PKR told to declare stand on future PM and 9 news from yesterday

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

1. DAP organising secretary Anthony Loke (above) urged PKR to declare its stand on Pakatan Harapan’s pick for the next prime minister, after missing a deadline to do so.

2. Loke’s comments earned him brickbats from Perak PKR chief Farhash Wafa Salvador Rizal Mubarak, while PKR president Anwar Ibrahim earlier apologised for missing the deadline and said Harapan needed to consult with its allies.

3. Former PKR deputy president Azmin Ali has called for an end to the power struggle between Anwar and his former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad, while denying allegations that he plans to set up his own political party.

4. Johor PKR deputy chief Jimmy Puah revealed that Pakatan Harapan was close to launching a countercoup to retake Johor, but the plan was aborted after Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar warned he would dissolve the State Legislative Assembly if there was another power struggle.

5. The Federal Court has granted leave for the Attorney-General’s Chambers to proceed with contempt proceedings against Malaysiakini and its editor-in-chief Steven Gan over readers’ comments regarding the judiciary.

6. Police are investigating former deputy women, family and community development minister Hannah Yeoh’s Facebook post on child marriage, but the Segambut MP had already denied making the statement attributed to her three months ago.

7. Tanjung Malim Umno is seeking to contest the parliamentary seat in Perak in the next general election, but the local MCA chapter said it would continue contesting the seat despite Umno’s objections.

8. The World Health Organization is updating its treatment guidelines for Covid-19 after large clinical trials showed the drug dexamethasone can reduce the disease’s mortality rate, while the Health Ministry warned against self-medicating with the drug due to its side effects.

9. Police are still ascertaining the true identity of a man who died in detention last month after doubts have been raised on the deceased’s purported identity as a Nepali named Dhan Bahadur.

10. Taiwan will reopen its borders to business travellers from countries such as Malaysia next week, subject to quarantine requirements.