MOHAMED Azmin Ali should resign from his cabinet post if it is confirmed he was the person in the leaked sex video, said PKR president Anwar Ibrahim.

However, this will depend on the findings of police investigations, the Port Dickson MP said.

“My initial view is for him not to resign. It will depend on investigations. If the investigation is conclusive, in terms of the participants of the act, then I think he needs to resign.

“But if we haven’t ascertained the truth and the veracity of the people in the videos, then he has the option,” said Anwar when asked by reporters at the Parliament lobby if Azmin should step down or go on leave first.

He added that the party rejects gutter politics.

Last month, a series of clips showing two men engaging in sexual acts were released on WhatsApp.

Former PKR political aide Haziq Abdullah Abdul Aziz subsequently said he was one of the men in the videos, and that Azmin was the other.

Azmin had denied the claims, calling the affair a conspiracy to ruin his career. PKR has since sacked Haziq.

On Saturday, Inspector-General of Police Abdul Hamid Bador said police had identified the mastermind behind the production and circulation of the sex clips.

Earlier today, Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad said it was up to Azmin if he wanted to take a leave of absence pending police investigations into the sex video, in which the minister is implicated.

According to Dr Mahathir, the distribution of the video was politically motivated to end someone’s political career, referring to Azmin.

“(He) can go on leave or continue working. You cannot be deemed to be guilty before it is proven in court,” he told reporters today.

Police have so far arrested nine people, including Perak PKR leader Farhash Wafa Salvador Rizal Mubarak, political secretary to Anwar, over the distribution of the video. – July 17, 2019.