Wan Junaidi blasts Latheefa over Najib audio release

KUCHING: Santubong MP Datuk Seri Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar has hit out at Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief commissioner Latheefa Koya for ‘stooping so low’ in making public the audio recording of telephone conversations involving former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.

He said the MACC, as an agency that guards the law and integrity of the nation, should have shown more professionalism and adhere to the rule of law while conforming to the principles of the Rukun Negara.

“Has the chief of the MACC abandoned the very fabric of the nation? Has she forgotten her oath of office when she revealed the wire-recording of the conversations of Datuk Seri Najib with Datin Seri Rosmah?” he said yesterday when asked to comment on the release of nine audio recordings involving Najib, his wife Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor, former MACC chief commissioner Tan Sri Dzulkifli Ahmad and other former government top officials, by the MACC a day earlier.

Wan Junaidi said while Malaysia does not have a specific privacy law, the privacy of individual is nevertheless protected under the Penal Code and Personal Data Protection Act 2012.

“These laws may not be adequate in detail, but that does not mean the senior and most powerful person in the government like the chief of MACC could stoop so low as to publicly reveal to public the private conversations including the communication with the leader of a foreign country.

“This I believe could affect our foreign relations. How are leaders of other countries going to communicate with our leader without them thinking of the possibility such communication could be revealed to the public at large?”

Wan Junaidi said the country’s wire-tapping law, under Section 116C of the Criminal Procedure Code, was amended in 2012 to protect the nation against major criminals like terrorists and drug traffickers, and not meant for political exploitation.

The former Parliament deputy speaker said at the time of the law’s amendment, the Dewan Rakyat had been assured that strict compliance with the standard operating procedure (SOP) was to be adhered to before the deputy public prosecutor would permit police to conduct any wire-tapping.

He also questioned the timing of the release by MACC, wondering whether it was to coincide with the ongoing Kimanis by-election, or merely a “political stunt to discredit Najib”.

Wan Junaidi went on to urge the present federal administration not to abandon the rule of law and legal process.

“Politics should not be allowed to justify and legitimise all their action.

“Pakatan Harapan promised us a better world before the last general election. They promised us rule of law, transparency, accountability and freedom within the boundaries of the law and constitution.

“Where have all these promises of a better tomorrow gone? Have the powers gone into the head of everyone, that the government can ignore morality and responsibility and is unable to distinguish right from wrong?”

Has the chief of the MACC abandoned the very fabric of the nation? Datuk Seri Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar