KUALA LUMPUR – Sim Tze Tzin (Bayan Baru-PH) has urged Perikatan Nasional (PN) leaders facing ongoing corruption trials in court to abide by the national judicial process and justice system.
Addressing the Dewan Rakyat today, Lim said PN chairman Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin’s (Pagoh-PN) claims accusing the current administration led by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim (Tambun-PH) of political persecution is “regrettable and unfounded”.
“The rule of law must be respected. I urge the opposition to respect our legal system. The court process must be carried out properly.
“It is unfair (for PN) to claim that their court cases are the result of political persecution. Other cases involving government MPs are still ongoing, none have been dropped,” he pointed out when debating Budget 2023 for the Prime Minister’s Department at the policy stage today.
It is believed that Sim was referring to Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman (Muar-PH) and Lim Guan Eng (Bagan-PH), who are both facing corruption allegations in court, with the former being tried for misusing party contributions amounting to RM120,000 and money laundering worth RM100,000.
The latter is attempting to prove his innocence over charges of, among others, using his position as Penang chief minister to allegedly receive RM3.3 million in bribes to help a private company obtain the state’s undersea tunnel project.
Sim added that ministers must respond to Muhyiddin’s accusations of the government allegedly making PN figures victims of selective prosecution, noting that such allegations are a disservice to the hard work put in by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission and the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC).
In the same vein, R.S.N Rayer (Jelutong-PH) interrupted Sim’s debate to ask if the PKR lawmaker believes that Muhyiddin should be investigated for his statements, which he has repeated at several party events in recent days.
In response, Sim requested that Rayer’s comments be included in his debate to be addressed by the relevant ministers during the winding-up stage later on.
“Ministers must answer whether or not (Muhyiddin’s claims of political persecution) are true. If they are not, such baseless accusations must be put to an end,” he said.
Muhyiddin, who is also Bersatu president, was charged with four counts of soliciting bribes amounting to RM232.5 million and two counts of money laundering involving the Jana Wibawa initiative last Friday.
Today, the former prime minister was slapped with another money laundering charge in Shah Alam.
Last month, Bersatu information chief Datuk Wan Saiful Wan Jan (Tasek Gelugor-PN) was charged with soliciting and receiving bribes worth RM6.9 million to help a private firm secure a Jana Wibawa-linked government contract worth RM232 million in 2022.
The AGC has since rebuffed claims of selective prosecution, explaining that charges are brought against individuals based on the provisions of the law, regardless of status and background. – The Vibes, March 13, 2023
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