MCA questions cabinet silence over Dr M’s ‘one-man plan’
MCA has questioned the silence of Pakatan Harapan ministers in the wake of Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s unilateral decision to appoint a new MACC chief without their knowledge.
By keeping mum, MCA vice-president Tan Teik Cheng said this pointed to a worrying return of the premier’s old dictatorial habits, including alleged cronyism.
This, Tan said, was could set a dangerous precedent for the nation’s future...
MCA has questioned the silence of Pakatan Harapan ministers in the wake of Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s unilateral decision to appoint a new MACC chief without their knowledge.
By keeping mum, MCA vice-president Tan Teik Cheng said this pointed to a worrying return of the premier’s old dictatorial habits, including alleged cronyism.
This, Tan said, could set a dangerous precedent for the nation’s future.
“Mahathir’s ego inflates by the day.
“With this precedent, the Pakatan Harapan government is set to be infested with cronyism, turning into a unilateral government which spits at the virtues of democracy which it had long bandied about before capturing Putrajaya. As such, this is a blatant betrayal of the rakyat’s aspiration and hopes towards a better future.
“[...] To date, the cabinet ministers have only indicated that this appointment did not involve them, yet not one of them has commented on this behaviour, (which is) a severe disappointment and a real reason to worry about Mahathir’s unchecked one-man plan,” Tan said in a statement.
On Wednesday, Mahathir acknowledged that it was his sole decision to appoint human rights lawyer and former PKR leader Latheefa as the new MACC chief.
He said he did not consult his Cabinet as he did not wish to be restricted in his freedom to suggest and choose a suitable candidate to replace former MACC chief Mohd Shukri Abdull.
Mahathir claimed Shukri has been asking to leave the MACC since last year, forcing the premier to seek out a replacement.
Elaborating during a press conference at his official open house on the first day of Hari Raya Aidilfitri, Mahathir said he selected Latheefa due to her honest and strong character.
He said that the Harapan election manifesto against political appointees was “unfair” as it “penalised” members of the ruling coalition who worked hard to help win the election and had the right qualifications for the role.
“Of course, we don’t make them heads of departments or companies, (but) they can become members of the board (and) in certain cases if they have the right qualities, we will appoint even those who are in politics,” he added.
Although Latheefa had resigned from PKR upon learning of her appointment a few days before Hari Raya, many question her ability to be impartial in leading the anti-graft body.
However, in his statement today, Tan described Mahathir’s justification as “shocking”.
He asked: “Since Harapan has many highly capable individuals who helped in the election, does Mahathir also intend to grant them important posts one-by-one?”
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