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Bersatu leaders fume over contract backlash; Ezam backs Dr M as full-term PM

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

Bersatu leaders fume over contract backlash

Several Bersatu division chiefs discussed mobilising a campaign to oust Bersatu Youth chief Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman after he ticked them off for demanding government contracts and positions.

The cabinet is expected to discuss this demand for government resources – including from Bersatu vice-president Abdul Rashid Abdul Rahman – which has led to a widespread uproar.

Bersatu’s Bandar Tun Razak division said its chief’s speech at the party general assembly, in which this demand was first made, should not be misinterpreted.

Ezam backs Dr M as full-term PM

Former senator Ezam Mohd Nor, an ally of PKR deputy president Mohamed Azmin Ali, backed a proposal for Dr Mahathir Mohamad to stay on as prime minister for a full term.

Foreign Minister Saifuddin Abdullah said Pakatan Harapan did not set a timeline for Mahathir to hand over power to PKR president Anwar Ibrahim.

Health Minister Dzulkefly Ahmad said he is confident that Mahathir will honour his promise to transfer power to Anwar.

Anwar, in a New Year's message, urged the government to focus on important issues, as the electorate is keeping tabs on its performance.

Motorcycle toll abolished

The toll for motorcyclists using the Penang bridges and the Tanjung Kupang toll for the Malaysia-Singapore Second Link were abolished.

Singapore, which has a policy of matching tolls imposed by Malaysia, said it too will abolish the toll on its end of the expressway, beginning Jan 21.

Malaysia and Singapore are also expected to discuss their airspace dispute on Jan 8.

Two Malaysian fishermen were allegedly robbed in waters that have overlapping claims between Malaysia and Indonesia.

Other Kinibites

Umno supreme council member Armand Azha Abu Hanifah asked former vice-president Hishammuddin Hussein to make an open declaration of his loyalty to the party.

DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng conceded that the party will face a stiff fight in the Cameron Highlands by-election on Jan 26, claiming that MIC has an upper hand.

DAP veteran Lim Kit Siang was trapped at an Orang Asli village in Cameron Highlands after torrential rain.

Dzulkefly said the government will take an "educative" approach to the smoking ban at eateries for six months before its starts issuing fines.

Deputy Primary Industries Minister Shamsul Iskandar Md Akin urged Malaysians to consume more palm oil to help support the price of the commodity, on which many rural Malaysians rely on for income.

Looking ahead

Both Education Minister Maszlee Malik and Deputy Education Minister Teo Nie Ching will be surveying schools in the Klang Valley as students return to their classes for the first day in 2019.

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