KUALA LUMPUR, July 15 — Alleging power abuse, federal Opposition lawmaker Lim Guan Eng wants the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) to investigate Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob and PAS minister Datuk Seri Takiyuddin Hassan for a purported secret deal to appoint a deputy prime minister from Bersatu.
Pointing to news reports, Lim said Takiyuddin had openly admitted to drafting the DPM agreement that privately benefitted Ismail Sabri and the Perikatan Nasional (PN) coalition, and that this was not in the nation's interests.
"Takiyuddin had publicly admitted that he drafted the agreement in his position as the minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Parliament and Law) and not in his party’s capacity.
"Takiyuddin added that as the then minister holding the parliament and law portfolio, all matters concerning legal documents were handled by him.
"This is an open public admission of abusing his powers and misusing his ministerial position not for the national interest or party advantage, but for the political benefit of the prime minister and PN,” Lim said in a statement today.
Takiyuddin is PAS secretary-general and is currently the energy and natural resources minister in Ismail Sabri's Cabinet.
PAS is a component party of PN, alongside Bersatu, which is headed by Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, the PM before Ismail Sabri.
On behalf of DAP, Lim, as its national chairman, condemned the current government leaders for treating their public positions as private property to be used for their own personal interests.
"This is evident not only in the current government appointing politicians and government MPs with no professional competency or technical expertise to the board of directors or head of GLCs controlling tens of billions of ringgit of public assets, but also the unprecedented appointment of an Umno politician to be the chairman of the Securities Commission,” the Bagan MP said.
He was referring to Datuk Seri Awang Adek Hussin who in late April replaced Datuk Syed Zahid Albar following a high-profile court dispute involving the financially-troubled oil-and-gas company Serba Dinamik.
Lim also questioned if MACC would demonstrate its independence and investigate Ismail Sabri and Takiyuddin for suspected power abuse.
"Or is MACC going to prove once again it is a mere political tool to be weaponised for the benefit of the current government?” he asked.
On July 12, Takiyuddin admitted to drafting a "memorandum of agreement” between PN and Ismail Sabri in August 2021 for the deputy prime minister’s post.
However, the PAS man also pointed out that the deputy prime minister’s post is not provided for in the Federal Constitution.
PAS president Tan Sri Abdul Hadi Awang had previously denied the existence of the purported DPM deal, but his Bersatu counterpart and PN chairman Muhyiddin said the former should ask Takiyiddin about it.
Hadi later admitted that had been discussions for a DPM when Ismail Sabri replaced Muhyiddin as prime minister, but insisted that there was no official agreement.
