SNAPSHOT | Ronald says Muhyiddin made party PM choice via 'backdoor'; Johor to hold open house

KINI SNAPSHOT | What's going on in the news today, with updates at 11am, 2pm, and 6pm.

6pm

Politics

• Suspended Bersatu vice-president Ronald Kiandee has reiterated claims that party president Muhyiddin Yassin’s nomination as the party’s sole prime ministerial candidate was made through a “backdoor channel”.

  Referencing events during Bersatu’s annual general meeting (AGM) last year, Ronald said the motion on Muhyiddin’s candidacy was not discussed during the party’s supreme council meeting prior to the AGM.

  

  Ronald’s Facebook post today on the matter is believed to be in response to Bersatu vice-president Ahmad Faizal Azumu’s attempt to downplay recent remarks from the new Perikatan Nasional chairperson, Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar.

  Samsuri had previously said that while PN’s priority should be on strengthening the coalition ahead of the next general election, the PAS leader also mentioned that Muhyiddin is “no longer” a prime minister candidate.

  In a podcast show, Faizal asserted that Samsuri might have been “put on the spot” after Muhyiddin said holding the PN chairperson post does not necessarily translate to a prime minister candidacy.

Austerity

• After Malacca and Penang, the Johor state government said that it will also proceed with its Aidilfitri open house as planned, state Menteri Besar Onn Hafiz Ghazi said, citing it as an annual event.

  

  “Other state government-organised Hari Raya open house events will be held on a more modest scale. But for the Johor menteri besar’s open house, it is an annual event,” The Star reported him as saying.

  On Wednesday, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim announced that ministries, agencies, and GLCs would not hold Aidilfitri open houses this year as an austerity measure, given the global economic uncertainties stemming from the conflict in West Asia.

READ MORE: Govt starts austerity measures as oil price skyrockets, maintains Budi95 subsidy

2pm

‘Na’imah Move’

• Sangeet Kaur Deo has criticised the ongoing police probes under Section 124B of the Penal Code on activities detrimental to parliamentary democracy, with the DAP women’s wing representative highlighting that the situation is “glaringly ironic”.

  This, the wing’s legal bureau chief said, is due to how the expression of dissenting or “anti-establishment” views is now being portrayed as an alleged offence, when many government leaders now rely on the freedom to criticise the government of the day.

  

  “If such conduct were to be treated as activities detrimental to parliamentary democracy, then many of us, including (Prime Minister) Anwar Ibrahim in his years as opposition leader, would have a lot to answer for,” she said in a statement today.

  “Malaysians know this script well - it is the familiar language of intimidation used to silence dissent, a tactic that the current government fiercely opposed for decades.”

  The lawyer added that if there are “genuine crimes” which require an investigation, authorities should clearly identify the conduct said to constitute such offences, instead of issuing “vague allegations” coupled with the summoning of commentators and civil society figures for questioning.

READ MORE: Na'imah probe: Academic quizzed by cops over 2024 opinion

Food security

• The Agriculture and Food Security Ministry will reassess the country's food supply stocks after May, following rising geopolitical tensions in West Asia.

  "We (the government) will be monitoring developments in supply stocks from time to time through to May.

  “If at all possible, we hope the conflict will come to an end swiftly," Bernama reported Agriculture and Food Security Minister Mohamad Sabu as saying after officiating the Agro Madani Zon Kota Raja Sales Programme at Padang Rakyat Jalan Kebun.

  Mohamad reportedly said that the government would also continue monitoring the food supply chain to prevent the emergence of cartels amid global uncertainty arising from the West Asia conflict, which could affect market prices.

READ MORE: COMMENT | Rising oil prices, but no reason for Malaysians to panic

11am

Corruption

• Rafizi Ramli has reiterated calls for the establishment of a royal commission of inquiry (RCI) to probe the MACC and its chief commissioner Azam Baki, with the former PKR deputy president stressing that the move is necessary to alleviate public concerns.

  While acknowledging that the “damage is done” from a political perspective, Rafizi said Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim still has a legal and moral duty to ensure a proper investigation is carried out into allegations involving the commission and its top officer.

  

  The former economy minister also repeated his call for the full disclosure of the report prepared by a special committee tasked with probing the issue of Azam’s shareholding while remaining firm on the need for an RCI to probe claims on “corporate mafia”.

  “If it comes to a point where we have to go down and hold a demonstration, then we should.

  “(Only by following these suggestions) will Anwar be able to satisfy his moral conscience and the demands of the law. Then, at least he can salvage whatever remains politically,” Rafizi said on his “Yang Berhenti Menteri” podcast show last night.

READ MORE: 'Corporate mafia': No RCI yet but probe ongoing, Loke promises DAP will follow up

Gig economy

• The Land Public Transport Transformation Association (TPAD) has urged the government to adopt a targeted, rather than a blanket approach to any work-from-home (WFH) policy, warning that a sweeping implementation would cause a drastic drop in ride bookings for e-hailing taxi and limousine services, which would affect the income of those in the gig economy.

  In a statement today, TPAD president Nathan Mathivanan said that the bulk of demand in the transport sector stems from daily commutes to the workplace, school runs, business meetings, and travel to city centres and airports, all of which would decline significantly under a wide-scale WFH policy rollout.

  

  “Beyond its impact on drivers within the transport sector, a blanket implementation of WFH also has the potential to cause a ripple effect across various urban economic sectors that depend on the movement of workers and the general public,” he added.

  Nathan noted that the RON95 petrol currently stands at RM3.27 per litre, and that many drivers are already purchasing fuel at full market price after being unable to access the Budi Madani subsidy programme, despite, in a number of cases, meeting the eligibility requirements.

  Additionally, he said the quota restrictions that require them to drive between 2,000 and 5,000km pose an additional challenge to their earning capacity.

READ MORE: Work-from-home arrangements must be flexible, based on sector - MEF

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