Gerakan questions govt decision to not prosecute Taib Mahmud

PETALING JAYA: Gerakan has questioned the government's decision to not prosecute Sarawak Governor Tun Abdul Taib Mahmud.

Party president Datuk Dr Dominic Lau Hoe Chai said that Sarawak DAP had been very vocal when criticising the wealth and alleged abuses of power by the former chief minister.

“Is DAP tacitly admitting that they were defaming the previous government by remaining silent on this issue? Is DAP truly committed to opposing corruption?” he said.

Online portal Free Malaysia Today reported that the government had said that allegations linking Taib to bribery and abuses of power were “nothing new”.

It added that Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Liew Vui Keong had said that Attorney-General Tommy Thomas had studied the case and deemed that no prosecution was necessary.

Dr Lau added that DAP has not done anything since taking power despite urging Sarawakians to submit their complaints regarding Taib to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).

“They should be taking the lead by lodging a report with the authorities to take further action, proving their commitment to ending corruption and abuses of power,” he said in a statement Tuesday (March 26).

Last September, Sarawak DAP leaders had urged the MACC to investigate Taib for alleged corruption and abuses of power.

Previously, the MACC had said there were 15 case files opened against Taib, but added that it was unable to take action against him as investigations showed that there were no cases that could be linked directly to him.