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Key Highlights
Temples and pig farms: Will non-Malay support wane?
Shares scandal 2.0: MACC clears MACC chief
Fireworks in Bersatu, PAS watches from sidelines
Temples and pig farms: Will non-Malay support wane?
For decades, Pakatan Harapan and its chairperson Anwar Ibrahim held out the promise of a new dawn - a more just and egalitarian Malaysia. But as long-awaited reforms stall, uncomfortable questions linger over inaction on corruption allegations involving allies, and fresh controversies erupt over “unauthorised” temples and pig farming in Selangor, a stark question looms:
Is Harapan losing the trust of non-Malays - its core support base? Will it pay a steep price in the upcoming state elections and the next general election?
On Monday, Anwar said that local councils will be directed to “clean up (membersihkan)” houses of worship built in violation of the law, pointing out that the construction of such buildings is regulated even in India and China.
There are those who argue that the polemics surrounding “unauthorised” temples began in the wake of the Madani Mosque issue, which resulted in the relocation of a 130-year-old Hindu temple in Kuala Lumpur.
Anwar had described the planned construction of the Madani Mosque as a “victory” after a decade of stalled development but stressed that it was not a show of arrogance against others.
Now, the Selangor ruler Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah has stated that he does not consent to pig farming in the state - coming just a week before Chinese New Year celebrations and a day after Anwar raised the issue.
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Shares scandal 2.0: MACC clears MACC chief
MACC chief commissioner Azam Baki, no stranger to shareholding controversies, is once again in the spotlight after it emerged that he owns 17.7 million shares in financial services firm Velocity Capital Partner Berhad - worth approximately RM800,000 at the current share price.
This far exceeds the limits imposed on civil servants, who are not allowed to purchase more than RM100,000 worth of shares in any single company, sparking calls for Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, who has extended Azam’s tenure three times despite Pakatan Harapan’s criticism of him in the past, to act.
However, MACC has cleared its chief on the grounds that Azam’s shareholdings had been properly declared to the Public Services Department.
The commission dismissed the Bloomberg report detailing Azam’s shareholdings as containing “misleading statements and unfounded allegations”.
Azam is also reportedly considering legal action against reports questioning the transaction, saying they are malicious, misleading, and defamatory in nature.
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Fireworks in Bersatu, PAS watches from sidelines
The feud between Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin and his deputy Hamzah Zainuddin has intensified.
The latest drama erupted after Sabah Bersatu chief Ronald Kiandee called for Muhyiddin’s resignation, drawing swift rebuttals from party leaders who blamed Ronald for Bersatu and Perikatan Nasional’s poor showing in the recent Sabah polls.
Ronald’s stance gained traction with 14 Bersatu division chiefs in Johor. In a joint statement led by Tanjung Piai chief Musa Khamis, they declared a loss of confidence in the party president.
Ronald criticised the party disciplinary board’s summons against Hamzah, saying it painted Bersatu as more concerned with shielding Muhyiddin than championing key issues.
Meanwhile, PAS has pledged to stay out of the internal turmoil, despite perceptions that it sides with Hamzah.
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Views that matter
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 | By P Gunasegaram |
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