An undated illustrative photo shows people restrained with handcuffs. —Picture By Raymond Manuel
First Published: Monday, 26 Oct 2026 3:35 PM MYT
KANGAR, Oct 26 — A government retiree pleaded not guilty in the Sessions Court here today to three charges of committing physical sexual assault and criminal force against two girls about two months ago.
Annuar Abdullah, 72, entered the plea after the charges were read out to him before Judge Sharifah Norazlita Syed Salim Idid.
The first two charges alleged that Annuar committed physical sexual assault for sexual purposes against an 11-year-and-five-month-old girl at a house at No. 7, Lorong 4 Jalan Utama here, at 6.30 pm on Aug 11.
The third charge alleges that he used criminal force against a 10-year-and-11-month-old girl by pulling both her legs with the intention of outraging her modesty, at the same place, time and date.
The first two charges were brought under Section 14(a) of the Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017, which provides for a maximum prison sentence of 20 years and whipping upon conviction.
The third charge, under Section 354 of the Penal Code, carries a maximum prison sentence of 10 years, a fine, whipping, or any two of the punishments, upon conviction.
The court granted Annuar bail of RM10,000 with one surety and ordered him to report to a nearby police station on the first day of every month.
He was also prohibited from approaching or disturbing the victims and prosecution witnesses until the disposal of the case.
The court fixed Nov 24 for mention for submission of relevant documents.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Mohd Alif Farhan Hassan prosecuted, while Annuar was represented by lawyers Zuhair Ahmad Zakuan and Mohamad Alif Farhan Mohamad Supian. — Bernama
[1] On 20 October, after chairing a meeting of the National Cyber Security Committee, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim ordered an immediate ban on civil servants using the navigation app on official duty.[1] That same night, Malaysians were urged to switch to TuJu, a little-known app developed by the Malaysian Highway Authority (LLM). The Prime Minister’s Department then advised all Malaysians to stop using Waze. A total ban, Anwar now says, remains on the table.[2] It is a decision that raises more questions than it answers.
[2] Anwar’s case rests on two points: Waze is headquartered in Israel, and its terms of use are governed by Israeli law. From this he concludes that using Waze “means automatically handing over all information to Israel.”[3] He also placed the move squarely within Malaysia’s stance on Israel: “We are among the countries that have taken a strong stand against the cruel Zionist Israeli regime. So, naturally, our actions are being monitored.”[4] The ban, in other words, is meant to stop Israel watching us. If only it were that simple.
[3] To be fair, the concern is not baseless. Israeli intelligence has shown what phone data can do: during last year’s war, it reportedly tracked senior Iranian officials through their bodyguards’ mobile phones before assassinating them.[5] But that is precisely the point: the vulnerability lies in the phones, not in Waze per se. Nor is Israel alone; many governments can track and access phone data. In 2013, the BBC reported that US intelligence had bugged German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s phone.[6] And just a few days ago, there were reports that Iran-based hackers might have gained access to the phones of Israeli military officers.[7]
[4] Waze can indeed be compelled under Israeli law to hand over the data it collects. But Google, which has owned Waze since 2013 and whose Google Maps collects much the same data, is similarly obliged to share it with the US government on lawful request. Given the close intelligence ties between Washington and Israel, that data could just as easily end up in Israeli hands. Yet Fahmi Fadzil says Malaysians may use any navigation app except Waze, foreign ones included.[8]Google Maps, it seems, is fine. If the worry is foreign access to sensitive location data, the government must explain how ordinary Malaysians’ use of Waze endangers their own security or the state’s. It has not.
[5] If Waze poses a specific security concern, the sensible course would be to restrict such apps on the phones of ministers, security personnel and senior officials handling sensitive information, as many governments have done with TikTok. But urging millions of ordinary Malaysians to abandon Waze, and threatening a total ban, is not security; it is overreach.
[6] Then there is TuJu. Launched in November 2025, it has struggled to find its footing. Barely a day after the Prime Minister talked it up, its navigation functions went offline for “planned technical upgrades”.[9] Lim Guan Eng rightly called it a “national embarrassment.”[10]
[7] When I downloaded TuJu, I was asked to let it track my “location, motion and usage behaviour”, data that “may be shared with Malaysian Government Body”. The list runs from precise location and home address to “Credit and Fraud” data and “Other Financial Info” – hardly what one needs to find the way to local destinations. Unlike Waze, TuJu also requires users to log in, tying every journey to a name. And, according to launch reports, it runs on Google’s mapping data.[11]
[8] Foreign governments may well misuse our phone data, but I am just as concerned about how my own government handles it, especially as it exempts itself from the Personal Data Protection Act.
[9] There is also a question of consistency. If Anwar is so concerned about the Israeli threat, why did he defend a deal giving BlackRock-owned Global Infrastructure Partners and Abu Dhabi’s ADIA a 30% stake in Malaysia Airports, warning critics not to politicise it?[12] If an Israeli-registered app threatens national security, why not a stake in our airports held partly by a firm pro-Palestinian groups accuse of having close ties to Israel’s military?
[10] The government may have some justification for restricting Waze for those handling sensitive information. But a nationwide ban, especially one without a credible, proven alternative, would be an unnecessary imposition on already weary road users. And for Malaysians driving abroad, Waze is all but indispensable. A published security assessment, clear guidance for officials and a properly tested local app would have served the nation far better. Anwar has apologised for causing “some inconvenience to a few people.”[13] It is millions, and they will see the ban for what it is: a hasty and ill-considered decision made at their expense.
The party's secretary-general says DAP will focus its resources on seven seats, including four it currently holds.
DAP secretary-general Loke Siew Fook said the party finished third in Bemban in the 2021 state election, but came second in the other seats it lost.
PETALING JAYA: DAP will not contest the Bemban seat in the coming Melaka election after assessing that its chances of winning are slim, says party secretary-general Loke Siew Fook.
Loke said Bemban was the only seat DAP contested in the 2021 election where it finished third, while the party came second in the other seats it failed to win, Utusan Malaysia reported.
He said DAP was prioritising the defence of its four incumbent seats among the seven it will contest, rather than spreading its resources too thinly.
“We want to make sure our strength and resources, including our focus, are concentrated on seats we can win.
“That is why we are contesting only seven seats this time, excluding Bemban. It is a technical and strategic decision made by the party,” he was quoted as saying after presenting special financial aid to taxi, hired car and school bus drivers in Melaka.
Loke’s response comes after former Melaka DAP chairman Damian Yeo decided to boycott Pakatan Harapan’s campaign for the Nov 14 Melaka state election over talk of a possible electoral understanding with Bersatu.
Yeo said he had been informed that the “PH Plus” plan could see the coalition making way for Bersatu to contest Bemban.
On dissatisfaction over seat allocations, Loke said such disagreements were not unusual within political parties.
He said decisions on seat allocations and candidate selection were made by the party’s top leadership, even when some members held differing views.
Umno Youth chief Datuk Dr Muhamad Akmal Saleh acknowledging his supporters after leaving the Bukit Mertajam court on August 22, 2025. — Picture by Opalyn Mok
First Published: Monday, 26 Oct 2026 2:50 PM MYT Last Modified: Monday, 26 Oct 2026 2:55 PM MYT
PETALING JAYA, Oct 26 — Umno Youth chief Datuk Dr Muhamad Akmal Saleh says he is prepared to give up his bid to defend the Merlimau state seat in the Melaka election on November 14 if the court case he faces hurts Umno and Barisan Nasional’s chances at the polls.
According to Berita Harian, Dr Akmal said he had conveyed his position to Barisan Nasional chairman and Umno president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, stressing that the party’s interests must come before his personal ambitions.
“If this case is seen as something that could tarnish the party’s image, I have told the Umno president that I am willing not to contest if I am considered a burden to the party’s chances of winning,” he was quoted as saying.
The 38-year-old said Umno had entrusted him with defending the Merlimau seat, although the final decision would only be known on nomination day. He added that he was also prepared to make way for another candidate if the party believed someone else stood a better chance of securing victory.
On August 22 last year, Dr Akmal pleaded not guilty to a charge under Section 505(b) of the Penal Code over a Facebook post allegedly causing public alarm. The offence carries a maximum penalty of two years’ imprisonment, a fine, or both upon conviction.
His lawyer Aizat Azam says the defence will file a second representation to the attorney-general.
Last August, Umno Youth chief Dr Akmal Saleh was charged under Section 505(b) of the Penal Code with making statements likely to cause public fear or alarm. (Bernama pic)
PETALING JAYA: The Penang prosecution director has rejected Umno Youth chief Dr Akmal Saleh’s representation seeking to have a charge connected to a Facebook post linked to an upside-down display of the Jalur Gemilang dropped.
His lawyer, Aizat Azam, said the representation was submitted about 10 months ago, and the rejection was communicated during case mention today, Sinar Harian reported.
He said the defence applied to the Bukit Mertajam magistrates’ court on Monday to submit a second representation to the attorney-general (AG) to present the facts, views and legal opinions concerning the case.
“God willing, we will submit the representation to the AG’s office after this,” he told reporters outside the Bukit Mertajam court complex today.
Akmal was charged last August under Section 505(b) of the Penal Code with making statements likely to cause public fear or alarm. The charge pertains to a video posted on his Facebook account on Aug 11.
In the video, Akmal allegedly issued a two-day ultimatum to the AG’s Chambers, demanding confirmation that legal action would be taken against an individual whom he referred to as an “apek”, or elderly Chinese man, for purportedly displaying the national flag upside down.
Aizat said the case had been ongoing for over a year with no trial date set, as the defence was still awaiting a decision on its representation.
The court earlier fixed Jan 4, 2027 for a decision on the second representation to be filed by the defence.
The case was handled by state prosecution director Muna Jaafar before magistrate Roshayati Radellah.
Besides Aizat, Akmal was also represented by counsel Syahrul Syazwan Salehin, Hafiz Norkhan, Imran Tamrin, Syafiq Bahtiar, Zaki Shah, Fazreen Izuan and Shakeel Saifuzzaman.
On Akmal’s application to commence judicial review proceedings against the AG’s decision to charge him over the Facebook post, Aizat said the matter was still at the case management stage.
“Tomorrow, we will attend an online case management at the Penang High Court and inform the court that we need another date while awaiting the outcome of the second representation to be submitted to the AG,” he said.
