Barisan Nasional leaves it to the public to evaluate PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang’s claims regarding a 2014 US offer to topple the government.
PUTRAJAYA: Barisan Nasional (BN) has decided not to comment further on allegations by PAS president Tan Sri Abdul Hadi Awang that the United States (US) had offered assistance to topple the Malaysian government in 2014.
BN secretary-general Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir said the allegation concerned a conversation between Abdul Hadi and the party in question and was outside BN’s purview, adding that the coalition would leave it to the public to assess the claim.
“If anyone wishes to question it, that is a matter of individual judgment. When he makes such a statement, at the very least the public becomes aware of what transpired, and we cannot take the politics of our country lightly,” he said.
The Higher Education Minister told reporters this after a ceremony to present tuition fee sponsorship letters to Malaysian Higher School Certificate (STPM) students here today.
Zambry acknowledged that the allegation had sparked controversy, including calls for evidence to substantiate the claim.
Yesterday, three police reports were lodged over Abdul Hadi’s statement, while US Embassy Chargé d’Affaires David H. Gamble Jr. described the allegation as false in a Facebook post, saying that the US had never attempted to determine Malaysia’s political leadership.
Abdul Hadi reportedly claimed that the US had offered assistance to his party to topple and take over the government during BN’s tenure while speaking at the 72nd PAS Annual Congress in Kota Bharu, Kelantan.
