Malaysia court dismisses jailed ex-PM Najib's bid to serve sentence under house arrest - CNA

KUALA LUMPUR: A Malaysian court dismissed jailed former prime minister Najib Razak's legal bid to obtain a document that he said would allow him to serve his remaining prison sentence under house arrest, his lawyer said on Wednesday (Jul 3).

In a judicial review application filed on Apr 1, Najib said an "addendum order" issued by the former king had accompanied a pardons board's decision in February to halve his 12-year jail sentence for graft in the multibillion-dollar 1MDB scandal.

Najib had sought for the court to compel the government to reply to or confirm the existence of the royal order, which he said would entitle him to serve the remainder of his term under house arrest, and to execute the order if it existed. 

The Kuala Lumpur High Court found there was no merit to the former premier's bid and that the government had no legal duty to respond to the application, his lawyer Muhammad Shafee Abdullah told reporters.

Najib planned to appeal the decision, he said.

"In terms of ethics, the government should have responded," he said.

The attorney general's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The pardons board that halved Najib's term was chaired by King Al-Sultan Abdullah Ahmad Shah, whose five-year reign as head of state ended in January.

Najib was found guilty in 2020 of criminal breach of trust and abuse of power for illegally receiving funds misappropriated from a unit of state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad. The verdict was upheld by Malaysia's top court in 2022.

Malaysian and US investigators estimate US$4.5 billion was stolen from 1MDB and more than US$1 billion channelled to accounts linked to Najib.

The pardons board in February said Najib was expected to be released in August 2028, six years after he began serving his sentence. It also reduced fines imposed on the ex-premier, sparking uproar in Malaysia.

Najib, who is also considering filing a new petition for a full pardon, remains on trial for corruption in several other 1MDB-linked cases.

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2024-07-03 02:20:00Z
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China's Xi in Kazakhstan for state visit, SCO summit; Modi to skip annual huddle - CNA

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2024-07-02 12:15:24Z
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Citigroup: Malaysia’s spending in first five months of 2024 makes fuel subsidy cuts urgent - Malay Mail

KUALA LUMPUR, July 2 — Malaysia’s fiscal spending in the first five months of 2024 highlights a pressing need to reform fuel subsidies to meet the country’s deficit target for next year, according to Citigroup Inc.

In a news report on Bloomberg today, Citigroup’s chief Malaysian economist, Wei Zheng Kit, noted on Monday that government spending from January to May reached 53.9 per cent of the full-year target, surpassing the spending levels of the same periods in previous years.

He said as soon as this month, Malaysia may start to roll back blanket subsidies for RON95 fuel, the country’s most widely used gasoline, following the recent shift towards targeted diesel assistance in June.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim aims to reduce Malaysia’s budget deficit to 4.3 per cent of GDP from last year’s 5 per cent by phasing out broad subsidies, in a bid to attract more investments into the country, reported Bloomberg.

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In 2023, Malaysia allocated approximately RM81 billion to subsidies, with fuel assistance comprising the majority.

Citi estimates that the government could save an additional RM3 billion to RM4 billion this year if a 30 sen per litre increase for RON95 is implemented in July, said Bloomberg.

Authorities have indicated that the targeted diesel assistance alone could save about RM4 billion annually.

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However, officials are proceeding with caution, and some analysts believe the RON95 subsidy cuts may be postponed to the end of 2024.

Anwar today said the government’s current focus is to ensure the smooth implementation of diesel reforms, following a 56 per cent overnight price hike last month that faced public backlash.

The prime minister told Parliament that there is currently no policy framework in place for a swift removal of RON95 subsidies.

“Targeted subsidies are hard to implement. If you ask me, we should have done it for RON95 a long time ago, but it’s not easy,” he was quoted as saying by Bloomberg.

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2024-07-02 09:26:36Z
CBMikgFodHRwczovL3d3dy5tYWxheW1haWwuY29tL25ld3MvbWFsYXlzaWEvMjAyNC8wNy8wMi9jaXRpZ3JvdXAtbWFsYXlzaWFzLXNwZW5kaW5nLWluLWZpcnN0LWZpdmUtbW9udGhzLW9mLTIwMjQtbWFrZXMtZnVlbC1zdWJzaWR5LWN1dHMtdXJnZW50LzE0MjUzMNIBlgFodHRwczovL3d3dy5tYWxheW1haWwuY29tL2FtcC9uZXdzL21hbGF5c2lhLzIwMjQvMDcvMDIvY2l0aWdyb3VwLW1hbGF5c2lhcy1zcGVuZGluZy1pbi1maXJzdC1maXZlLW1vbnRocy1vZi0yMDI0LW1ha2VzLWZ1ZWwtc3Vic2lkeS1jdXRzLXVyZ2VudC8xNDI1MzA

At least 3 tour bus drivers found without licence as Malaysia tightens checks - The Straits Times

Malaysia's enforcement officers inspecting tour buses and vans in Gombak, Selangor, on July 2. PHOTO: THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK

KUALA LUMPUR – Malaysia’s Road Transport Department (JPJ) seized two tour buses after their drivers were found to have no driving licences as at 9.30am on July 2.

JPJ senior enforcement director Muhammad Kifli Ma Hassan said the two tour buses were temporarily seized during a crackdown on tour bus companies that began on July 2.

“The bus companies were contacted and told to send replacement drivers before they were allowed to leave at about 9.30am,” he said, adding that the companies would be issued summonses.

Mr Muhammad Kifli added that a tour bus driver, in his 30s, was also detained after failing a drug test.

A check on the drivers of a further 16 tour buses and five express buses came back negative for drug use.

Some 70 officers from the JPJ, police, National Anti-drug Agency and Tourism Ministry were involved in the joint operation, which took place from 6am till 12pm on July 2.

Mr Muhammad Kifli also said that Johor JPJ officers had temporarily detained a tour bus entering Malaysia after it was found that the Singaporean driver did not possess a licence.

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The crackdown on tour bus companies may be extended beyond July 31, said Mr Muhammad Kifli.

“If we are still not satisfied with the situation, the operations will carry on till a directive is issued by the (transport) minister,” he told reporters at the JPJ Enforcement Centre in Gombak, Selangor.

On July 1, Transport Minister Anthony Loke announced a major crackdown on tour bus and van operators following a fatal accident involving a tour bus.

On June 29, a tour bus carrying 21 people overturned while descending from Genting Highlands, killing two Chinese tourists.

Initial investigations revealed that the 32-year-old bus driver had 27 previous traffic summonses for various offences and did not have a licence.

The company was found to be operating without a permit for four months, using 15 permits for tour buses and 18 for factory buses.

The driver has since been remanded for further investigations.

Mr Loke said he had instructed the Land Public Transport Agency to take stern action against the company, including suspension and revocation of its operating licence, if it is found to have violated regulations. THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK

More On This Topic

Genting bus crash: Tour bus owners could face $144,000 fine and jail time

Two Chinese tourists dead after tour bus overturns in Genting Highlands; driver did not have licence

• Accidents - traffic
• Malaysia
• Traffic/Road rules

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2024-07-02 06:17:07Z
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Malaysia, Indonesia ready to send peacekeeping forces to Gaza, says Anwar - CNA

SINGAPORE: Malaysia stands ready to cooperate with Indonesia to send peacekeeping forces to Gaza if given a mandate by the United Nations (UN), Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim announced on social media after a phone call with Indonesia president-elect Prabowo Subianto on Monday (Jul 1).

Such a peacekeeping collaboration could expand to a regional level involving the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Mr Anwar suggested in his Facebook post following the call. 

The duo had a three-minute conversation and exchanged views on issues including Mr Prabowo’s representation of his country on the world stage, Mr Anwar added.

“I also welcomed the idea of cooperation in the Malaysia-Indonesia international peacekeeping mission and the possibility of expanding this collaboration to the ASEAN regional level,” he wrote.

In their call, Mr Anwar also wished Mr Prabowo a speedy recovery after a leg surgery, which he underwent last month.

TRACK RECORD OF PEACEKEEPING 

Malaysia and Indonesia are no strangers to peacekeeping efforts. According to the UN, Malaysia has 862 uniformed personnel involved in UN peacekeeping operations as at end-April. Some 825 of them are troops.

Since 1960, the country has participated in over 38 peacekeeping operations, including in Lebanon, said Colonel Shamsuri Noordin, military advisor at the Permanent Mission of Malaysia to the UN, in a speech in February.

Indonesia has 2,715 uniformed personnel deployed in UN peacekeeping operations as at end-April, according to the UN.

Mr Anwar has been a staunch and vocal supporter of the Palestinian cause and has defended Malaysia’s relationship with the militant group Hamas.

In the wake of Israel’s war in Gaza, which began after Hamas’ cross-border assault on Oct 7, he has voiced concerns about the reluctance of the United States and the West to apply pressure on Israel.

The war has killed over 37,000 people in Gaza, according to the local health ministry.

Mr Anwar has also spoken about redoubling efforts to further strengthen ASEAN as a key platform in managing regional affairs. Malaysia will take over as the bloc’s rotating chair in 2025.

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2024-07-02 06:55:00Z
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US Supreme Court rules Trump has immunity for official, not private acts - CNA

WASHINGTON: The US Supreme Court for the first time on Monday (Jul 1) recognised that ex-presidents have immunity from prosecution for certain actions taken in office, as it threw out a judicial decision rejecting Donald Trump's bid to shield himself from criminal charges involving his efforts to undo his 2020 election loss.

The court ruled 6-3 that while former presidents enjoy immunity for actions they take within their constitutional authority, they do not for actions taken in a private capacity. The ruling marked the first time since the nation's 18th century founding that the Supreme Court has declared that former presidents may be shielded from criminal charges in any instance.

Chief Justice John Roberts announced the landmark ruling on behalf of the court's six-justice conserverative majority. The court's three liberal justices dissented.

The decision came in Trump's appeal of a lower court ruling rejecting his immunity claim. The court decided the case on the last day of its term.

Trump is the Republican candidate challenging Democratic President Joe Biden in the Nov 5 US election in a rematch from four years ago. The court's slow handling of the blockbuster case already had helped Trump by making it unlikely that any trial on these charges brought by Special Counsel Jack Smith could be completed before the election.

Trump had argued that he is immune from prosecution because he was serving as president when he took the actions that led to the charges. Smith had opposed presidential immunity from prosecution based on the principle that no one is above the law.

During Apr 25 arguments in the case, Trump's legal team urged the justices to fully shield former presidents from criminal charges - "absolute immunity" - for official acts taken in office. Without immunity, Trump's lawyer said, sitting presidents would face "blackmail and extortion" by political rivals due to the threat of future prosecution.

The court's 6-3 conservative majority includes three justices Trump appointed. Smith's election subversion charges embody one of the four criminal cases Trump has faced.

Trump, 78, is the first former US president to be criminally prosecuted as well as the first former president convicted of a crime.

In the special counsel's August 2023 indictment, Trump was charged with conspiring to defraud the United States, corruptly obstructing an official proceeding and conspiring to do so, and conspiring against the right of Americans to vote. He has pleaded not guilty.

Trump's trial had been scheduled to start on Mar 4 before the delays over the immunity issue. Now, no trial date is set. Trump made his immunity claim to the trial judge in October, meaning the issue has been litigated for about nine months.

In a separate case brought in New York state court, Trump was found guilty by a jury in Manhattan on May 30 on 34 counts of falsifying documents to cover up hush money paid to a porn star to avoid a sex scandal before the 2016 election. Trump also faces criminal charges in two other cases. He has pleaded not guilty in those and called all the cases against him politically motivated.

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2024-07-01 15:02:00Z
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China offers foreign permanent residents of Hong Kong, Macao five-year visas - CNA

BEIJING: Foreigners who are permanent residents of Hong Kong and Macao and are looking to visit mainland China can apply for multiple-entry travel visas with a validity of five years, China's National Immigration Administration said on Monday (Jul 1).

From Jul 10, foreign permanent residents of the two Chinese-ruled cities will be eligible to apply for such visas to enter the mainland, according to the administration.

Each stay shall not exceed 90 days.

Foreigner permanent residents intending to work, study, or engage in news reporting on the mainland, must apply for other visas or residence permits, the administration said.

The move announced on the 27th anniversary of Hong Kong's handover to Chinese from British rule, is one of many steps taken since China reopened its borders post-COVID to woo back foreign tourists and business travellers.

The special travel permit is also a reward for foreigners who are permanent residents in Macao and more so for Hong Kong, whose international appeal has waned due to criticism over the city's handling of the pandemic and Beijing's crackdown on street protesters in 2019-2020.

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2024-07-01 07:12:29Z
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