‘Shahrizat’s departure will not return lost RM250 million’

(Harakah Daily) – As the government succumbed to public pressure by deciding not to renew Wanita UMNO chief Shahrizat Abdul Jalil’s senatorship when it expires next month, PAS said stepping down from the cabinet was not the final solution to the National Feedlot Corporation scandal.

PAS vice president Mahfuz Omar said the issue of the abuse of RM250 million government loan to NFC headed by Shahrizat’s family members would not die down.

“Najib [Razak] stops Shahrizat’s service hoping this will reduce pressure on UMNO-BN. But by resigning it will not return the people’s RM250 million loaned to NFC. This issue will continue to burn,” said the Pokok Sena member of parliament.

With Shahrizat’s exit, Mahfuz said the pressure on NFC would now be increasingly felt by deputy prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin’s lap.

Muhyiddin was the Agriculture minister when the NFC was controversially awarded to Shahrizat’s family, despite other more experienced candidates for the cattle-rearing project.

“This is a question of government’s integrity and Muhyiddin is responsible because he was the Agriculture minister who chaired the selection committee given to a company linked to Shahrizat’s family. Is Najib ready to establish a royal commission of inquiry to investigate his deputy?” asked Mahfuz, repeating calls for a royal inquiry into the series of allegations which have shocked the country.

Yesterday, the Women, Family and Community Development minister announced that her senatorship, which end April 8, will not be renewed, but said she would not let go her post in Wanita UMNO.

“As a responsible member of the government, I feel the right thing for me to do is for me to step down graciously,” she told reporters.

In his reaction, prime minister Najib described Shahrizat’s decision as self-sacrifice.

“Although there is no proof so far that she had committed any offence in terms of law, because the NFC issue has drawn controversy and dispute, she was willing to withdraw from the government,” Bernama reported him as saying.

Meanwhile, PKR vice president N Surendran said by retaining her Wanita UMNO post, her resignation from cabinet was just an attempt to deceive the public into thinking that Najib and the BN are taking action on the NFC scandal.

He said Shahrizat’s time in the cabinet automatically ended with the expiry of her senatorship, and as such she had not resigned.

“Therefore how can Shahrizat claim to be resigning on April 8? In fact, she is disgracefully clinging on to her ministerial position until the very end,” said Surendran.

He added there was no political will and moral authority from UMNO to take action against leaders guilty of wrongdoing.

“Is it because so many of the current UMNO leaders are themselves tainted?” he asked.

On the other hand, DAP Sibu member of parliament Wong Ho Leng said he did not believe Shahrizat had stepped down willingly.

“Stepped down? No way. I think ada arahan (there was a directive),” he twitted.