Home Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi's letter to the FBI clearing Paul Phua Wei Seng of triad involvement should have been written by the police, says an opposition leader. – The Malaysian Insider file pic, January 9, 2015.
The home minister has mortgaged Malaysia's reputation and undermined the country's sovereignty with his letter to the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) vouching for a Malaysian gambling kingpin indicted by the US courts, veteran opposition politician Lim Kit Siang said today.
The DAP adviser and Gelang Patah MP said Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi's letter to the FBI clearing Paul Phua Wei Seng of triad involvement should have been written by the police.
Such a letter should not only have been written by the police, but sent to the FBI via the Foreign Affairs Ministry, and not directly to the FBI, Lim added.
"Why did Zahid send the letter unilaterally and undiplomatically, keeping both the police and the Foreign Affairs Ministry out of the loop?" Lim said in a statement today.
"How is Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak going to handle the first new scandal of his administration in 2015? Will he just do what he is now very good at, just bury his head in the sand?"
Phua, a former Macau casino junket operator, faces illegal sports betting charges in Las Vegas after being arrested during last year's FIFA World Cup football in Brazil. His son is also facing the same charges.
In the December 18, 2014 letter, Zahid said Phua was not a member of the 14K Triad in Malaysia.
Zahid's letter was to refute a court filing by the United States Justice Department, stating that he was a high-ranking member of the Asian-organised crime group.
The letter, addressed to FBI deputy director Mark F Giuliano, said Phua had also assisted Putrajaya on projects affecting national security.
A furore emerged in Malaysia after The South China Morning Post revealed the content of the letter.
Lim said Zahid would have failed his English comprehension test in school if he really believed what he said in his letter to the FBI.
"Zahid said the letter was requested by the legal firm Chesnoff & Schonfeld, which is representing Phua and his son."
However, Lim said, the letter was a request to the minister in charge of the Home Ministry to confirm that there was no 14K Triad in Malaysia.
"In the first place, Zahid’s letter was not just to ‘confirm’ that the 14K Triad did not exist in the country," Lim said.
Lim said Zahid had clearly vouched for Phua's character and declared him a "national asset" when he wrote that Phua had helped Putrajaya on “projects affecting our national security”.
In his letter, Zahid said Putrajaya continued to call upon Phua to assist the government from time to time and as such, Putrajaya was eager for him to return to Malaysia.
"Compounding his infraction, Zahid even tried to strengthen his plea by upping the national ante for an individual," Lim said.
He said Zahid had hinted about its impact on furthering “good international relations between our two countries, especially in the exchange of information”.
Lim also noted that the Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar had steered clear from commenting on Zahid’s letter.
Instead, Khalid had said that while the Hong Kong-based triad did not have roots here, Malaysians abroad were known to be its members.
On January 5, Malaysiakini reported that Zahid's letter to the FBI on Phua had been withdrawn from a Nevada District Court after Putrajaya objected to it being used for Phua's defence.
- TMI
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