As GE14 is nearing, every move made by the candidates are being closely watched by everyone. Thus, any wrong move could land them in trouble just like this parliament candidate.
Recently, Pakatan Harapan’s Parit Buntar Parliament candidate, Datuk Dr Mujahid Yusof Rawa revealed that a Barisan Nasional (BN) Parliament candidate had allegedly given some money to a (Malaysian Islamic Party) PAS member, reported Sinar Harian. Uh-oh!
Mujahid revealed that a cheque worth RM25,000 was allegedly issued under the Perbadanan Setiausaha Kerajaan Negeri (SSI) and was signed by the Perak’s State Secretary, Datuk Seri Abdul Puhat Mat Nayan in February (2018) to a PAS member.
The picture of the cheque was later made viral through a Facebook page named ‘Ana Tahu‘.
Source: Facebook
According to reports, the cheque was for the chairman of Pasti (Pusat Asuhan Tunas Islam) to fund the school’s development. Hence, the cheque was given along with the donation’s application form.
FYI, Pasti is an Islamic preschool owned by PAS Youth.
“We don’t know which PAS member received the donation because the name was censored in the picture.”
“However, SSI’s name and Abdul Puhat’s signature can be seen clearly on the cheque that was issued on behalf of Pasti’s chairman,” said Mujahid in a press conference.
Source: IDEAS
“Now, is Abdul Puhat trying to buy PAS’ votes and misuse his position as the State’s Secretary?” he asked.
He also said that Abdul Puhat had misused his power because he used the state’s cheque for an individual instead of an organisation or NGO.
“So, we wonder if the amount (RM25,000) written on the cheque abides by the SOP (Standard of Procedure) of the maximum money allowed?”
Source: Sinar Harian
“Also, isn’t it a violation to the jurisdiction of the State Secretary if the cheque is written for an individual?” he further questioned.
Besides that, Muhajid also explained that they aren’t hesitant to bring this matter forward to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) as they believe that Abdul Puhat had allegedly committed a bribery offence.
However, there are always two sides of the same coin.
Therefore, to get a clarification on the accusation, Sinar Harian contacted Abdul Puhat for his side of the story and he reportedly admitted to issuing a cheque written to an individual.
Source: The Star
“Yes, we have approved the school’s application and issued the cheque under SSI on the individual’s name.”
“However, we did that because the school’s development fund account can’t be used.”
“Besides, the cheque and the application form had been approved by the state government. This means that I didn’t misuse my power by donating from the state’s fund to the person,” explained Abdul Puhat.
He may be innocent after all!
Looking at both sides of the story, maybe there had been a huge misunderstanding between the parties. Nonetheless, we hope this issue will be resolved quickly as GE14 approaches.
Do you think it’s an abuse of power or really a misunderstanding? Share with us your thoughts in the comments!
Also read: MACC Gave Out RM400,000 Reward in 2017 to People Who Reported Bribery Cases
