KOTA KINABALU: Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) must explain why their assemblymen were seen talking about bribes over mineral licences, Parti Warisan Sabah president Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal said.
He said GRS must give answers and not blame the Opposition for the matter.
“It is your (GRS) assemblymen who were seen talking about bribes in the videos uploaded by an online news portal.
“It is not me making the accusations; they (the GRS assemblymen) were talking about it (bribes).
“As far as we are concerned, we leave it to the authorities to investigate as I don’t have the clear details on the issue,” Mohd Shafie told reporters after opening the party’s Sepanggar division annual meeting here yesterday.
He observed that the videos on the alleged bribery posted by the news portal involved several GRS leaders and they were reflecting upon the activities of the state government.
“They (GRS), state government leaders, are in the videos. How can we, (people) in the Opposition, be blamed for it?
“We don’t even know the person (whistleblower) making the accusation,” Mohd Shafie said.
He said that the alleged mineral licensing bribery scandal should be investigated fully, in line with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s firm stand against corruption.
Mohd Shafie said the Prime Minister’s firm approach against corruption will increase both local and foreign investments for the country.
He emphasised the importance of conducting a thorough investigation, as the allegations of bribery at hand have negatively impacted the state’s reputation.
“This matter has to be investigated as it involves their own assemblymen, not the Opposition.
“Let the authorities such as the MACC (Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission) carry out their duty to investigate, as (the controversy) has been spread across media portals for the past few days,” Mohd Shafie said.
He said that if Warisan wins the next election, the party will ensure that the mineral licence is placed under the state’s socio-economic arm, the Sabah Foundation.
“We will make sure that it is able to help the children of Sabah get scholarships,” said Mohd Shafie.
