Kota Melaka MP Khoo Poay Tiong (bottom left) arguing with opposition MPs over fugitive businessman Adlan Berhan and the Penang undersea tunnel.
PETALING JAYA: The Penang undersea tunnel project and fugitive businessman Adlan Berhan were highly contentious issues that resulted in barbs traded between MPs in the Dewan Rakyat today.
Khoo Poay Tiong (PH-Melaka) had repeatedly questioned the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission’s failure to find Adlan, who is former prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin’s son-in-law, despite having over 1,000 personnel, and demanded that MACC act more proactively to extradite him.
However, Khalib Abdullah (PN-Rompin) interrupted him, referring to Standing Order 36(10) and saying Khoo was intentionally belabouring the point to “hurt the feelings” of the opposition.
Standing Order 36(10) prohibits the use of “words which are likely to promote feelings of ill-will or hostility between communities”.
“Kota Melaka has become directionless. Please don’t repeat these words, which hurt our feelings. You keep on talking about the same thing, even though there are many public issues we want to talk about,” he said.
Che Zulkifly Jusoh (PN-Besut) then accused Khoo of double standards, particularly in matters of bribery.
“Why don’t you talk about the tunnel? RM2 million in bribes were involved. What we are objecting to is you talking about the same thing again and again,” he said.
Radzi Jidin (PN-Putrajaya) attempted to calm the situation, saying the authorities are working to bring back Adlan, and that it is unfair to accuse people of protecting him.
On Oct 23, Khoo had similarly sparked an argument when he interrupted Muhyiddin (PN-Pagoh) to talk about the poverty faced by the rakyat, contrasting it with the lavish life spent by the Perikatan Nasional chairman’s son-in-law overseas.
This triggered heated responses from several opposition MPs, following which deputy speaker Alice Lau ordered Khoo to sit as Muhyiddin had not given way for him to speak.
On Oct 29, MACC chief Azam Baki said the agency is struggling to extradite Adlan due to several factors, including difficulties in identifying overseas assets belonging to Adlan and his lawyer Mansoor Saat.
