KUALA LUMPUR – Muar MP Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman reiterated his fighting words after pleading not guilty to criminal breach of trust and misusing donations.
Outside the courthouse here, he told reporters that threats of prosecution, which he received multiple times from Perikatan Nasional (PN) should he refuse to join the coalition, would not weaken his resolve.
“To PN, who has not stopped criticising me for more than one and a half years, let this be the end. If you think the threats will weaken my spirit, you are wrong.
“These threats will only strengthen my spirit and ensure my dedication to clean up Malaysia (from corruption) and build Malaysia for all Malaysians.”
The former youth and sports minister in the Pakatan Harapan government said he was informed by his lawyers that the consent to prosecute was given last August.
“Why am I only being charged now, just a few days before an important Parliament session?
“I will challenge (the charges) and clear my name in court to show they are politically motivated. I say this in confidence the court and judges will clear my name.”
Syed Saddiq added that the two charges had nothing to do with the time he was in the government.
“The first alleged offence took place in April 2018, which is before the 2018 general election, while the other one was after the Sheraton Move,” he said.
Other MPs also being threatened
The Muda co-founder also alleged that a few other MPs are being threatened with corruption investigations and have been called by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).
“Some are scheduled to go to the MACC tomorrow, others had their sessions postponed.
“My message to them is clear. Never bow to them. Never be afraid, ‘berani kerana benar’ (bravery in truth). Confront them and have faith in the court and judges to clear our names.
“Don’t go back to support or ‘jump’ before Parliament convenes. We have our integrity.”
Earlier, Syed Saddiq pleaded not guilty at court to allegedly misappropriating RM1 million belonging to his former party Bersatu. He was its youth chief before the fall of the PH government late February last year.
He is accused of doing so on March 6 last year via a CIMB Bank cheque, at the bank’s branch in KL Sentral without obtaining permission from the Bersatu supreme council.
If found guilty under Section 405 of the Penal Code, Section 406 provides a jail term not exceeding 10 years, with whipping, and a fine.
He is also charged with misusing a RM120,000 donation for the 2018 general election campaign, to which he also pleaded not guilty.
The election donation had been collected via a Maybank Islamic account owned by Armada Bumi Bersatu Enterprise.
According to the charge, he is accused of misusing the donation between April 8 and April 21, 2018 at the Maybank Islamic outlet in Jalan Pandan 3/6A, Taman Pandan Jaya.
If guilty, he faces a jail term of between six months and five years, with whipping and a fine, under Section 403 of the Penal Code.
The court has set September 10 for case mention. – The Vibes, July 22, 2021
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