PETALING JAYA: A PAS leader has questioned the sudden arrest of a Terengganu executive councillor (exco) on suspicion of abusing his position to secure jobs for his two children in state-linked companies.
Party information chief Ahmad Fadhli Shaari also said that the exco member in question does not need to resign, as his role in the state government cannot influence the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) investigation under any circumstances.
"First and foremost, we respect the investigation process.
"In a country that upholds the rule of law, the principle to be observed is that a person is innocent until proven guilty.
"No one is considered guilty until a court proves otherwise," he said in a statement on Sunday (Feb 22).
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Fadhli said, however, that the party cannot hide its surprise as the alleged cases reportedly occurred in 2018 and 2020 and the authorities did not pursue the matter until now.
"Does this mean that for six years, from 2020 to 2026, the MACC found no new developments, only to suddenly discover them today?" he asked.
It was reported earlier that the exco member in his 60s was detained at 11.15am today when he turned up to give his statement at the MACC office in Kemaman, Terengganu.
"Preliminary investigations indicate that the alleged offences took place in 2018 and 2020.
"The suspect is believed to have used his position as an exco member and chairman of the board of a company to instruct that his two children be hired by two subsidiaries of a state government-linked company," the source said.
Terengganu MACC director Hazrul Shazreen Abd Yazid confirmed the arrest when contacted.
