The Dewan Rakyat descended into chaos today.
This time, after an opposition member of parliament (MP) claimed to have been threatened to express support for the leadership of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
Datuk Wan Saiful Wan Jan (PN-Tasek Gelugor) claimed that he was contacted via phone by numerous individuals for the purpose.
“After winning the Tasek Gelugor seat in the 15th General Election, I faced Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) investigations and was charged in court.
“Although parliament is not the right place to voice this, I just wanted to share that I did not expect this to happen to me.
“I would like to take this opportunity to share that I was not only asked but threatened to support the prime minister.
“To the point, I agreed to meet them,” he said when debating the Royal Address today.
Wan Saiful said the first meeting was on Jan 17 at the Westin Hotel in Bukit Bintang.
“The next meeting was at the JW Marriot Hotel. One of the individuals who had approached me was a friend, but I will not name the person,” he said.
He alleged to have been offered a reward in return for expressing his support for Anwar, including an allocation of RM1.7 million for his constituency.
He also claimed the effort continues with the latest being on Monday (Feb 26) for a meeting at Corus Hotel in Jalan Ampang.
“They said allocations for government projects could also be distributed to my cronies. They know I’m having a hard time, with my wife also having cancer,” he said.
Wan Saiful also claimed that charges against him would be dropped if he pledged support.
Wan Saiful’s revelation sparked an uproar among the government MPs, including RSN Rayer (PH-Jelutong).
Rayer urged Wan Saiful to lodge a report with the MACC.
“Don’t hide behind immunity in the hall. Hold a press conference outside. You are making false claims,” said Chong Zhemin (PH-Kampar).
“I have all the records and don’t try me, or I’ll reveal them one by one,” said Wan Saiful.
He claimed that the individuals who approached him did not use their real names.
Speaker Tan Sri Johari Abdul then stepped in, saying Wan Saiful’s claims were seemingly hearsay.
“We cannot bring this into the hall.
“It’s always about what ‘they’ said. You can’t do that,” Johari said, adding that he could not verify the validity of the matter.
Johari then instructed Wan Saiful to wrap up his debate so proceedings could continue.