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

New Agong to take office by Jan 31

The Conference of Rulers has decided to convene on Jan 24 to elect a new Yang di-Pertuan Agong on Jan 24, with the swearing-in ceremony slated to take place on Jan 31.

In the meantime, Perak Sultan Nazrin Shah will serve as the acting Agong, following Sultan Muhammad V’s abdication announced on Sunday.

Meanwhile, Perak PKR chairperson Farhash Wafa Salvador Rizal Mubarak urged the people to respect the royal institution and the Kelantan ruler’s decision not to publicise a wedding that is widely rumoured to have taken place.

Perlis Bersatu to be probed over forgery claims

Bersatu secretary-general Marzuk Yahya said the party will probe allegations of wrongdoing involving its Perlis chapter, after it removed its Perlis secretary Wan Saiful Wan Jan.

Perlis Bersatu chairperson Ameir Hassan said Wan Saiful was removed from office as the latter had been busy with his role as National Higher Education Fund (PTPTN) chairperson and was not able to attend to his party commitments.

However, Wan Saiful countered that he had lodged a police report over the use of forged documents at Perlis Bersatu’s office to claim hundreds of thousands of ringgit, and that he too had been offered money in exchange for awarding contracts.

Perlis police chief Noor Mushar has confirmed that it is investigating Wan Saiful’s allegations. It is learned that Wan Saiful had claimed that someone had forged his identity to rent two cars, among others.

Other Kinibites

The radio station BFM 89.9 has sacked two of its staff following an internal sexual harassment probe and revealed that another had been terminated earlier over a 2017 allegation of rape.

The US-based multinational Cisco Systems Inc is under pressure from netizens to take action against one of its staff over an alleged insult against Sultan Muhammad V, while a local security firm by the same name was forced to clarify that it is not affiliated with the US company.

The Sarawak Chief Minister’s Office has clarified that it has no arrears in debt repayment to the federal government, on contrary to Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng’s claim.

Looking ahead

Finance Minister Lim and de facto Islamic Affairs minister Mujahid Yusof Rawa will be handing over cheques to registered pondok schools today.

Transport Minister Anthony Loke is launching unlimited-use transit passes.

Foreign Minister Saifuddin Abdullah is expected to meet his Singaporean counterpart Vivian Balakrishnan over the republic’s use of Malaysian airspace for its Seletar Airport operations.