GE14 | PAS central committee member Mohd Zuhdi Marzuki has shot back at critics of his party's RM2.5 million donation, saying it had come with no strings attached, unlike the “dedak” (payment) received by certain parties.

He asked what was wrong with PAS getting the donations, when others received “RM50 million dedak from a tauke (tycoon),” alluding to DAP and Amanah.

“As what I have explained in my previous statement, PAS received the funds to support our general election campaign through crowdfunding, which is a means that has most integrity.

“Through this method, PAS is not bound by any interests of the donor, and the deposit of this donation into PAS' public account has been done in a transparent manner and can be perused by the public.

“Many political parties choose means that are immoral in getting political funding, such as getting funds through proxies which come with strings attached,” he said in a post on his Facebook page today.

Zuhdi claimed many parties had received funds from methods that lacked integrity, such as “funds received whether in their private accounts or through proxies to evade scrutiny,” which came from “tauke with personal interests, illegal businesses such as secret societies, and foreign groups like Zionists and evangelists.”

“Only PAS rejects such methods,” he said.

Donations to DAP, Amanah slammed

Zuhdi yesterday denied his party had received funds from Umno as alleged by Amanah leaders, and explained the sum of RM1.5 million and RM1 million were received from an unnamed donor, and had been deposited in a trust fund in Terengganu.

Incumbent Pokok Sena MP Mahfuz Omar – who recently left PAS and joined Amanah – earlier claimed several Terengganu PAS leaders had received funds from Umno, which the party has denied.

Yesterday, Amanah president Mohamad Sabu mocked PAS for using Umno president Najib Abdul Razak's script on receiving "donations" to justify the amount.

Zuhdi insisted PAS has never received any donations that are “haram” (illegal) or that comes with strings attached.

He then pointed to DAP, which he claimed had received a political donation of RM50 million from a “tauke,” namely the philanthropist Koon Yew Yin.

“The same tauke had given Perak Amanah as much as RM 500,000, and had promised to give 10 times more so they can win Perak,” he claimed, saying that would potentially work out to a total of RM5 million.

“What is the motive for donating to Perak Amanah? Mahfuz as Amanah's vice president needs to answer,” he said.

Zuhdi was likely referring to Koon's 2015 donation to the Penang government for building student hostels, as the businessperson actively donates to education causes.

According to a Nanyang Siang Pau report in November 2015, Koon also donated RM50,000 to Perak Amanah just several months after the PAS splinter was formed, reportedly to help them advance their political struggle.