SNAPSHOT | MACC posts officers' phone numbers for Rafizi's former aide to contact

KINI SNAPSHOT | What's going on in the news today, with updates at 9am, 2pm, 6pm, and 9pm.

9pm

Corruption

• The MACC has reiterated its call for ex-economy minister Rafizi Ramli’s former aide James Chai to present himself at its headquarters in Putrajaya, saying cooperation with law enforcement authorities is a basic obligation for any citizen.

  In a statement today, MACC listed the names and contact numbers of five of its officers, whom it said Chai should contact immediately to arrange his return to Malaysia and record his statement.

  “Public narratives and media statements cannot replace the legal process of investigating cases. MACC therefore urges Chai to immediately contact any one of the investigating officers of his plans to return to Malaysia to assist the investigation,” it said today.

  

  Chai previously claimed MACC failed to contact him before releasing a notice with his personal information, which stated he is a wanted person. The MACC fired back by claiming Chai had blocked an MACC officer who tried to reach him via WhatsApp.

Economy

• The price of RON95 petrol is expected to remain under control amidst the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, but the outlook for the future is not promising.

  “In the current situation, it appears to still be under control, but we know that more than 200 oil and gas vessels are stuck in the Strait of Hormuz. This will certainly affect business, as well as transportation costs, because longer routes have to be used.

  “So far, as I announced, we will try to keep prices under control, including RON95 at RM1.99 (per litre). For now, we can still hold out, but the early signs are not very good or reassuring,” Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim told reporters after performing Friday prayers today, Bernama reported.

  Anwar, who is also the finance minister, urged Malaysians not to take the conflict lightly, due to the risk of a larger-than-expected economic crisis.

READ MORE: Middle East war will test M’sia’s capability to maintain RON95 subsidy

6pm

Governance

• Bersih has doubled down on its censure of the MACC, raising concerns about the independence of the probe into the graftbuster’s chief, Azam Baki.

  The NGO said it had consistently condemned the committee for solely focusing on Azam’s shareholding issues while seemingly turning a blind eye to the “larger scandal” involving a corporate mafia network.

  Referencing Attorney-General Dusuki Mokhtar’s role as the committee’s leader, Bersih questioned how Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim expects the public to have confidence in the sincerity and transparency of the investigation.

  

  “In fact, we would like to ask: to whom will this committee ultimately be accountable once the investigation concludes?

  “Will it be to the prime minister himself, who has already extended Azam’s contract three times despite having been one of his harshest critics in 2022?” it queried.

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  READ MORE: Rafizi claims 'cybertrooper-like' PM signals outcome of Azam probe

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  It stressed that the matter is not a “new issue” as Bersih and its civil society organisation (CSO) partners had repeatedly urged the government to implement MACC reforms since Azam’s contract was renewed for the first time in May 2023.

  “Anwar cannot blame Bersih for his own failure to implement these anti-corruption reforms,” the electoral watchdog affirmed.

  Earlier today, Anwar criticised Bersih for being “unfair” after the NGO described the MACC as a political tool of the government, with the prime minister saying that “accusations” should wait for the committee’s report on the matter.

Politics

• MIC deputy president M Saravanan asserted that the Indian community “misses” a BN-led government as they feel that they were “well protected” when the coalition held Putrajaya.

  Speaking to reporters in Tapah today, Saravanan said he had highlighted the matter to BN chairperson Ahmad Zahid Hamidi during a recent retreat.

  “It is undeniable that the grassroots are yearning for the proven stability and inclusive protection that only BN has historically delivered.

  “Today, there are certain individuals attempting to stir up trouble over religious issues, and it feels as though there is no one protecting the Indian community. They miss BN,” Saravanan said.

  

  Saravanan’s implication that the current administration, which includes BN, is lacking in its efforts for the Indian community comes amid talks of BN potentially contesting at least 115 parliamentary seats in the next general election to ensure its return to federal power.

READ MORE: Will Anwar let BN contest 115 Parliament seats?

READ MORE: MIC delegates want to quit BN, join PN; president says it's a matter of time

• The Bersatu disciplinary board is expected to deliver its decision against party vice-president Ronald Kiandee and Bersatu Women’s Wing chief Mas Ermieyatie Samsudin tomorrow.

  

  This follows the end of a seven-day deadline set for the two senior leaders to respond to a show-cause letter dated Feb 28.

  The duo are among party leaders aligned with sacked Bersatu deputy president Hamzah Zainudin. 

Temple disputes 

• The Penang Surplus Welfare Association (Surplus), the group behind the planned protest against a Hindu temple outside the Bukit Mertajam Hospital, has decided to cancel the event after a meeting with police today.

  “Anyone who goes to the hospital will not be our people. We can’t stop them,” Free Malaysia Today quoted him as saying during a joint press conference with the shrine’s committee outside the Seberang Perai Tengah police headquarters.

  Surplus chairperson Sophian Zain also dismissed allegations that the NGO was planning to tear down the shrine, claiming instead that the group merely wanted to “find common ground” on the issue, with no intention of inciting disharmony. 

  

  He added that the group was not behind a seemingly AI-generated poster of the protest, which had made the rounds on social media and garnered condemnation from various quarters.

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  READ MORE: Another Rayer police report, another investigation against Zamri Vinoth

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  In a statement on the matter, Penang police chief Azizee Ismail advised the public against gathering at the temple to avoid a provocative environment that could affect public peace and safety.

• The government today hosted a multi-party discussion to strategise the management of non-Muslim worship houses, co-chaired by Deputy National Unity Minister R Yuneswaran and Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Religious Affairs) Marhamah Rosli.

  

  This would be the first such meeting organised by Putrajaya following recent religious tension over land disputes involving Hindu temples in the country.

  In a statement, the deputy ministers said that among the matters discussed were the need to strengthen the people’s understanding of procedures and guidelines for the construction and management of worship houses.

  “The discussion also focused on the aspects of administration, coordination, and the best approach in addressing issues in line with the existing administrative framework,” they said.

  Yuneswaran and Marhamah said all parties have to follow the guidelines issued by the Housing and Local Government Ministry pertaining to the recognition and management of worship houses, while the government will continue to provide a platform for representatives of the different religious communities to solve issues through discussion and mutual understanding.

  

  Meanwhile, Rishikumar Vadivelu, the president of Malaysia Hindudharma Maamandram, said he had proposed to Yuneswaran during the meeting for the National Hindu Temple Steering Committee to “be further empowered to effectively address issues concerning Hindu temples”.

Court

• Na’imah Abdul Khalid, her two sons, and two of her lawyers are seeking to challenge the authorities’ ongoing investigation against them, which is carried out under Section 124B of the Penal Code over “toppling government attempts” claims.

  The plaintiff’s lawyers, Rajesh Nagarajan and Sachpreetraj Singh, confirmed that the originating summons has been filed at the Kuala Lumpur High Court today.

  

  They named Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, Inspector-General of Police Khalid Ismail, and the government as the defendants.

  The late Daim Zainuddin’s family is seeking the court’s declaration that the ongoing investigation is tainted with bad faith, carried out with ulterior motives, and is an abuse of statutory power.

  They are also seeking the court’s declarations that the investigation is unlawful and unconstitutional, in seeking to put a stop to the false claims of a “zionist plot” to overthrow the government, said their lawyers in a statement.

  Apart from Na’imah, the other plaintiffs were her sons Amir Zainuddin and Amin Zainuddin, as well as her lawyers Amir Zhariff Abdullah and Nizamuddin Hamid.

Reporting by Farah Solhi

Crime

• The MACC, alongside law enforcement agencies from 13 other countries, successfully took down the LeakBase database, which is described as one of the world’s largest online forums for cybercriminals to trade stolen data and cybercrime tools.

  

  The anti-graft agency said that as part of the operation, its Special Operations Division executed a search warrant at a web-hosting solutions company in Kuala Lumpur, with cyber forensic examinations later confirming that the LeakBase forum was actively operating through servers hosted at the location.

  Digital evidence was seized while the cyber forum’s domain was shut down by the MACC as part of the March 3 operation.

  In a separate statement, the United States Department of Justice said the takedown of the forum disrupts a major international platform used by cybercriminals to obtain and profit from the theft of sensitive personal, banking, and account credentials.

2pm

Corruption

• PKR MP Wong Chen has invited James Chai to join the political fray, following the latter’s sudden thrust into the spotlight over the MACC’s claim that he is a “wanted” person for probes on an RM1.1 billion government deal with British semiconductor giant Arm Holdings.

  Noting that he has known the former aide to ex-economy minister Rafizi Ramli for over a decade, Wong said Malaysia needs “good, progressive” young people like Chai to continue the fight for real and fundamental reforms.

  

  “I have a simple suggestion and hope he will give good consideration to it: embrace and join the political fray! Stand with Rafizi and us, in the next GE (general election) as a potential candidate in a new composition,” Wong said in a Facebook post.

READ MORE: COMMENT | 'I am not Jho Low 2.0': Why PM and Azam are after me

• Former DAP lawmaker Charles Santiago likened the situation concerning Chai and the MACC to an ironic and “depressing reminder” that in local politics, “reform often looks suspiciously like recycling.”

  This, the ex-Klang MP said, is due to how the “uncomfortably familiar” episode echoes an era when state institutions were frequently mobilised to “discipline dissent and remind inconvenient figures where the boundaries of power lay.”

  

  He also questioned when WhatsApp was made the official platform for national enforcement agencies to conduct investigations, quipping that if this is the new standard operating procedure, “perhaps subpoenas will soon be issued via Instagram stories.”

READ MORE: MACC claims Rafizi's ex-aide blocked officer on WhatsApp

• Pandan MP Rafizi has defended his former aide, Chai, dismissing allegations linking the latter to a RM1.1 billion corruption scandal as a “political fiction”.

  In a lengthy statement, Rafizi said the narrative surrounding Chai resembled a scripted drama, accusing certain parties of constructing a story filled with “plot twists” to implicate the young policy researcher.

  “Stories emerging from the MACC lately feel like episodes of a K-pop drama,” he said.

  

  According to Rafizi, the latest “plot twist” was the portrayal of Chai as a central figure in the alleged scandal, likening it sarcastically to the fictional spy character James Bond.

  “But our imagination never reached the latest twist - the emergence of a character named James Chai ala James Bond,” he said.

Court 

• Lim Guan Eng has filed a notice of appeal against the Shah Alam High Court’s decision that awarded him RM50,000 in damages and RM5,000 costs in a defamation suit yesterday.

  The former Penang chief minister had filed the suit in 2024 against former housing and local government minister Zuraida Kamaruddin and two others, and had won the case yesterday.

  The suit was filed over Zuraida’s statements on the government’s housing project during Lim’s tenure as the finance minister from 2018 to 2020.

  

  Lim’s lawyer, Sankara Nair, told the media today that the appeal would be on the reassessment of the quantum awarded by the court, as the plaintiff felt that it was manifestly inadequate.

  Apart from Zuraida, the other two defendants were the editor of online news portal MalaysiaNow and its owner, Mnow Media Sdn Bhd.

Reporting by Farah Solhi

Politics

• Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi has reiterated that all former party members who were previously sacked or suspended, as well as new members, are welcome to join the party with no conditions attached.

  Zahid, in a statement, said his call was also in line with the spirit of the Ramadan month to embrace forgiveness, unity, and reconciliation.

  

  “In this regard, the “Rumah Bangsa” committee, chaired by Khaled Nordin, will immediately coordinate this process through the appropriate procedures in accordance with the Umno constitution,” said Zahid.

Bilateral ties 

• Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said he had spoken with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to exchange views on the increasingly grave developments in West Asia following a series of attacks that are threatening the stability of the region.

  Anwar said he conveyed Malaysia’s solidarity with Türkiye following the incident involving a ballistic missile headed towards its airspace, a development that underscores just how fragile the region’s security environment has become.

  

  “On the assassination of several senior Iranian leaders, including the late Ali Khamenei, I stressed that such developments risk pushing West Asia into a period of serious and prolonged instability.

  “We were in agreement that all parties must exercise the utmost restraint and wisdom to prevent the situation from further deteriorating,” said Anwar, who also expressed appreciation for the Erdogan administration’s condemnation of Israel’s decision to expand illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank and Gaza.

• Anwar also said he had spoken with Afghanistan’s acting Prime Minister Mullah Mohammad Hassan Akhund to discuss the escalating tensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan.

  “Malaysia urges that these tensions be addressed through dialogue and diplomatic channels to prevent a prolonged conflict that would only bring further suffering to the people and undermine peace and stability in the region,” he said.

9am

Bilateral ties

• Malaysia and Pakistan have called on all parties involved in the escalating tensions in the Middle East to halt attacks immediately, implement an unconditional ceasefire and return to the negotiating table, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said.

  He said the agreement was reached during a telephone conversation with Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, with both leaders expressing concern over the worsening situation, following attacks by Israel and the United States on Iran.

  

  “I stressed that these actions constitute a violation of international law and the Charter of the United Nations.

  “I emphasised that all sides must exercise restraint and avoid any actions that could further aggravate the situation. Malaysia urges all parties to address these tensions through dialogue and diplomatic channels,” he said in a Facebook post late last night.

Foreign affairs

• The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has extradited a Bangladeshi national from Malaysia, accused of operating an international child sexual exploitation enterprise, and has been wanted since 2022.

  FBI director Kash Patel said Zobaidul Amin, 28, was arrested with the help of Malaysian authorities.

  

  He added that Zobaidul arrived in Alaska, US, yesterday and would be charged later today.

  “Thank you to our Kuala Lumpur office, the government of Malaysia, and our great local partners all over the country who assisted with the investigation and arrest,” he said in a post on X.

  In his post, Patel included pictures of what appeared to be three FBI officers escorting the suspect to a private jet on a runway in Malaysia.

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