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Key Highlights
Trade tango or tangle? PKR reps push, Anwar holds
Sabah polls: It’s a family affair
Stand with me: From one mother to another
Trade tango or tangle? PKR reps push, Anwar holds
As PKR backbenchers continue to press for a Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) over the trade deal with the US, their boss, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, has reiterated that he does not tap his feet to the superpower’s tune - albeit sharing a brief dance with US President Donald Trump.
MPs Wong Chen, Rafizi Ramli and Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad argued that while the agreement may have some positive impacts, particularly on digital trade, semiconductors, and pharmaceuticals, they remain concerned that the deal was not entered into according to due process.
Reiterating calls for a RCI to probe the signing of the agreement, Wong said the commission must investigate Deputy Investment, Trade, and Industry Minister Liew Chin Tong’s recent assertion that Malaysia was “forced” into talks with the US.
Citing his upcoming trip to South Africa for the G20 meet, which the US is boycotting, Anwar emphasised that Malaysia will not bow to US foreign policy and stressed that the country remains a free and independent nation guided by its own principles.
He said If it was true he had pandered to the US as critics claimed, then he would not have signed the trade agreement with Trump when he was in Kuala Lumpur for the Asean summit on Oct 26 and then a day later, sign a deal with China.
On those harping over his dance with Trump on the grounds that it did not reflect Islamic values or morals, Anwar hit back at critics, saying they were making a mountain out of a molehill, and it was not as if he had stolen billions from the public coffers.
HIGHLIGHTS
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 | By Liew Chin Tong |
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Sabah polls: It’s a family affair
The Sabah state election is shaping up as a battle of family names, with relatives of governors, ministers, and party founders competing across rival coalitions.
From the Istana Negeri to entrenched political dynasties, familiar names are resurfacing under new banners in what observers call the most family-driven election in Sabah’s modern history.
A year after Musa Aman became the state’s 11th governor, his extended clan is back in the political ring with full force.
Musa’s sons, brother, nephews, and son-in-law are contesting under several different parties, as follows:
Yamani Hafez Musa, Musa’s son and former deputy finance minister, takes on Sindumin under PKR.
Hazem Mubarak Musa, another son, runs in Sungai Manila under GRS.
Anifah Aman, Musa’s younger brother and Parti Cinta Sabah president, stands in Bongawan with GRS.
Annuar Ayub Aman, Musa’s nephew, defends Liawan under GRS, and will go head-to-head with his cousin, Umno’s Nik Nadzri Nik Zawawi.
Meanwhile, Annuar’s brother, Ishak Ayub Aman, will contest Bingkor under Star.
Arifin Arif, Musa’s son-in-law, seeks re-election in Membakut under GRS.
Spread across six constituencies, the Musa family’s deep roots in Sabah politics are on full display - despite Musa’s official neutrality as governor.
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Stand with me: From one mother to another
M Indira Gandhi has made a heartfelt appeal to former Chief Justice Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat, urging her to take part in the upcoming “justice march” on Nov 22.
With palpable emotion, Indira, who is seeking to be reunited with her daughter, implored Tengku Maimun to stand with her “as a sister, a woman, a mother, and a symbol of truth”.
“If you could walk beside me, even for a few steps, it would mean more than words can express.
“For me, it would be the day when justice and humanity finally meet on the same road,” she said.
Tengku Maimun was the sole dissenting judge when the Court of Appeal, in 2014, quashed a mandamus order by the Ipoh High Court to compel the police to locate Indira’s children, who were taken away and converted by her ex-husband, Riduan Abdullah.
Indira said she had almost lost faith in recovering her daughter until Tengku Maimun’s courage brought a ray of hope.
“That day, you reminded the whole nation that justice still lives in Malaysia. You restored not only my hope as a helpless mother but the dignity of every parent who believes that the law must protect, not divide,” she said.
HIGHLIGHTS
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Views that matter
 | By Yiswaree Palansamy |
 | By Roger Chin |
 | By Charles Santiago |
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