Apabila pindaan Akta 712 dan Akta 713 diwartakan tahun ini, MyCC akan dapat beri perlindungan lebih menyeluruh kepada individu tampil salur maklumat, katanya.
Ketua Pegawai Eksekutif MyCC Iskandar Ismail berkata, perlindungan bagi pemberi maklumat penting kerana kegiatan kartel lazimnya berlaku secara sulit dan di belakang tabir.
KUALA LUMPUR: Suruhanjaya Persaingan Malaysia (MyCC) akan memperkukuh perlindungan serta menyediakan ganjaran kepada pemberi maklumat yang tampil mendedahkan kegiatan kartel atau amalan penipuan bidaan susulan pindaan Akta Persaingan 2010 (Akta 712) dan Akta Suruhanjaya Persaingan 2010 (Akta 713).
Ketua Pegawai Eksekutif MyCC Iskandar Ismail berkata, perlindungan itu penting kerana kegiatan kartel lazimnya berlaku secara sulit dan di belakang tabir, justeru kerjasama pemberi maklumat yang mempunyai kaitan dengan syarikat atau pengguna amat diperlukan.
“Sebelum ini, perlindungan memang ada namun tidak mencukupi … sekarang kami pertingkatkan lagi perlindungan selain memberi ganjaran.
“Ada pengadu yang tampil memberi maklumat sebelum ini tetapi apabila tiada ganjaran diberikan, mereka balik,” katanya dalam Program Ruang Bicara bertajuk Pemerkasaan Ekosistem Perniagaan dan Hak Pengguna melalui Pindaan Akta 712 dan 713 di Bernama TV hari ini.
Beliau berkata, pengadu turut berdepan risiko kehilangan pekerjaan sekiranya mendedahkan maklumat sulit syarikat, sekali gus menjadi antara faktor yang menyebabkan mereka enggan tampil.
“Pengadu menyatakan dia merisikokan diri untuk datang ke MyCC namun tiada ganti rugi yang akan diberikan kepadanya jika dia kehilangan pekerjaan kerana membocorkan rahsia syarikat,” katanya.
Iskandar berkata, apabila pindaan itu diwartakan tahun ini, MyCC akan dapat memberikan perlindungan lebih menyeluruh kepada individu yang tampil menyalurkan maklumat.
Langkah itu juga akan memudahkan orang ramai khususnya pengguna membuat aduan berkaitan amalan antipersaingan, tambahnya.
“Sekarang dah ada perlindungan, jadi apabila kita kuatkuasakan (pindaan) ini dalam tahun ini, mudah untuk semua orang terutama pengguna untuk membuat aduan.
“Pada masa sama, kami akan terus melaksanakan program advokasi kepada pengguna pada setiap bulan,” katanya.
Sehubungan dengan itu, MyCC mempelawa individu atau syarikat yang mempunyai maklumat berkaitan kartel supaya membuat aduan menerusi pelbagai saluran termasuk aplikasi WhatsApp.
Iskandar berkata, pindaan itu turut memperluas peranan MyCC dalam menjalankan kajian terhadap pasaran yang memberi kesan signifikan kepada rakyat termasuk ekonomi digital dan e-dagang.
Beliau berkata, Seksyen 11 Akta 712 memberikan kuasa kepada MyCC untuk menjalankan kajian pasaran berkaitan sektor berkenaan yang memberi kesan kepada pengguna.
Kerjasama dengan agensi persaingan di negara lain, katanya, turut membolehkan MyCC mendapatkan maklumat bagi memastikan pasaran domestik tidak menjadi mangsa amalan antipersaingan syarikat antarabangsa. - FMT
Melaka Bersatu information chief Hishamuddin Karim says, however, the gathering was just to exchange views on preparations for the election.
Tonight’s dinner followed remarks by Melaka PH chairman Adly Zahari that the state chapter was finalising negotiations with other parties, including Bersatu, to form an alliance for the upcoming polls.
PETALING JAYA: Melaka Bersatu and Pakatan Harapan leaders attended a closed-door dinner ahead of the state election at a hotel in Melaka tonight.
Bersatu information chief Tun Faisal Ismail Aziz, election director Mohammad Ali Mohamad, associate wing chief R Sri Sanjeevan, and Melaka information chief Hishamuddin Karim were among those present, Sinar Harian reported.
Also spotted were Melaka Amanah chairman Ashraf Mukhlis Minghat and acting Melaka PKR chairman Adam Adli.
Melaka PH chairman Adly Zahari was also expected to attend.
FMT has contacted several of the leaders for comment, with Melaka DAP chairman Khoo Poay Tiong saying he was not present.
Hishamuddin said the dinner had no specific agenda and was simply an opportunity to exchange views on preparations for the state election.
“It’s not a formal meeting. It’s just dinner. We have met many times before, and today we came together for dinner.
“About 25 party chairmen and election directors attended. After dinner, there will be speeches by Ali, followed by Adly,” he said.
Earlier, Adly said Melaka PH would use the PH Plus formula for the state election by working with other parties that shared similar aspirations, but that this did not include Barisan Nasional for now.
He also said talks with Bersatu on political cooperation were ongoing, with no final decision reached.
On Sept 19, Adly said Melaka PH was finalising negotiations with parties that shared similar aspirations, including Bersatu, to form a “PH Plus” alliance for the state election.
He said the negotiations were being conducted based on decisions made at a PH presidential council meeting.
On Sept 24, Tun Faisal said talks on an electoral pact with other parties ahead of the Melaka polls were ongoing.
Bersatu contested the Aug 1 Negeri Sembilan polls on its own but lost all 24 seats it stood in.
The Election Commission will meet on Oct 7 to discuss arrangements for the 16th Melaka election following the dissolution of the state legislative assembly on Sept 23. - FMT
Each suspect had allegedly hidden two packets of white powder in the insoles of their shoes, with each packet weighing 500g.
The five were stopped by Indonesian authorities at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Jakarta after arriving from Kuala Lumpur on an AirAsia flight last Friday. (Wikipedia pic)
PETALING JAYA: Five Malaysians were detained by Indonesian police last Friday for allegedly smuggling 5kg of the synthetic drug etomidate concealed in their shoes.
The five were stopped by Indonesian authorities at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Jakarta after arriving from Kuala Lumpur on an AirAsia flight, reported Buletin TV3.
Eko Hadi Santoso, director of narcotics crimes at the national police’s criminal investigation department, said the suspects were searched after customs and excise officers became suspicious of their movements.
He said a search found that each suspect had allegedly hidden two packets of white powder in the insoles of their shoes, with each packet weighing about 500g.
“In total, there were 10 packets weighing about 5kg,” he said.
Investigations revealed that the five were acting under the instructions of a person through the Telegram messaging app.
Upon arriving in Jakarta, they were instructed to go to a hotel in central Jakarta, put their shoes in a red bag, and hand it to a Chinese national at the hotel lobby.
The Chinese national was arrested, after which police found keys to an apartment in north Jakarta that was allegedly being used as a laboratory to produce vape pods containing etomidate, a short-acting intravenous anaesthetic.
Police seized various raw materials and equipment for assembling the vape pods, including 16 five-litre cans of flavouring liquid, five one-litre bottles of liquid, 21,000 empty vape pods and 15,000 silicone pod caps.
They also seized 800 plastic pipettes and 4,715 pod containers in various flavours. Police estimated the seizures to be worth 127.5 billion rupiah (about RM33.8 million).
In July, a Malaysian pilot was arrested at the same airport for allegedly smuggling more than 70,000 ecstasy pills weighing 25kg into Indonesia. - FMT
THE future of Malaysian federalism depends on a question that remains insufficiently resolved: what kind of federation does Malaysia intend to become?
The debate is not simply about distributing administrative powers between Putrajaya and the states. It concerns the constitutional understanding, political trust and institutional arrangements that sustain the federation.
In The Union and the State: Contested Visions of the UK’s Future (2024), Ciaran Martin identifies three competing approaches to Britain’s territorial governance: multinational unionism, muscular unionism and pragmatic efforts to make existing arrangements work.
Although the United Kingdom’s constitutional system differs fundamentally from Malaysia’s written Federal Constitution, Martin’s central insight remains relevant.
A federation cannot rely indefinitely on political improvisation. It needs a coherent vision of how authority should be shared and how its constituent parts should work together.
(Image: Bernama)
The first approach, multinational unionism, recognises that a state can accommodate distinct national and regional identities through meaningful self-government.
In Malaysia, this resonates with the constitutional position of Sabah and Sarawak and the significance of the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63).
The formation of Malaysia was not merely an administrative merger. It involved constitutional arrangements intended to accommodate the circumstances and interests of its constituent territories.
Federalism must therefore be understood through both the general constitutional framework and the distinctive safeguards associated with Sabah and Sarawak.
The continuing implementation of MA63 illustrates this evolving relationship. In late 2025, the Prime Minister’s Office reported progress on 13 implementation matters, including the transfer of electricity regulatory authority to Sabah and changes involving state technical departments.
These developments demonstrate that the federation’s practical operation can evolve through negotiated institutional arrangements.
Yet progress on individual matters does not, by itself, answer the larger question of Malaysia’s federal future. The challenge is to establish predictable principles governing autonomy, fiscal arrangements, administrative responsibilities and intergovernmental consultation.
Martin’s second model, muscular unionism, emphasises the authority and primacy of the central state. Applied to Malaysia, this would place greater weight on national uniformity, central coordination and the Federal Government’s capacity to pursue common policies.
Central coordination is not inherently incompatible with federalism. National security, economic stability and nationwide infrastructure often require cooperation across jurisdictions.
The difficulty arises when coordination becomes a justification for routinely displacing state authority or overlooking constitutionally established responsibilities.
Excessive centralisation can create a political paradox. Measures intended to strengthen national unity may deepen dissatisfaction if states perceive that their constitutional position is being weakened.
In Sabah and Sarawak, where MA63 remains a central reference point in debates over the federation, how federal authority is exercised can be as consequential as the policies themselves.
Martin’s third approach, pragmatic adjustment, involves improving existing arrangements without fundamentally redesigning the constitutional settlement.
Malaysia has often proceeded in precisely this way through negotiations, administrative transfers, special grants and institutional agreements.
Pragmatism can deliver tangible results. However, when reforms depend primarily on separate negotiations, uncertainty persists over the federation’s long-term direction.
Progress risks becoming contingent on changing political circumstances, executive goodwill and the willingness of governments to revisit unresolved issues.
This is where Martin’s emphasis on statecraft becomes particularly instructive. Federalism is sustained not only by constitutional provisions but also by how governments manage overlapping responsibilities, resolve disputes and communicate the value of shared institutions.
For Malaysia, effective statecraft requires stronger intergovernmental mechanisms, more transparent fiscal arrangements and more consistent consultation.
Federal and state governments should be able to distinguish clearly between areas requiring national coordination and those where state decision-making should prevail.
Disagreements should be managed through established processes rather than recurring tests of political strength.
Fiscal federalism is especially important. Grants and revenue arrangements are not merely accounting exercises; they shape whether states believe that the federation distributes resources and responsibilities fairly.
Predictable formulas, transparent negotiations and accountable expenditure can strengthen confidence in federal institutions.
The implications extend beyond Sabah and Sarawak. How Malaysia manages asymmetrical federalism will shape the credibility of its constitutional arrangements nationwide.
Respecting differentiated state interests need not weaken Malaysian identity. Properly managed, it can demonstrate that national belonging does not require uniformity in every aspect of governance.
Ultimately, the question is not whether Malaysia should choose between a strong federation and empowered states. It is how to reconcile national capacity with constitutional diversity.
A federation that cannot coordinate effectively risks fragmented policymaking, while one that centralises excessively risks eroding the trust on which cooperation depends.
Malaysia’s federal future therefore requires more than a succession of negotiated adjustments. It needs a durable framework that clarifies responsibilities, protects constitutional commitments and makes cooperation between Putrajaya and the states routine rather than exceptional.
The federation’s long-term strength will depend not simply on how much authority the centre retains, but on whether every level of government can exercise its powers with legitimacy, predictability and mutual confidence.
R Paneir Selvam is Principal Consultant at Arunachala Research & Consultancy Sdn Bhd (ARRESCON), a think tank specialising in strategic national and geopolitical analysis.
The views expressed are solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.
