Perikatan Nasional has urged the government to set up a “special investigation committee with the status of a royal commission of inquiry” to investigate allegations of a former minister’s RM1.1 billion “mega deal” with a foreign company.
PN chief whip Takiyuddin Hassan said immediate action was necessary if the government is serious in its commitment to combat corruption and misconduct.
“In relation to this, PN MPs urge the government to immediately establish a ‘special investigation committee with the status of a royal commission of inquiry’, led by a former superior court judge, to investigate this matter,” said Takiyuddin (above) in a statement today.
Takiyuddin’s remarks come in the wake of MACC’s recent investigation into an alleged RM1.1 billion agreement involving a former minister - claimed to be Pandan MP Rafizi Ramli, and a foreign company.
On Feb 17, Bernama quoted MACC deputy chief commissioner (operations) Ahmad Khusairi Yahaya, who did not mention Rafizi’s name, as stating that the commission will examine whether there are any elements of corruption, misappropriation, or abuse of power under the MACC Act 2009.
He added that follow-up actions, including scrutinising the documents and evidence submitted, will be conducted before further investigation proceeds, in line with the commission's commitment to integrity and transparency in its investigations.
Not a small amount
Meanwhile, Takiyuddin also reminded that RM1.1 billion was not a small figure and it involves public funds, which would inevitably affect the public’s trust towards government integrity.
The PAS secretary-general also stressed that PN would continue to monitor the matter closely to ensure that the principles of transparency, accountability, and integrity are “upheld without compromise”.
“The government cannot remain silent or hide behind mere procedures and rhetoric. The people have the right to know the truth and the actual facts.
“Failure to act firmly and transparently will only strengthen the perception that there are efforts to conceal matters, or to protect specific individuals,” he said.
‘A form of intimidation’
Earlier this week, Rafizi described MACC’s probe against him as a form of “intimidation”, linking it to his recent demands for its chief commissioner Azam Baki to be suspended.
Rafizi argued that the timing of the MACC probe demonstrated the risk of abuse of power - which came immediately after a Bloomberg report exposing Azam’s questionable shareholding status.
On the case involving the ex-minister, MACC’s probe are centred two major national policies - the Silicon Vision Programme and the National Energy Transition Roadmap (NETR), which was launched during Rafizi’s tenure as economy minister.
On the Silicon Vision collaboration with British chip designer Arm Holdings, Rafizi said negotiations involved several stages; from discussions between ministry officials and Arm to inter-ministerial negotiations involving then-international trade and industry minister Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz and second finance minister Amir Hamzah Azizan, as well as engagements between Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and Arm CEO Rene Haas and SoftBank owner Masayoshi Son.
Meanwhile, on the NETR, Rafizi said the roadmap did not involve public funds, procurement, or project implementation by the economy ministry.
One policy under NETR, he explained, allowed private parties to develop renewable energy projects and supply green power directly to industry without going through Tenaga Nasional Berhad.
As a result, companies including UEM Lestra, a subsidiary of UEM owned by Khazanah Nasional Berhad, announced large-scale renewable energy investments.
Rafizi said UEM Lestra’s RM2.5 billion, 750MW project in Segamat, Johor, was a private-sector initiative undertaken via a joint venture with I-Squared Capital, with energy to be sold to ESR Group Limited.
The PKR MP also reiterated that both policies launched by Anwar had gone through multiple layers of approval, including cabinet endorsement, stressing that the Economy Ministry was a planning ministry and did not manage procurement or contracts. - Mkini
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