Sabah voters will deliver their verdict in the upcoming state election, following the government’s inaction over “massive corruption”, warned Bersatu vice-president Ronald Kiandee.
In a video published yesterday on his Facebook page, the Beluran MP commented on the lack of corruption charges against several Sabah leaders, following a series of video leaks related to a state-wide mining scandal.
“You think people did not see the video? That this won’t be a factor in electing the future state government? People will definitely see this.
“It’s okay… that’s why I say we should just let the people be the judge. The verdict will be made by the rakyat on their ballots during the upcoming state election,” he said.
The recordings which surfaced since last November have revealed eight Sabah assemblypersons allegedly admitting on video to receiving bribes, followed by six more individuals being implicated several months later.
In June, MACC chief commissioner Azam Baki said that only two of these individuals would be charged for now, while the deputy public prosecutor would decide on the others later.
Various parties have since repeatedly urged the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) to swiftly decide whether to charge the six remaining individuals implicated in the scandal before the fast-approaching state election.
The current Sabah state legislative assembly will automatically dissolve on Nov 11, in the lead-up to the 17th state election.
‘Selective persecution’
In his video, Kiandee also criticised Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s dismissive attitude towards the video leaks, and described the government’s inaction as practising “selective persecution.”
“Apparently, there are also six more videos which have yet to be revealed. So (in total), 14 (Gabungan Rakyat Sabah) representatives have been caught on video, admitting to receiving bribes… It’s massive… as of now, two of them have already been charged in court, but there are still six more.
“When I was in Parliament, I asked the prime minister directly about what happened to the remaining six, but the PM said that more concrete evidence was still needed.
“Why does it sound like they are practising selective persecution?” he asked.
Hearsay
Anwar previously dismissed the evidence against the six assemblypersons as mere hearsay - a remark that drew sharp criticism from businessperson Albert Tei, the whistleblower who exposed the scandal.
Last year, Tei submitted the full recordings, a handphone, and 300 pages of documents to MACC.
The implicated assemblypersons from GRS, which is the ruling coalition and an ally of Anwar’s Pakatan Harapan, include Deputy Chief Minister Shahelmey Yahya; state Finance Minister Masidi Manjun; state Science, Technology, and Innovation Minister Arifin Arif, who is also Sabah governor Musa Aman’s son-in-law, and state legislative assembly speaker Kadzim Yahya.
In June, Malaysiakini further revealed that six more politicians were also allegedly involved in the scandal, including top leaders of Star and Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS), both components of the ruling GRS state government, including Star president Jeffrey Kitingan and his deputies, Ellron Alfred Angin and Robert Tawik, along with PBS acting president Joachim Gunsalam, his predecessor Maximus Ongkili, and deputy president Jahid Jahim.
The others are Masiung Banah (Kuamut) and Arsad Bistari (Tempasuk). - Mkini
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