KUALA LUMPUR, March 11 — Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) supreme council member Datuk Wan Saiful Wan Jan said he was confident the other Perikatan Nasional (PN) component leaders will back Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin to remain as the coalition’s chairman.
Yesterday, the former prime minister was charged with four counts of corruption and two counts of money laundering at the Sessions Court here.
“By being the president of Bersatu, he was appointed as PN chairman. And I’m sure everyone within PN wants him to stay (as coalition chairman),” Wan Saiful told reporters after attending Bersatu youth wing Armada’s annual grand meeting at Menara PGRM here today.
Last month, Wan Saiful became the first Bersatu leader to be charged over the JanaWibawa government scheme introduced during the Muhyiddin administration, and he resigned as the party’s information chief in a show of integrity.
After Muhyiddin was charged yesterday, however, he said he would let Bersatu decide if he should remain as its president.
Today, Wan Saiful said his and Muhyiddin’s situation should not be compared as his role had been an appointment while the latter was elected to his office.
“So far, we are unanimous in wanting Tan Sri to remain as president. And I have to mention here that this is different from my position. I, as the information chief, I was appointed, so I feel I have a responsibility to resign,” he said.
Previously, Wan Saiful claimed trial for two bribery charges at the Sessions Court here, in connection with the government’s Jana Wibawa scheme back in 2022.
In the first charge, the 47-year-old Tasik Gelugor MP was accused of soliciting an unspecified amount from one Lian Tan Chuan as an incentive to help Nepturis Sdn Bhd obtain a government contract for the Central Spine Road project worth RM232 million.
In the second charge, Wan Saiful was accused of receiving RM6,962,694.54 from Nepturis in relation to the same government road project.
