It’s not politically motivated
KOTA KINABALU: Lahad Datu assemblyman Datuk Yusof Apdal has refuted opposition claims that the ongoing Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission’s (MACC) investigation was politically motivated.
The Umno Silam division chief said that he is and will stay loyal to the party and its leaders.
Speaking to reporters from the hospital ward at the Jesselton Medical Centre here where he sought treatment after his release on Monday from a sixday remand, Yusof urged his supporters to remain calm and not be swayed by talks from the opposition.
He told reporters that there are people from the opposition claiming the MACC investigation was politically motivated and that he (Yusof) was a political pawn.
“I urge my supporters in Lahad Datu not to be influenced by such claims. MACC wants to get to the bottom of certain matters and that the probe, I believe, had nothing to do with politics,” he said while declining to reveal what had transpired during his detention by the MACC.
Yusof and his elder brother, former Umno vice president and Rural and Regional Development Minister, Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal, were among 13 persons detained by the MACC for investigations into the skimming of RM1.5 billion worth of federal funds allocated for development projects in Sabah between 2009 and 2015.
“I am loyal to the party, our president Datuk Seri Najib Razak and deputy Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and our Sabah Umno chairman Tan Sri Musa Aman. I will remain with the party to ensure we win the next election,” he said, adding that the Silam Umno division which has the largest in terms of branches and members in the country, is intact and fully supports the Umno leadership.
When asked about his relationship with Shafie who now heads Parti Warisan Sabah, Yusof, who was in high spirits, replied, “we are brothers… what can I say but we don’t agree politically.
Yusof said that he was prepared to brief the Umno leadership on the issues pertaining to the MACC investigation if requested as the matter was not of a personal nature.
On his health condition, he said that he was diagnosed with a serious haemorrhoid problem that might need some surgery and it would take about a week before he is discharged from the hospital.
“I would also like to say that the MACC was very professional during my detention. The officers carried out their responsibility in accordance with the SOP. They also allowed me to seek outpatient medical treatment during the six-day remand,” he said.
Meanwhile, Shafie is still in remand until Friday.