Soldier on, MACC chief urged

KUALA LUMPUR: Umno leaders have urged Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) head Tan Sri Dzulkifli Ahmad to remain steadfast in his duties and not succumb to external pressures.
In response to a recent video that surfaced implicating Dzulkifli in an extramarital affair, Communications and Multimedia Minister Datuk Seri Salleh Said Keruak said Dzulkifli should not allow such tactics to undermine him and his duties.
Salleh urged Dzulkiflli to ignore the criticism and continue serving "because as a senior and high-profile public servant, being subjected to attacks comes with the territory".
"The more you do your job, the more you will suffer attacks'," he added.
Salleh said in 2015, those who opposed the government thought they could use MACC to attack Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak.
"(But) today, Dzulkifli is being attacked. If they can use you, then you are a godsend. And if they cannot use you, then they will go to any lengths to discredit you, humiliate you, tarnish your image and destroy your reputation with lies, slander and fabricated allegations of all sorts of imagined crimes," he said.
On Monday, Umno supreme council member Datuk Mohd Puad Zarkashi had similarly urged MACC not to bow to the such dirty tactics.
He said the video was released by irresponsible parties who might have started to feel the heat following MACC's aggressive efforts in fighting corruption.
"I condemn those who tried to defame the MACC (officer) with this overly-sensationalised story. It was made with the intention of blackmailing (the officer and) MACC into not taking action in fighting corruption involving certain prominent political figures."
Puad said by dissemination of this "defamatory story", those who are under threat are hoping MACC will back away from pursuing certain investigations.
Meanwhile, Inspector-General of Police Tan Seri Muhammad Fuzi Harun said police are investigating the case.
"If we have to make arrests, we will," he said, adding that MACC has not yet made a police report on the matter.
A report against the MACC official in the video was lodged at the Sentul district police station last Tuesday.
The report was made after a marketing executive came across the video on YouTube that alleges a couple had divorced due to the woman's affair with the MACC officer.
Muhammad Fuzi said the case is being investigated under Section 498 of the Penal Code for enticing, with criminal intent, a married woman.