Economic Affairs Minister, Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali, intends to take legal action against the owner of the blog ‘Toyol of Selangor’ andy any outlets which repeat the claims made in the blog, on both social media and portals.
Azmin’s press secretary, Mohd Hassanal Bolqiah Mohd Yusoff, in a statement, said this came about following allegations that Azmin had RM300 million stashed abroad.
He said Azmin has already instructed his legal team to file a request with the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) to identify the owner of the blog for further action.
“This legal action is done with the aim of stopping the libellous claims which aim to jeopardise the reputation of the Economic Affairs Minister.
“Azmin is disappointed with the attitude of the media, which reported the claim based on an untrustworthy source, thus miring itself in gutter politics,” he said.
The blog on June 18 had published an article titled ‘Toyol of Selangor’, which was subsequently shared via WhatsApp.
The post claimed that Azmin and his wife, Datin Shamsidar Taharin, kept hundreds of millions of ringgit in several bank accounts overseas.
The blog had allegedly listed the numbers of the accounts said to be owned by Azmin.
The author, who had claimed to be a former staff of Azmin, alleged that he or she had to maintain anonymity for fear of reprisal. The author also claimed that “independent investigators” had linked Azmin with various bank accounts in countries such as Indonesia, Singapore, the UAE, Hong Kong, India, China, Australia, Switzerland and the United States.
Azmin, however, said he had nothing to hide, having declared his assets since 2008, and urged those with information to go to the authorities to have him investigated.
WordPress has since suspended the ‘Toyol of Selangor’ blog for breaching its terms of service.