PENGERANG MP Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said has lambasted Arau MP Datuk Seri Shahidan Kassim for his demand that UMNO president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s conditional discharge on all 47 corruption charges related to Yayasan Akalbudi be debated in Dewan Rakyat today (Sept 12).
The Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) said Shahidan should not forget which prime minister had appointed former attorney-general (AG) Tan Sri Idrus Harun to the post.
“I was just in the lower house (Dewan Rakyat) and heard YB Arau’s speech under Article 18 (1) of the Standing Orders,” Azalina said on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.
“I would like to ask (Shahidan), on 4/9/23 when Tan Sri Idrus was still the AG, who was the one who appointed him? Was it the eighth prime minister (Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin) or the tenth prime minister (Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim)?
“Have you forgotten, or did you pretend to forget?”
For the record, Idrus, who is a former federal court judge, was first appointed to the position on March 6, 2020, when Muhyiddin was prime minister.
He replaced Tan Sri Tommy Thomas, who resigned from his position after Pakatan Harapan fell from power that year.
Idrus’ contract was previously renewed on March 8, 2022, under former prime minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob.
Following the end of his tenure, Idrus’ contract was renewed again for another six months
Yesterday (Sept 11), the special sitting of the Dewan Rakyat to table the mid-term review of the 12th Malaysia Plan (12MP) was thrown into chaos when several opposition MPs had slammed Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Johari Abdul over his move to reject the emergency motion filed by Machang MP Wan Ahmad Fayhsal Wan Ahmad Kamal to debate Zahid’s conditional discharge.
The Bersatu MP had previously said that he had filed the emergency motion on Sept 7, requesting that Zahid’s discharge not amounting to an acquittal (DNAA) be debated in the lower house.
Shahidan had resubmitted the motion Deputy Speaker Datuk Ramli Mohd Nor before the commencement of the Dewan Rakyat session this morning.
Seeking an explanation from Ramli over Johari’s action yesterday who ended the session without giving them the floor to discuss as promised, Shahidan said the issue involved public interests, and the AG must provide a clear explanation of the case’s future direction.
Feigning ignorance
Several backbenchers on the Parliamentary Special Select Committee (PSSC) on Human Rights, Election and Institutional Reform had similarly accused Shahidan, who is a fellow member, of feigning ignorance about the plan to call both Idrus and his successor, Datuk Ahmad Terrirudin Mohd Salleh for an explanation, in a deliberate poly to create a disturbance.
Kota Melaka MP Khoo Poay Tiong said that as a fellow member of the same PSSC, Shahidan knew of the plan but had pretended that nothing was being done.
“You’re on the committee, we’ve discussed this for some time now and everyone in the committee knows this but Arau is still raising this issue here,” the backbencher said.
“Arau, Jeli and Besut are in the committee. This wasn’t just discussed among the backbenchers; these MPs are all in the committee so why is he still raising this issue?” Khoo asked, referring to the opposition MPs from PN by their parliamentary constituencies.
Jeli MP is Zahari Kechik and Besut MP is Datuk Che Mohammad Zulkifly Jusoh.
PSSC chairman William Leong Jee Keen, who is also Selayang MP, also concurred with Khoo, adding that Idrus’ successor would also be called to explain the reasons to discontinue the trial against Zahid after his defence was called.
“I as the chairman of the committee can confirm this and we have also put out statements to this effect where we said both attorneys general will be called to provide an explanation,” Leong who is also a backbencher said.
“Once we have the full report the public will be notified as well.” – Sept 12, 2023
Main pic credit: Bernama
