Good morning. Here's our news and views that matter for today.
Key Highlights
‘We’re watching, and we won’t be silenced’
Budi95: No MyKad, no problem
Madani Mart: To franchise or not to franchise?
‘We’re watching, and we won’t be silenced’
The three youth activists who were detained for waving “Tangkap Azam Baki” placards and heckling MACC chief commissioner Azam Baki during his public address at an integrity forum have now been released.
Their arrest sparked widespread condemnation, with DAP Youth reminding the authorities that the era of authoritarianism is over.
Muda vice-president Leben Siddharth delivered a pointed warning.
“They embody the conscience and aspirations of Malaysia’s youth. This generation rejects empty rhetoric and demands genuine accountability, transparency, and reform.
“Attempts to intimidate or suppress peaceful dissent through the weaponisation of state institutions will not succeed. The youth of this nation are watching, and they will not be silenced,” he said.
Leben also highlighted a stark double standard: while three activists were swiftly detained for silently holding placards, those implicated in serious institutional controversies continue to evade meaningful accountability.
“Authorities must not waste public resources policing the silence of students. Had even a fraction of that effort been directed toward addressing integrity concerns within the MACC, these young citizens would not have been compelled to take such action,” he added.
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Budi95: No MyKad, no problem
Another case of vanishing subsidised petrol under the Budi95 scheme has surfaced - this time leaving a Kelantan entrepreneur wondering who’s been helping themselves to his fuel allowance.
Fadhli Noor, 39, checked his records on the Budi Madani website after noticing his balance had taken an unexpected dive, with just 78 litres left for April.
A closer look revealed two mystery fill-ups at a Tumpat petrol station on April 5 - transactions he insists were not his as he was in Kuantan, Pahang, at the time.
The petrol station manager conceded negligence, saying the system’s “flexibility” allows staff to manually key in identity card numbers in emergencies, such as when the chip can’t be read.
He said the mystery customer claimed to have left his MyKad behind while refuelling. Adding to the station’s misfortune, its CCTV decoder was also not working at the time.
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Madani Mart: To franchise or not to franchise?
Deputy Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Minister Fuziah Salleh has doubled down on her claim that Madani Mart is not a franchise business.
Insisting that the grocery chain is not a franchise, she argued that it does not collect royalties and operates under a proper licensing structure.
Her remarks came after Malaysiakini reported that lawyers contend Madani Mart meets many of the criteria of a franchise as defined under the Franchise Act, even if the business does not identify itself as one.
However, lawyer Damian Yeo told Malaysiakini that the hallmarks of a franchise are present in Madani Mart – including the right to use its brand, provision of services such as training, system management, and marketing strategies, continuous control through mandatory stock items and performance monitoring, and the requirement for licensees to pay licensing fees and royalties.
He also noted that Section 4 of the Franchise Act does not restrict consideration to “royalties” alone, and that “the language of the Act is far broader”.
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Views that matter
 | By Hanipa Maidin |
 | By Andrew Sia |
 | By Mahathir Mohd Rais |
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