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

Annuar still Umno info chief

Umno president Najib Abdul Razak said Annuar Musa would remain Umno information chief despite being investigated for abuse of power over the sponsorship of Kelantan football team The Red Warriors by agencies under Majlis Amanah Rakyat (Mara).

PKR vice-president Nurul Izzah Anwar has urged Rural and Regional Development Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob, who oversees Mara, to take responsibility and resign following Annuar's suspension and corruption probe.

Ismail can capitalise on Annuar's suspension as Mara chairperson to secure a future spot as a party vice-president in the upcoming Umno party polls, said an analyst.

Bersatu-PAS closed-door meet

PAS and Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) held a closed-door meeting in Bangsar without the presence of its respective presidents or Bersatu chairperson Dr Mahathir Mohamad. The two parties agreed to form a cooperative framework.

Bersatu will take part in a series of roadshows on the alleged wrongdoings of the Federal Land Development Authority (Felda) beginning with Felda Jengka 8 near Jerantut in Pahang, the home state of Najib.

Meanwhile, DAP strategist Liew Chin Tong took a look at Kelantan – will PAS hold on to it or will Umno reclaim the state? Or will there be a new government instead in the form of Pakatan Harapan and Bersatu in the coming general election?

BN explains petrol hike

Fuel prices are up because petrol prices at the pump are determined on the monthly average of refined oil prices, and not crude oil, the BN Strategic Communications Team said.

This was after the opposition wants Najib to explain the 20 sen hike in petrol prices despite international crude oil prices having fallen slightly in the month of January.

Meanwhile, Health Ministry director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said there will be no changes in fees paid by Malaysians for outpatient dental procedures at government clinics, despite an alleged Health Ministry circular which stated that dental procedure charges would increase exponentially starting March 1.

More Kinibites

Jamilah Anu, the widow of the late Sarawak chief minister Adenan Satem, is BN's candidate for the upcoming Tanjong Datu by-election.

Malaysia is not on US President Donald Trump's ban list, said the US Embassy in Kuala Lumpur in respond to queries after alarm was spread by a news portal's article claiming that Malaysia is also on the list.

In a landmark majority decision delivered late last year that raised the eyebrows of the Sarawak indigenous people, the Federal Court ruled that the Iban practice of “pemakai menoa” and “pulau” regarding customary land ownership was not enforceable in law.

Looking ahead

Annuar, the embattled Mara chief, will be arriving home from his overseas trip tonight. His plane is expected to touch down at the KL International Airport at around 8.30pm.