Good morning. Here's our news and views that matter for today.
Key Highlights
MACC’s ‘silence’ reverberates from east to west
Altantuya’s murder - the ‘order to kill’
URA debate deferred, opposition claims victory
MACC’s ‘silence’ reverberates from east to west
MACC chief commissioner Azam Baki’s “silence” has now become a lightning rod for politicians on both sides of the South China Sea.
In West Malaysia, Muda’s acting president Amira Aisya Abdul Aziz thundered: “This is absolutely unacceptable. This is a betrayal of the MACC institution.”
In Sabah, a Warisan supreme council member has been marking the days since the “second shockwave” of the mining scandal erupted on June 28 - yet not a single squeak has been heard from Azam.
Ahmad Hassan lamented that 60 days have passed since six senior politicians were implicated, yet Sabahans are still in the dark over whether the MACC is taking any action.
Amira, meanwhile, was furious that Azam has remained tight-lipped on businessperson Albert Tei’s claim that a “high-ranking MACC officer” had warned him against filing a report on the mining scandal.
The Muda leader has since lodged a police report against Azam, accusing him of failing to act on the matter.
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Altantuya’s murder - the ‘order to kill’
Shaaribuu Setev refuses to relent in his fight for justice over the brutal 2006 murder of his daughter, Altantuya.
The Mongolian national has filed a judicial review application seeking court orders to compel the authorities to investigate - or finally conclude their probe into - the explosive claims contained in former police officer Azilah Hadri’s additional affidavit.
The affidavit, dated Sept 24, 2024, incorporates a statutory declaration from Oct 17, 2019, in which Azilah claimed he acted under explicit instructions.
The High Court will hear Setev’s leave application on Sept 29.
Previously, Setev’s lawyer Sangeet Kaur Deo stressed that the government cannot afford to appear complicit and must honour its pledge to uphold the rule of law by investigating the claims.
“If proven true, these claims indicate the exploitation of state institutions for personal agendas by influential individuals, undermining public trust and damaging the nation’s international reputation.
“Any perception of inaction or intentional suppression of the truth will severely damage the credibility of the administration and the nation’s standing in the eyes of its citizens and the international community,” she had said.
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Contentious URA debate deferred, opposition claims victory
The government has deferred debates on the contentious Urban Renewal Bill (URA) to the next Dewan Rakyat sitting in October, following mounting backlash from across the political divide, with both government and opposition MPs voicing strong criticism of the proposal.
The opposition welcomed the deferment, with PAS information chief Ahmad Fadhli Shaari hailing it as a “victory”.
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim had hit back at opposition claims that the URA was a ploy to displace Malays, declaring in the Dewan Rakyat that he was no “puppet” to be manipulated into allowing the Chinese to take over Malay housing.
Instead, he stressed, the bill was designed to uplift Malays living in dilapidated urban settlements, urging critics to reject the false narrative that it was a strategy to strip Malays of their homes.
“... I am not a puppet. I am sitting here, and I have the mandate to defend the rights of the Malays, who are the majority,” Anwar emphasised.
Housing and Local Government Minister Nga Kor Ming later told the House that the government will amend several provisions of the URA to address concerns about demographic balance and the threshold of property owners’ consent.
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Views that matter
 | By Kean Wong |
 | By R Paneir Selvam |
 | By P Ramasamy |
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