Clear your name in court like I did, Zahid tells Sabah reps nabbed by MACC

Summary

• Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi urges the Sabah assemblypersons nabbed by the MACC to clear their names in court, like he did.

• The deputy prime minister also has full faith in MACC’s impartial investigations.

• Zahid was granted a DNAA in his corruption case involving millions of ringgit from Yayasan Akalbudi in 2023, after the prosecution requested it.

Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi urged the Sabah assemblypersons arrested by MACC over graft allegations to clear their names in court, like he did.

The deputy prime minister also said he has full confidence in MACC to investigate the matter.

“We trust the enforcement agencies, especially the MACC, to not only conduct investigations but also bring forth credible evidence and witnesses when pressing charges.

“But if you (Sabah assemblypersons) have evidence and witnesses to challenge the prosecution’s case, then clear your name in court like I did,” Sinar Harian reported him as saying today after officiating a women’s empowerment event in Sabah.

On June 18, MACC arrested an assemblyperson and a businessperson with the “Datuk” title on suspicion of requesting and receiving bribes involving the same issue.

Yesterday, the anti-graft agency arrested another Sabah lawmaker on suspicion of soliciting and receiving bribes totalling approximately RM150,000 in connection with the graft scandal involving mining licences.

Zahid’s DNAA

Zahid was granted a discharge not amounting to an acquittal (DNAA) in the corruption case involving millions of ringgit from Yayasan Akalbudi on Sept 4, 2023.

The prosecution, led by Dusuki Mokhtar, requested it, citing that his team needed time to allow a more comprehensive and complete investigation into Zahid’s case.

This comes despite the criminal court having ordered Zahid to enter his defence to the charges in January 2022.

High Court judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah made his displeasure known to the prosecution, adding that taxpayers’ money would be wasted if the prosecution later dropped Zahid’s case.

“Before I adjourn, I wish to place on record that although the powers of the attorney-general - under Article 145 (3) of the Federal Constitution and Section 254 of the Criminal Procedure Code - to institute and withdraw charges at any time before judgment is passed is unquestioned, should the prosecution decide in the near future decide that they will not proceed any further with the charges, that much precious judicial time would have been wasted and a great amount of taxpayers’ money would also have been wasted.”

Dusuki has since become the attorney-general.

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