The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) opened five operations rooms across Johor to receive corruption and abuse of power reports for the 16th state election. These centres operate 24 hours daily starting from nomination day on June 27 until polling day on July 11 at MACC’s Johor office in Tampoi and branch offices in Batu Pahat, Kluang, Segamat, and Mersing [1, 2, 3, 4].

Members of the public can submit complaints via email at [email protected]. MACC assured that all information received will be investigated professionally and transparently under relevant laws [1, 2, 3]. The Johor state election timetable set by the Election Commission includes nomination day on June 27, early voting on July 7, and polling on July 11 [1, 2, 5, 3].

MACC’s new chief commissioner Datuk Seri Abdul Halim Aman has ordered officers to update their asset declarations within one month to bolster integrity [6]. Meanwhile, the Malaysian Media Council launched Semak Berita, a fact-checking platform during the polls, aimed at verifying misinformation including AI-manipulated content. Chairperson Tan Sri Nallini Pathmanathan said, "The Malaysian Media Council is not an arbiter of political truth...was this content genuinely published by the newsroom in question? That is a factual matter that can be verified quickly." [7, 8]

The Communications Ministry has set up two main media centres and 100 National Information Dissemination Centres (NADI) across Johor, offering internet speeds of no less than 100 Mbps to support election media coverage. Deputy Communications Minister Teo Nie Ching said, "So there should be no problem sending videos or photos." [5]

Separately, a Sessions Court ordered the forfeiture of 23 Rolex watches and 15 pieces of jewellery seized by MACC from Nor Shahira Atirah Anuar @ Kamaruddin, sister-in-law of former Army Chief Tan Sri Muhammad Hafizuddeain Jantan. The court acted after no third party came forward to claim the assets [9, 10, 11, 12]. Deputy public prosecutor Mahadi Abdul Jumaat said, "The court allowed the prosecution's application for forfeiture, and no third party came forward to claim the assets." The seized items are suspected to be linked to corrupt activities under Section 165 of the Penal Code. The 23 Rolex watches are valued at about RM2 million, and the jewellery about RM225,000 [9, 10, 11, 12].

The prosecution had filed the forfeiture application on May 4 under Section 41(1) of the MACC Act 2009 read with Section 376 of the Criminal Procedure Code [9, 10, 11, 12].

MACC’s election operations rooms continue to run through polling day on July 11, while early voting is scheduled for July 7 [1, 2, 5, 3].