“This issue has also been raised by several MPs. It is a very serious allegation and one that cannot be accepted under any circumstances,” he said during his winding-up speech for the Whistleblower Protection (Amendment) Bill 2025 in the Dewan Rakyat today.
“I would like to advise the individual named Albert Tei to immediately file a report regarding this issue with the police and the MACC complaints committee under Section 15 of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission Act 2009 (Act 694), by naming the MACC officer involved in the allegation.”
Kulasegaran said that the government will not compromise on issues involving threats or intimidation, and stern action will be taken if the allegations are found to be true.
“Any individual who comes forward with information about misconduct must not be blocked or threatened by any party, especially by authorities who are supposed to protect whistleblowers under Act 711,” he said.
Tei is currently standing trial on two charges of giving a total of RM350,000 in bribes related to mineral prospecting licence applications in Sabah to two assemblymen.
Earlier today, lawyer Mahajoth Singh was reported as saying that Tei had approached MACC but was warned against coming forward before he exposed the Sabah mining scandal to Malaysiakini.
Malaysiakini reported Mahajoth as saying that his client had first approached MACC at the end of October 2024, but was told by the anti-graft agency that he “would be in trouble” if he came forward.
Tei was also not offered any protection, the lawyer claimed.
Mahajoth said this in response to law and institutional reform minister Azalina Othman Said, who said whistleblowers who approached the media before enforcement agencies were not entitled to protection under the Whistleblower Protection Act 2010.
He said Tei decided to go public after being dismissed by the MACC and receiving death threats.
The Sabah mining scandal surfaced last year following the leak of several videos purportedly showing discussions involving bribery and misconduct related to mineral exploration projects in the state.
Tei and two other Sabah assemblymen have since claimed trial to charges of giving and receiving a total of RM350,000 in bribes related to mineral prospecting licence applications in the state.