said Khairy had clearly demonstrated his hope of one day returning to Umno.
"But for now, he might be considering other options," he said.


Forensic report of WhatsApp messages received, say Guan Eng’s lawyers

The prosecution in the corruption case involving former Penang chief minister Lim Guan Eng has handed over the forensic report of WhatsApp conversations between two businessmen to the defence team.
Deputy public prosecutor Farah Yasmin Salleh told Sessions Court judge Azura Alwi, during the mention of the case today, that the document was submitted on April 18.
Lim’s counsel Haijan Omar confirmed receipt of the document.
The forensic report involved WhatsApp exchanges between businessman G Gnanaraja and Consortium Zenith Construction Sdn Bhd (CZCSB) director, Zarul Ahmad Mohd Zulkifli regarding the "RM2 million chocolate gift" which was allegedly given to Lim as a bribe.
The exchanges were previously revealed through the testimony of the MACC forensic investigating officer assistant superintendent Wan Mohd Firdaus Wan Yusof. Lim, 61, is facing an amended charge of using his position as the chief minister of Penang to accept a bribe of RM3.3 million in helping a company owned by Zarul to obtain a construction project worth RM6,341,383,702 at the office of the chief minister of Penang, 28th floor, Komtar, Georgetown between January 2011 and August 2017.
For the second amended charge, Lim is accused of soliciting a bribe from Zarul, namely 10% of the company’s profits, as an inducement for obtaining the project and is accused of committing the act near The Gardens Hotel, Lingkaran Syed Putra, Mid Valley City in March 2011.
Lim also faces two charges of causing two plots of land worth RM208.8 million owned by the Penang government to be disposed of to two companies allegedly linked to the state’s undersea tunnel project.
He is alleged to have committed the offence at the Penang land and mines office, 21st floor, Komtar on Feb 17, 2015 and March 22, 2017.
The trial continues on July 18.


Indian drugmaker denies syrup exported to Liberia is toxic

An Indian maker of a paracetamol syrup that Nigerian authorities have found toxic told Reuters on Tuesday that tests by a private Indian laboratory found them of "standard quality", as Indian authorities launch their own investigation.
Nigeria's National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration and Control (Nafdac) said in an alert last week that samples of the Indian-made paracetamol suspension, Para Clear, exported to Liberia last year contained the toxin ethylene glycol. It also failed the requirement for "acute oral toxicity with five deaths of the laboratory animals recorded", the agency said.
Many Indian-made drugs have been found to have contained ethylene glycol and similar toxin diethylene glycol since last year, which the World Health Organization (WHO) have linked to the deaths of dozens of children in Gambia and Uzbekistan. The toxins are commonly used in brake fluid and other products not meant for human consumption.
"There is no possibility at all of finding ethylene glycol or diethylene glycol in our product," said Jaimik Patel, a director at Curis Lifesciences, based in the western Indian city of Ahmedabad and whose products were sold in Liberia.
"We are challenging the claim that our product was toxic."
A test of a sample of the medicine conducted by privately run Vaibhav Analytical Services in Ahmedabad on Saturday, and seen by Reuters, said the syrup had less than 0.1% of ethylene glycol and diethylene glycol.
"The sample referred... IS OF standard quality," the test report from the Ahmedabad-based laboratory said.
Trace amounts of less than 0.1% of ethylene glycol and diethylene glycol in medicines are not considered toxic, according to the WHO.
Nafdac, in its alert, did not give a toxicity concentration figure but said ethylene glycol was a "toxic substance that is not expected in product formulations". It did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Patel said officials from India's federal drug regulator, the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation, also picked up the sample for their own investigation. He said Curis had shared the test results and other documents with the regulator and the WHO.
Mumbai-based drug exporter Synercare told Reuters it had shipped two batches of nearly 20,000 Curis-made Para Clear bottles each to Liberia in October. Synercare's exports manager Dipesh Ajmera and Patel said Liberian authorities have now revoked the permission for the sale of all Curis products, including painkillers paracetamol and ibuprofen and antibiotic medication azithromycin.
Ajmera said Liberian authorities were set to destroy one batch of the paracetamol syrup last year as the drug's colour did not match that of a comparable product. The paracetamol suspension was supposed to be reddish brown but on physical verification, it was found to be reddish pink, Ajmera said.
Keturah Smith-Chineh, head of the Liberia Medicines and Health Products Regulatory Authority, told Reuters the syrups were to be incinerated because of the colour variation but it was tested in Nigeria at the request of the medicine's local importer.
"We plan to incinerate all the... stock that came into Liberia," she said. "There are two other child medications from that manufacturer and we are working on recalling them."


Lorry driver issued summons for carrying 48 Covid-positive workers

Police have issued a summons against a lorry driver for openly carrying 48 foreign workers who tested positive for Covid-19 in Sungai Petani yesterday.Kuala Muda district police chief ACP Adzli Abu Shah said that on being alerted to the incident at about 5pm, police immediately tracked down the lorry and detained the driver in Sungai Lalang, Bedong.“The lorry was on its way back from the Kuala Muda PKD (district health office) to the hostel of a chicken processing factory in Sungai Lalang.“On inspection, we found 48 Covid-19 positive individuals wearing a quarantine wristband in the lorry,” he said in a statement.Yesterday, a 19-second video and pictures of a lorry packed with workers wearing pink wristbands went viral on Facebook, receiving various reactions from internet users.Adzli said the Kuala Muda PKD had instructed 135 factory workers to show up for investigation and to wear the quarantine wristband following the detection of positive Covid-19 cases at the chicken processing plant.“The employer arranged for a special lorry to bring all 135 positive cases on three trips to the Kuala Muda PKD – the lorry carrying the 48 individuals arrested earlier was making the third trip,” he said.Adzli said police took action against the 51-year-old lorry driver under Section 23 (2) of the Road Transport Act 1987 for misusing a Motor Vehicle Licence.He said an investigation paper was opened against the factory manager, who is 43 years old, under Section 22 (b) of the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases Act 1988 (Act 342) for not complying with an order issued by an authorised officer.“The employer will also be investigated under Section 270 of the Penal Code for negligent or mischievous acts that may cause an infection with a life-threatening disease,” he said.