The MACC must explain why no action has been taken thus far against Deputy Defence Minister Ikmal Hisham Abdul Aziz for recommending his own son to the board of Pharmaniaga Bhd, said DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng.
"Ikmal recommending his own son (Ikmal Hazlan) as a Pharmaniaga director (to Defence Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob) is a perfect toxic cocktail of abuse of power, corruption and nepotism emerging in the Perikatan Nasional (PN) government," said Lim in a statement today.
"There is no doubt that MACC should investigate and take action because what Ikmal has done is to solicit for a position which benefited his son by using his position as a deputy defence minister."
He pointed out that Ikmal (above) had not only admitted that he wrote the letter of recommendation but that he was wrong and would withdraw his recommendation.
Ikmal on Aug 22 said he regretted having written a letter of support for his son but remembers writing a follow-up letter asking for it to be cancelled.
"I regret what happened, I know there were weaknesses. God willing, I will correct it later. That letter was old, from June 5.
"As far as I remember, I wrote another letter, in which I asked the minister (Ismail) to retract my suggested request and informed the minister to cancel it," he had said.
Lim said it was too late to dismiss the matter.
"It is clearly too late for Ikmal to disclaim responsibility because he had already committed the act of soliciting for a benefit on behalf of his son by abusing his position.
"Recommending his own son, which was agreed to by Ismail, is a clear violation of one of the MACC’s offences of soliciting or requesting for corruption," he claimed.
Ismail told Malaysiakini on Aug 21 that due to concerns of nepotism he had stopped short at only minuting his support without following through with Hazlan's appointment.
It is learnt that the pharmaceutical company had several vacancies on its board of directors following the recent retirement of three members, prior to the company's annual general meeting on July 20.
The company had later appointed three new members - Azhar Ahmad, Najmil Faiz Mohamed Aris, and Zulkifli Jafar.
Lim nonetheless argued that the attempt was an abuse of power, nepotism and corruption all rolled into one.
"So far there is no news or development by MACC on this matter. All are equal in the eyes of the law, whether a VIP or an ordinary citizen.
"MACC should act immediately against Ikmal to demonstrate that they do not practice double-standards," he said.
The issue of support letters also surfaced in the run-up to Bersatu Youth elections when Wan Ahmad Fayhsal Wan Ahmad Kamal was caught on video promising to leverage on his position in the government and party to issue support letters in exchange for votes.
"How (can I help?), I can issue support letters as a deputy minister, as the youth chief and I can make a copy to Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin to strengthen (the support letters).
"That is using one's position. Positions are given to help make things easier for you. It is not for me alone. But to help you, help me too," he had said.
Fayhsal later won the post of Bersatu Youth chief for the 2019-2022 term. - Mkini
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