JOHOR BARU, Jan 4 — Johor DAP secretary Tan Hong Pin called for an end to the manipulation of commissions from allocation funds by contractors and suppliers appointed by the state’s district office, saying it went against Pakatan Harapan’s (PH) agenda.

He explained that this commonly involved diverting 30 per cent of the allocations.

“As a state executive council member, I condemn such practices. In fact, the move to continue this unprofitable practice will inhibit the New Malaysia spirit for the future,” said Tan, who is also the state local government, science and technology committee chairman, in a statement.

He said this is also in line with a previous statement by DAP stalwart and Iskandar Puteri MP Lim Kit Siang criticising the practice.

Tan’s statement follows a Chinese daily report two days ago that a man claiming to be an assistant to Muar MP Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman had requested “kickbacks” that amounted to 30 per cent from a vernacular school for procurements funded via constituency allocations.

Johor DAP chairman Liew Chin Tong insisted yesterday that no assistant of any elected representative in the state was involved, pointing out that the parties involved were the contractors or suppliers appointed by the district office.

Tan stressed that the Johor state government under PH will not compromise on such matters and is committed to act according to the law.

He also urged the people to remain active in ensuring Malaysia is credible and integral.

“Such active involvement can be translated through the act of reporting any suspicious activities involving the misuse or abuse of provisions and allocations to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) or the Johor mentri besar’s office,” he said.

Tan, who is also the Skudai assemblyman, said a strong mandate was given by the people to PH due to the destruction of integrity throughout the previous BN administration.

“The PH coalition that was democratically elected by the people last year should have a big spirit in combating patronage politics, money politics and also dirty politics,” he said.

Yesterday, a police report was lodged by Syed Saddiq’s parliamentary special officer denying having anything to do with the commission for funds allocated to Chinese vernacular schools, following an exposé by the local Chinese press.

In the report, an unidentified individual who impersonated as Syed Saddiq’s special assistant had allegedly demanded commission for funds allocated to Chinese vernacular schools in Muar.

According to Chinese paper Sin Chew Daily, the impersonator had approached several schools asking a 30 per cent cut from their allocations.