Pearly-Thinaah miss chance for historic spot in All England final

 

Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah. - NSTP FILE PIC

KUALA LUMPUR: Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah missed out on becoming the first Malaysian women's doubles pair to reach the All England final after losing their semi-final clash in Birmingham on Saturday.

The world No. 2 were defeated 21-17, 21-18 by South Korea's world No. 4 Baek Ha Na-Lee So Hee in the Super 1000 event.

It was the Malaysians' fourth defeat to the Koreans in seven meetings.

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Pearly-Thinaah were only the second Malaysian pair to reach the semi-finals of the 127-year-old tournament in 19 years, following Wong Pei Tty-Chin Ee Hui's 2007 run.

However, they were unable to secure a spot in the title showdown of the world's oldest badminton tournament. - NST

Mas Ermieyati enggan jawab surat tunjuk sebab Bersatu

 Ketua Wanita Bersatu itu berkata, beliau sebaliknya serah kepada pucuk pimpinan parti untuk buat penilaian.

Mas Ermieyati Samsudin berkata, tempoh tujuh hari untuk beliau jawab surat tunjuk sebab daripada Bersatu berakhir hari ini. (Gambar Bernama)

PETALING JAYA:

 Ketua Wanita Bersatu Mas Ermieyati Samsudin memaklumkan beliau tidak akan menjawab surat tunjuk sebab daripada Lembaga Disiplin parti, sebaliknya menyerahkan kepada pucuk pimpinan untuk menilai.

“Saya terima surat 28 Feb lalu dan tempoh tujuh hari akan berakhir hari ini, jadi saya memutuskan untuk tidak menjawab surat tersebut, terserah kepada parti,” katanya kepada FMT.

Terdahulu, Mas Ermieyati bersama Naib Presiden Bersatu Ronald Kiandee menerima surat tunjuk sebab bagi menjawab beberapa tuduhan.

Dilaporkan antara sebab Mas Ermieyati menerima surat tunjuk sebab itu adalah kerana menghantar surat kepada Ketua Whip Perikatan Nasional Takiyuddin Hassan bagi memaklumkan sokongan 13 Ahli Parlimen Bersatu kepada Hamzah Zainudin sebagai ketua pembangkang di Parlimen.

Ronald dan Mas Ermieyati antara yang hadir pada perhimpunan menyokong Hamzah pada 14 Feb lepas, sehari selepas timbalan presiden Bersatu itu dipecat parti.

FMT sedang mendapatkan maklum balas daripada Ronald sama ada beliau telah membalas surat tunjuk sebab tersebut atau mengambil pendirian sama seperti Mas Ermieyati

Awal hari ini, Mas Ermieyati mengumumkan beliau meletak jawatan pengerusi Perikatan Nasional (PN) Melaka, beberapa minggu selepas mengosongkan kerusi ketua Bersatu Masjid Tanah.

Menurutnya, keputusan berkuat kuasa semalam itu diambil bagi membolehkan Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar yang menggantikan Muhyiddin Yassin sebagai pengerusi PN untuk membuat penstrukturan semula. - FMT

Set a fixed 8-year period for election seat reviews, says MP

 Wilfred Madius Tangau says the constitution should be amended, to help avoid confusion about when such reviews can be carried out.

Tuaran MP Wilfred Madius Tangau said the current constitutional provisions do not denote a timeframe for electoral boundary reviews. (Facebook pic)

PETALING JAYA:

 The Federal Constitution should be amended to clearly specify an eight-year interval for reviewing parliamentary and state constituency boundaries, said Tuaran MP Wilfred Madius Tangau.

He said the current constitutional provisions do not specify a timeframe for such reviews.

“This provision should be clearly written into the constitution so that there will be no confusion in future about how much time must pass before a boundary review can be carried out,” the Borneo Post quoted him as saying today.

Tangau’s remarks follow a recent question in the Dewan Rakyat on when the government plans to increase the number of parliamentary and state assembly seats across the country, and whether Sabah and Sarawak would be given priority.

Law and institutional reform minister Azalina Othman Said said electoral boundaries can only be reviewed after eight years, or if there is an amendment affecting the number of members of the Dewan Rakyat or a state assembly.

For Sarawak, the eight-year period ended on Aug 21, 2023 but in July last year, the Sarawak state assembly approved an increase of 17 new state seats. The Election Commission is now finalising its recommendations before moving to the next steps required under the constitution, Azalina said.

For Sabah, the eight-year period ended on Feb 21, 2025, but the EC has yet to decide whether to begin the review as the state recently concluded an election.

For states in Peninsular Malaysia, the eight-year period since the last boundary review will end on March 9. - FMT

TMJ says ‘they want to eliminate my football influence’

 JDT football club owner Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim agrees to meet football supporters 'any time, anywhere' to explain the heritage players crisis.

Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim, in a post on X, expressed doubt about the motives of the meeting with football supporters. (Bernama pic)

PETALING JAYA:

 Johor Darul Ta’zim football club owner Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim is willing to meet football supporters “any time, anywhere” to provide a detailed explanation on the national team’s current crisis over the suspension of seven foreign-born “heritage” players.

His response on the X platform came after an X user demanded an explanation regarding the decision made by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) to uphold the 12-month suspension of seven players and fines levied on the Football Association of Malaysia.

Tunku Ismail, the Tengku Mahkota of Johor, who is also known as TMJ said he has left it to the supporters to set the time and location of the meeting.

However, he expressed doubt about the motives of the meeting. “Most of it is not about what is right and true. They are more interested in eliminating my influence in the local football industry, that’s all,” he said.

On Thursday, the CAS upheld a 12-month suspension for seven players who were included in the Harimau Malaya squad as naturalised players. The court held that documents providing for their naturalisation had been proven to be forged.

Football supporters have demanded a clear and transparent explanation regarding the issue.

The seven players, Hector Hevel, Imanol Machuca, Facundo Garces, Rodrigo Holgado, Joao Figueiredo, Jon Irazabal and Gabriel Palmero, were suspended from official matches but not precluded from football-related activities. - FMT

Azizulhasni snatches keirin gold from world No 1 at World Cup

 The 38-year-old overtook Great Britain’s Matthew Richardson by millimetres at the finish line.

Azizulhasni Awang had been forced to go through the repechage route earlier today after finishing third in his opening round heat. (Bernama pic)

PETALING JAYA:

 National track cycling ace Azizulhasni Awang delivered a shock to world No 1 Matthew Richardson of Great Britain, snatching the men’s keirin gold by a whisker at the opening leg of the UCI Track World Cup series in Perth today.

Azizulhasni, who was drawn fifth behind the derny, caught up to Richardson on the second last lap at the Perth SpeedDome, the New Straits Times reported.

Richardson hit the front on the final straight, but was overtaken by a mere inch by Azizulhasni at the finish line. Leigh Hoffman of Australia finished third.

It was an outstanding feat as the 38-year-old – nicknamed the “Pocket Rocketman” – was forced to go through the repechage route after finishing third in his opening round heat earlier today.

In the women’s individual sprint, both Izzah Izzati Asri and Nur Alyssa Farid were unable to make it past the second round, losing to Olympic champion Ellesse Andrews of New Zealand and China’s Yuan Liying.

Izzah and Alyssa placed 13th and 14th respectively in qualifying at the start of the day after clocking 11.042 seconds and 11.058s respectively.

Azizulhasni will compete in the men’s individual sprint while Izzah and Alyssa will contest the women’s keirin tomorrow. - FMT

Shafie Apdal demands immediate implementation of Sabah’s 40% revenue rights

 

WARISAN president Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal has urged the Federal Government to cease delaying the fulfilment of Sabah’s 40% revenue rights.

He insists that the state government must challenge Putrajaya’s recent application for a stay order against a High Court ruling mandating a fresh financial review.

“The Constitution is clear – the Federal Government must repay the state’s lost revenue,” he told reporters after a breaking fast event at Kampung Warisan on Friday (March 6).

Shafie maintains that constitutional obligations are non-negotiable and should not be conflated with standard federal development allocations like hospitals or security services.

“For example, if someone is found guilty of a crime such as theft, murder, or drug-related offences, the sentence handed down cannot be delayed.

“Perhaps in this case it involves finances and the government needs to scrutinise the matter, but this should not be confused with ordinary federal allocations,” he said.

He argued that the state’s rightful revenue is distinct from federal duties, calling for transparent, swift compliance with the law to rectify long-standing fiscal discrepancies between the state and federal administrations. –  Focus Malaysia

Hamzah–Muhyiddin feud deepens, Marzuki blames ‘tebuk atap’

 

FORMER Bersatu deputy president Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin has intensified his public feud with Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, questioning the legal and  political authority of the Bersatu president to block his entry into Perikatan Nasional (PN).

Speaking in Port Dickson, Hamzah dismissed Muhyiddin’s recent threats of exclusion as an overreach of power. He challenged the party founder to step down, claiming that over sixty party divisions have already dissolved following his expulsion.

“He says I cannot be a member of PN. Who is he to decide? I want to ask him: if I am allowed to become a PN member, will he step down? If he says he will resign, I will do my utmost to join PN so that he can finally step away,” Hamzah said.

Hamzah argued that the significant support he retains among division chiefs proves a leadership vacuum, urging Muhyiddin to emulate historical leaders who resigned after losing the confidence of their members.

Nevertheless, former chief private secretary to the eighth Prime Minister, Datuk Dr Marzuki Mohamad, asserts that relentless attempts to seize power through “backdoor” manoeuvres have fractured the opposition.

Following the failed “Dubai Move”, Marzuki urged opposition leaders to abandon clandestine power-grabbing schemes and instead focus on their critical role of checks and balances.

Despite facing backlash for these views, he maintains that the obsession with forming an immediate government has only bred internal hostility.

By prioritising power over policy, these factions have inadvertently weakened the opposition’s structural integrity and alienated those who prioritise stable, long-term political competition. —  Focus Malaysia