The Malaysian authorities conveniently charged and jailed fugitive Manuel Amalilio, who is wanted in the Philippines, just to prevent his deportation there, the PKR said.

This allegation and a number of questions were raised during the visit to the Philippines by two federal lawmakers to check out Amalilio's activities there.

tian chua kampung railway residents protest 3 PKR vice-president Tian Chua ( right ) and the party's Subang MP Sivarasa Rasiah described the charging and sentencing as a "wayang" (drama).

"The manner in which Amalilio was charged is dubious, as he was charged and sentenced by a magistrate in a Sabah hospital," said Chua, who is also the MP for Batu.

Sivarasa, a lawyer by calling, also questioned the manner in which the magistrate, prosecutors and Amalilio's counsel were present in the hospital and had, on Feb 5, the facts of their case conveniently prepared as well.

"He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to two years in jail. Normally, the case would be fixed for mention on another date, for sentencing is not done (on the same day)," Sivarasa said.

The two said this in response to Attorney-General Abdul Gani Patail's statement yesterday that Amalilio, or Muhammad Kamal Sa’aid aka Mohamad Sufian Saaid, was jailed for two years for having a fake passport

The dubious nature of the charge against Amalilio, Sivarasa said, led the Philippine authorities to demand Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak's intervention as there appeared to be discrepancies in the whole matter.

Not charged in Philippines

Sivarasa said  Bukit Aman police arrested Amalilio Bukit on Jan 22, on a warrant of arrest issued against him by Interpol.

Then, during the process of deporting Amalilio back to the Philippines Jan 31, the federal police handed him over to the Philippines National Bureau of Investigation and also passed on his Filipino passport.

"Ten minutes before boarding the flight back that same day, the Sabah police stormed in and took Amalilio away on the grounds of carrying a false passport.

NONE "He was then taken to the Mount Elizabeth Hospital for an alleged liver ailment and was later charged and sentenced," Sivarasa ( left ) added.

Chua said Amalilio obtained his Filipino passport in 2009, and the Philippine authorities would therefore be the ones to know whether it was fake or not.

Chua also asked why the authorities charged Amalilio in Kota Kinabalu for having a fake passport when the bigger crime he is accused of was committed in the Philippines.

He said he and Sivarasa had met with the Philippine authorities, lawyers and journalists who were familiar with the Amalilio case.

“Under Article 24 of the federal constitution, a person loses his citizenship if he holds the passport of another country, for Malaysians cannot hold dual citizenship.

"Clearly, it is not in our interest to have Amalilio remain in Malaysia as his alleged offence of fraud involving his company, Aman Futures, was carried out in Mindanao and also in Sabah," Chua added.

NONE There were also allegations, he added, that the money collected by Amalilio ( left ) in a pyramid scheme he was accused of operating in the Philippines, amounting to RM900 million, could have been for the coming elections in Sabah.

"This is something that I hope Musa and Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak will explain.

"With the money, Amalilio is said to have bought a private jet and helicopters.

"There is a high level of conspiracy in the whole matter, also involving Musa Aman, who is Amalilio's uncle, and the Malaysian authorities.

"The bigger crime was carried out in Philippines and Amalilio should therefore not be held here in Malaysia but deported back to the Philippines," said Chua.

Another Michael Chia saga?

He also expressed concern that the Amalilio affair could well be another ' Michael Chia saga ', in which the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) and Gani Patail involved as well.

NONE He said it was no secret that Gani had family ties with Musa, and this was something the Philippine authorities had voiced their concern about during their meeting with Gani ( right ) on Wednesday.

“This is something that Najib should also intervene in, for there is a perception of Gani's hidden hands in play. Malaysia's reputation within Asean is wholly affected by this saga.

“This issue will have serious implications on our bilateral relationship with the Philippines. Earlier, we had seen the AG's involvement in the ICAC investigations into Musa and Chia.

“I urge the PM to be strict in handling this as we need to maintain good bilateral relations with the Philippines. Nobody has disputed that the person arrested and sentenced in Kota Kinabalu is Amalilio,” he said.

Sivarasa said Amalilio's assets have not been frozen, despite Gani issuing a directive on this.

That is why, the Subang MP added, the Philippines had sought Malaysia's help to freeze Amalilio's assets as most of these were not in the republic.