KOTA KINABALU: Datuk Armizan Mohd Ali has rubbished graft allegations made in an "anonymous" social media message linking him to a mineral prospecting licences scandal.
The Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Minister also urged three opposition politicians, including a former MP, who further spread the allegations to identify the individual who started the rumour.
"I am asking the former MP, who contributed to the spread of this message, to find the source of these allegations that used unnamed individuals and fabricated characters like 'investigative journalist (X7)' and 'Datuk Z,' to make the claims," he told reporters in Papar on Friday (March 28).
Armizan named three opposition leaders from Parti Warisan and Sabah Umno as those he claimed were contributing to the spread of the fake allegations.
"So, I urge those involved in spreading it to step out and reveal who 'Datuk Z' and the investigative journalist are. Don’t make these unfounded accusations while hiding," he said, denying the allegations as "pure slander."
He challenged the opposition politicians, who he alleged were spreading the fake allegations, to track down these unnamed individuals making the claims so that he (Armizan) could take legal action.
"If they identify the two sources in the message, I can take legal action. Right now, how do I sue a ghost writer?" he added.
He also mentioned that he asked his lawyer to send a letter to the politicians, asking them to clarify their position on whether they agreed with the claims made in the 'circulated message' that linked him to alleged corruption.
Armizan explained his trip to Indonesia on May 16, 2023, was by invitation from PT Bayan to the state-owned Sabah Mineral Management Sdn Bhd (SMM) when he was still a board member.
"I went to Indonesia at the invitation of PT Bayan as a board member of SSM; it was not done secretly," he said, adding that the SMM management and technical team also visited to review the company's investment proposals.
Armizan said several police reports had been lodged by his staff from the Papar Parliamentary Office, and he would consider taking defamation suits against those spreading the false allegations.
