News

by SHAHRIN AIZAT NOORSHAHRIZAM

THE Cabinet has reaffirmed its commitment to non-interference in enforcement actions while directing tougher measures against foreign nationals found misusing social visit passes to work in Malaysia.

Communications Minister Datuk Fahmi Fadzil (picture) said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim had stressed the importance of enforcement integrity following concerns that certain actions by enforcement agencies could erode public confidence in national institutions.

“The Prime Minister stressed that if enforcement actions are seen as inconsistent or questionable, this can undermine public trust in institutions.

“In this regard, the Cabinet does not interfere in matters under the jurisdiction of enforcement agencies,” he said at the weekly post-Cabinet meeting press conference today.

Fahmi said investigations and actions taken by bodies such as the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), including a recent case involving a senior civil servant, were being handled independently.

“The Cabinet does not intervene and does not interfere. These matters are left entirely to the enforcement agencies to take appropriate action,” he said.

Fahmi added that the reminder on integrity had also been reinforced administratively, with Chief Secretary to the Government Tan Sri Shamsul Azri Abu Bakar issuing instructions to all ministry secretaries-general to strengthen internal integrity controls and prevent misconduct.

In the same meeting, the Cabinet was briefed on enforcement operations involving foreign nationals who entered Malaysia on social or tourist passes but were later found working illegally.

Fahmi said Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail reported that between 2025 and mid-January 2026, a total of 54,791 individuals had been inspected and taken action against for such offences.

“Of this number, 51,100 cases were recorded in 2025, while 3,691 cases were recorded in January 2026 alone,” he said.

While detailed breakdowns by nationality would be provided by the Home Ministry, Fahmi said the Prime Minister had instructed enforcement agencies to tighten monitoring and take firm action against abuse of visa and pass facilities.

“The Prime Minister wants strict action taken against foreign visitors who misuse social passes or exploit visa flexibility to work illegally,” he said.

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STARTING March 1, around 3.4 million foreign nationals will no longer be allowed to purchase subsidised packet cooking oil priced at RM2.50, following the gazettement of the prohibition under Section 6 of the Control of Supplies Act 1961.

The move is expected to give Malaysians wider access to the monthly quota of 60,000 metric tonnes of the essential item while curbing leakages and misuse of subsidies, according to Utusan Malaysia.

This measure is supported by the use of the Cooking Oil Price Stabilisation System (eCOSS) application, which records every purchase down to the end user through QR codes and identity card details.

Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Minister Datuk Armizan Mohd Ali said eCOSS was designed to track all buying and selling transactions across the entire distribution chain, including refineries, packaging companies, wholesalers and retailers, to ensure subsidies are fully utilised and to prevent abuse and smuggling.

“With eCOSS, only citizens are allowed to make purchases. Previously, there were calls to prohibit foreigners from buying.

“However, monitoring and enforcement mechanisms were a challenge,” he said in the Dewan Rakyat yesterday.

He explained that since the first phase began on Jan 1, 2023, all companies involved have been required to record transactions in eCOSS as a condition for claiming subsidy reimbursements, while wholesalers and retailers must register their supplies through the system.

“For the second phase, the use of eCOSS was expanded from May 2025 to record purchases at the consumer level. However, manual purchases are still allowed in rural areas or premises without internet access, with assistance provided by retailers,” he added.

Armizan mentioned that eCOSS will be integrated with the MyKasih platform, enabling senior citizens and low-income groups without smartphones to make purchases using their identity cards, ensuring the cooking oil subsidy fully benefits Malaysians.

He also said the new version of MyKad, scheduled to be introduced on June 1, will come with a special function to record purchases of subsidised packet cooking oil.

According to him, the initiative is part of the government’s broader effort to consolidate various subsidy and assistance mechanisms into a single, more efficient and transparent system.

“We are ready to implement this integration. As the implementation of the RON95 subsidy and the Sumbangan Asas Rahmah (SARA) has gone smoothly, discussions will be held with the Finance Ministry to link it with MyKasih.

“In the future, purchasing packet cooking oil will only require scanning a QR code on the identity card,” Armizan said.

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LAWYERS representing Global Ikhwan Services and Business Holdings Sdn Bhd (GISBH) requested sufficient time to examine approximately 10,000 pages of documents submitted by the prosecution at the Sessions Court in Shah Alam, yesterday.

The documents include bank statements and company records from the Companies Commission of Malaysia (SSM) linked to the charges against GISBH former CEO Mohd Nasiruddin Mohd Ali, according to Utusan Malaysia.

Also charged are the company’s former accountant, Hamimah Yakub, 74, Asmat @ Asmanira Muhamad Ramly, 45, and her husband, Md Khushairi Osman, 55.

Lawyer Datuk Rosli Kamaruddin, representing Mohd Nasiruddin, Asmat @ Asmanira and Md Khushairi, said he received the documents in CD form and was told to go through all the materials before submitting representations to the Attorney General’s Chambers (AGC).

“Similar to representations under the Security Measures (Special Measures) Act 2012 (Sosma), it previously took up to nine months. I believe for this application, the representation decision may take up to three months.

“Therefore, I require four months and propose May 4 or 5 as the next mention for the representation decision. The earliest I can complete my review is three weeks from today (yesterday) to examine the documents (which run to 10,000 pages),” he said.

Earlier, deputy public prosecutor Mohd Ashrof Adrin Kamarul informed the court that the documents were tendered under Section 51A of the Criminal Procedure Code and had been served on all the accused.

Meanwhile, lawyer Datuk Mohd Khair Yakub, representing Hamimah, requested that the bail previously granted by the Kulim Sessions Court be allowed to continue in this court.

Judge Datin Fatimah Zahari approved the application and ordered that Hamimah’s RM5,000 bail be maintained with additional conditions.

The court also fixed May 5 as the case management date for the decision on the representations.

All four accused are facing a total of 331 charges involving the receipt and transfer of RM38.16 million under the Anti-money Laundering, Anti-terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act 2001 (AMLATFPUAA).

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THE total area of Malay Reserve Land (MRL) in Peninsular Malaysia rose to 4.95 million hectares in 2024, reflecting an increase of 135,063ha.

Natural resources and environmental sustainability minister Datuk Seri Arthur Joseph Kurup said the figure marked an expansion from the 4.82 million hectares recorded in 2020, a Malay daily reported.

However, he acknowledged that the overall area does not include Penang and Melaka, as both states do not have Malay Reserve Enactments (MRE).

Kelantan recorded the largest MRL area at 1.36 million ha, followed by Perak (953,212.43ha), Kedah (809,142.22ha) and Johor (561,802.6ha).

“The MRL area in Pahang stands at 444,074.9ha, followed by Negri Sembilan (224,483.22ha), Selangor (164,743.96ha), Perlis (33,554.48ha) and Kuala Lumpur (KL) (1,004ha).

“Meanwhile, MRL in Terengganu covers 2,378.89ha, while Malay-held land in the state totals 401,129 ha,” he said in a written reply published on Parliament’s website.

He was responding to a question from Datuk Ahmad Amzad Mohamed@Hashim (PN-Kuala Terengganu) regarding the latest breakdown of MRL by state.

Arthur added that the administration and protection of MRL are governed by several key legal frameworks, including Article 89 of the Federal Constitution, which provides special safeguards and requires equivalent land replacement if any reserve status is revoked.

He also cited the respective states’ Malay Reserve Enactments, which include provisions on gazettement, revocation, ownership restrictions and prohibitions on non-Malay interests.

“The National Land Code 1965 regulates general land administration, including the registration of titles and interests.

“Consideration and approvals at the National Land Council meetings are also important, particularly in aligning land policies and compiling MRL data at the federal level,” he added.

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PUTRAJAYA — The Court of Appeal today allowed Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor’s application for temporary release of her passport until April 30 to enable her to visit her daughter in Singapore.

Her lawyer, Datuk Jagjit Singh, made the application during online proceedings before a three-member bench comprising Datuk Azmi Ariffin, Datuk Noorin Badaruddin and Datuk Meor Hashimi Abdul Hamid.

Justice Azmi, who chaired the bench, granted the application after Deputy Public Prosecutor K.Mangai, who appeared for the prosecution, did not oppose the application.

Earlier, Jagjit Singh informed the court that Rosmah, the wife of former Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, was seeking the release of her passport, which had been impounded by the court, to allow her to travel to Singapore from Feb 1 to April 30 this year.

He said from Feb 20 to 26, Rosmah, however, would return to Kuala Lumpur for her appeal hearing (set on Feb 25) concerning the application to recuse the then High Court judge, Datuk Mohamed Zaini Mazlan, now a Court of Appeal judge, from hearing her corruption case linked to the hybrid solar project.

Rosmah had filed the recusal application at the eleventh hour before Judge Mohamed Zaini was scheduled to deliver his decision in her corruption case on Sept 1, 2022.

In her application, Rosmah alleged that a draft judgment in her case, purportedly prepared by a third party, had been leaked prior to the delivery of the official decision.

On the same day, Judge Mohamed Zaini found Rosmah, 74, guilty of three corruption charges and sentenced her to 10 years in prison and a RM970 million fine or 30 years in prison in default. She subsequently filed an appeal at the Court of Appeal.

However, Rosmah was granted a stay of execution on both the custodial sentence and the fine, pending the disposal of her appeal. 

Rosmah was charged with one count of soliciting RM187.5 million and two counts of receiving RM6.5 million in bribes from former Jepak Holdings Sdn Bhd managing director, Saidi Abang Samsudin. — BERNAMA

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PUTRAJAYA — The Malaysian Fire and Rescue Department (JBPM) has stressed that it will not compromise on any form of misconduct or breach of integrity among its officers and personnel.

JBPM director-general Datuk Seri Nor Hisham Mohammad said the department adopts a structured approach through the Organisational Anti-Corruption Plan (OACP) to ensure that every complaint is handled transparently and effectively, including the setting of key performance indicators (KPIs) for complaint-handling timelines to prevent investigations from being prolonged.

“Cases of misconduct reported to the department are handled at three levels – the state level, the national level, and a higher level where I, together with the Public Service Department, sit on the disciplinary board.

“We do not want disciplinary complaints to drag on for years, as this could affect the confidence of complainants and the image of the department,” he told reporters after the 2026 annual parade here today.

Nor Hisham added that JBPM has also appointed integrity marshals in every state and plans to expand their deployment at the zone level.

He said the integrity marshals are trained in collaboration with the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) and serve as a safe reporting channel for whistleblowers.

“What is most important to me is that these integrity marshals project an image that gives officers and members of the public the confidence to report misconduct,” he said.

Meanwhile, in his speech, Nor Hisham urged JBPM personnel to safeguard the image of the public service, strengthen good governance practices, enhance transparency and restore public trust.

“Each of us must internalise that the uniform we wear and the rank on our shoulders are not merely symbols, but reflect the image of the nation, integrity, professionalism and the responsibility entrusted to us.

“Do not casually tarnish this uniform with actions that could stain its honour. Wear it with pride, honour and a sense of responsibility,” he said. — BERNAMA

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PUTRAJAYA — The Road Transport Department (JPJ) plans to get another 300 to 500 body-worn cameras (BWCs) to strengthen enforcement and enhance operational transparency nationwide.

Its director-general, Datuk Aedy Fadly Ramli, said the department currently has 100 BWCs, all of which have been fully deployed by enforcement officers since November last year.

“We will get more body-worn cameras for our officers in the field. We are in the procurement process, with a proposed addition of between 300 and 500 units,” he told reporters after the launch of the Special Registration Number ‘FH’ series in conjunction with Federal Territory Day 2026.

Also present were Putrajaya Corporation (PPj) president Datuk Mohd Sakeri Abdul Kadir and JPJ deputy director-general (Planning and Operations) Datuk Jazmanie Shafawi.

Aedy Fadly said initial feedback from enforcement officers on the use of BWCs has been positive, although a comprehensive assessment would take another three to four months.

“So far, the feedback indicates that BWCs are indeed effective,” he said.

Prior to this, Transport Minister Anthony Loke announced that JPJ enforcement officers nationwide began using BWCs in November last year to improve enforcement effectiveness and strengthen integrity and transparency in public service delivery. The first phase involved 100 BWCs deployed at JPJ headquarters and state offices, with an allocation of RM2.3 million.

Meanwhile, Aedy Fadly said JPJ is actively pursuing the comprehensive digitalisation of road law enforcement in line with rapid technological advancements.

He said the department is reviewing the entire enforcement ecosystem, including data integration and the use of Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) technology, which allows vehicle checks to be conducted without stopping vehicles on the road.

“We want to look at the entire ecosystem and position JPJ as an agency that initiates enforcement through digital means. We are studying this and will implement it in stages,” he said.

ANPR systems identify vehicle registration numbers through cameras and support cashless digital toll payments, e-invoicing, transaction checks and other mobility services via an integrated digital platform. — BERNAMA

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