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Guan Eng-Apandi tiff; 'Najib misled on 1MDB'; DOJ suit 'normal', says minister

Here are the key headlines from yesterday you may have missed, in brief.

Guan Eng, Apandi spar over bungalow-gate

Attorney-general (AG) Mohamed Apandi Ali yesterday warned Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng to stop commenting on his ongoing corruption trial, especially comments on the AG, threatening to publicly disclose evidence of the CM's corruption if it continues.

This was after Lim reportedly questioned the AG's integrity at a press conference a day earlier.

Lim's lawyer Gobind Singh Deo warned Apandi not to "threaten" Lim for addressing the public on his court case, adding that it is the CM's right to explain his own stand on the matter, warning that he may file contempt proceedings against the AG for what he deemed is unbecoming conduct.

Meanwhile Lim said the party is waiting for a consensus from PKR on a proposed Penang snap election, widely seen as DAP's counter move to Lim's court case.

'Najib misled on 1MDB'

Admitting that it is obvious who the 'Malaysian Official 1' in the Department of Justice's (DOJ) forfeiture suits to seize assets allegedly bought with stolen 1MDB cash is, Gerakan Youth deputy chief Andy Yong believes Najib had good intentions but was "ill-advised" on 1MDB, leading to the present "brouhaha".

Regardless, Najib is implicated in the DOJ lawsuits even if he is not named in it, insisted Bersih chairperson Maria Chin Abdullah, while Centre to Combat Corruption and Cronyism (C4) executive director Cynthia Gabriel said the PM's stepson Riza Aziz being named in the suits points to "high level nepotism".

But despite implications of the DOJ’s move, some observers do not expect Najib or his government to fold, adding the 1MDB-linked asset seizure is likely to have minimal impact on Malaysian domestic politics.

DOJ lawsuit a 'normal matter'

Umno supreme council member Ahmad Shabery Cheek said incidents like the DOJ suit is a normal matter when it comes to the Malaysian government, citing what he called an even bigger case of the BMF scandal in the 1980's as an example.

Wanita Umno chief Shahrizat Abdul Jalil said attempts by certain parties to use foreign influence and the recent DOJ filing to force a change of government could lead to conflict and civil war as had occurred in Iraq and Syria.

Umno deputy president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi told Malaysians not to let the DOJ suits distract from challenges currently facing the nation, expressing confidence that the matter will soon go away.

More Kini bites

Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak celebrated his 63rd birthday yesterday, a momentous occasion as it is also his 40th year in politics. Malaysiakini talked to analysts on how the PM measures up to his father's legacy over the years.

In yesterday's instalment of KiniGuide we stripped down the US Department of Justice (DOJ) Kleptocracy Asset Recovery Initiative (Kari) to the core and see how it has fared in the past and what may happen once the assets supposedly linked to embezzled 1MDB funds are seized.

The second part of our special report on the migrant community in Kuala Lumpur's Kota Raya area details the tribulations of migrant youths trying to find companionship, a sense of belonging and romance in a not-so-friendly land.

Looking ahead

Tonight the opposition pact will hold a dinner to raise funds for the Penang CM's war chest to mount DAP's legal defence against Lim's corruption charges.

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