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MCA open to discussing 'borrowed seats' within BN, says Wee Ka Siong
MCA is willing to discuss seat allocation or 'borrowing seats' with fellow Barisan Nasional parties to ensure the coalition's victory at the next general election. Its president Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong said the matter must be discussed jointly and cannot be decided unilaterally, citing the handover of the Duyong state seat to UMNO in the 2022 Melaka state election. He said the final decision on seat and candidate allocation must go through negotiations and be decided by the top leadership of the party and BN.
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MCA ready for early GE16, says Wee
MCA president Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong said the party must be ready for the 16th General Election even if it is called earlier than scheduled. Speaking after officiating the MCA Johor Annual Convention in Yong Peng, he said each state needs its own strategy and cited the party's improved performance in recent Johor and Negeri Sembilan state elections.
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MCA open to BN cooperation but says principles must not be sidelined
MCA president Wee Ka Siong said political cooperation within Barisan Nasional is unavoidable but must not set aside the principles and interests of component parties. Speaking at the Johor MCA convention in Yong Peng, he also commented on UMNO Kluang's wish to borrow an MCA seat for GE16.
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Tour bus catches fire at KM137 of North-South Expressway near Yong Peng, all 15 escape
A tour bus carrying 14 passengers and a driver caught fire at KM137 of the northbound North-South Expressway near Yong Peng, Batu Pahat. All 15 people escaped unhurt after the driver and tour leader evacuated them before firefighters arrived. The bus was about 80 per cent destroyed and the blaze was put out at 2.48pm.
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Lorry driver jailed 9 years, caned 5 times for raping sister-in-law
A 38-year-old lorry driver was sentenced by the Muar Sessions Court to nine years in jail and five strokes of the cane after pleading guilty to raping his 16-year-old sister-in-law in July 2024. The assault took place at a house in Batu Pahat and the victim later gave birth to a baby boy.
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Muar jetty hosts open-air Bukit Kepong screening for Malaysia Day
About 130 residents gathered at a jetty in Sungai Balang Laut, Muar, for a community Wayang Pacak screening of the 1981 film Bukit Kepong on Saturday night. The event, organised by YouthLabs Social Hub and local groups, featured a communal barbecue and a lucky draw ahead of Malaysia Day. It was the first in a planned series of outdoor screenings across Muar.
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Three dogs in Johor toddler attack still at large, traps set in Kampung Tambak
About 10 stray dogs were seen roaming near the home in Kampung Tambak, Peserai, Batu Pahat, where two-year-old Nur Haira Wafiqah Mohammad Hamizi was mauled last week. Three of the five dogs that attacked her remain uncaught, and traps have been placed. The toddler is warded at Sultanah Aminah Hospital and is expected to need reconstructive surgery on her head and face.
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Nur Haira Wafiqah, 2, to undergo plastic surgery after stray dog attack in Batu Pahat
A two-year-old girl, Nur Haira Wafiqah Mohammad Hamizi, is expected to undergo plastic surgery on her head and face after being attacked by stray dogs in Kampung Tambak, Peserai, Batu Pahat. She is being treated at Hospital Sultanah Aminah in Johor Bahru and can now breathe without a ventilator. Villagers are worried after a separate pack of about 10 stray dogs was spotted in a nearby oil palm estate.
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Quadruplets from Kelantan enrol in same UTHM degree programme
Four 23-year-old quadruplet brothers from Kota Bharu, Kelantan have registered as new students at Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia (UTHM) for the 2026/2027 academic session. All four chose the same Bachelor of Real Estate Management (Honours) programme. A total of 3,302 new students registered at the Parit Raja main campus and the Pagoh campus in Muar.
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Queen visits family of Kluang fire victims, home to be rebuilt
Raja Permaisuri Agong Raja Zarith Sofiah visited the family of the victims of a fire in Taman Titiwangsa, Kluang, Johor, which killed a mother and two of her children last Wednesday. She presented cash and basic necessities through the Raja Zarith Sofiah Johor Foundation and ordered the Sultan Ibrahim Johor Foundation to fully fund repairs and rebuilding of the family's two-storey terrace house.
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Animal rights activist: stray dog issue stems from government failure
An animal rights activist has criticised calls for tougher action against stray dogs, saying the problem stems from the government's years-long failure to manage abandonment, breeding and licensing. He spoke after a two-year-old girl was badly injured when five stray dogs attacked her near her grandmother's house in Sungai Kelambu, Johor on 5 September.
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Batu Pahat council steps up stray dog catch after child attacked in Peserai
Batu Pahat Municipal Council is intensifying its stray dog catching operations after a two-year-old girl was attacked by five stray dogs in Kampung Tambak, Peserai, on 5 September. The council has caught 736 stray dogs in 205 operations up to 31 August this year, following 1,557 caught last year. It is also drafting a 2027-2031 Stray Animal Control Action Plan.
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MMEA seizes RM160,000 in drug-laced vape cartridges after suspect flees off Senggarang
More than 600 vape cartridges containing liquid suspected to be the synthetic cannabinoid known as "Piu Piu", worth an estimated RM160,000, were seized along the shore in Senggarang, Batu Pahat, Johor. The suspect fled in a fibre boat when he spotted a Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency patrol boat on Sept 5. Samples of the liquid have been sent for laboratory analysis.
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Motorcyclist dies after being crushed by truck that veered off in Batu Pahat
A 29-year-old motorcyclist died after being crushed by a truck that veered off the road at Kilometre 116 of the Johor Bahru-Melaka road in Batu Pahat yesterday morning. Police said the victim suffered severe head and leg injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene, while the 47-year-old truck driver hurt his back. The case is being investigated under Section 41(1) of the Road Transport Act 1987.
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Mother's sambal chicken dish never eaten by son killed in Bukit Kelicap crash
A 29-year-old man died after his motorcycle was hit by a lorry that skidded at Kilometre 116 of the Johor Bahru-Melaka road near Bukit Kelicap, Batu Pahat, at about 7.30am yesterday. His mother, Samsiah Kassan, 67, said the sambal chicken she packed for him was still in good condition. The 47-year-old lorry driver injured his hip and the case is being investigated under Section 41(1) of the Road Transport Act 1987.
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Suhakam urges authorities to map stray dog hotspots after child mauled in Johor
Suhakam's Children's Commissioner has urged local authorities to identify stray dog hotspots around schools, nurseries, playgrounds and public housing to prevent attacks on children. The call follows an incident in which a two-year-old girl was badly injured on her head and face after allegedly being attacked by five stray dogs near her grandmother's house in Sungai Kelambu, Johor on 5 September. Suhakam also wants the Housing and Local Government Ministry, state governments and the Veterinary Services Department to set clearer risk-based response standards and strengthen national data on animal attacks involving children.
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Zara Qairina inquest: mother among last three witnesses in October
The inquest into the death of 13-year-old Zara Qairina Mahathir will resume in October, with her mother, stepsister and the investigating officer as the final three witnesses. The coroner set Oct 6 to 23 for their testimony and fixed an Oct 5 site visit at the religious school where Zara studied. About 80 witnesses have testified so far in the inquiry into her death after she was found beneath her hostel building on July 16, 2025.
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Man found dead in 1.5m drain near SMK Tun Hussein Onn, Butterworth
A man was found dead in a 1.5-metre-deep drain near SMK Tun Hussein Onn on Jalan Siakap, Taman Kelisa Emas, Butterworth, today. The Perai Fire and Rescue Station received a call from police at 12.10pm to help lift the body, and the five-member operation ended at 12.47pm. The body was handed to police for further action.
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Housewife admits robbing, injuring aunt with golf club
A housewife pleaded guilty at the Batu Pahat Sessions Court to hitting her 71-year-old aunt with a golf club during an attempted robbery at a house in Taman Manis 2, Parit Raja. Nur Arisha Harmira Abd Halim, 28, was charged under Section 394 of the Penal Code and granted RM8,000 bail. The case is set for mention on Oct 23.
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Lorry attendant remanded three days over peeping at stepdaughter in shower
A 26-year-old lorry attendant has been remanded for three days by the Batu Pahat Magistrate's Court to assist investigations into allegations he peeped at his 12-year-old stepdaughter while she was showering. The incident is believed to have occurred at 6.40am last Wednesday at a house in Batu Pahat, and the case is being investigated under Section 15(3)(a) of the Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017.
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Family denies dog that mauled Haira belongs to victim's grandfather
The family of a girl mauled by stray dogs in Peserai, Batu Pahat has denied claims that the animal belongs to the victim's grandfather. The child is being treated in the paediatric intensive care unit at Hospital Sultanah Aminah Johor Bahru. An NGO claiming to have information on the dog's owner says it will lodge a police report.
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Kluang fire kills army veteran's wife and two sons at Taman Titiwangsa
A fire at a house in Taman Titiwangsa, Kluang, killed a 49-year-old woman and her two sons, aged 18 and 11, on Tuesday night. The father, an army veteran, escaped after trying to put out the blaze and said the brothers were found embracing. The remains are to be buried at the Kampung Bentong Dalam Muslim Cemetery.
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Three family members die in house fire at Taman Titiwangsa, Kluang
Three members of a family were found dead after their two-storey terrace house in Taman Titiwangsa, Kluang, caught fire last night. Neighbours tried to climb the roof and douse the flames but failed as the fire spread. Post-mortems are being carried out at Hospital Enche' Besar Hajjah Khalsom before burial at Kampung Bentong Dalam.
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Radzi Jidin wants a national plan on stray dogs, starting in Putrajaya
Putrajaya MP Radzi Jidin has urged the government to draw up an integrated action plan to rid Malaysia of stray dogs, beginning with the administrative capital as a model stray-free city. He cited the attack on a two-year-old girl by a pack of stray dogs in Sungai Kelambu, Batu Pahat, Johor, last Saturday. Johor has launched a large-scale stray-catching operation in Batu Pahat and will extend it statewide.