GEORGE TOWN, March 23 – Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said he sees no reason to go on leave pending an investigation by the Malaysian Anti Corruption Commission into the controversial RM2.8mil bungalow purchase when the allegations against him were likely part of a political conspiracy.
He also said that he was not surprised that PAS and UMNO joining hands together, demanding him to go on leave pending investigations by Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), on BN’s allegations against him of corruption relating to the purchase of my 30-year old house and the sale of government land in Taman Manggis.
He said these demands are clearly politically motivated which both BN and PAS did not make the same demands to the Prime Minister to go on leave, when the Prime Minister was discovered with USD 700 million or RM2.6 billion in donation in his personal bank account.
“I have always conducted a clean administration of Penang according to CAT principles of competency, accountability and transparency. One of the key integrity measures is practicing open tenders, the implementation that garnered rare praise for the Penang state government from Transparency International,” said Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng in his statement today.
“The Penang state government is justifiably proud of running a clean government free from corruption. The sale of government land in Taman Manggis is by open tender to the public and awarded to the company that paid the highest price. How can there be corruption when the company would have won the tender on their own merit by paying the highest price? Further the landlady that sold me the house was never ever a shareholder or director of the company,” he said.
“For this reason the corruption reports against me to MACC by BN and their supporters are false, and a conspiracy to character assassination and destroy me politically. However I will leave it to MACC to conduct investigations and would press them to complete it speedily so that my name and the state government’s name can be cleared. I have stated my full co-operation to MACC and hope that there can be a fair, independent and professional investigation,” he said.
“I do not see why I should go on leave for blatantly false allegations against me, and when I have no influence and control over MACC investigations or on the Attorney-General, who exercises full prosecution powers. Only the Prime Minister exercises authority over both MACC and the Attorney-General,” he added.
Lim said the late Menteri Besar of Kelantan Datuk Seri Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat was investigated by MACC on false charges of corruption over a sponsored haj trip to Mekah in 2009, which he subsequently cancelled. He said there was no one asked Datuk Seri Nik Aziz to go on leave because Aziz had no control or authority over MACC and the charges were baseless.
Furthermore, he also said that if a Menteri Besar or Chief Minister is required to go on leave every time a corruption report to the MACC is lodged, even frivolous and baseless ones, this can be used as a political weapon. He said everyone then has to go on leave.
“I would however be willing to discuss further the background of the baseless corruption allegations against me with independent and neutral parties, so that they can get a true picture of this conspiracy of lies by BN. I urge supporters to be patient in the face of ferocious attacks by TV3 against me with 30 minutes nightly news highlights whilst downplaying the huge RM100 million corruption scandal in the Youth and Sports Ministry,” Lim said.
Last week, Umno MP for Tasek Gelugor Datuk Shabudin Yahaya linked Lim’s house purchase last year to the 2012 sale of Penang government-owned land to a private developer to build a specialist hospital. Penang PAS Youth then urged the chief minister to go on leave pending the MACC’s probe on the matter.
