Yadzil said MACC should also probe the executive councillor involved in approving the reclamation project and the chief minister who was in office when the alleged bribes were given.

“If someone received (bribes), someone else would have given them. If someone applied (for the project), someone else would have to approve (or reject) it.

“It’s impossible for only one ‘shark’ to be involved,” the Bersatu man said in a Facebook post.

The Bemban assemblyman said he was puzzled by the arrest of former Senate deputy president Ali Mohamad in relation to the case, as Ali had no role in the state or federal government.

He also questioned the timing of the arrest and investigation, noting that Umno Supreme Council member Lokman Noor Adam had lodged an MACC report in 2021 over the same case.

He asked if Ali would have been arrested and investigated if he was still in Umno.

“I would like to remind MACC to investigate the matter transparently and promptly. Make sure that all parties involved are tracked down, investigated, and charged without prejudice,” said Yadzil.

Ali, the former Tangga Batu Umno chief who joined Bersatu last year, is under remand until April 20 to assist MACC with its investigation into the case.

He served as Senate deputy president from December 2020 to May 2023 and is currently Bersatu’s deputy information chief.

An MACC source said a former Senate deputy president allegedly accepted bribes in the form of four luxury cars and RM300,000 in cash, in connection with land reclamation works off the coast of Kota Laksamana in Melaka.

The source said the suspect allegedly received the bribes around 2021 to 2023 as kickbacks to award land reclamation works spanning about 100 acres to a company owned by a man with a “Datuk” title.

The company owner was also arrested but has been released on bail.