1. Former Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin said today that he was briefed by the former Attorney General, when both were in office, about alleged criminal "proof" against the Prime Minister.
2. This is an admission that there was a high-level conspiracy to topple the Prime Minister, in what would have been a coup against democratic process and the decision of the people at the last General Election.
3. Firstly, the fact that a sitting Attorney General was privately briefing and sharing classified legal information with Tan Sri Muhyiddin, a member of Cabinet and UMNO member who clearly had vested interests, is not only unethical but also a breach of the Official Secrets Act.
4. Secondly, how could the Attorney General have had sufficient "proof" to charge the Prime Minister then, when an investigation had not even been launched.
5. Thirdly, is this the same "proof" that the Wall Street Journal referenced when it claimed to have seen confidential documents and used these as the basis to make all sorts of sensational allegations against the Prime Minister.
6. In any judicial system, anywhere in the world, there is a standard process that is followed. If there are allegations against someone, the lawful authorities conduct an investigation, and then - if they still have reason to believe a crime was committed - a charge sheet is drawn up.
7. But, in this case, a charge sheet was said to be drawn up in May 2015 - before the so-called Special Task Force was formed, before the investigation was started in June 2015, and certainly before the Prime Minister was interviewed in December 2015 by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission. This proves that there was a conspiracy.
8. Based on his statement, Tan Sri Muhyiddin is also indirectly questioning the credibility of the current Attorney General and the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission.
9. For the record, the sitting AG, Tan Sri Mohamed Apandi Ali, on 26th January 2016 cleared the Prime Minister of any wrongdoing regarding the donations. Under Article 145 (3) of the Federal Constitution, it is the AG’s prerogative to start, undertake or stop any proceedings involving offences. The discretionary power given to the Attorney-General under Article 145(3) is absolute and cannot be challenged or replaced by any powers, including the judiciary. So if any quarters are not in agreement with the AG's action in handling a prosecution, they do not have any basis to challenge it. It is important to note that the AG’s decision was made after a detailed investigation from all angles on the report submitted by MACC.
9. So it seems that Tan Sri Muhyiddin was not only in breach of the Official Secrets Act, but was also complicit in a politically-motivated conspiracy to manipulate and abuse our legal system in order to overthrow a democratically elected Prime Minister.
10. Why only now is Tan Sri Muhyiddin making such a confession, just after he was suspended as the Deputy President? What is his hidden motive and agenda? Can his act be seen as abetting since he claims to have information on an alleged criminal act, but did not report to the authorities until today?
Dato' Sri Azalina Othman Said
Minister in the Prime Minister's Department
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