PETALING JAYA: The arrest and remand of Bersatu treasurer-general Salleh Bajuri is a form of unwarranted pressure on the party’s leaders and a “fishing expedition” to find fault, says its secretary-general Hamzah Zainudin.
Hamzah said there was no reason for the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) to detain Salleh as he had been very cooperative.
“Bersatu maintains that the remand of Salleh Bajuri is part of the pressure being placed on our leaders and officials to find wrongdoings that do not exist.
“Similarly, conducting investigations on Bersatu vendors is also part of the Pakatan Harapan-Barisan Nasional government’s ongoing political witch-hunt,” he said in a statement.
Salleh was arrested on March 2 and remanded for two days by the graft busters. According to sources, Salleh’s arrest involved investigations into the Jana Wibawa programme and the Akar Umbi Pemacu Negara (AkuPN) online application.
According to Hamzah, Salleh had been called up numerous times by MACC since January and, each time, he had provided them with whatever documents requested.
“Salleh, as the treasurer-general, is honest, trustworthy and has integrity. He has ensured that all procurements done by Bersatu are in accordance with the party’s financial procedures.
“We ask that the PH-BN government end this political witch-hunt and accept the fact that Bersatu leaders have not done anything against the law.”
The Muhyiddin Yassin-led party’s accounts were frozen by MACC a month ago under the Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act (Amla).
This was believed to be in connection with an investigation into the alleged misappropriation of billions of ringgit meant for Covid-19 stimulus packages.
Last week, Bersatu’s Tasek Gelugor MP Wan Saiful Wan Jan was charged with accepting a RM6.9 million bribe and soliciting an unspecified amount over a RM232 million road project linked to the Jana Wibawa programme.
Segambut Bersatu deputy chief Adam Radlan Adam Muhammad has also been slapped with five charges of soliciting and accepting bribes over projects involving Jana Wibawa.