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

DAP's 'Superman' flayed over 'screw Malays' remark

MCA has hit out at DAP's firebrand Hew Kuan Yau popularly known as 'Superman', for allegedly engaging in appalling politics during the recently-concluded Sarawak polls, singling out his remarks that Chinese voters should elect DAP's Batu Kitang candidate Abdul Aziz Isa so that he could "screw the Malays".

But Abdul Aziz defended Hew 's colourful ceramah speech, saying that the latter was taking aim at the corrupt Malays when he urged voters to support DAP over PKR in Batu Kitang, accusing certain quarters of twisting the controversial speaker's message.

Responding to the criticisms, Hew said that he is no racist, adding that if he was indeed anti-Malay as claimed by his opponents, he would not be asking voters to elect a Malay candidate over BN and PKR's Chinese candidates.

Weighing in on the matter, Gerakan Youth chief Tan Keng Liang asked why did Hew used such words in the first place if he was not racist, urging the public to view a video of the DAP leader's speech and judge for themselves.

DAP veteran Lim Kit Siang also lambasted Hew over the matter, saying that the firebrand's choice of words during the speech was vulgar, crude and insensitive, though he denied that there was any element of racism involved.

Fitch expresses concern over 1MDB default

Fitch Ratings Agency expressed concern that the default on payments to bondholders by 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) last month could lead to weaker focus on policy and political instability in Malaysia, though it noted there is little sign of these risks materialising as yet.

Deputy Finance Minister Johari Abdul Ghani has praised 1MDB's engagement with its US dollar-denominated bondholders to explain its dispute with International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC) that led to its recent default on an bond interest payout, as a good move towards restoring confidence in the market.

Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak said that a failed initial public offering (IPO) exercise, as a result of being "attacked" by certain quarters, was the main reason why 1MDB encountered problems in the first place.

TMJ slams FAM over pardons for players caught for bribery

The Crown Prince of Johor Tunku Ismail Ibni Sultan Ibrahim has hit out at the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) for pardoning former footballers indicted for bribery, arguing that it takes away the deterrent against future graft in the sport.

This, after a group of Malaysian football players who were left in the cold after being caught in a corruption scandal in the mid-1990s, were pardoned by the Malaysia's football governing body, opening the door for them to return to the pitch as footballers or coaches.

More Kini bites

Failure to be sensitive to what East Malaysians generally feel about West Malaysians may have led to the miserable failure of peninsula-based DAP and PKR in their 'Journey to the East' into Sarawak.

The Higher Education Ministry clarified that the government’s recognition of the Unified Examination Certificate (UEC) is still under discussion, referring to a reports quoting Deputy Education Minister Chong Sin Woon that the UEC is set to be recognised by the government “very soon”.

Selangor and Perak elected representatives are now less responsive to messages sent through electronic means in 2016 compared with two years ago, a test by the NGO, Kuasa, revealed.

Looking ahead

1MDB is facing the possibility of yet another default as the coupon payment for a US$1.75 billion bond is due today, following its previous default. Any failure to pay out may trigger cross-defaults on other debts, including US$1.83 billion (RM7.4 billion) in Islamic bonds, reported Channel News Asia.