Guilty verdict against Najib and 9 news you may have missed

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

1. The High Court in Kuala Lumpur High Court found former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak guilty on all seven charges of corruption, money laundering and abuse of power against him in relation to SRC International Sdn Bhd. He is sentenced to serve 12 years in prison and an RM210 million fine.

2. In a speech from the dock, Najib maintained that he is innocent. Prosecutors expect the appeal process to take a year.

3. Attempts are being made on social media platforms to discredit the SRC International trial judge Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali.

4. Many Umno leaders have expressed sympathy with Najib following the verdict, but former Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin said its time for the party to move on. Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said a “political decision” will be made in response to the decision.

5. Pakatan Harapan politicians and journalists who exposed the 1MDB scandal hailed the verdict as vindication and justice for all Malaysians. Harapan called for institutional reforms to prevent a repeat of the scandal.

6. Health director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah expressed disappointment over the lack of social distancing among Najib’s supporters, while MPs expressed concern that some of their colleagues may have been exposed to Covid-19 at the pro-Najib rally outside the court.

7. Malaysia has recorded its highest spike of Covid-19 cases in a month, with 39 new cases, while Kuching as been declared a ‘Red Zone’.

8. The Perikatan Nasional government has abandoned the previous administration’s plan to abolish the University and University Colleges Act 1971 by this year.

9. The international labour union coalition IndustriAll condemned the Home Ministry’s alleged harassment of National Union of Transport Equipment and Allied Workers (Nuteaw) general secretary N Gopalkishnam for highlighting alleged labour malpractices by the glove manufacturer Top Glove.

10. The Transport Ministry is offering a 70 percent discount on summonses issued by the Road Transport Department and Land Public Transport Commission throughout August, in conjunction with the National Month celebrations.