AUGUST 12 — I refer to the report “Simplified: The Tabung Haji RCI report and what it said”.

On “When was the RCI conducted and when was its report released?”, the report states as follows:

“From its initiation to its completion and its release, the RCI spanned the administration of three prime ministers.

During Bersatu’s Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin’s time as prime minister, the Cabinet on August 14, 2020 decided there needed to be an RCI, and on July 14, 2021 agreed to set up the RCI and on October 8, 2021 decided on the RCI’s scope of investigations.

On January 20, 2022, the RCI chair, former chief justice Tun Md Raus Sharif and five other RCI members were appointed.

The report dated July 19, 2022 was presented to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong (YDPA) on August 30, 2022, and this was when Umno’s Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob was prime minister.

The Malaysian government declassified and released the RCI report on July 29 this year, with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim explaining that it was not released three years ago as it could have caused depositors to panic and withdraw their savings from TH.”

The date when the RCI report was presented to the YDPA (read: the government) – that is, August 30, 2022 – was almost three months before the 15th General Elections (GE15) which were held on November 19, 2022.

It was also five weeks before the Third Meeting of the Fifth Session of the Fourteenth Parliament held from October 3 – 7, 2022.

If Anwar Ibrahim was questioned for not releasing the RCI report more than three years ago, rightly former prime minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob should also be questioned for not releasing the same after it was submitted to the YDPA.

His Cabinet then included Idris Ahmad (Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department in charge of Religious Affairs), Datuk Seri Takiyuddin Hassan (Minister of Energy and Natural Resources) and Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainuddin (Minister of Home Affairs).

Hamzah Zainuddin is now Opposition Leader and Takiyuddin Hassan Opposition Chief Whip.

Both joined the walkout staged by PAS and Wawasan MPs during the special Dewan Rakyat sitting on the RCI report yesterday.

Bersatu MPs, however, ignored the walkout and stayed on to take part in the debate.

Bersatu president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said the party had showed that it was a responsible opposition, with six of its MPs taking part in the debate.

“Even though there was criticism over the Opposition walkout without participating in the debate, we (Bersatu) are also part of the Opposition.

“We are a responsible opposition. The six MPs from Bersatu took part in the debate,” said the former prime minister.

If Bersatu is part of the Opposition, then there is a clear split in the Opposition.

One part walked out. One part stayed.

So, it wasn’t just a walkout.

It was the Opposition Leader losing his men and the Opposition Chief Whip losing his whip.

** This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail.