Top 5 at 5: Army Chief Charged for Corruption

Bryan Cheah, researcher for public procurement, Center to Combat Corruption and Cronyism (C4)

22-Jan-26 17:00

Top 5 at 5: Army Chief Charged for Corruption

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Malaysia’s former army chief Gen Tan Sri Muhammad Hafizuddeain Jantan has become the first top-ranking military official to face money laundering charges, accused of channeling over RM2.1 million linked to procurement tenders. His wife, Salwani Anuar, is also charged in the case. We get into the the case, as well as the complexity of military procurements and what transparency should realistically look like. (Starts at 22:39)

• Malaysia's first climate litigation case: Malaysia’s environmental think tank RimbaWatch has launched the country’s first climate lawsuit, targeting alleged greenwashing in the marketing of a fossil fuel-derived product as “carbon neutral.” We hear from Kuberan Hansrajh Kumaresan, the Head of Legal Advocacy at RimbaWatch. (Starts at 16:06)

• Vaping trend among kids: Despite legal bans and new regulations, vaping among Malaysian teens continues to rise. Experts warn of nicotine addiction, brain development risks, and health complications, raising doubts over whether bans alone can curb the trend or help adolescents already hooked. We discuss. (Starts at 12:50)

• RM3 billion lost to scams this year: Malaysia recorded its highest financial scam losses in three years, with nearly RM3 billion stolen in 2025 alone, bringing the total to RM5.6 billion. We discuss this with Raymon Ram, President of Transparency-International Malaysia. (Starts at 7:01)

• Trump's special address in Davos: At the World Economic Forum, US President Donald Trump emphasized his economic successes while taking aim at rivals and allies alike, from Canada to France. We react to some of the high moments of the speech. (Starts at 0:23)

Image Credit: Shutterstock

Produced by: Alia Zefri, Juliet Jacobs, Lim Sue Ann, Sudais Ferhard, Sharaad Kuttan

Presented by: Lee Chwi Lynn, Sharaad Kuttan

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Categories: Law/Activism, corruption, controversies, international, government, politics, environment

Tags: Malaysia military corruption case, Army procurement money laundering, Military transparency Malaysia, Climate litigation Malaysia, Greenwashing lawsuit Malaysia, Financial scams Malaysia, Teen vaping Malaysia, Online fraud losses Malaysia, Trump Davos speech, World Economic Forum 2026,

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