Pua not allowed to speak on 1MDB
> He has to quit PAC if he insists on taking part in the debate: Hasan
KUALA LUMPUR: DAP lawmaker Tony Pua will not be able to make open remarks on 1MDB as long as he remains on the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), following a ruling by the Dewan Rakyat.
PAC chairman Datuk Hasan Arifin said the gag order was not restricted only to the planned debate between Pua and 1MDB president Arul Kanda Kandasamy, but also to the issuing of statements and speaking at “ceramah”.
“The PAC will abide by the ruling made by Speaker Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia,” he said. “This also means Pua will no longer be able to speak on 1MDB in campaigns,” he told a press conference at the Parliament lobby yesterday.
Asked if the order will also apply to Arul Kanda, Hasan said he was unsure. “I will get more details from the speaker,” he said.
He said Pua had no choice but to quit the committee if he insisted on continuing with the debate.
Asked what would be Pua’s fate in the PAC if he continued giving statements on 1MDB, Hasan said he had no power to remove him from his position.
“An interim report on 1MDB has been made by the PAC. Therefore, it is necessary for the ethics to be adhered to,” he said.
Meanwhile, Former Rural and Regional Development Minister Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal said conditions should not be imposed on the face-off between Pua and Arul Kanda.
He said this is because the debate may help shine some light on the issues surrounding 1MDB.
“Even if that person (Pua) possesses exclusive information as a PAC member, conditions should not be imposed. What is important is that the public too can hear the truth.
“So I think it’s not wise for us to impose conditions on the debate. We should encourage it instead and only set conditions that help us find the truth,” Shafie told reporters at the Parliament lobby.
PKR’s Pandan MP Rafizi Ramli said the ruling by the Dewan Rakyat in disallowing Pua from taking part in the debate on 1MDB is “debatable”. He said it should not be a problem for any PAC member to take part in an open debate as PAC’s proceedings are not criminal in nature.
“I am quite surprised by the ruling,” he said, adding that the house should discuss whether or not a member of the PAC can debate an issue that is being investigated by the committee.
Rafizi, who is also PKR secretarygeneral, said Pakatan Harapan will have a discussion on the ruling to decide on its next step.