MACC urged to break silence on mining scandal '2nd shockwave'

A Warisan leader has demanded that the MACC clarify whether it is investigating the “second shockwave” of Sabah’s mining scandal, in which six more Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) leaders have been implicated.

Warisan supreme council member Ahmad Hassan also reminded the commission of former law minister Zaid Ibrahim’s warning that its credibility is on the line.

“I fully agree with Zaid’s statement that the police and the MACC have suffered a severe blow to public confidence over the way they handled these two cases.

“Therefore, the police and the MACC are urged to take fair and transparent action on both high-profile cases. Investigations must be conducted independently, and the public should be regularly informed of their progress,” he said in a statement.

Zaid had earlier cited the mining scandal and the death of 13-year-old student Zara Qairina Mahathir in Sabah as examples of cases that have thrust law enforcement agencies into unprecedented scrutiny.

He warned that the two cases have “laid bare disturbing weaknesses” in the government’s ability - and perhaps even its will - to deliver truth and justice.

Similar to Zaid, Ahmad questioned why enforcement agencies seem to act decisively only after such cases go viral on social media.

“Without the social media viral phenomenon, it seems as if these agencies would have ignored the incidents altogether.

“Has going viral on social media now become the trend to expose high-profile criminal cases before enforcement agencies are willing to take appropriate action? What exactly is wrong with our government’s systems and institutions today that such perceptions are taking root among the people?” he asked.

The mining scandal first broke in November last year when businessperson Albert Tei released videos and WhatsApp messages allegedly showing several GRS assemblypersons accepting bribes in exchange for mineral exploration licences.

Seven months later, two assemblypersons and Tei were charged, raising questions over why others - including senior state cabinet members - had not been prosecuted.

In June, Malaysiakini reported that six more politicians had been implicated: Star president and Deputy Chief Minister I Jeffrey Kitingan; his party deputies Ellron Alfred Angin (also Sabah youth and sports minister) and Robert Tawik (state assistant works minister); acting PBS president and Deputy Chief Minister II Dr Joachim Gunsalam; his predecessor Maximus Ongkili; and a PBS deputy president, Jahid Jahim, who is also Sabah’s rural development minister.

Kitingan subsequently denied receiving RM1.78 million in bribes and described the allegation as a “politically motivated attack designed to destabilise, demonise, and demolish” the Sabah government.

Similarly, Gunsalam and his deputy also denied the allegation.

In August, Warisan challenged the six to lodge police reports or take legal action if the allegations were false.

To date, the MACC has remained silent on the matter.

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