Parliament No Place To Debate Zahid Case Says Anwar

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Anwar Ibrahim rejected calls for Parliament to discuss the conditional discharge from corruption charges granted to deputy prime minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi (left) earlier this week.KUALA LUMPUR: Parliament is no place to debate the conditional discharge granted to Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, the prime minister said in response to calls by PKR Youth for a special sitting on the matter.
Anwar Ibrahim, who is also the PKR president, said there was a need to understand the separation of powers between the three branches of government, namely the executive, legislature and judiciary.
“Parliament is not a courthouse where questions can be asked and answers be provided. We should not turn a parliamentary sitting into a court proceeding.
“The attorney-general (AG) is neither an MP nor a minister,” he told reporters after Friday prayers at Masjid Sri Petaling here.
On Monday, Zahid was granted a discharge not amounting to an acquittal on all 47 charges involving corruption, criminal breach of trust and money laundering.
He had been charged with embezzling millions of ringgit from his foundation, Yayasan Akalbudi, and accepting bribes for various projects during his tenure as the home minister between 2013 and 2018.
PKR Youth called for a special sitting of Parliament to debate the decision, which has sparked criticism from activists, party leaders from the unity government as well as the opposition, all of whom have demanded an explanation from the AG.
Earlier today, Bersatu MP Wan Ahmad Fayhsal Wan Ahmad Kamal said he had submitted an emergency motion to Dewan Rakyat Speaker Johari Abdul yesterday, calling for a special sitting to be held. - FMT

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