Be brave and debate Arul, Ahmad Zahid tells Pua

(The Star) – Be brave, be a man and debate with 1Malaysia Development Berhad CEO Arul Kanda Kandasamy, the Deputy Prime Minister told Opposition lawmaker Tony Pua.

Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi (pic) said the Petaling Jaya Utara MP should not flip-flop over his stand on the issue, pointing out that Arul Kanda has agreed to a televised live debate and withdrew his conditions.

“If you dare to challenge others, then you should be brave enough to accept a challenge,” he said on the matter.

On Saturday, Arul had announced that he would take up Pua’s challenge to debate and withdrew his initial condition that the DAP lawmaker should first resign as a member of the Public Accounts Committee that is probing 1MDB.

Arul said he had asked Pua to step down from the PAC as it was “not an unreasonable” request since the MP was trying to be both prosecutor and judge in the matter.

However, it was reported that Pua had gone from wanting a debate with Arul on the controversial issue to calling for a question-and-answer session.

The Deputy Prime Minister said he was all for the debate to be televised live so that “questions on 1MDB will be answered”.

“Pua should not flip flop. If he wants answers, this is the right time. I hope he accepts Arul’s challenge to debate in good faith. He may be a politician but let’s not politicise this matter,” he said.