SNAPSHOT | MP panned for politicising sexual crimes against kids issue; Liu: Why was Azam at NFCC meet?

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

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Child sexual crimes

• Kelantan Muda has accused Jelutong MP RSN Rayer of exploiting the issue of sexual crimes against children to win votes after he cited Kelantan in a Dewan Rakyat speech ahead of the Johor state election.

  Its information chief, Wee Khai Nern, said Rayer (above) irresponsibly linked the suffering of sexual abuse victims to election campaigning by portraying Kelantan as an example of failure before urging Johoreans to vote for Pakatan Harapan.

  Wee stressed that Muda is not denying the existence of such crimes in the state and said every case was a tragedy that must be prevented and dealt with firmly.

  However, he argued that singling out Kelantan was misleading when official statistics showed the problem is nationwide.

  Citing the Statistics Department’s data on children in 2025, he said Kelantan recorded 223 sexual offences involving children between 2022 and 2024, compared with 554 cases in Johor, the second-highest in the country.

Azam’s presence

• Former Selangor exco Ronnie Liu has questioned the presence of ex-MACC chief commissioner Azam Baki at a National Financial Crime Prevention Centre (NFCC) advisory board meeting with the Attorney-General's Chambers yesterday, with photos shared on the latter’s Facebook.

  

  Liu asked if Azam was appointed as an NFCC advisory board member and about the status of the internal probe into Azam when he was in the MACC.

  "What happened to the investigation report? Why no RCI (royal commission of inquiry) on Azam and corporate mafia?" he said on Facebook.

  A check on the NFCC website showed Azam is listed in the advisory board in his capacity as the former MACC chief commissioner.

  Yesterday, five PKR MPs urged the government to disclose all findings from investigations into Azam’s shareholdings.

• MCA Youth has also urged the government to clarify if Azam has been appointed as an adviser to NFCC, describing the matter as deeply concerning.

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  READ MORE: Activists march to Parliament demanding RCI into MACC 'corporate mafia' claims

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  In a statement, its deputy chief Mike Chong said the issue comes at a time when civil society groups and the public continue to call for an RCI into allegations surrounding “corporate mafia” and the controversy involving Azam, who has denied the claims.

  

  Chong said if Azam has been appointed as an NFCC adviser, the government must explain the process, criteria, and justification behind the decision.

  The government should also clarify why it continues to reject calls for an independent investigation into the “corporate mafia” matter.

Animal welfare

• The Wildlife and National Parks Department (Perhilitan) has reportedly confirmed that it approved the use of two elephants for a Madani Community Programme in Kelantan, stating that all required procedures, permits and health checks were properly followed.

  The Rakyat Post reported yesterday that the clarification came after a viral video appeared to show an elephant being used in an alleged private wedding, triggering backlash from animal welfare groups and calls for an investigation from other quarters.

  The report said that the department made no reference to any wedding in its official statement and has announced the formation of a special task force to review laws and procedures governing elephant-related programmes.

  

  Previously, Association for the Protection of the Natural Heritage of Malaysia (Peka) president Rajesh Nagarajan said the Asian elephant is classified as totally protected under the Wildlife Conservation Act and should not be treated as a commodity for private events or commercial exploitation.

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