YOURSAY ‘Even Houdini would find it impossible to wriggle out of this...’

Phua a convicted criminal in M'sia, says source

Odin: From this Malaysiakini report, one can infer that there is no love lost between certain members of the RMP (Royal Malaysian Police) and their ‘numero uno’. And that tells us a lot about the latter.

It would seem that Home Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi was lying when he stated that alleged kingpin Paul Phua had assisted, and would continue to assist, the Malaysian government in projects that involved national security.

One surmises that that explanation was cooked up because Zahid knew he could always refuse to apprise the public of the nature of these ‘national security’ projects by invoking the OSA (Official Secrets Act).

Indeed, national security matters are top secret, but only if such matters do actually have to do with national security. In this case, that seems doubtful.

Insofar as Zahid's claim of Phua's supposed involvement in national security projects is concerned, the statement made recently by a former IGP (inspector-general of police) that it was not unusual to get a thief to catch a thief cuts no ice.

It is indeed usual for a law enforcement agency to make a deal with a criminal to expose another criminal or the crime organisation he has been involved with, but it is most unlikely for such an agency to secure the services of a criminal in matters so secret that they (the matters) are guarded by OSA.

It boggles the imagination that the government could trust criminals enough to share with them highly sensitive information involving national security but not with the hoi-polloi.

Contrary to Phua’s lawyer Muhammad Shafee Abdullah's claim that Zahid wrote his infamous letter to correct what he (the former) has alleged to be the RMP's big mistake, Zahid has not.

The claimed mistake would be contained in the RMP's report relayed to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in the first half of 2008 where the report stated, among other things, that the 14K triad did operate in Malaysia, that three Malaysians were involved, and that Phua was one of the trio.

Zahid wrote that “based on our information, Mr Phua is neither a member nor is he associated with the 14K Triad”.

When Zahid stated that Phua was not a member of nor was he associated with the crime syndicate, that could be argued to be fact only at around the time he wrote his letter; but Phua might have been a member of and associated with the organisation earlier.

(To be correct, the phrase ‘associated with' ought to be replaced with ‘involved in any activities of'.)

If the particular RMP's report was wrong, then Zahid should have written thus “...based on our information, Mr Phua has never been a member of, nor has he ever been associated with, the 14K triad, and the crime organisation has never operated in Malaysia till to date. The allegation contained in the report relayed by the Royal Malaysia Police to your organisation sometime in 2008 is erroneous.”

Until the IGP, who was assuming his position at the time the particular RMP's report was compiled and relayed to the FBI comes out and states without any qualification that he and his subordinates had made erroneous statements in it (the said report), one has no choice but to accept it (the said report) as correct.

With no intention whatsoever of insulting anyone's intelligence, we shall state that this means the 14K triad has operated in Malaysia and that Phua was a member of as well as involved in the activities of the criminal organisation.

Whether the criminal organisation is still operating in Malaysia is best left to conjecture.

Anonymous #20513663: Good investigative journalism by Malaysiakini . The public hopes for more similar 'leaks' from the civil service, law enforcement agencies and the armed forces as many 'interesting' things go on in these organisations.

These exposés will also lend moral support to those with integrity like Major Zaidi Ahmad as the pressures they face will become public knowledge, hopefully leading to a groundswell of public support and more of those from the 'inside' to speak up.

MingXiang: The home minister is hogging the limelight so much so that Shafee is off the radar. In all probability, Phua had asked for the letter through Shafee, who is Phua's lawyer and who, of course, is more than acquainted with the home minister.

Too bad South China Morning Post published the letter otherwise they would have gotten away with it.

The home minister made things worse for himself when he stated in the letter that Phua was assisting the government on matters of national security.

I think even Houdini would find it impossible to wriggle out of this boo-boo but here in Bolehland, the possibilities are endless.

Anonymous_1382244186: Zahid has dug himself a bigger hole. Obviously, he is seen to be colluding with the alleged kingpin and there is no way he can defend himself.

The ringgit is depreciating and the rakyat are indeed suffering. The only way to save Malaysia is to get rid of all these lesions, one at a time.

Zahid is the home minister. He should be impartial and righteous, but instead he appeared to be acting worse than a criminal.

Malaysiakini , please publish my comment so that they can come and catch me, and after that, I shall defend myself in court and declare how furious I am as an ordinary citizen who want to see nation thrive without this kind of man as our leader.

Let them sue me. I am really indignant.

A convict helping M’sia with national security?

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