Kepong MP Lim Lip Eng said the public deserves a straightforward answer from the party, “without any double talk”.
In a statement, Lim also said MCA president Wee Ka Siong should make a public apology to Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim over his remarks on the Federal Territories Pardons Board “addendum” issue.
Yesterday, Wee reportedly rubbished Anwar’s refusal to confirm the existence of an addendum due to the principle of sub judice.
The Ayer Hitam MP said sub judice does not apply in Malaysia’s non-jury legal system, and that whether the royal addendum exists is a simple “yes-or-no” matter.
He was referring to Anwar’s remarks in the Dewan Rakyat, where he cited sub judice concerns over discussing the alleged addendum, which could allow Najib to serve the remainder of his sentence in the SRC International case under house arrest.
Lim, a lawyer by profession, said Wee is not legally trained and advised him to talk to the party’s lawyers “who actually understand the concept of sub judice, before making sweeping and uninformed statements about the royal addendum”.
He said while the rule of sub judice is often associated with jury trial systems, Malaysian courts, including the Federal Court, have upheld the sub judice principle.
Citing Justice Nazlan Ghazali’s ruling in PP v Najib Tun Razak (2020), he said the legal precedent shows Wee overstepped by commenting on a matter he does not fully understand.
“Whether this is due to poor advice or sheer ignorance, his reckless remarks warrant a public apology to the prime minister,” he said.
Wee has shown courage greater than DAP leadership, says Ramasamy
Wee’s decision to call out Anwar has been praised by Urimai chairman P Ramasamy for showing “greater courage and accountability than the entire DAP leadership”.
Ramasamy said Wee raised the issue of the addendum despite being part of Barisan Nasional (BN), a component of the unity government.
He pointed out that DAP, his former party, once prided itself on its anti-establishment stance, but has since remained silent on key issues.
“In contrast, Wee Ka Siong, one of MCA’s two MPs, has shown the fortitude to question the government, a courage glaringly absent in the current DAP leadership,” he said in a statement.