KUALA LUMPUR – Tasek Gelugor MP Datuk Wan Saiful Wan Jan described the 18 charges filed against him today as a government ploy to divert public attention away from actual issues.
Speaking to reporters following the court proceedings earlier today, Wan Saiful further claimed that the ploy “has to be done immediately”, following the criticism that the current government is facing.
“They have failed, and therefore they have to look for new issues to be used as a distraction.
“They even failed to organise the demonstration condemning Israel (recently), given the many complaints we have received regarding the event.
“So, if they don’t divert the rakyat, then their failure would be under the rakyat’s microscope.
“Which is why, as we can see, the charges prosecuted against me today were done in haste,” he said.
Earlier, he was scheduled to be charged with 18 fresh money laundering charges before sessions court judge Azura Alwi.
However, the judge granted him discharge not amounting to an acquittal (DNAA) for over 30 minutes, as requested by the prosecution.
The prosecution had requested so due to a technical error regarding the charges. They then refiled all the charges in the court’s online filing system, and Wan Saiful was then charged before sessions court judge Suzana Hussin.
“I do not understand how and why I was granted DNAA earlier, as the charges were not even read out to me at that time.
“And afterwards, I was immediately charged in a different court and this shows how the charges against me were done in such a hurry, resulting in such ‘chaos’.
“If this prosecution was properly planned, I would not see such an incident happening.”
Wan Saiful, 48, was charged with 18 fresh money laundering charges today involving over RM5.6 million.
Previously, on February 21, he was charged with two counts of corruption involving RM7 million. – October 25, 2023