'Where is Santhara?' asks former Johor PKR chairperson

 

Deputy Federal Territories Minister Edmund Santhara's purported absence from his Segamat constituency has prompted Hassan Abdul Karim to question his whereabouts.

Hassan, who is the former Johor PKR chairperson, said he felt responsible to ask about Santhara as he was the one who paved the way for Santhara to contest in Segamat and supported him as the PKR candidate during the 14th general election.

For the record, Santhara officially joined Bersatu in August last year.

"Where is Santhara now? When will he return to offer his service to his Segamat constituency?" Hassan (photo above, left) asked in a statement.

Santhara has been embroiled in a controversy after he was found to have travelled to New Zealand and have been staying there since December 2020.

Subsequently, he clarified that he had been on leave for 55 working days to visit his family. In a Facebook post, he claimed that Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin and his minister Annuar Musa had approved his request for leave.

Personal questions

Describing Santhara as a good friend, Hassan said he has no other way but to ask Santhara personal questions due to his position as a deputy minister and lawmaker.

"Is Santhara a permanent resident (PR) in New Zealand?

"If it's true that he's a PR in New Zealand, does he have to stay (for a certain period) there to retain his PR status?" he said.

Hassan also asked Santhara in which country does he pay his taxes.

He said that it was difficult for him to ask those personal questions as he remembered Santhara had helped to send him from Kuala Lumpur to Johor to attend his sister's funeral prior to GE14.

Santhara had also extended his support to Hassan when the latter was charged under the Sedition Act at the Shah Alam Sessions Court.

Hassan also revealed that after the "Sheraton Move" last year, he called Santhara to ask him to consider staying with PKR.

"He answered the call and he was nice and respectful. The next day, my call went unanswered," he said.

Malaysiakini has contacted Santhara to comment on Hassan's statement. - Mkini