PUTRAJAYA: Any handout given during the election campaign period is still bribery, even if it is called charity (sedekah), says Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
The Umno president was responding to PAS Ulama council chief Datuk Ahmad Yahya who called him out for twisting PAS president Tan Sri Abdul Hadi Awang’s statement on the issue.
Ahmad Zahid reiterated Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief Tan Sri Azam Baki’s statement that even if they (PAS) used the term “sedekah”, it is still defined as corruption under Section 10 of the Election Offences Act 1954.
“The statements made by the MACC chief and leaders of several non-governmental organisations should be a guidance on handouts given during elections.
“This is not about twisting words; this is an official statement by the MACC chief,” he told reporters after chairing the 55th MEXCLUB meeting on rural development.
Last week, Terengganu Barisan Nasional urged the authorities to investigate the PAS state government over allegations that the party distributed money to voters during its GE15 campaign.
State Barisan chief Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Said said it had instructed division and state legislative assembly youth heads to lodge reports with the MACC.
This came after videos circulated online where voters were said to have been made to swear to vote for PAS in order to receive cash aid under the then Perikatan Nasional government’s Covid-19 stimulus package.
PAS president Tan Sri Abdul Hadi Awang had claimed that it was not against election rules as the money was distributed for “charity” and existing campaigning rules only prohibited candidates and their representatives from giving cash to voters.
