[UPDATED] Police reports against Sanusi pending AGC’s response: Anwar

PETALING JAYA – Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim confirmed that police reports lodged against Kedah Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor would be referred to the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) over his dispute on Penang’s sovereignty. 

Speaking at Dewan Rakyat today, Anwar said he had received copies of police reports against Sanusi, where parts of it had been sent to the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC), awaiting its response. 

“I have received documents, including police reports verifying that (Sanusi) had irresponsibly issued statements demanding the constitution be amended to return Penang to Kedah, and claiming there is a solid basis,” he said during the Prime Minister's Questions and Answers session today. 

“As a person of standing, this is irresponsible. The police have made an investigation based on legal provisions to prevent the continuation of statements that violate constitutional principles and laws,” he said adding, that laws involved in the ongoing investigations include the Penal Code and the Sedition Act.

The Tambun MP was responding to a question by DAP Chairman Lim Guan Eng (Bagan-PH) on actions the government will take against Sanusi for “causing the unease of Penangites and jeopardising the harmony within the nation.

According to the Federal Constitution, Anwar said Penang’s position as a separate state in Malaysia has been clearly stated.   

He also reiterated that the constitutional agreement had been consented to by all the Malay rulers on the issue, including the Kedah sultan.  

Previously, Sanusi allegedly remarked that Penang was loaned from Kedah and that the state must pay more than the current annual RM10 million compensation that the federal government is paying Kedah.

He was also reported as saying that the two states do not have a border because Penang still belongs to Kedah, claiming further that Kedah only shares a border with Perak and Perlis.  

Sanusi’s claims led to numerous lawmakers chastising him, including Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and DAP chairman Lim Guan Eng.

Penang became a sovereign state when its founder Francis Light brokered a deal with the Kedah sultan to first claim the island, and later a stretch that became known as Province Wellesley (now Seberang Prai) from 1786 onwards. – The Vibes, June 6, 2023