Opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim said today the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission must act fast on the reports of both him and PKR Ipoh Barat division chief Fauzi Muda on evidence tampering by the IGP and the AG and the attempted buying of PKR legislators.

anwar ibrahim permatang pauh by election 030209 02 “The allegations are substantive and actionable, the reports on them were lodged a long while ago and not just once, but to date both the police and MACC find every reason to prevaricate while the merest suggestion of wrongdoing on the part of the opposition is cause for action,” fumed Anwar in remarks made to Malaysiakini.

Last July, Anwar lodged a report with Shah Alam police that both the present Inspector General of Police Musa Hassan and current Attorney General Gani Patail had colluded in tampering evidence against him in the official investigation into the incident in September 1998 in which Anwar was beaten up while in custody of the Special Branch.

Anwar’s allegation of evidence tampering was based on a sworn affidavit filed by Mat Zan Mat Aris that Musa and Gani had colluded to deviate the course of Mat Zan’s investigation into the incident that became a national cause célèbre. Last week Anwar again filed a similar report concerning the incident, this time at the Damansara Utama police station.

Good grounds for inquiry

PKR Ipoh Barat leader Fauzi Muda early last month filed a report with the MACC, and backed it with a statutory declaration, claiming that Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak had offered him RM50 million when the two met on March 11 last year. Fauzi claimed that the money was for the purpose of inducing two PKR state assemblypersons to join BN ranks.

perak pkr pc fauzi muda pc statutory declaration najib 010209 Since making the report, Fauzi has claimed that he has been harassed and intimidated by the police. Yesterday, he challenged the police to charge him so that he could prove his claims against Najib in open court.

“These reports are not mere allegations,” commented Anwar. “There are good grounds for inquiry and for the speedy determination of the truth content of the reports made to the police and MACC but thus far both bodies are pussyfooting.”

Anwar warned that this permissiveness has spawned a mood of malaise in which ordinary citizens become cynical and their capacity to believe in democratic means for bringing change to society is eroded.

“The police and MACC are proceeding in ways that insult the intelligence of the people and invite their derision. This charade must stop. The people’s anger is mounting and it will be registered in the upcoming by-elections,” he said.