SEREMBAN: Nine foreign men have been remanded for four days until Sunday (Jan 11) to aid investigations into an online part-time job scam. Seremban deputy OCPD Supt Muhd Amrul Yazid Anuar said all nine were previously arrested during an Ops Belatuk raid on a house in the district on Wednesday. He said the 3.30pm raid was conducted following public tip-offs and intelligence gathering by the state Commercial Crime Investigation Department, together with its Seremban counterpart. "The raid led to the arrest of nine foreign suspects, aged between 28 and 46. "Initial investigations revealed that all the suspects were believed to be involved in a syndicate promoting non-existent online part-time jobs targeting victims overseas," he said in a statement here.

KOTA KINABALU: Parti Impian Sabah (PIS), which contested 72 seats in the Nov 29 Sabah state election, will not be fielding candidates in the Kinabatangan parliamentary and Lamag state by-elections. Roslan also strongly denied a social media claim that he would contest the Kinabatangan parliamentary seat. He emphasised that the party’s position remains unchanged and that PIS would not be joining the by-elections. The by-elections for the Kinabatangan parliamentary seat and the Lamag state constituency are scheduled for Jan 24. Barisan Nasional has named Mohd Ismail Ayob for Lamag and Naim Kurniawan Moktar for Kinabatangan, while Parti Warisan is fielding Datuk Saddi Abdul Rahman for Kinabatangan and Mazliwati Abdul Malek Chua for Lamag.

ISTANBUL: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said the laying of a wreath at the Mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of the Republic of Turkiye, is a mandatory official protocol that must be observed by all heads of state during official visits to the country. "All heads of state undertaking official visits are required to perform the ceremony. He was speaking at a press conference here prior to his departure for home after concluding his three-day official visit to Turkiye. Anwar said the practice applies regardless of the political party or leadership governing Turkiye and has been observed by all Malaysian prime ministers who have previously undertaken official visits to the country. All Malaysian prime ministers who previously made official visits, whether Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad or Datuk Seri Najib Razak, also went through the same ceremony,” he said.

PETALING JAYA: Badminton great Kento Momota has shared happy news off the court after confirming that he has tied the knot. The 31-year-old made the announcement on his social media platforms on Friday (Jan. 9). However, the two-time world champion did not reveal the identity of his wife or share any wedding photos. "To everyone who has always supported me, I would like to share some personal news that I have officially registered my marriage. Momota even hinted at a comeback when he attended the Penang Badminton Association’s (PBA) centennial celebration in November.

BEAUFORT: Firefighters in Beaufort, Sabah, rescued a white fluffy cat trapped in a door knob hole at Kampung Batu 6, Lumadan, yesterday. The rescue team was alerted about the incident at 3.10pm and arrived 15 minutes later. According to the operation commander, Irwan Abdul, the team found a cat with its head stuck inside the hole of a door knob upon arrival. "The cat was safely removed without any injuries," he said, adding that the operation was completed in 30 minutes.

By the time Datuk Nicol David walked off the squash court for the last time, she had already secured her place in sporting history – eight-time world champion and nine years as world number one. Instead, it lives in classrooms, community halls and modest squash courts, where children learn not just how to move, but how to think, relate and believe in themselves. Photo: Nicol David OrganisationLong before sports psychology became a buzzword, Nicol learnt that squash was as much a mental challenge as a physical one. Trust and communicationFrom elite squash to grassroots advocacy, Irving and Nicol use their years in professional sports to help kids forge resilience, kindness and cooperation. Photo: Nicol David OrganisationBoth Nicol and Irving agree that the responsibility to normalise rest lies with leaders – coaches, parents, teachers and employers.

The backlog of more than 17,000 aircraft orders in 2025 must be reduced in 2026,” IATA Director General Willie Walsh said. IATA reported that international RPK was a healthy 7.7 per cent in November y-o-y, and the international load factor, at 84 per cent, was also a record high in November. IATA said Asia-Pacific airlines achieved a 9.3 per cent y-o-y increase in demand, capacity increased 8.7 per cent y-o-y, and the load factor was 0.5 percentage points higher at 85.8 per cent versus November 2024. Meanwhile, European carriers had a 6.8 per cent y-o-y increase in demand. Capacity rose 6.1 per cent y-o-y, and the load factor was 0.5 percentage points higher at 85.6 per cent against November 2024.

KUCHING: Over 400 flood victims have been moved to temporary relief centres after heavy rain overnight in parts of Sarawak. The state disaster management committee said 157 people were taken to Dewan Serbaguna Kampung Bijuray Mongag, Dewan Serbaguna Kampung Blimbin Krokong and Dewan Kampung Jeriah in Bau district. In Siburan district, 235 people were moved to Balai Raya Kampung Betong Kanowit, St Peter Simpok, Dewan Serbaguna Kampung Lintang Baru, SK Tanah Merah and Dewan Serbaguna Kampung Kerumboi. Also in Siburan, Sarawak Fire and Rescue Department personnel evacuated 130 flood victims to Dewan Taman Duranda Emas at 12.45am on Friday (Jan 9). In Subis district in northern Sarawak, there are still 72 evacuees at Dewan Serbaguna SMK Bekenu, which was opened on Jan 4.

For the Western bank that passed on the data centre deal, the risk of potential US pushback was too high to merit involvement, according to people involved with the discussions. One of the clients for the data centre has been Chinese tech firm ByteDance Ltd, according to a press release from Malaysia Investment Development Authority. The data centre also had service contracts with Singapore-based AI firm Megaspeed International Pte, according to documents seen by Bloomberg News. The United States government is investigating Megaspeed’s ownership structure and whether it’s smuggled Nvidia chips to China, people familiar with the effort said in December. Still, it’s unclear how the legal ramifications might change after US President Donald Trump’s decision in December to grant Nvidia permission to ship its H200 AI chips to China.

PETALING JAYA: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has been jokingly told to "lepak (chill) a bit" by a Singaporean politician following the strengthening of the ringgit against the Singapore dollar. "I only have one small, very small request: maybe you lepak a bit. Sim also said that he would not be surprised if the ringgit continues to strengthen against the Singapore dollar. He also noted that history has proven that the strengthening of the ringgit against the SGD is possible. "In the 1990s, Sterling traded at 3X of SGD, similar to SGD to Ringgit.

PETALING JAYA: As Malaysians prepare to celebrate back-to-back festivities, health experts are ­urging the public to rein in their sugar intake, warning that weeks of indulgent eating and drinking could quietly raise the risk of diabetes. “Constantly consuming high amounts of sugar leads to insulin resistance, blood sugar overload and other negative effects such as obesity,” she said. Echoing the call, Universiti Malaya public health medicine specialist Prof Dr Victor Hoe said people tend to snack more during festive periods, increasing their sugar intake without realising it. “Even a short walk after eating helps regulate blood sugar. “Counting calorie and sugar intake should become the norm.

PETALING JAYA: Malaysia should consider harsher punishments, including caning like Sin­g­a­­pore’s recent law, to curb misuse of bank accounts and disrupt scam networks, say experts. Singapore has passed amendments to its criminal law imposing mandatory caning for scammers and discretionary caning for mules involved in scams. Bukit Aman Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID) director Comm Datuk Rusdi Mohd Isa said he fully supports impo­sing harsher punishments on scammers, similar to those used in Singapore. With Singapore introducing caning as one of the penalties against scammers, Comm Rusdi said Malaysia should also consi­der harsher punishments for scam­mers. Ram said such harsher penalties may deter some opportunistic participation, but on their own, do not materially disrupt the business model of scam syndicates.

PUTRAJAYA: Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek said the Education Ministry’s Child Protection Policy will come into force nationwide when schools reopen next week. She said the policy will involve all parties responsible for student safety, including schools, parents, communities and enforcement agencies. "We have finalised the Child Protection Policy, which will be implemented in all schools and involves all parties responsible for student safety," she said in her New Year address on Friday (Jan 9). "If only 28% of CCTV systems are operational, how do we respond to the public and reassure parents that our schools are safe? "The focus is not only on installation, but on continuous maintenance so that the CCTV systems function effectively.

PUTRAJAYA: The Ujian Pencapaian Sekolah Rendah (UPSR) and Pentaksiran Tingkatan Tiga (PT3) examinations could be back on the cards soon, says Fadhlina Sidek. The Education Minister said the national advisory council would review the matter following feedback on the abolition of the two national exams. The UPSR was abolished in 2021 and PT3 was cancelled the same year (and officially abolished in 2022) by former education minister Datuk Dr Radzi Jidin. On Wednesday, Deputy Education Minister Wong Kah Woh told the Dewan Rakyat that an analysis of the 2023 and 2024 SPM results showed that student performance remained stable despite the abolition of UPSR and PT3. He added that the replacement assessment, Ujian Akhir Sesi Akademik, continues to follow Examination Board standards, enabling teachers to evaluate students effectively.

PETALING JAYA: A 23-year-old university student, Nurul Ain Hannani, who was reported missing since Monday (Jan 5), has been found in Johor Baru. Cheras OCPD Asst Comm Aidil Bolhassan said the victim has been found and is currently at the Permas Jaya police station. “My cousin has been found safe in Permas Jaya. Earlier, it was reported that Nurul Ain, a student at Universiti Poly-Tech Malaysia was reported missing after leaving her residence in Taman Shamelin, Kuala Lumpur. Closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage from the residential area showed Nurul Ain getting into a white vehicle believed to be operating as a Grab ride, before she became unreachable.