Broker denies helping Jho Low get Cypriot citizenship, and 9 news from yesterday

KINI ROUNDUP | Here are key headlines you may have missed yesterday, in brief.

1. Citizenship broker Henley & Partners denied helping the fugitive Low Taek Jho obtain Cypriot citizenship, saying they had turned Jho Low down when he approached them in 2015.

2. Cypriot leaders admitted that mistakes were made in its citizenship-for-investment scheme and that Jho Low’s passport may be revoked. The archbishop who endorsed Jho Low’s citizenship application distanced himself.

3. Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad said the government would amend draconian laws such as the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012 “as soon as possible” to prevent abuse – probably in the current parliamentary sitting or the next one.

4. A travel agency has filed a suit against Economic Affairs Minister Mohamed Azmin Ali to recover RM328,901 of unpaid flight tickets and hotel stays.

5. Malaysia has been granted a third extension on the Johor Bahru-Singapore Rapid Transit System to come up with a proposal to amend the terms of a bilateral agreement on the project.

6. The MACC said it would charge a serving Sessions Court judge for corruption today, along with a deputy public prosecutor and a lawyer.

7. Agriculture and Agro-based Industries Minister Salahuddin Ayub defended his giving of contributions to schools in Tanjung Piai despite an ongoing by-election, saying that the contributions had been promised beforehand.

8. A Sarawak assistant minister said it would take Petronas to court over RM1.2 billion in sales tax that was allegedly unpaid.

9. International migrant worker rights specialist Andy Hall has urged Malaysia and Bangladesh to expedite negotiations on a new agreement on migrant workers to prevent systematic forced labour in Malaysia

10 China, Malaysia, and 13 other countries have agreed on plans for the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership that is slated to be signed next year, despite a last-minute withdrawal by India.