Najib Razak’s faced a hail of criticism since he was appointed Barisan Nasional advisory board chairman. However, the ex-PM has now hit back at one of his most vocal critics: Nazri Aziz. JIbby has told the former cabinet minister that he can have Jibby's current job if he wants it that bad -- and if he has the balls to take on Pakatan Harapan.
 
Jibby's warned his former colleague that he’d also need the backing of MIC and MCA. But let’s be real: that ain't gonna happen anytime soon, considering how MCA  called for Nazri's head not too long ago following incendiary statements against non-Malays as well as an offensive attack on billionaire Robert Kuok.

Also, this was all empty talk 'cause fact is the Jibster has no intention of vacating his position for Nazri. What the former prime minister is doing by responding in this manner is discrediting Nazri publicly as an apparent voice of reason by training the spotlight on past transgressions.
 
Which brings us to the next question: will Khairy Jamaluddin be next up? Like Nazri, KJ's been whacking Jibby left, right and centre. However, despite KJ's stinging barbs, Jib has yet to go after his former youth chief the way he’s done with Nazri. And apart from their shared admiration of Manchester United, we're really not sure why that is.
 
Batman and Robin Nazri and KJ aren't just battling Najib, they're taking on the entire Umno leadership. Nazri has been daring the party to fire them, while Khairy has chosen to be a little more diplomatic by asking to not be ostracised, and promising he’s Umno through and through.
 
Will the dynamic duo be sacked? Does the Joker the Jibster have aces up his sleeve? Will he whack KJ next? More importantly, will BN's plan to have Najib chart the party's charm offensive actually work? Watch this space for the next enthralling episode!

It's been barely two weeks since the Immigration Department came under fire for the detaining a couple of toddlers. Now, they're getting whacked again after a PhD student died in custody five days after they incarcerated him.

Immigration boss Khairul Dzaimee Daud claimed the student in question – Nigerian national Thomas Orhions Ewansiha – tried to flee during a raid. And though he did produce legit-looking docs, Ewansiha's attempt at escape caused officers to doubt the authenticity of the papers. Hence, the reason for throwing him in the slammer. 

Poor Ewansiha's detention and death caused the father-of-two's fellow nationals to protest outside their embassy last week.

And while Khairul is insisting Ewansiha wasn't assaulted, he's yet to explain why the bloody hell authorities held the student for almost a week without ONCE picking up the phone and calling his school –  Limkokwing University – to check if he was really studying there.

Despite what the Immigration director-general said, it's clear there are massive issues with the department’s SOP. And if recent incidents are anything to go by, there have been abuses of power too. The National Human Rights Society (Hakam) has, rightly, called for an inquest into Ewansiha’s death. It's also time to investigate and review all the department’s processes, practices and procedures.

We have zero issues with Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman and the government’s proposal to redefine youth as being people between the ages of 15 and 30, from the previous 18 and 40. 

It’s true that age-based definitions of youth tend to defer from region to region; country to country; and entity to entity (e.g. the United Nations tends to adopt a 15-24 bracket while it’s 15-29 in Brazil and 18-35 in Nigeria). Nevertheless, many people think Syed Saddiq is right that lowering the age cap from 40 to 30 here would, among other things, force youth societies to be more in tune with the aspirations of young persons. 

Unfortunately, despite the Dewan Rakyat passing the Youth Societies and Youth Development Act (Amendment) 2019, not everyone is toeing the line. 

The Selangor and Sarawak state governments say they'll stick with the 40 age cap for state programmes. And there’s also Johor, which first said it wouldn’t follow the new law, then made a u-turn, and then (finally?) reverted to its original stand.

If you’re wondering what the big fat deal is, simply put, it’s that those opposed to Putrajaya’s move claim that folk now benefitting under programmes meant for youth will lose out when the new definition takes effect. They also argue that those fellas currently holding positions in youth societies will have to vacate their seats.

Nevertheless, supporters of the amendment maintain the age definition will only affect the operation of youth societies registered with the Registrar of Youth Office, and have no impact on government policies, aid and schemes, as those age conditions can always be tweaked and set if/when necessary. 

So is it all much ado about nothing then? Perhaps. But let's see how this all play out.

It was quite a busy weekend and quite a bit happened, other than the stuff we mentioned above. Here's the best of the rest :

• Uncle Lim Kit Siang says he's never ever called PM Dr Mahathir Mohamad corrupt. Yes, he may have said the rot in Malaysia started with Maddey. He may have called him a liar, petty and vindictive and a whole load of other not-very-nice things. But “corrupt”? NEVER!
• Inspector-General of Police Abdul Hamid Bador says police are zeroing in on the masterminds behind the sex videos allegedly involving Economic Affairs Minister Azmin Ali and former PKR Santubong Youth chief Haziq Abdullah Abdul Aziz. 
• The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) will table its report on refunds for taxes paid under the old GST in the Dewan Rakyat today. PAC chairman Noraini Ahmad says the public will be able to download the entire report once it’s tabled.
• BTL’s favourite doctor-politician Dr Michael Jeyakumar Devaraj has been appointed the new Parti Sosialis Malaysia chairman. The good doctor takes over from another good doctor – Dr Mohd Nasir Hashim – who served as chairman since the party’s inception in 1998.
• Heineken Malaysia responded to scolding by Minister Mujahid Rawa by saying its non-alcoholic beer was never meant for Muslims. So that's settled then. Now, can someone scold 'em for that RM8.40 price tag per bottle?