UMNO information chief Datuk Isham Jalil has challenged Bersatu president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin to follow the footsteps of his Bersatu counterpart Datuk Wan Saiful Wan Jan who relinquished his post yesterday following corruption charges levelled against him in the Jana Wibawa scandal.
This comes after the Perikatan Nasional (PN) chairman justified that while Wan Saiful’s resignation must not be taken to mean that the Tasek Gelugor MP is guilty, that was Bersatu’s set standard when one is accused of corruption in court.
“That’s OK but when Muhyiddin himself is accused in court later, hopefully he will do likewise in accordance to his set of standards,” teased Isham on his Facebook page.
“Please don’t practise double standard like in the past when you told others to wear masks during the movement control order (MCO) lockdown but you yourself didn’t do any. Others had to pay fines but you got away scot-free. This is your never walk the talk (cakap tak serupa bikin) style.”
“I was the first”
In a related development, Isham also owed up to the fact that he was the first to state that Bersatu members could potentially be part of the court cluster, contrary to Muhyiddin’s claim that it was UMNO president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi who had hinted so.
“I was the first to say even before the 15th General Election (GE15) that we expect you and your clansmen to become a court cluster,” the UMNO supreme council member pointed out.
“This is because at that time, you and your cronies were seen or suspected of being involved in corruption and abuse of power via the awarding of government contracts through direct negotiation worth billions of ringgit.”
Added Isham: “But this does not mean that I’m the one who told you to give this contract through direct negotiation or for you to rake in hundreds of millions in commissions or told you to spend the commission proceeds from the said project for your political interests and ultimately become mastermind of your corruption case.
“All these wrongdoings were initiated by you and your friends alone, hence don’t blame others when you get caught.”
Commenting on Wan Saiful’s regret that the government decided to take action against him “at a time when the people are languishing (economically)”, Isham shared that he never took a bribe nor any commission “and there was never a case of corruption” during his 20-year career in the government and government-linked companies.
“However, you and your friends who have only been in the government for 17 months are seen to be doing well at pocketing billions of ringgit with accusations of corruption worth millions,” lectured the former special officer to now incarcerated ex-premier Datuk Seri Najib Razak.
“Media report stated that when you requested and received the RM6 mil bribe, you were still holding a position in the government or a government agency. You shouldn’t ‘eat’ commission when holding a government position. That is wrong, both ethically and lawfully.” – Feb 23, 2023
