Cambridge Analytica never hired by BN, govt

Political consulting firm Cambridge Analytica (CA) has never been hired by Barisan Nasional (BN) or the Malaysian government, said the Prime Minister’s Office.

“Contrary to media reports, neither Cambridge Analytica nor its parent company SCL Group have ever – now or in the past – been contracted or paid in any way by Barisan Nasional, the Prime Minister’s Office or any part of the government of Malaysia,” the PM’s Office said in a statement yesterday.

However, it said the SCL Group country representative yesterday confirmed to the government that Cambridge Analytica’s advice on the 2013 general election was provided personally to Datuk Seri Mukhriz Mahathir, now Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (PPBM) deputy president.

“The SCL representative also confirmed that he reported directly to Mukhriz Mahathir, not BN or the government,” the statement said.

On its website, Cambridge Analytica touts itself as a global leader in data-driven campaigning with over 25 years of experience.

Meanwhile, Mukhriz denied any contact between him and Cambridge Analytica.

The PPBM deputy president also clarified his link with his former media officer, Azrin Zizal, who later headed the South-east Asia division of SCL Group, the parent company of CA.

“I categorically deny any contact with @CamAnalytica at any time,” he said in a brief statement on his Twitter account @MukhrizMahathir, tagging the firm’s account.

“Azrin Zizal was my Media Officer 2009-2013 at MITI,” he added, using the initials for the Ministry of International Trade and Industry.

“He was not employed by me as a representative of SCL Group or Cambridge Analytica, and he was no longer my Media Officer when I became Kedah MB.”

CA claimed to have supported the BN Kedah campaign during the 2013 general election with a “targeted messaging campaign” highlighting school improvements since 2008.

The election saw a swing back to BN’s favour with a landslide victory in which 21 out of 36 state seats and 10 out of 15 parliamentary seats returned to the ruling coalition’s hands.

Mukhriz was appointed Kedah Mentri Besar following the victory; however, he resigned from the post on February 3, 2016 after the Regency council told him that he had lost the support of the majority in the state legislative assembly.

Meanwhile, PPBM said it would be seeking the advice of its lawyers to see if there were any grounds for legal action against Cambridge Analytica and its parent company, SCL Group.

The party’s chief strategist, Datuk Rais Husin, said that the press statement from the Prime Minister’s Office quoting SCL alleging that CA worked with then-Umno Kedah chief Mukhriz was a “complete and blatant lie”.

“It is highly defamatory. We are not taking anything off the table including unleashing legal action against them,” Rais said in an online report yesterday.

PPBM deputy president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said he has no knowledge of Cambridge Analytica allegedly influencing votes during the 13th General Election (GE13).

“I don’t know. I’ve no knowledge and this is the first time I’m hearing about the matter,” he said during a press conference in Parliament on Tuesday.