Lim dismisses Umno Youth chief’s allegation over Turkey trip

KUALA LUMPUR: Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng yesterday dismissed an allegation by Umno Youth that he had allowed a gaming company to sponsor the working visit of senior police officers to Istanbul.

He said the allegation by Umno Youth chief Datuk Dr Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki was untrue and baseless.

“According to him (Asyraf), I am not at all sensitive to Islamic laws and people’s sentiments. I wish to emphasise that I did not know at all about the sponsorship of the working visit of the senior police officers by the Malaysia Totalisator Board because it was decided by its board of directors,” he said in a statement.

The Malaysia Totalisator Board is a statutory body established under the Racing (Totalisator Board) Act 1961.

Lim said it was not necessary for any decision by the board of directors of the Malaysia Totalisator Board to be referred to the finance minister and, as such, he was never informed of the trip by the senior police officers to Turkey, and he never approved it as the finance minister.

He said the board of directors of the Malaysia Totalisator Board approved the application for the working visit on Nov 23, 2017, at a cost of RM184,648 before he was appointed the finance minister and when Asyraf was still the deputy minister (religious affairs) in the Prime Minister’s Department in the previous government led by former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.

“Prior to this, three trips by senior police officers abroad were approved by the board of directors of the Malaysia Totalisator Board, from June 12-17, 2012, at a cost of RM69,763; June 10-14, 2014 at a cost of RM95,040 and from May 1-6, 2014 at a cost of RM128,400,” he said.