PETALING JAYA: Former Armed Forces chief Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Zainal came out from retirement today to denounce Opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim for claiming that the services had supported his appointment as Prime Minister on the Sept 16, 2008.

Abdul Aziz, who had shunned the limelight since retiring in August last year, told a hastily arranged Press conference with Defence Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and current armed forces commanders at Zetro Centre of Excellence at Subang, that at no point that the armed forces or its commanders and soldiers supported Anwar's pur

PUTRAJAYA: The Islamic Development Department of Malaysia (Jakim) will not bow to strong-arm tactics used on its enforcement officers conducting checks at premises.

PUTRAJAYA: The Home Ministry is satisfied with the explanation given by the China Press and will not take action against the newspaper for its report on the purported resignation of the Inspector-General of Police.

SHAH ALAM: The Sultan of Selangor, Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah, has changed his mind about opening the inaugural general meeting of the Pertubuhan Pribumi Perkasa Malaysia (Perkasa) scheduled for March 27 in Kuala Lumpur in a move to avert manipulation of the matter by irresponsible people.

SHAH ALAM: It was an emotional moment for Jantan Hassan at the High Court this morning.

For the first time, the former factory worker was able to carry his seven-year-old daughter when he was spared the death sentence after being acquitted of a drug trafficking charge.

PETALING JAYA: Crocodile attack  survivor, Hong Kee Siong, who had stared death in the face of a deadly reptile, now just wants to enjoy life as best he can.

KUALA LUMPUR: Freelance model Lyndie Ong Chiew Wey, 23, shares one thing in common with supermodel Gisele Bundchen — both were discovered by talent scouts.

She recalls how Bundchen was discovered in a Brazilian fashion mall before debuting at the Fashion Week in New York City and becoming one of the most famous faces in the modelling industry.

KUALA LUMPUR: A total of 101 complaints against bloggers, including insults against the Sultans of various States, have been filed with the Information, Communication and Culture Minister since Jan 23.

Its Minister, Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim, revealed this at Parliament this morning when replying to a question  from Datuk Ismail Abd Mutalib (BN-Maran) to state the kind of action taken by the government on bloggers who kept spreading issues that jeopardise national unity and harmony and the continuous measures taken to curb it.

PETALING JAYA: The Sessions Court trial here of Constable V. Navindran who is charged with two counts of causing grievous hurt to car theft suspect A. Kugan turned into a discussion on whether a magistrate could give evidence in court this morning.

The prosecution's 10th witness, magistrate Ho Kwong Chin, who heard Kugan's remand proceedings on Jan 15 last year, started a short debate when he told the court that he wished to invoke Section 121 of the Evidence Act 1950.

PETALING JAYA: The self-styled leader of Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) P. Waythamoorthy (pic) yesterday challenged the Malaysian government to revoke his citizenship.

PETALING JAYA: The National Union of the Teaching Profession (NUTP) is all for the implementation of the Education Ministry's 'one-student one-sport' vision, which will be implemented next year.

NUTP secretary-general Lok Yim Pheng said it was "high time" for the ministry to take a firmer stand in ensuring that students get involved in co-curricular activities, especially sports.

"The emphasis on achieving good grades means that students have for long been subjected to activities that tie them down to the study desk," she said.

 

SHAH ALAM: Mind your own business.

That was the message given by Selangor Menteri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim to Transparency International Malaysia (TI-M) for suggesting the State government sign an anti-corruption agreement to ensure there was no hanky-panky in the State's RM10bil effort to clean up Sungai Klang.

 

PETALING JAYA: Living with HIV and AIDS alone is tough, but to come out in the open, share your stories with strangers and risk being discriminated against?

As such, one has to commend the bravery of those to be featured in an upcoming play called Life Sdn Bhd 5: I'm Positive!, by the Malaysian AIDS Council (MAC) and The Actors Studio.

KUALA LUMPUR: The country's Islamic Family Law needs to be comprehensively reviewed although it has been enforced all this while, says Perlis Mufti Dr Juanda Jaya.

In a statement issued today, he said one of the issues that should be looked into is marriages involving underage girls, which could be curbed by the religious authority (court).

He raised this in light of the widely reported marriage between two girls aged 10 and 11 to two men aged 40 and 41 in Kelantan recently.

KUALA LUMPUR: A police investigating officer told the High Court here today that the transcript of the tape recordings on a news conference by Karpal Singh pertaining to his statement to sue the Perak Sultan was not perfect.

ASP Suhaimi Mohamad, 36, said the transcript, done by two news officers from Radio Televisyen Malaysia (RTM), contained spelling errors and did not include in full the questions raised by journalists at the news conference.

KUALA LUMPUR: Senior lawyer Datuk N. Sivananthan achieved another first for the legal profession in the country when he was elected vice-president responsible for the Asia-Pacific region of the International Criminal Bar (ICB).

The 44-year-old Penang-born is the first Malaysian to hold the post which was decided at the ICB's 14th biennial meeting in Barcelona, Spain on Sunday.

KUALA LUMPUR: P. Waythamoorthy, the self-styled leader of Hindraf, who fled Malaysia for refuge in the United Kingdom, is not welcomed home.

Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Aziz said the government was not willing to allow him back.

"Although he has confided he wants to return, the government has closed the doors on him," Nazri told The Malay Mail at the Parliament lobby yesterday.

KUALA LUMPUR: The New Economic Model (NEM) to be introduced will not abolish bumiputera rights but will focus on cooperation with non-bumiputeras, parliament was told on Wednesday.

Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Aziz said the form of cooperation would be in politics and business promotions.

KUALA LUMPUR: It is a "fair" and "reasonable" amount to compensate a golfer who was bitten by a crocodile  while playing at a resort in Malacca in 2004.

The High Court today ordered A'Famosa Golf Resort Bhd to pay RM43,000 to a company director who sued the resort in Malacca after he was attacked and bitten by a crocodile in 2004.

By consent of the defendant, High Court judge Harmindar Singh Dhaliwal recorded the judgement for A'Famosa to pay Hong Kee Siong, 48, of Taman Sungai Besi the amount for general damages and legal  costs.