31/01/2026

SATURDAY | JAN 31, 2026

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Police seize fake coffee in Vietnam HANOI: Police in Vietnam have launched a criminal investigation into a warehouse accused of producing fake coffee made from soybeans following a raid earlier this week, the Public Security Ministry said in a statement on Thursday. Police seized 4.1 tonnes of fake coffee products and three tonnes of raw materials during the raid, which took place in the Central Highlands province of Lam Dong, the ministry said. Warehouse owner Luong Viet Kiem admitted to police that his firm mixed soybeans and flavourings with coffee beans to produce ground coffee for the local market, according to the statement. Police said the warehouse raid came following a search on Tuesday of a truck carrying 1,056 bags of ground coffee weighing 528kg, which had no accompanying documentation, adding that further probes were underway. “Fake coffee products are not rare, and they can be made from soybean or corn, or even both,“ said coffee trader Nguyen Quang Tho, based in the neighbouring province of Dak Lak. “Soybeans and corn are edible and a lot cheaper than real coffee beans, but who knows if it is safe for health to drink these fake coffee products?“ Farmers in the Central Highlands are selling coffee beans at about TOKYO STREET ROBBERY TOKYO: A team of three robbers stole suitcases holding US$2.7 million (RM10.63 million) in cash on a busy street in central Tokyo, police and media said yesterday, a rare crime in the Japanese metropolis that prides itself on safety. The heist saw the thieves deploy pepper spray to grab the suitcases at about 9.30pm (1230 GMT) on Thursday near Ueno station, said a Tokyo Metropolitan Police spokesperson on condition of anonymity. Fuji Television said the victims told investigators that the cash was being delivered to currency exchange stations. – AFP INDONESIA VOLCANO ERUPTS THREE TIMES JAKARTA: Indonesia’s Mount Semeru, located on the border of Lumajang and Malang districts in East Java, erupted again yesterday morning, sending ash columns as high as one kilometre above the summit. Mount Semeru Observation Post officer Sigit Rian said the volcano erupted three times. The first occurrence was at 4.44am local time, sending plumes of hot volcanic ash to about 800m above its peak. He said the second eruption took place at 5.16am, followed by a third at 5.52am. The latest activity follows an eruption on Thursday, when Semeru spewed an ash column about 700m above the summit. – Bernama US$2M STOLEN IN

Military-backed party sweeps Myanmar election

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NAYPYIDAW: The military-backed party in Myanmar has completed a sweeping victory in the country’s three-phase general election, state media said. This cements an outcome long expected after a tightly controlled political process held during civil war and widespread repression. The Union and Solidarity Party (USDP) dominated all phases of the vote, winning an overwhelming majority in Myanmar’s two legislative chambers. It secured 232 of the 263 seats up for grabs in the lower Pyithu Hluttaw house and 109 of the 157 seats announced in the Amyotha Hluttaw upper chamber, according to results released on Thursday and yesterday. Myanmar’s Parliament is expected to convene in March to elect a president, with a new government set to take over in April, pro-military Eleven Media Group reported earlier this month, citing junta spokesperson Zaw Min Tun. The final round of voting in late January brought an end to an election that began on Dec 28,

o Parliament expected to convene in March to elect president, new government set to take over in April

in the next administration. He has defended the polls as a step towards stability, affirming that state responsibilities would be transferred to the elected government. “Regardless of any changes among political parties or organisations in the country, Tatmadaw continues to carry out its responsibilities for national defence and security faithfully and without neglect,” he was quoted by state media as saying on Monday. Turnout reached about 55% over all three phases, lower than the figure of about 70% in previous elections, including a 2015 vote that brought Suu Kyi to power, as well as the ill-fated 2020 poll, the results of which were cancelled by the junta before staging the coup. Voting took place in 263 of Myanmar’s 330 townships, some of which are not under complete control of the junta. It was cancelled in many areas due to fighting between the military and armed ethnic groups, as well as local resistance forces that emerged after the 2021 coup. – Reuters

some others declined to take part, drawing condemnation from critics who say the process was designed to entrench military rule. Under Myanmar’s political system, the military is guaranteed 25% of parliamentary seats, ensuring continued control even after power is formally transferred to a civilian-led administration. USDP was founded in 2010 after decades of military-led rule, with the aim of serving as a proxy for the armed forces, also known as the Tatmadaw. The party is chaired by a retired brigadier-general and packed with former high-ranking officers. It contested the poll with 1,018 candidates, a fifth of the total registered. Junta Chief Min Aung Hlaing is also expected to play a central role

more than four years after the military seized power in a coup that overturned the elected government of Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi. Myanmar has been in political turmoil since the coup, with the crushing of pro-democracy protests sparking a nationwide rebellion. About 3.6 million people have been displaced, according to the United Nations. The 11-member Asean has said it would not endorse the process, and human rights groups and some western countries have denounced the election as a sham. Myanmar’s military government insists that the polls were free and fair, and supported by the public. Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy was dissolved along with dozens of other parties, and

SPLASHING FUN ... Children playing in floodwaters following heavy rainfall near their homes in Cirebon, West Java in Indonesia. – AFPPIC

100,500 dong (RM15) per kg, some three times higher than the price for soybeans. – Reuters Polls show Thai reformist party candidate as frontrunner

BANGKOK: Thailand’s People’s Party leader Natthaphong Ruengpanyawut continued to lead opinion polls yesterday, highlighting the stiff challenge facing Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul’s bid to stay in power ahead of elections on Feb 8. February’s vote has settled into a three-way race between Anutin’s conservative Bhumjaithai Party, the

in front with support from 29% of respondents, up from 24.7% earlier in the month, with Anutin up modestly at 22.2%. Anutin also faces pressure to consolidate conservative-leaning voters and present a post-election governing path in what are expected to be tight coalition negotiations after the vote. – Reuters

parliamentary session that could have led to a no-confidence vote and the collapse of his fragile minority government. It also came during Thailand’s fierce three-week border conflict with Cambodia. Another poll by the National Institute of Development Administration showed Natthaphong

from Jan 16 to 28. The People’s Party is the successor to Move Forward, which won the 2023 elections but was subsequently blocked by conservative lawmakers from forming a government and later dissolved by court order. Anutin called a snap election on Dec 12 after less than 100 days as premier during a chaotic

former ruling Pheu Thai Party and the reformist People’s Party. A poll by Suan Dusit University that was published yesterday said Natthaphong was backed by 35.1% of respondents, with Anutin coming in third with 16.1%, behind Pheu Thai’s candidate for prime minister Yoshanan Wongsawat at 21.5%. The poll surveyed 26,621 people