THE Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) is being “weaponised“ as a political tool to intimidate opposition lawmakers into supporting the government, DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng said.

“This lends weight to an assertion by Pakatan Harapan’s (PH) presidential council that MACC has been weaponised as a political tool to threaten and intimidate opposition lawmakers to induce them to support the government, especially when they have a tenuous and unstable parliamentary majority,” he said in a statement. 

“Under the Perikatan Nasional government, MACC is no longer seen to be an impartial, independent and professional organisation battling corruption at the highest levels, without fear or favour.”

His statement comes after Warisan’s Labuan MP Rozman Isli claimed trial to a charge of abusing his position as the deputy chairman of the Labuan Port Authority by awarding a government contract to his family members.

The charge sheet said Rozman was alleged to have used his position to obtain bribes in the form of workers’ contracts in connection with Dermaga Merdeka Pelabuhan Labuan.

The contracts were said to have been awarded to a company named Syarikat Liberty Port Management Sdn Bhd, which is linked to Rozman’s father and brother.

https://www.themalaysianinsight.com/s/345286

Chief commissioner Azam Baki said MACC had opened 687 investigation papers between January and August this year, including 149 investigation papers in the “high-profile, public interest and sensitive” category, while 538 were in the ordinary category.

However, Lim said MACC and the Attorney-General’s Chambers have consistently and selectively charged only those opposed to the government or the prime minister.

Lim also referred to a former inspector-general of police who had revealed MACC’s failure in acting against political corruption involving MPs who switched  to support the government.

He cited Kuala Langat MP Dr Xavier Jayakumar’s investigation by MACC, which turned cold after Xavier defected and supported Muhyiddin Yassin.

Lim also cited Tebrau MP Steven Choong, who defected from PKR to support the former prime minister, and admitted that Muhyiddin promised him an official position that would provide him with a platform to rebuild the nation’s economy.

He said the failure of MACC to act only confirms the assertions made by PH that government agencies, including MACC, have been turned into political weapons against the opposition.

Malaysia’s rankings in the Transparency International Corruption Perception Index (CPI) declined from 51st in 2019 to 57th last year.

“The failure of MACC to do their duty professionally and responsibly when the complaint comes from none other than the former IGP will only cause Malaysia’s CPI rankings to slip down further this year,” Lim added. – October 14, 2021.