THE Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) should not detain Bersatu treasurer-general Datuk Mohamed Salleh Bajuri, as he has fully cooperated since January, according to the party.The MACC has no reasonable grounds to apply for Salleh’s remand detention during the ongoing investigation, Bersatu secretary-general Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin said.“This is because he (Salleh) has always been present and has always given his full cooperation whenever needed to the MACC investigation since January.“Every time he was called, he was present. Every time there was a request for documents, he submitted them. He never refused MACC’s request, even if it was requested at the last minute,” Hamzah said.The party believes that Salleh’s detention is part of the pressure placed on party officials and leaders to find wrongdoing that does not exist.“Similarly, the action of conducting investigations on Bersatu vendors is part of the ongoing political hunt by the Pakatan Harapan (PH)-Barisan Nasional (BN) government,” he was quoted as saying by Berita Harian.Hamzah added that the party’s financial statements were also audited every year and approved at the Annual General Conference.
“No irregularity was found in the financial statements, which were certified by certified auditors.”MACC chief commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki last month said that several Bersatu bank accounts had been frozen to aid in an investigation.When contacted by Bernama, he stated: “An investigation is being conducted under the MACC Act 2009 and the Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing, and Proceeds of Illegal Activities Act.”This is believed to be connected to the MACC’s inquiry into the suspected theft of RM600 bil in government funds used when the nation was dealing with the COVID-19 outbreak.Azam stated that MACC had started an inquiry into the suspected abuse of funds by the former administration on Dec 6, 2022.Hamzah and former prime minister (PM) Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin have said the freezing of accounts is a witch hunt against Bersatu launched by PM Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, who denied the accusations. — March 4, 2023
