Salleh: If lavishness equals corruption, Dr M in trouble too
Minister says going by Mahathir Mohamad’s logic, anyone could be arrested, charged and imprisoned for corruption based on the cars or houses they possessed
(Free Malaysia Today) – If a lavish lifestyle is evidence enough that someone was corrupt and that the courts could then take legal action against that individual, then Dr Mahathir Mohamad himself could face the likelihood of imprisonment, said Salleh Said Keruak.
The Minister of Communications and Multimedia made these comments after Mahathir declared that no other evidence was required to charge one with corruption as a lavish lifestyle was a clear enough indicator.
“If this is how the new legal system is supposed to work then even Dr Mahathir himself would not be safe based on the lavish lifestyle of his own family who would need to prove they are not corrupt or else would have to go to jail,” Salleh alleged in his latest blog entry today.
He also said it sounded more like a presumption of guilt until innocence could be proven and said no one would be safe any longer.
“You can be arrested and put in jail just because someone says you are corrupt based on the car you drive or the house you live in.”
In a media conference after an anti-corruption symposium in Kuala Lumpur this morning, Mahathir had also said he would not rest until Prime Minister Najib Razak stepped down.
He also said he did not want to “change the system”, only the prime minister and that Malaysians could decide what system they wanted after the country had a new prime minister.
Reacting to these statements, Salleh asked, “Why did Dr Mahathir not change the system when he was Prime Minister for 22 years? Since Dr Mahathir wants to allow Malaysians to decide their own future, what if Malaysians decide they still want Najib Tun Razak as the Prime Minister? Is Dr Mahathir prepared to agree to this?
