https://www.scmp.com/rss/523163/feed The latest news and top stories on Anthony Loke, Malaysia's Minister of Transport. He is the Secretary-General of the Democratic Action Party (DAP) and a Member of Parliament for Seremban. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Iman Muttaqin Yusof Iman Muttaqin Yusof The death of a Bangladeshi gaming influencer in an alleged drink-driving crash involving a Malaysian soldier has sparked cries for justice and renewed demands for punitive laws, as anger grows over a second similar fatal case in less than a month. Muzahid Millad, 22 – better known as Advance Gaming – died on Wednesday after the suspect’s car reportedly veered into the opposite lane on the Maju Expressway, colliding with the e-hailing vehicle in which the content creator and his wife were... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3351255/bangladeshi-youtubers-death-sparks-mourning-amid-malaysias-drink-driving-crisis?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3351255/bangladeshi-youtubers-death-sparks-mourning-amid-malaysias-drink-driving-crisis?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 24 Apr 2026 04:50:11 +0000 The Star The Star There is no necessity to introduce the death penalty into the Road Transport Act 1987 for driving under the influence, according to Malaysian Transport Minister Anthony Loke. Loke said existing laws were sufficient to prosecute serious offences and that offenders could still be charged under Section 302 of the Penal Code for murder, where applicable. “As far as the government is concerned, we have already stopped mandatory death penalties,” he told reporters on Monday after a road safety... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3349865/malaysia-rejects-death-penalty-drink-drivers-proposes-victim-compensation?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3349865/malaysia-rejects-death-penalty-drink-drivers-proposes-victim-compensation?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 13 Apr 2026 07:06:07 +0000 SCMP’s Asia desk SCMP’s Asia desk A Malaysian minister visited and provided financial aid to the widow of a motorcyclist who was killed in a drink-driving accident that threatened to inflame racial tensions in the country. Transport Minister Anthony Loke visited the family of the late Amirul Hafiz Omar, 33, on Sunday, accompanied by Road Transport Department Director General Aedy Fadly Ramli. He gave Amirul’s 32-year-old widow, Nor Nadia Abdul Majid, money from his own pocket to help the family with expenses. “However, no amount... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3348794/malaysian-minister-offers-personal-aid-family-man-killed-drink-driving-crash?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3348794/malaysian-minister-offers-personal-aid-family-man-killed-drink-driving-crash?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 02 Apr 2026 08:30:25 +0000 SCMP’s Asia desk SCMP’s Asia desk The Malaysian government has entered “crisis mode” in response to the ongoing global energy supply disruption, its transport minister has warned. “This is not a laughing or joking matter. It is a very, very serious matter,” Transport Minister Anthony Loke said on Tuesday, as quoted by the New Straits Times newspaper. “For the past month, energy costs have risen by more than 100 per cent.” According to news website Free Malaysia Today, Loke said: “Even though at this moment our lights are still... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3348624/malaysian-minister-warns-very-very-serious-energy-crisis?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3348624/malaysian-minister-warns-very-very-serious-energy-crisis?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 01 Apr 2026 05:54:10 +0000 Joseph Sipalan,Iman Muttaqin Yusof Joseph Sipalan,Iman Muttaqin Yusof Malaysia’s government said on Friday it would consider calls for a royal commission to investigate alleged abuses of power within the country’s anti-corruption agency, as pressure grew for the immediate removal of its chief commissioner. Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has faced growing pressure from critics and allies alike since news reports earlier this month alleged that Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief Azam Baki had bought corporate shares exceeding the limit permitted for... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3344908/malaysia-considers-high-powered-commission-probe-anti-corruption-agency-allegations?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3344908/malaysia-considers-high-powered-commission-probe-anti-corruption-agency-allegations?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Feb 2026 11:24:08 +0000 The Star The Star Malaysia’s Transport Minister Anthony Loke has expressed embarrassment and anger over yet another breakdown of the aerotrain service at Kuala Lumpur International Airport Terminal 1, which forced passengers to walk along the rail track in the early hours of Tuesday morning. “Yes, I admit the incident was embarrassing. I felt ashamed watching passengers drag their luggage along the track. I am angry, and I share the disappointment expressed by members of this House,” Loke told parliament during... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3330837/malaysian-minister-angry-ashamed-after-kuala-lumpur-aerotrain-breaks-down-again?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3330837/malaysian-minister-angry-ashamed-after-kuala-lumpur-aerotrain-breaks-down-again?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 30 Oct 2025 02:34:47 +0000 Jean Iau Jean Iau Every month, Rachel Tan, a 53-year-old Singaporean tutor, boards a bus across the 1km (0.6 mile) causeway for a day trip to Malaysia’s Johor state, where she stocks up on groceries and treats herself to lunch and a film. Thanks to streamlined immigration procedures, she rarely needs to present her passport, using a QR code to pass the checkpoint before catching a complimentary shuttle bus that whisks her to R&F Mall. The entire day out, including shopping, typically costs her about 300 ringgit... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3329452/why-singaporeans-are-flocking-malaysias-johor-food-and-leisure?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3329452/why-singaporeans-are-flocking-malaysias-johor-food-and-leisure?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 19 Oct 2025 00:00:15 +0000 Hadi Azmi Hadi Azmi Malaysia has rolled out a targeted fuel subsidy scheme that limits each citizen to 300 litres of discounted petrol per month, replacing a decades-old blanket subsidy that had become a political flashpoint and a fiscal drain. The new measure, launched on Tuesday, marks a significant policy shift by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s administration, which hopes it will curb rampant fuel smuggling to neighbouring countries, misuse by foreigners and excessive consumption by wealthy Malaysians with... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3327363/licence-fill-malaysias-new-fuel-subsidy-scheme-limits-access-national-id-holders?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3327363/licence-fill-malaysias-new-fuel-subsidy-scheme-limits-access-national-id-holders?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 30 Sep 2025 07:12:53 +0000 Joseph Sipalan Joseph Sipalan Malaysia’s transport minister has been accused of victim-blaming after saying that a child seat could have saved a baby who died in a multiple vehicle pile-up at a toll plaza that shocked the country. One-year-old Amir Husayn was killed at the scene of the Saturday crash at the Bukit Kajang toll plaza, about 30km from Kuala Lumpur. He was thrown out of his parents’ car and was crushed under another vehicle. Viral videos showed a three-tonne truck charging at speed towards one of the gates at the... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3327261/malaysia-outraged-minister-accused-victim-blaming-after-baby-killed-crash?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3327261/malaysia-outraged-minister-accused-victim-blaming-after-baby-killed-crash?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 29 Sep 2025 10:40:57 +0000 Hadi Azmi Hadi Azmi Malaysia lost US$8.5 million in unpaid road tax after politicians and VIPs skipped payments on their Rolls-Royces, Ferraris and Lamborghinis, a revelation that has triggered public anger over double standards and elite impunity. Across Asia, anger at elite privilege is boiling, with resentment over the perceived excesses of “nepo babies” toppling the government in Nepal and sparking protests in the Philippines. Indonesians are pushing back against the owners of luxury vehicles abusing sirens to... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3326805/malaysia-puts-brakes-luxury-car-owners-skipping-out-us85-million-road-tax?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3326805/malaysia-puts-brakes-luxury-car-owners-skipping-out-us85-million-road-tax?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 25 Sep 2025 06:32:16 +0000 SCMP SCMP We have selected seven stories from the SCMP’s coverage of Asia over the past week that resonated with our readers and shed light on topical issues. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. ‘Do you want a boycott?’: Malaysia’s top mall rolls dice with flag ban Malaysia’s most famous shopping centre edged closer to a damaging boycott after threatening to throw out a second group of pro-Palestinian protesters carrying flags, prompting calls for a mass... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/article/3325633/malaysian-mall-risks-boycott-thailands-thaksin-imprisoned-7-asia-highlights?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/article/3325633/malaysian-mall-risks-boycott-thailands-thaksin-imprisoned-7-asia-highlights?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 16 Sep 2025 04:15:07 +0000 Jean Iau Jean Iau Malaysia may have become more polarised amid intense race rhetoric and systemic problems, but individuals have agency to do their part and private companies have a role to play in ensuring deeper ethnic integration, Transport Minister Anthony Loke has said. Speaking to Malaysians living in Hong Kong at an event organised by the Malaysian Chamber of Commerce Hong Kong and Macau on Wednesday night, Loke noted that although their country was divided along class and education lines with social media... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3325219/malaysian-society-polarised-can-overcome-challenges-anthony-loke?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3325219/malaysian-society-polarised-can-overcome-challenges-anthony-loke?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 11 Sep 2025 11:18:22 +0000 Jean Iau Jean Iau Malaysian Transport Minister Anthony Loke has called on the Chinese state-owned maker of the C919 passenger jet to set its sights on the global market and be more aggressive in boosting its international standing, as AirAsia nears a deal to become its first foreign buyer. Loke made the comments on Wednesday while speaking at a Malaysian Chamber of Commerce Hong Kong and Macau (Maycham) event, where he outlined a series of updates on his country’s transport industry – from air travel to... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3325188/malaysia-calls-china-push-c919-jet-globally-airasia-circles-deal?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3325188/malaysia-calls-china-push-c919-jet-globally-airasia-circles-deal?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 11 Sep 2025 09:30:13 +0000 Kandy Wong,Ralph Jennings Kandy Wong,Ralph Jennings Malaysian low-cost airline AirAsia has shown strong interest in acquiring the Chinese C919 passenger jet, its executive said, as part of its strategy to tap into Southeast Asia’s 700 million-strong population and capitalise on growing China-Asean business ties. “We’re in active discussions to buy the C919,” Tony Fernandes, CEO of Capital A – an investment holding company of AirAsia – told the Belt and Road Summit in Hong Kong on Wednesday. “We’re the first foreign airline to be working with... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3325061/china-eyes-c919-jet-breakthrough-malaysian-airline-confirms-talks-buy-aircraft?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3325061/china-eyes-c919-jet-breakthrough-malaysian-airline-confirms-talks-buy-aircraft?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 11 Sep 2025 00:00:08 +0000 Jean Iau Jean Iau Business leaders and governments should think of Asean as a bloc with nearly 700 million people and an emerging middle class instead of individual countries when considering the vast trade potential of the region, Malaysian Transport Minister Anthony Loke said on Tuesday. While Hong Kong was essential to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations as an international financial hub that promoted technological innovation with a well-regarded legal system, the bloc could also offer great... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3324855/malaysia-urges-hong-kong-tap-aseans-trade-potential-bloc?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3324855/malaysia-urges-hong-kong-tap-aseans-trade-potential-bloc?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 09 Sep 2025 06:32:39 +0000 SCMP’s Asia desk SCMP’s Asia desk Malaysia’s government wants to stamp out taxi touts, a practice it says has cheated tourists for decades and is tarnishing the country’s reputation. Touting, particularly at Kuala Lumpur International Airport, had been an issue for more than a decade and was betraying the country’s interests, Transport Minister Anthony Loke said at the launch of a new airport travel initiative on Thursday. Tourists were arriving eager to explore Malaysia, only to be cheated at the airport exit, he said. “Imagine... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3323578/malaysia-cracks-down-taxi-touts-save-its-tourism-reputation?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3323578/malaysia-cracks-down-taxi-touts-save-its-tourism-reputation?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 29 Aug 2025 03:45:36 +0000 Hadi Azmi Hadi Azmi Beaming, Malaysia’s king welcomed passengers on a special train from the capital of Kuala Lumpur to the historical railway town of Kluang – and back – marking the launch of the long-delayed southern stretch of the electric train service (ETS). Saturday’s ride was a royal treat for the guests who sat back while the king, an avid train aficionado, took the controls, driving the six-car train for the entire six-and-a-half-hour return journey. “Hi everybody! Welcome, welcome, welcome,” Sultan... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3322914/malaysian-king-takes-control-launch-new-electric-rail-service?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3322914/malaysian-king-takes-control-launch-new-electric-rail-service?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 23 Aug 2025 07:58:40 +0000 Hadi Azmi Hadi Azmi Malaysians have rallied to the defence of an ethnic Chinese shop owner who mistakenly hoisted the national flag upside down in front of his premises – an error that Malay hardliners claim is an insult to national pride. Deliberate improper display of the flag – called the Jalur Gemilang or Glorious Stripes – often upside down, is a criminal offence, but accidental displays have in recent months been inflated into a national issue in Malaysia. Critics say Malay nationalist groups often patrol the... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3321648/row-erupts-malaysia-over-upside-down-flag-blunder?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3321648/row-erupts-malaysia-over-upside-down-flag-blunder?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 13 Aug 2025 01:43:42 +0000 SCMP SCMP Catch up on some of SCMP’s biggest China stories of the day. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. US-China trade talks signal shift that could reshape global order: analysts Future negotiations could take place against a more fragmented backdrop, as the superpowers vie for influence over third countries. 2. China announces joint Pacific naval exercise with Russia in August China and Russia will hold their “Joint Sea 2025” joint naval exercise in... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3320323/china-russia-conduct-naval-drill-growing-interest-c919-jet-scmp-daily-highlights?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3320323/china-russia-conduct-naval-drill-growing-interest-c919-jet-scmp-daily-highlights?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 31 Jul 2025 13:15:08 +0000 Amy Chew Amy Chew Growing air travel in Southeast Asia and backlogs in Airbus and Boeing deliveries are driving regional interest in China’s C919 passenger jet, according to Malaysian Transport Minister Anthony Loke. China is promoting aircraft made by Shanghai-based Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (Comac) – including the C919, the country’s first home-grown narrowbody airliner – as cheaper alternatives to aircraft manufactured by Airbus and Boeing. Loke told the Post recently that Malaysian budget... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3320247/malaysian-airlines-interested-chinas-c919-jet-countrys-transport-minister-says?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3320247/malaysian-airlines-interested-chinas-c919-jet-countrys-transport-minister-says?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 31 Jul 2025 07:00:09 +0000 Hadi Azmi Hadi Azmi Malaysia’s long-delayed Aerotrain at Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) has suffered fresh embarrassment after experiencing two service disruptions within three days, just a week after its US$100 million relaunch and a test ride by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim. The most recent incident occurred on Friday morning, when a flooded tunnel forced Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad (MAHB) to temporarily halt the 1.2km (0.75 miles) rail service linking the main terminal to its international... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3317010/kuala-lumpurs-us100-million-aerotrain-faces-fresh-setbacks-after-anwars-test-ride?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3317010/kuala-lumpurs-us100-million-aerotrain-faces-fresh-setbacks-after-anwars-test-ride?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 04 Jul 2025 11:03:12 +0000