KINI ROUNDUP | Here are the key headlines you may have missed yesterday, in brief.

Bersatu leads Harapan in battleground states

Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) is set to lead Pakatan Harapan in a number of battleground states after the party's leaders were appointed as Harapan chiefs in Kedah, Johor and Perak.

PKR vice-president Nurul Izzah Anwar weighed into the tussle within PKR on whether to continue electoral negotiations with PAS, urging differences to be discussed and resolved at the political bureau.

Kelantan PKR chief Ab Aziz Ab Kadir appointed sacked state PKR Youth chief Hafidz Rizal Amran as "coordinator" for PKR Youth, in an apparent defiance of the central leadership.

PKR Youth secretary Chang Lih Kang described the decision as "inappropriate" and not in accordance with the party constitution.

Amanah communications director Khalid Samad said even if Harapan managed to form an electoral pact with PAS, there was no guarantee that PAS supporters will vote for Harapan or that PAS will not form the government with BN after the general election.

Umno information chief Annuar Musa said Umno president Najib Abdul Razak had been granted the mandate to decide whether Umno and PAS should cooperate in the 14th general election.

DAP parliamentary leader Lim Kit Siang proposed that his party be given one of three parliamentary seats within greater Johor Baru that were contested by PKR in the last general election.

Kapayan assemblyperson Edwin Bosi quit DAP after failing to reconcile differences with the party's state leadership.

1MDB finally pays up

1MDB completed its first tranche of payment to the International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC) as part of a settlement ahead of the extended Aug 31 deadline.

Red Granite Pictures, accused of utilising funds allegedly laundered from 1MDB, objected to the delays in the US Department of Justice's (DOJ) civil forfeiture suit, stressing that it need not have to wait to clear the company's name.

A former special assistant testified to the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) on the forex scandal that then Bank Negara governor Jaffar Hussein was shocked when he was briefed that the central bank had suffered big losses in forex transactions.

Former Bank Negara deputy governor Lin See Yan said he was never asked to discuss the foreign exchange losses incurred by the central bank with the then prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

The then Finance Ministry deputy secretary-general Clifford Francis Herbert, who briefed the then prime minister Mahathir on the matter together, with then deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim, testified that Mahathir did not express outrage when he learnt of it.

Lawyers for Mahathir and Anwar said they were unsure whether the two would be summoned to testify before the commission.

Public holiday for SEA Games success

Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak announced Sept 4 as a public holiday to celebrate Malaysia's success in the SEA Games.

Malaysia came out on top of the games with 145 gold medals.

Thai Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha defended Malaysia's achievement at the SEA Games after the country's local media accused Malaysia of cheating.

National shuttler Lee Chong Wei said he was not ready to retire yet, expressing interest in participating in future tournaments.

Other Kinibites

The Court of Appeal upheld a High Court ruling that Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak is not a public officer.

Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Paul Low denied an increase in graft cases, stating that such incidents were being publicised more frequently due to the good work of the MACC.

A total of 44 Rohingya were arrested for staging a protest in Kuala Lumpur over alleged persecution of their people in Myanmar.

PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang said Malaysia needs to be more proactive in stopping the persecution of the Rohingya community.

The price for RON95 and RON97 petrol increased by one sen respectively while diesel climbed three sen.

Looking ahead

Malaysia celebrates Merdeka day with a national parade at Dataran Merdeka.

Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak will attend an international art festival at NU Sentral after attending the national parade.