IT is the flawed process and PKR’s failure to abide by the rules of justice that has prompted 20 PKR leaders to speak out against the sacking of central committee member Zakaria Abdul Hamid, said party sources.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, sources told The Malaysian Insight the call for the party to review its decision was not motivated by the fact Zakaria was a supporter of PKR deputy president Mohamed Azmin Ali, as perceived by observers.

They said they would have done the same if the sacked person had been anyone else, even someone in the other camp siding with party president Anwar Ibrahim.

“We expressed our objection because a senior party member was sacked without being given a chance to defend himself,” said a leader who had signed a memorandum to the party leadership opposing the dismissal.

“It is not just because he is our friend but the party’s failure to follow due process and the laws of justice.

“Even if it was Rafizi Ramli who had been sacked, we would have expressed our objections to the manner it was done,” said the leader, referring to Anwar loyalist and Azmin’s arch rival.

On Saturday, 20 PKR central committee members led by Azmin signed a memorandum to the party disciplinary board calling the sacking of Zakaria illegal, citing a flawed process and failure to meet the principles of justice.

They also demanded that Anwar apologise for making the wrong decision.

Last week, PKR sacked Bera division chief Zakaria and member Ismail Dulhadi after receiving a letter from the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) that had recommended disciplinary action against the two for alleged corruption in last year’s party polls.

PKR communications director Fahmi Fadzil said yesterday that the MACC had sent a letter and report on October 23 on its complete findings of its investigation on Zakaria, a former Works Minister political secretary.

Fahmi said the MACC had carried out the investigations following a complaint lodged by PKR Youth secretary Syukri Razab last year alleging that Zakaria and Ismail had met with branch leaders under the Bera division.

“MACC had found out that Zakaria had told the branch members who attended that meeting about the Housing and Local Government Ministry’s RM300,000 allocation and asked them to each prepare paperwork for small projects worth RM20,000. He also told those who attended to take a cut of RM2,000 to RM3,000 for each project.

“Ismail was found to have submitted a list of contractors who attended to the Bera district council. When investigated by MACC, the Bera district council officer admitted that the list presented by Ismail had influenced the officer in the contractor selection,” Fahmi said in a statement.

Zakaria, meanwhile, has said the party was wrong to have given him the boot without  due process.

Zakaria said his sacking was unlawful and unjust, and that the party had failed to adhere to its principles of “reformasi”.

Critics have also seen Zakaria’s sacking as an attempt by the Anwar faction to weaken Azmin.

Apart from Zakaria and Ismail, the party leadership had also affirmed the PKR Youth’s decision to sack the wing’s permanent chairman and his deputy – both aligned to Azmin – just days before the annual congress.

Another party leader asked if the dismissal of Zakaria was a majority decision.

“We now have 20 central leadership members questioning the sacking. How many actually agreed to it? Can the party disclose that?”

He said the sacking of Zakaria had not been on the meeting agenda.

“So how did this happen? Where is justice?” – December 2, 2019.