Hadi Azmi

1 day ago | scmp.com | Hadi Azmi

The widow of Malaysian tycoon and former politician Daim Zainuddin has hit back at the country’s anti-corruption agency, accusing it of being “vindictive” by continuing to seize assets from his estate in both Malaysia and the United Kingdom despite no criminal conviction. On Thursday, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) took control of Daim’s 58-storey Ilham Tower in Kuala Lumpur, alleging that it was tied to offences under the anti-money-laundering law.

3 days ago | scmp.com | Hadi Azmi

Malaysia has launched efforts to freeze assets in London – including bank accounts and prime real estate valued at £132 million (US$178 million) – linked to the widow of the late tycoon Daim Zainuddin, according to anti-graft authorities. The process – which will ultimately need to be executed by authorities in the United Kingdom – is part of a widening embezzlement probe into his family’s wealth.

4 days ago | scmp.com | Hadi Azmi

Civil society groups are challenging a police investigation into an LGBTQ sexual-health workshop in Malaysia, rejecting claims that it could offend Islam or threaten public order. While Malaysia is secular and multicultural, Islam is the state religion, with Islamic authorities empowered to regulate Muslim affairs and enforce religious mores through the sharia court system.

1 week ago | scmp.com | Hadi Azmi

The launch of artificial intelligence-powered Islamic preachers has raised questions in Malaysia over the technology’s potential to distort local Islamic teachings and undermine the role of qualified scholars. In Malaysia, where Islam is the state religion, religious discourse is tightly regulated and preachers must obtain official credentials and strictly adhere to state-sanctioned interpretations of the faith – or risk infringing sharia court rulings of “deviant teachings”.

1 week ago | scmp.com | Hadi Azmi

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim went into damage control on Thursday as he digested the departure of two key ministers who quit the cabinet after his party voted to elevate his daughter to the role of deputy and his de facto successor. To control the narrative surrounding the walkouts, Anwar stated that he has not accepted the resignations of Economy Minister Rafizi Ramli and Environment Minister Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad, instead allowing them to take time off.